What’s in the guide?
6 Parts
17 Chapters
29,584 words
84 Screenshots
10+ Videos
Roughly speaking—and by that I mean super specific—the Ultimate Guide to Giving Virtual Presentations on Zoom contains six thematic parts, seventeen chapters, 29,584 words, eighty four precision-crafted interface screenshots to show you how to do cool things, high-production instructional videos full of fun, insights, marvellous techniques to marvel at, and did I mention that it’s twenty nine thousand, five hundred and eighty four words long?
Wait. If I add this paragraph to the number it’s actually 29,656. So, roughly speaking, it’s awesome.
18 Zoom Features
Cool Zoom Features You Should Know About
Learn how to use the lesser-known features of Zoom for a more dynamic presentation.
7 Bad Techniques
Things to Avoid Doing in a Virtual Presentation
Learn the most common mistake in a virtual presentation and how to avoid making them.
13 Good Techniques
Definitely Do These Things When Presenting
With a few simple techniques you can drastically improve your chances of pulling off a successful virtual presentation on Zoom. And no, I don’t expect you to build an actual stage like I did, but you can at least put a plant in the background.
Your Talk’s Purpose
Create Experience Moments
A key trait of successful speakers is that they understand their personal brand. They know what they represent, how they want to be perceived, and what success looks for them. This leads directly into how we should be designing our talk experiences.
Map it Out
Presentation Structure, Story, & Flow
Learn how to craft a story arc by reducing your big idea to it’s simplest form and chunking it into structured elements.
40 Slide Design Tips
Slide Design Tips for Virtual Presentations
Take a deep dive into the art of presentation design in this incredibly actionable chapter that will elevate your skills overnight. And yes, there are forty tips in this chapter alone.
Real People
Virtual Audience Engagement
They may be invisible, but they’re still there, and they’re still real people who want to have a good time. Learn techniques for audience participation and five simple tricks to help maintain eye contact while presenting virtually.
Audio & Video
Create Professional Recordings of Your Talks
Learn the six elements of a great presentation recording. Plus techniques, tools, and lists of equipment you need to record professional high-resolution videos of your talks. It also covers editing in post-production, and how to add closed captions for enhanced accessibility.
6 Whoopsies
What to Do When Things Go Wrong
There are many things that can go wrong in a virtual presentation, most of them technical in nature. This chapter covers six serious issues, and offers creative solutions to turn a catastrophic and embarrassing moment, into a calm, collected, professional delivery.
5 Advanced Tips
Advanced & Creative Virtual Presentation Tips
Proxy hosts, shortlinks, customized meeting rooms, landing pages, and clickers, oh my. Enhance your expertise with these technical tips, and the best virtual speaking strategy of all—standing up.
23 Settings
Zoom Settings to Turn On or Off for a Successful Presentation
Zoom has a grand total of 301 settings—I counted them with my finger and brain—which can make it really hard to find a critical feature when it’s crunch time. This chapter breaks down the essentials and is your game-day checklist for success.
