Practice is essential for a successful presentation. Dr. Jill Bolte-Taylor, the speaker whose TED Talk has been viewed over 20 million times, rehearsed 200 times before she delivered it in front of the TED audience.
Steve Jobs would rehearse on stage for many hours, over many weeks, prior to the launch presentation of a major product. Many of us assume well-known speakers are naturally gifted and don’t need much practice, however they still spend hours preparing.
When giving a presentation, it can be beneficial to practice with your own slides. In this article, we discuss using the VirtualSpeech virtual reality (VR) app to do just this – you can load your presentation slides and practice with them in the same virtual room as you.
This allows you to work on getting the correct slide change timings, pace of delivery and to remind you of the key message of that section.
Demo video of a user changing presentation slides in different virtual rooms within the VirtualSpeech app.
Why use virtual reality?
Virtual reality can immerse users in the situations they are preparing for, whether that’s a conference, team meeting, networking event, or sales pitch. Once you put on a VR headset, it looks and feels as if you are actually at the event.
A benefit of VR is that it helps recreate the fear and excitement you might experience when giving a presentation in front of an actual audience.
In addition, with virtual reality, we can simulate mobile phones going off, audience members talking to each other, presenting with your slides, and a range of other scenarios which you wouldn’t get without practicing in VR. You’ll therefore be more prepared when presenting at the real event.
Example VR scenarios with imported slides
Here are some example environments from the VirtualSpeech app, where users have loaded in their slides to practice with.
Conference presentation
The immersive conference room setting allows you to simulate the pressure and dynamics of a real business meeting. Upload your slides and practice engaging your audience, addressing their concerns, and effectively conveying the value of your product or service.
Meeting room presentation
Collaboration and effective communication are vital in meetings. VirtualSpeech’s slide upload feature allows you to practice delivering presentations within a virtual meeting room, complete with colleagues or clients present.
Boardroom pitch
Presenting in a boardroom requires a different set of skills, as you may be facing senior executives, stakeholders, or decision-makers. By uploading your boardroom presentation slides to the VR app, you can practice articulating your ideas with confidence and clarity.
Lecture hall
For educators and professionals delivering lectures or educational presentations, the slide upload feature provides an opportunity to practice in a virtual lecture hall. Slides are located below and behind the user.
Interview room
Practice answering interview questions while referring to your slides, ensuring that you can showcase your qualifications confidently and persuasively.
Where would this be useful?
Whenever you are required to give a presentation with slides, you can use the VirtualSpeech app to practice with them in a realistic way. Example situations where this might be useful:
- Presenting at a large conference
- Showing progress on a project to your team
- Selling a new product or service to a business
- Showing a new company vision at a townhall event