So there you are, nekkid as a jaybird in front of everyone, your heart is pounding, your palms are clammy, and it is quite possible you may throw up.

Does this happen to you when you have to go in front of others and make a presentation? As a freelancer, public interaction is generally going to be a big part of marketing yourself and your skills. You can be the most creative, efficient freelancer out there, but if you can’t communicate, people are never going to know.

A well rounded presenter offers a little bit of their personality, direct eye contact, and the most pertinent information related to the topic. Try not to be long winded, as your audience may lose interest. Key points should be made in the first 15 minutes of the presentation. Let them know a little bit about you and how you came to be a freelancer, what your goals are and how you came by your knowledge or skill. If you are using audio visual equipment, make sure you know how to work it, but don’t rely on it to do your work for you. Nothing is as quick to extinguish someone’s attention as sitting there waiting for the presenter to figure out how to work power point. If you are using note cards, which is perfectly acceptable, know what you have on them and know what order you have them. You don’t want to be shuffling through them as you “um” and “er” to avoid hearing the unsettling murmurs from your audience.

As mentioned in previous Market Yourself articles, the clubs and groups in your area welcome guest speakers to their meetings. If your presentation is at a venue of this sort, you already have a rationale to help calm your nerves; they invited you. They want to hear what you have to say. Knowing you have a captive audience will help set your mind at ease and help loosen you up a little bit. Having a short conversation with someone in an elevator or waiting room, can open doors for you. This too, is considered a form of public speaking, as long as you convey the bulk of yourself marketing message within your conversation. Remember, as a freelancer, you must always be “on”. You never know when you’ll meet that next client.

Public speaking takes practice. It will become easier each time. Knowing your audience and finding a common ground between each of you will help ease your nervousness. Go on out there, have fun with it, promote the heck out of yourself and make some new friends.