A 5-minute speech can really feel each extremely quick and infinitely lengthy.

Whereas this quick format encourages audiences to pay extra consideration, presenters usually wrestle to suit all the things into 5 minutes whilst they navigate nervousness that appears to stretch out every second.
In consequence, preparation is vital for 5-minute speech success.
However how are you going to guarantee your presentation accomplishes all the things it must inside simply 5 quick minutes? We’ve put collectively an (appropriately condensed) information on five-minute displays that can assist you get began.
What number of phrases are in a 5-minute presentation?
A five-minute presentation is roughly 700 phrases lengthy. The common individual speaks 120 to 160 phrases a minute, which suggests the typical five-minute presentation is 600 to 800 phrases.
To calculate your personal private talking velocity (phrases per minute, or WPM):
- Make an audio recording of your self talking for one minute.
- Use a free transcription service to generate a textual content model of your speech.
- The variety of phrases you spoke in that minute is your private WPM.
When setting up an extended presentation, you could be extra involved about transitions and maintaining the viewers engaged with extra in depth narrative parts.
In a brief presentation, all the things you say ought to immediately tie again to your central premise and additional advance your foremost level.
Conserving a good scope and utilizing your phrases rigorously ensures your time is not wasted and the viewers leaves with a transparent, singular takeaway.
What number of slides are in a 5-minute presentation?
5 or 6 slides, or about one per minute, is an effective baseline for a 5-minute presentation. Relying in your material, nonetheless, you may use as much as 20 slides and spend about 10 or 15 seconds on every.
Extra essential than your slide rely is what every slide comprises. It‘s a superb rule of thumb to maintain your slides easy and targeted on visuals as a substitute of textual content for a presentation of any size.
This turns into particularly essential if you’re coping with a condensed presentation window.
Making an attempt to cram in as a lot data as attainable inside a short while body could be tempting. Resist the urge. As an alternative, concentrate on easy, clear visuals that each one tie again to your central premise.
You too can use these free presentation templates to rearrange your slides in a method that makes probably the most sense in your supply and the content material of your presentation.
5-Minute Presentation Define
That can assist you get began, we’ve created a fundamental define beneath that you need to use to prepare your preliminary ideas within the starting stage.
Ideally, your slides ought to reply 4 key questions: What, why, how, and what comes subsequent?
1. Cowl Slide (What)
Your cowl slide must reply the query that’s on everybody’s thoughts: What’s in it for me?
Specificity is your pal. For instance, for those who’re delivering a presentation on enhancing writing expertise, keep away from titles reminiscent of “Methods to Refine Your Craft.”
As an alternative, go for titles reminiscent of “5 Tricks to Enhance Your Writing Expertise” or “A Quickstart Information to Creating Higher Written Content material.”
A clearer title helps your viewers perceive the main target and prevents you from going too broad together with your subject.
2. Thesis Slide (What, Continued)
Your second slide needs to be a transparent thesis assertion. That is what you need listeners to remove out of your presentation and bear in mind tomorrow once they’re again at work.
Writing a thesis advantages each your viewers and you. Establishing a one-sentence abstract of your presentation forces you to articulate and focus your message, which is able to provide help to craft the remainder of your slides that assist this level.
To jot down your thesis, “Begin on the finish and ask your self what you wish to accomplish in 5 minutes,” stated management communications coach Nausheen I. Chen.
“Maintain it tremendous easy: the less the objectives of the presentation, the upper the prospect of you reaching them.”
In Nausheen’s five-minute presentation, she explicitly states a very powerful takeaway for viewers firstly of her presentation:
3. Drawback Slide (Why)
When you’ve established what, speak about why. That is the issue that must be solved or the difficulty that must be addressed.
In our writing presentation instance above, the issue could possibly be that written content material isn’t driving engagement — or is making a destructive consumer expertise.
Talking of negativity, don’t be afraid to border your downside in a destructive gentle. Viewers members will likely be extra motivated to hear for those who steer them away from an issue, fairly than serving to them obtain a greater consequence.
Consider this as “ache over acquire.”
Right here’s an instance of a brief presentation on the advantages of quitting caffeine:
- Achieve — you might finally have extra power by quitting caffeine.
- Ache — your caffeine consumption is hurting your power ranges, not serving to.
After you’ve recognized the issue, ship the answer.
4. Answer/Evaluation Slide (How)
Now that your downside has been launched, inform your viewers what they should find out about this subject. In shorter presentation codecs, you’ll wish to focus much less on the small print and extra on the big-picture objects.
Ask your self: What does your viewers must find out about this subject? Something that falls into the “good to know” class could be lower and delivered to stakeholders in a follow-up electronic mail after the assembly.
5. About You — Non-compulsory (Who)
Does your five-minute presentation want an “about me” slide? Provided that it reinforces your thesis and offers authority to your phrases.
For instance, a brief presentation about most cancers screenings could be extra credible if a health care provider was the presenter.
Nonetheless, given the brevity of your presentation, you could find a artistic approach to lend that very same authority to what you’re saying with out shortening your message.
It could be attainable to realize the identical authority by a health care provider sporting a white coat for a presentation in real-life and including the “Dr.” prefix to their title on Zoom.
6. Conclusion (What’s Subsequent)
The conclusion slide means that you can coherently finish your presentation and summarize the essential takeaway factors in your viewers.
Don’t skimp in your conclusion simply because it’s a brief presentation — it’s the very last thing your viewers will hear from you.
On this slide, embrace contact data so viewers members can comply with up. Reinforce the factors you introduced and finally make your presentation extra memorable.
5-Minute Slide Decks
We weren’t within the room when these displays had been initially given — and subsequently can’t affirm with 100% certainty that they ran for under 5 minutes.
Nonetheless, these decks clock in at beneath 16 slides and use a easy format to convey an issue and resolution.
Oracle Cloud
In solely 10 slides, this deck explores the advantages of Oracle Cloud. When crafting your presentation, do not forget that information can communicate extra with phrases. You possibly can talk a robust level with a easy statistic, serving to you progress by way of your presentation shortly.
Accenture
There’s no want to present a complete historical past or timeline. Your slides can do the speaking. On this presentation, Accenture reveals a timeline-style plan of how groups use OSDU to speed up innovation.
As an alternative of discussing every level in depth, you’ll be able to sign a very powerful milestones. Those that have an interest can revisit the slides after your presentation.
Weekdone
In the case of phrases, select properly. Your slides don’t have to be full of full sentences. Your viewers seemingly gained’t have time to learn all of it in 5 minutes.
This presentation from Weekdone focuses extra closely on information visualization and illustrations. The variety of phrases on the display screen is restricted. The listener is then extra prone to focus in your speech as a substitute of attempting to learn slides.
Methods to Create a 5-Minute Presentation Your Viewers Will Love
Listed below are some finest practices to comply with when crafting a brief presentation.
1. Make it about your viewers.
A presentation might really feel prefer it’s about you, but it surely’s really about your viewers.
“To know how one can create an actual transformation in a brief period of time, it’s worthwhile to know who you’re talking to and have a way of what they know and don’t know,” stated Studying Expertise Designer Lyssa Leigh Jackson.
Lyssa encourages presenters to obviously outline what their viewers will stroll away figuring out and feeling.
2. Make particular factors.
It’s straightforward to turn out to be overambitious or overwhelmed by the data you wish to current. Selecting a single concept to concentrate on provides you readability when designing your speech and means that you can lower extraneous particulars. It additionally offers a story construction that your viewers can extra simply grasp.
One of the crucial incessantly made errors with quick displays is being obscure. Malcolm Lewis advises you to fight that by leveraging information: “Get particular with examples and numbers. Be as exact as attainable.”
This presentation slide from Lyssa Leigh Jackson explicitly writes information and likewise visualizes it with the funnel graphic:
3. Analysis, fact-check, and do it twice.
Your presentation is your likelihood to shine — however the shorter format additionally implies that every level you make will likely be extra seen, memorable, and, consequently, extra susceptible to scrutiny.
Take the time to completely analysis the topic of your presentation and guarantee each level you make is:
- Technically correct.
- Tailor-made in your viewers.
- Jargon-free and straightforward to know.
With a robust command of your material, your supply will even be extra assured and convincing.
4. Attraction to how folks study finest: tales.
A narrative can provide that means to your presentation and elevate it to extra than simply info, figures, and flashy slides. Constructing your presentation round a easy, easy-to-understand narrative makes your content material extra digestible.
Your presentation will solely final for a couple of minutes, however tales naturally assist people perceive and retain data extra simply. Ensure that to maintain your story quick, targeted, and to the purpose.
5. Apply, apply, apply.
“Brief presentation” doesn’t imply “spontaneous presentation.” From CEOs to interns, everybody will profit from working towards their quick displays prematurely, irrespective of how assured they’re.
Working towards your presentation will provide help to:
- Bear in mind your speaking factors.
- Reliably hit the 5-minute mark.
- Improve your total confidence.
Movie a run-through of your presentation in your telephone and watch it again that can assist you self-critique.
Attempt to ship a lot (or all) of your presentation by coronary heart. Your supply will likely be extra pure, permitting you to develop a stronger connection together with your viewers. And as soon as nerves hit, you’ll have the muscle reminiscence to fall again on and carry you thru the presentation.
If it’s worthwhile to velocity by way of your slides to squeeze all the things right into a five-minute window, you’re seemingly attempting to do an excessive amount of.
6. Loosen up, and don’t rush.
Along with understanding timing points, working towards will even provide help to really feel much less nervous within the second and keep your regular WPM.
It’s pure to talk extra shortly if you’re public talking, however put together sufficient to really feel relaxed all through your presentation so that you simply don’t velocity by way of your speaking factors.
Staying targeted in your presentation (and never getting distracted by nerves) will enhance your supply and provide you with extra confidence, even for those who’re anxious about public talking.
7. Count on your presentation to be shared.
Each presentation needs to be created with the expectation that it will likely be considered by itself.
It’s commonplace apply to comply with up displays with an electronic mail that features an hooked up slide deck. That electronic mail could be considered by somebody who missed your preliminary assembly or forwarded to somebody new altogether.
Because of this, don’t put delicate or personal data on the slides. Ensure that every slide presents sufficient data for viewers to know the large bullet factors of your quick presentation.
This constructive pattern means your work can dwell past the preliminary presentation. Take into account sharing the hyperlink your self in your LinkedIn profile to spotlight your work.
5-Minute Presentation Examples
These five-minute presentation samples discover totally different presentation settings and narratives that may assist encourage you as you create your personal presentation.
1. Communicate as a Chief Bootcamp Welcome
This five-minute presentation by Nausheen I. Chen completely balances minimalism with informative textual content. The design makes use of background colour to assist create distinction inside the presentation, and the ultimate call-to-action is exclusive and actionable.
What we like: This slide deck is for a extra interactive presentation, offering clear aims and construction for the viewers to comply with alongside and really feel snug. The worth they’ll anticipate from the presentation is communicated and delivered.
2. Digital Most interesting Pitch Deck
This high-contrast five-minute presentation design by Gabe Marusca makes use of colour to inform a narrative and daring textual content to have interaction the viewers.
The place some presenters would’ve put an “about me” slide on the finish, Gabe saved the highlight immediately on the viewer by showcasing consumer success testimonials.
What we like: This slide deck follows the basic downside–resolution–outcomes storyline. His conclusion slide summarizes the principle level and offers a transparent takeaway for audiences.
3. Ladies within the Office Briefing
This presentation grabs viewers’ consideration instantly with highly effective statistics and continues to articulate speaking factors with information.
Whereas the presentation seemingly didn’t talk about each graph and information level in-depth, it paints a persuasive image. This creates a extremely helpful useful resource even when considered independently of the presentation.
What we like: This data-driven slide deck illuminates issues girls face within the office, with solely two slides proposing options on the finish.
If the purpose of your presentation is to wake your viewers as much as an issue that’s of their fingers to repair, comply with this instance to drive your level residence.
4. Legacy Speaker Tour
This colourful presentation by Jasmin Haley makes use of daring textual content and fascinating imagery to introduce a one-day workshop.
The inspiring message and colourful design mirror the power of a dwell workshop, and the minimal textual content enhances the daring imagery on every slide.
What we like: This is a superb instance of an image-focused presentation. If you would like the main target to be on you because the speaker, with the pictures amplifying your message, discover becoming photographs to accompany you level by level.
Making the Most of 5 Minutes
A five-minute presentation is over earlier than it. By placing within the effort and time beforehand, nonetheless, you’ll be able to take advantage of 5 minutes to attach together with your viewers and provides them one thing they’ll bear in mind.
In apply, this implies creating particular, focused slides accompanied by succinct speaking factors that shortly and clearly present solutions for what, why, how, and what comes subsequent.