My tips on making effective tech presentations
Published: 07/07/2025
By: Rob Whitaker
Lessons I've learned, and I'm still learning, on making effective engaging tech presentations
I have had the opportunity to speak in public, presenting my thoughts on tech in many settings— from the most incredible tech conferences, to online courses, and small workshops. I’ve also attended countless talks at meetups and conferences, both in the tech world and outside.
Throughout this, I have developed my own style of speaking — a way that I feel works for me and gets my message across clearly to those kind enough to come and listen. I’m always excited when people say they’ve decided to speak for the first time. I strongly believe everyone has something to teach — only you have the benefit of your experience. In fact, the genre of “This is my experience with X” is far more engaging than “I read the docs for X so you don’t have to.”
So I wanted to share some of my thoughts on public speaking in a tech context, most of which I have learned through making mistakes, and some lessons I’m still learning. I hope some of these tips can help on your speaking journey.
Speak as yourself
The most important point first. These are just my opinions on tech speaking; you will have others. There are many blog posts online authoritatively telling you the 100% do’s and don’ts of tech speaking. This is not one of those. These are simply the guidelines I use when writing a talk. You may find some work for you, and others won’t; some will be talk-dependent. But hopefully, I can justify to you why I feel they make my talks better.
The most important thing is to find a style that fits your personality and your message. My favourite tech speaker is Anna Beltrami. Anna is one of the most individual and creative tech speakers around, and ignores probably most of the advice I’ve laid out here. Yet, I’ve learned more from her than most tech presentations because Anna continues to be engaging through being true to herself and her message. Don’t feel you need to be a certain person or conform to a particular style for presenting— diversity of ideas and approaches is essential for a healthy exchange of ideas. I am a very different presenter from Anna, and I think the world is a better place for that, but that doesn’t mean I don’t admire her style and think about what she’s doing well that I can incorporate into my own. The most important ingredient in a good presentation is confidence, and this will come a lot easier if you feel comfortable.
Don’t read from a script
Scripting your talk — in whatever form works for you — is a great way to ensure it’s well-structured and covers all the important points. But don’t use the script as a crutch.
Reading directly from a script can make a talk feel wooden and flat. The written word isn’t the same as the spoken word, and when you read written text aloud, it can unexpectedly come across as less authentic. It also makes it harder to be dynamic and adapt to the room in the moment.
Aim to know your talk well enough that you can comfortably ad-lib when needed. Don’t worry if you’re not there yet — that confidence comes with experience.
Don’t read off your slides, but do read your slides
Any blog post on presenting will tell you not to read your slides. I’m here to tell you that all of these blog posts are wrong in a subtle way.
Reading off your slides as if they are a script can make your talk feel wooden and unengaging and should be avoided. But reading your slides is not wrong— remember that many people in your audience will not be able to read the contents of your slides. Even if they have great eyesight, there may be bright light or heads in the way of the screen. So if you’re not reading the content on your slide, a large portion of your audience won’t perceive the content.
This point should be considered in conjunction with…
Include minimal content on your slides
Your slides should be illustrative of your point, not the whole point, use them as a way to add impact to what you’re saying. If your slides contain a lot of text, no one is going to read that— or if they do try to read it, they aren’t listening to you and won’t digest either. If you’re presenting something technical, include minimal code, and where you do need to include code, highlight the handful of lines that are actually important, and inform your audience that the code will be shared after the talk. If you’re including a quote, read the quote.
Ensure any content on your slides is large and high contrast.
Include your audience
This is possibly my favourite tip, one that I get a lot out of, but I don’t see many people doing. When you’re presenting at a conference or meetup, your talk is not an island— it is one part of the event, so make your talk reflect that. This will make the talk stand out more in people’s minds and make people feel included. Perhaps a previous talk has made some points that fit in nicely with what you’re presenting, or there is an upcoming talk you’d recommend. Maybe you had an interesting chat in one of the breaks with an attendee who has a unique perspective— give them a shout-out so that other attendees can introduce themselves and continue the conversation. Or maybe there is someone in the room who you admire that you can introduce to attendees. Perhaps the conference has a specific theme that you can include in your slides.
Cite your sources
You are not so smart that every idea in a 30-minute talk came solely from your mind, and pretending as such looks arrogant. If your talk is engaging, people will want to know more and will want to go back to find more information. Plus, in the marketplace of ideas, people deserve credit for the work they have done. Even if the source is something you’ve written yourself, it provides useful context and should be included on the slide for those who wish to return to them.
Add a QR code at the end
Include a QR code linking to your contact details, sources, and a copy of your slides.
Don’t include Donald Trump memes
Donald Trump memes are objectively unfunny.
I don’t mean this in a “snowflake” way— whatever that means. They may have been funny at a time, but those jokes are now reaching a decade old. They’re tired and unoriginal. Plus, for many people, these are hurtful. Including Donald Trump memes shows me that you are uncreative and inconsiderate. There are few things that tell me your talk is not worth paying attention to more than the inclusion of Donald Trump memes.
Don’t loop animations
Motion on a large projector screen looks very different from on a small laptop screen, and you might be unwittingly making your audience dizzy. Animation, including GIFs, shouldn’t loop.
Consider swearing carefully
I’m certainly no prude and not against swearing, but for some, swearing can be unnecessary and take them out of your presentation. So use it sparingly— only where it is essential to make your point. Some people can get away with swearing in presentations, but unless you’re Ellen Shapiro, that probably doesn’t include you.
Rehearse your talk
Rehearse your talk to yourself — and time it — but there’s no substitute for presenting in front of people. If you can, invite some colleagues into a meeting room and do the presentation for them before the main event. You’ll get some invaluable feedback, even if it’s just a feeling from yourself about how long things took, or how engaged people felt. If this isn’t possible, record yourself providing the talk and watch it back, as cringe as this may seem, it will make the talk more comfortable for your audience!
Perform a tech check
If you’re doing anything more complex than connecting to a projector and showing some slides, make sure you arrange time to do a tech check. This includes if you need wifi or are doing live coding. Even if you are sharing slides, confirming you know how to adjust screen mirroring can be invaluable. Be prepared if your tech check doesn’t go smoothly and modify your talk as necessary. You don’t have to be flawless, some hiccups can keep people engaged, but if you get flustered this can derail your talk.
Support your fellow speakers
Speakers will often sit on the front row for others’ talks because they know looking at an empty front row is not a great experience for a speaker. If there are no other questions at the end of a talk, they will often ask one. If you have a specific question you would like to be asked, maybe speak to a fellow speaker before your talk and they’ll subtly ask the right thing if no one else gets there. Don’t sit at the back chatting, even if some fellow attendees may be— as a speaker, this makes you look as though you feel your talk is more important than anyone else’s.
While you’re talking, don’t overrun your slot. And once you’re done, clear up promptly and vacate the stage.
Ask for feedback
There is a good chance, especially at conferences, that there are speakers in the audience who you admire. Experienced speakers are, from my experience, always delighted to provide feedback on your talk because they want to support you, and they also want to see new and improving speakers— but you have to ask them. It doesn’t have to be experienced speakers; everyone in your audience will have thoughts on what they just learned. Just remember that your friends are likely to be positive because they like you, and people who don’t know you are generally going to be polite, so general questions might not be so helpful. Something like “I’m not sure this section worked— do you think I should try {something else}?” can get some actionable feedback. One question I often ask is “I was trying to make this point, was that clear?”
Support the event
This is somewhat different in the iOS world, where nearly all conferences and meetups are organised and run by committed volunteers on a non-profit basis. Remember that these people are giving their time and money to provide you with this platform— as, of course, are you. Conferences and meetups are a collaborative effort, and as a speaker, you are just as much a part of making the event a success as the organisers.
Promote the event you’re speaking at before you’re speaking, and if it’s great, promote and attend future editions. If it’s not great, provide some private, actionable feedback. Respond quickly to requests for information from the organisers. If you need anything non-standard for your talk, or are unsure of any arrangements, ask them in good time.
Good luck
If you’re a seasoned speaker, or looking to talk for the first time, thank you for your work in contributing to the sharing of ideas. I’m excited to hear your unique perspective on stage soon.
