- Who are the audience?
- Always be ready to answer questions; be
prepared
with sound facts and information
- Run through your presentation with your manager or a peer
and ask for their questions
- Schedule time for questions at the end of the presentation
and announce this at the start
- Be clear when the question and answer session has started
- If you decide to answer questions during the presentation
to ensure that people stay engaged, make sure that you stay on track, don’t get
sidetracked by the questions
- Listen carefully to the question
- If the audience is large, or being videotaped, repeat the
question to ensure that everyone heard and it gets recorded
- Pause before you answer to make sure you are addressing
the whole question
- Be concise in your answer
- Keep eye contact with the questioner, but answer to the
whole audience
- If you don’t know the answer, say so and tell the
questioner where they can find the answer or offer to find the information and contact
them with it later
- If relevant, relate your answers to key points made in the
presentation to reinforce your message
- Avoid ending with a question, take a few moments to recap
your key points