Preparing Multimedia Presentation In Today`s digital society, communication is mediated using technology. For communication to be more effective, it is imperative to know how technology works, what purposes it can serve and how it an be used efficiently and effectively used to achieve specific goals in the communication process.

A. Chracteristics of Multimedia Presentation

1. Multimedia presentations are visually oriented

2. They allow users to use different modalities such as:

a. Text e. Animation

b. Graphics f. Video

c. Audio

d. Photographs

Special features of Computer-based presentation

1. Custom navigation ( linking)between slides, to other media and to the internet

2. Can bemade into hard copy printouts or transparencies.

3. Can be uploaded to the web

B. Steps in Making Effective Multimedia Presentations

1. Know the purpose of the presentation

2. Know the audience

3. Gather information

4. Use a variety of resources such as:

a. textbooks

b. digital resources ( photographs and scanned images, students work, and internet)

5. Do not forget to cite sources

a. Write the author`s name, title of the work and date of publication.

b. Include the website or web page address of the sournces.

c. In general, non-profit education use of online materials for a lecture qualifies as “fair use” but

author`s permission to use such materials

d. Always have full bibliographic references for all citations.

6. Organize the information

a. List the main points
b. Have only one main idea per slide.

c. Present ideas in a logical order

d. Place important near the top.

7.  Check technical issues

a.  Contrast

> Dark text on light background

White text on dark background

b. Use only one design  and color scheme throughout the slide presentation

c. Avoid clutter

d. Avoid pattered  or textured backgrounds.

e. Use large forn size (minimum 18 pts)

f. Use fonts that are easy to read. don`t use fancy fonts.

g. Don’t` use more than types of fonts.

h. Aviod too much text. Don`t use the presentation as your notes.

I. Use no more that 3 or 4 bullets per slide.

8. Be creative

a. Use trasitions and animations to add interest.

b. But don`t overdo it!

Create an Outline

Just like when you write a research paper, you should begin a multimedia presentation with an outline.

Your outline should contain a listing of your research main points, with all of the sub-points you plan to make. Write your outline down, and then put it aside for a few days before you look at it again. Sometimes this can help you identify weak spots that might make your presentation confusing to others.

Once you have your outline completed, go back and look at it again, but this time, look for places where you can insert multimedia. Remember, multimedia should enhance your presentation material, not replace your information. Here are some points to ponder as you review your outline for multimedia placement, according to digitalliteracy.com:

Would a photograph or other type of illustration make this point easier for the audience to understand?

Would a chart, graph, infograph, map, or diagram help clarify the points you want to make?

Will adding these multimedia elements help the audience have a better understanding of the topic?

Will adding this multimedia help engage the audience and help hold their attention?

You should have answered yes to all of those questions before adding your multimedia.

Develop Your Presentation

Okay, so now that you've decided where you want to place the multimedia, it's time to decide what type would work best for each spot to help you make your research point. Let's look at what types you might consider:

• Digital posters

• Handouts

• Charts and graphs

• Maps

• Flyers

• Photos

• Clip Art

• Diagrams

• Slide shows (like PowerPoint)

• Video clips

• Audio clips (like speeches, news stories, etc.)

• Sound and music

You should make a note in your outline where you intend to specifically place each multimedia item. Allow enough time to accommodate your multimedia elements. You my find you need to trim videos, crop photos, etc. to fit into your presentation time frame, slide limitation, etc.

Practice

If you do not practice your presentation with all of your multimedia elements in place, your presentation will look awkward and will leave you frustrated and frazzled.

Practice makes perfect! You need to see how much time your multimedia adds to your presentation, and work through smooth transitions between the multimedia and your information. It's also easy to forget when you planned to distribute handouts, etc., when you are nervous, so practicing several times before your actual presentation can help you remember when you want to stop, etc. Practicing will hopefully alleviate uncomfortable pauses while you fumble to start a video, or click the mouse because practice will enable you to move smoothly through your presentation. Uncomfortable pauses can be embarrassing for you, but it can also give your audience time to become distracted by something else. And that's never a good thing!

If you don't have someone to practice in front of, try to record yourself on video (use your phone!) and then watch it back later. This will let you see if you are saying "uh", or "like" or "you know" or any other words repeatedly.

Pecha Kucha

What is Pecha Kucha?

Pecha Kucha is a presentation form of 20 images for 20 seconds. The slides change automatically and the speaker must synchronise their speech with the images. It’s sometimes also called a 20×20 presentation. So the entire presentation always lasts for exactly 6 minutes and 40 seconds.

It started in Tokyo in 2003, designed by architects, Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham. It was soon adopted by fans of alternative presentation styles. Similar to the short-length focus of an elevator pitch, Pecha Kucha relies upon concision and brevity. By applying a limit on the number of slides, the presenter is forced to streamline their content. It also forces the speaker to prepare and practice, as there is no option to go back or skip ahead. Pecha Kucha is also a very visual presentation style. It is based on single powerful images. Striking visuals enhance any presentation. They captivate the audience in a more immediate way than written words.

Pecha Kucha translates as “the sound of conversation” or “chit-chat” in Japanese. Its creators wanted a space to share ideas and messages through presentations. But to avoid the easy trap of rambling speakers, they set time and slide limits. In a similar way to a Haiku poem, Pecha Kucha forces the creator to creatively arrange their message within a strict form. And such creativity often produces amazing results.

So because of its concise style, specific timings and visual focus, Pecha Kucha has flourished in popularity over the last few decades. You can find many a Pecha Kucha presentation example on their website.

How to create a Pecha Kucha Presentation

Choose a topic

The key piece of advice for newbies to Pecha Kucha is to start with a topic you love. Your passion will not only shine through in your choice of alternative presentation styles, but it will motivate you to create and streamline your content. It’s also a great way to think of an original topic. You are individual. So your Pecha Kucha presentation should be too.

Also try to keep your topic simple. If you love it, you might be tempted to speak a lot about it. But Pecha Kucha has a limit for a reason. Simplify your subject at least enough to fit it into 6 minutes and 40 seconds. Give an overview with a clear message. People can always research more about it afterwards. But the point of Pecha Kucha is focus and concision. So keep your topic light.

Be organised

Pecha Kucha’s restricted format requires a lot of discipline. Organisation can help a lot. Create an outline to structure the story of your presentation. And always stick to one point per slide. Once you have an original structure, tweak it. You probably have to edit a lot of your ideas down to fit within the 20X20 format. So streamline your content and focus on the most important points of your message. Don’t distract yourself with what you want to say. Instead, consider your audience. What do they need to hear?

Create a PowerPoint

Simple slides have never been as important as in a Pecha Kucha presentation. Don’t use bullet points. And don’t use facts and figures. Don’t even use text! Just choose a strong and powerful image and speak over the top of it. This is the format for most successful Pecha Kucha presentations. You audience has only 20 seconds to absorb each slide. They don’t want to rush through text or try and understand a slide. They want a striking image that hits them with meaning straight away. That’s what makes a great Pecha Kucha presentation example.

Practice your presentation

Practice is perhaps even more important than usual in a Pecha Kucha presentation. The fast flow and inability to rewind or delay a slide means you must know it by heart. Perhaps you learn your speech word by word. Or maybe you know the message of each slide and speak about it naturally. Either way, you need to be aware of that constantly ticking timer.

Blogging

in today`s digital world, blogging has become one of the effective ways of communication and networking among students, professionals, businessmen, public officailas, etc.. in other words, blogging has become an indispensable medium of communication.

What is blog?

A shortened form of weblog, blogs are personal journal websites on which a user can type an entry and add images, videos and links to other websites. Usually, readers of a blog can post comments.

What is the purpose of a blog?

There are many reasons to start a blog for personal use and only a handful of strong ones for business blogging. Blogging for business, projects, or anything else that might bring you money has a very straightforward purpose – to rank your website higher in Google SERPs, a.k.a. increase your visibility.

As a business, you rely on consumers to keep buying your products and services. As a new business, you rely on blogging to help you get to potential consumers and grab their attention. Without blogging, your website would remain invisible, whereas running a blog makes you searchable and competitive.

So, the main purpose of a blog is to connect you to the relevant audience. Another one is to boost your traffic and send quality leads to your website.

The more frequent and better your blog posts are, the higher the chances for your website to get discovered and visited by your target audience. This means that a blog is an effective lead generation tool. Add a great call to action (CTA) to your content, and it will convert your website traffic into high-quality leads. A blog also allows you to showcase your niche authority and build a brand.

When you use your niche knowledge for creating informative and engaging posts, it builds trust with your audience. Great blogging makes your business look more credible, which is especially important if your brand is still young and fairly unknown. It ensures presence online and niche authority at the same time.

Blog structure
The appearance of blogs has changed over time, and these days blogs include a wide variety of items and widgets. However, most blogs still include some standard features and structure.

Here are common features that a typical blog will include:

• Header with the menu or navigation bar.

• Main content area with highlighted or latest blog posts.

• Sidebar with social profiles, favorite content, or call-to-action.

• Footer with relevant links like a disclaimer, privacy policy, contact page, etc.
  
  
  

Blogs and websites

Many people still wonder if there is any difference between a blog and a website. What is a blog and what is a website? It’s even more challenging to differentiate between the two today. Many companies are integrating blogs into their websites as well, which further confuses the two.

What differentiates blogs from websites?

Blogs need frequent updates. Good examples of this include a food blog sharing meal recipes or a company writing about their industry news.

Blogs also promote reader engagement. Readers have a chance to comment and voice their different concerns and thoughts to the community. Blog owners update their site with new blog posts on a regular basis.

Who is a blogger?

In recent times, bloggers have become famous for various reasons. Blogging has become an alternative career or side gig to many. Seeing this, even more people are choosing to join the blogging ranks.

So who are bloggers? Bloggers are individuals who love sharing parts of their lives with you. They post on various topics from arts, home designs, carpentry, and finance articles. Bloggers are mobile and don’t need to be in one place. They live on the internet!

Definition of a blogger

A blogger is someone who runs and controls a blog. He or she shares his or her opinion and knowledge on different topics for a target audience.

Why are many people blogging today?

Would you want to have a blog of your own? Yes!

Most people today are creating blogs for a variety of reasons. Every human being has their own story to tell. Through the internet, bloggers can communicate to a massive number of people.

Why is blogging so popular?

Blogs allow you to talk about any topic you are interested in and express your opinion. You’ll find some bloggers writing on every activity that took place during their day. These activities may range from small things like waking up to major issues like human rights and climate change! Remember that as a blogger running your own blog, you need to focus on the topics that you are passionate about and through that focus strive to become one of the best blogs on the web.

Are bloggers getting paid?

Our blogging industry survey proves that bloggers do earn money, but this is not a get-rich-quick kind of profession. Before you can start monetizing your blog, you need to build both your Google SERPs ranking and your niche influence. Those tasks take a lot of time and quality content. Money-making opportunities won’t present themselves until you’ve gained some credibility in the field. So, get down to business.

Here’s how you can make good money as a top-ranked niche blogger:

• Selling ad space on your blog privately or via Google AdSense.

• Becoming an affiliate partner privately or through ad networks.

• Selling your own digital products such as eBooks and tutorials.

• Selling memberships for access to exclusive content or advice.

• Using your blog as a content marketing tool for your business.

If you’re starting a blog as a way to market and boost your existing business, you probably won’t be selling ad space or memberships. However, you can create and start offering exclusive digital products such as eBooks, guides, or online courses as a lead capturing tool in exchange for visitors’ email addresses. That way, you’ll nudge them one step further down your sales funnel.

Want to start a blog on your own? Creating your own personal blog takes a few steps. First, you need to decide on a name for your blog, also called a domain name. Then, you need to choose the best blogging platform for your needs. We recommend going with a self-hosted platform. There are a few choices when it comes to self-hosted platforms, but the most popular is WordPress.org. The next step is to choose a web hosting service. For new bloggers, we strongly recommend Bluehost, a company that powers over 2 million websites worldwide. You will get a Free domain name when you sign up with them and if you don’t like their services, they offer a 30-day money-back guarantee. Disclosure: FirstSiteGuide is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. We test and try all the products that we recommend.

Rember to:

1. Be short and direct

2. Ask a thought-provoking question

3. ask a multiple-choice question

4. share a shocking fact or statistic

5. share something personal

6. Withhold a compelling piece of information

7. Refuse conventional wisdom

8. Lead with a success story

9. Start with reader`s question

10. Share a quote