Ah, the speaking business. There are a million experts, voices, tipsters and YouTube videos. Do this and, don’t ever, ever, do that.

I know. I claim to be one of them. I am constantly offering free but absolute advice about visuals, presentation skills, design and such. I try to catch myself with a common admonition to my readers to try something out. If it works for you, then great. If not, then there are lots of other pieces of advice about the same issue.

This past week I had the honor of designing slides and coaching a few TEDxPeachtree speakers here in Atlanta (Cara Turano Snow, above). It was that kind of experience for me that I know I will extract lessons from for many months to come.

Two initial truths I have concluded:

1. There are a lot of ways to do this thing we call public speaking. A lot of ways to skin this cat. Maybe this is what attracts me to it with such a deep-felt zeal. There is no one path. For every “rule” you hear from an “expert” or see online there is someone out there who is breaking it and getting standing ovations (and probably millions of dollars).
2. The one rule, however, that may be absolute is that the audience is always at the top of the list. It doesn’t matter who you are or how important your message, if you don’t inform, entertain or in some way add value to your audience then you have missed the mark.

I try to coach my clients and create their presentations to fit their individual skills and passions. Always while keeping the ultimate goal of providing something meaningful for the audience. It is not a perfect science. There were some bulls-eyes at TEDxPeachtree and there were some works-in-progress.

There may be a third truth:

3. When you are at the front of the room and you command a group’s attention, when that connection occurs, when you say or show or create something that touches your audience and creates a deep, even emotional, bridge, then that is as good as it gets. It is like drugs for the presenter and it can be a life-expanding experience for the audience.

Maybe that is the real magic of TED.

Here, in roughly chronological order, are 12 basic questions you should ask yourself as you prepare for your next presentation. Some of these deal with visuals — how you might prepare and deliver PowerPoint or Keynote — but most of them are all encompassing and are relevant to just about every situation where you are formally addressing a group.

1. Who are these guys? The most basic of research should be conducted into your audience. Who are they? What are the general parameters that define them: age, education, gender, socioeconomics, careers, company positions, etc., etc. How homogeneous are they? What about the organization they belong to? What are their concerns, needs, trends? Try to crawl inside their heads. If you have time, contact some of their leaders and rank and file members to interview them. Then you can ask yourself the ultimate question: What do I have of value that I can bring to this specific audience?

2. What is my BIG idea? I have written about having and developing a big idea a number of times. What do you want the audience to “get?” What one thing do you want them to remember if you run into any of them in a few weeks? Express it as a benefit or action item for them. Distill this down to one clear, simply-stated concept. Use this BIG idea as a yard stick to measure against everything in your presentation. Does every slide, comment, exercise, etc. move the audience toward this one concept. Maybe 90% of business leaders and experts who speak have too much information to effectively deliver to an audience. It is better that your listeners get your one core concept then they are overwhelmed with 10.

3. Is there a logical structure? Now that you have a BIG idea, do you have maybe three supporting points for that idea? Do you state and develop those points clearly, logically? Does it all make sense? Does it flow logically? Many experts make the mistake of structuring their presentations according to their own internal understanding of their content. Organize and parse it so that your audience, who may not be experts, can absorb and digest. Put yourself in their shoes.

4. Do I really need slides? I make my living designing visual presentations for speakers but there are many situations where even a non-professional speaker can and should go it alone. Slides can help define a concept, can set a mood, can add an emotional component and can even help a speaker keep on track, but the audience wants to see and hear you. They want to know your take, your opinions. Consider just standing and delivering. If you are prepared and confident enough, it can be a powerful experience for both you and your audience.

5. Are my slides effective? This can cover so much, but ask yourself: Do I use quality images? Have I removed all but the most important keywords from my slides? If I have numbers, do I make them meaningful to my audience? Evaluate each slide to see if it works to move your viewers toward your BIG idea. Ask yourself if you need every slide and every element in each slide? Do you need additional slides to make your case?

6. Do I have stories? The power of relevant stories cannot be overstated. They appeal directly to our listeners’ empathy and emotions. The audience will paint their personal experiences onto yours. The connection and the buy-in are enormous. However stories need to be developed, edited and rehearsed. Don’t waste a lot of time with extraneous details. Make sure there is a relevant point (see #2 above). Tell about challenges as well as successes — people love to hear how you overcame a difficulty. If you are anxious about stories being too soft for a business context — don’t be. But if you must, think of them as “examples.”

Next week: the remaining 6 questions, including what to do just before you go on (Hint: Move like Jagger).

No matter what you may have heard, PowerPoint (or Apple Keynote, if that is your choice) can be an exceptionally effective tool for creating a superstar speech.

To build a powerful visual presentation I try to work towards these goals…

I look for the core of your message, your big idea, your mission. Often my clients are not sure of what that core is. They may know all the endless details but they haven’t found or defined the center, the nugget of truth. That’s what I want. Sometimes that nugget is an emotional revelation. Sometimes it is a blinding flash of the obvious. Sometimes it is a profound, distilled insight that only their expertise could uncover. Whatever that is – that’s what I look for.

Then I translate that big idea, that core message, into slides. The slides have to illuminate the message; help explain the message; maybe even provide the emotional component of the message. The visuals have to do all that and still let the speaker be the storyteller – the star of their show. The slides cannot steal the presenter’s energy. They must complement his or her speech, deliver the presenter’s message and certainly not be boring.

And finally, and perhaps most important, the slides have to engage the audience and maybe even inspire them.

That is not your typical bullet-point riddled presentation. If done right, this can make for a pretty darn good PowerPoint show.

Two must have items for a polished professional presentation are a remote control or “clicker” and a monitor of some kind.

A clicker gives you control of your presentation without having to interrupt your delivery to walk over to your laptop and manually advance each slide. Or worse yet having to ask someone to babysit your laptop and advance the slides when you request them. Both of these scenarios cause you as the presenter to step out of your role as the speaker and deal with the technology — even if only for a second. Both disrupt the flow of your delivery and are distracting to the audience — making you look not in control and unprofessional.

I would suggest purchasing your own remote even if the venue for your presentation has one. They are for the most part universally cross-compatible and not too expensive. Bring extra batteries.

The monitor, unless it is your laptop, is not something you are expected to provide — but it is none the less critical to the success of your performance. Having a monitor in front of you, in your line of sight, allows you to see the slide that the audience is seeing without having to turn your head and look at the screen.

Always check out your speaking area in advance and, if possible, do a run through with the actual equipment you will use for the presentation. Can you position yourself and your laptop so that you can see the screen clearly when you stand to the side, out of the projector beam? If there is a provided monitor, is it compatible with your laptop and cabling? Is it in a good position for you to speak and still see the screen? If the using a provided system is it compatible with your presentation? What are the optimum areas where you can stand and still engage well with the audience? Does the remote work, are the batteries fresh and do you understand which buttons do what?

Having the right tools and doing a walk through before hand will add substantially to your confidence, your professionalism and the audience’s feeling that you are the expert in control.