external presentation meaning

The Difference Between Internal and External Communication (+Examples)

April 18, 2019

by Mary Clare Novak

Businesses thrive on solid communication.

Giving updates on projects, scheduling meetings, and sending an instant message that there’s birthday cake in the kitchen all give people within an organization the knowledge they need to move forward (or enjoy a sweet treat).

But what about people on the outside? Customers, suppliers, and investors also require information to decide whether or not to do business with an organization. They are equally involved in the business’ success and must be communicated with to maintain a positive relationship and reputation.

All business communication happens between two entities with the intent of sending and receiving information. However, the parties involved determine if the communication is happening internally or externally.

Internal vs external communication

No matter the type of communication or specific channel being used, business communication happens either internally or externally.

What is the difference between internal and external communication?

Internal communication occurs when the members of an organization exchange information with each other. External communication takes place when those members interact and communicate with an outside party.

Effective internal and external communication are both crucial to the success of a business. Let’s dive into each one, when they are used, and some examples of each.

Internal communication

Internal communication takes place when people who are apart of an organization send and receive information to each other. It is exclusive to colleagues, coworkers, or anyone else that is a member of the business. Nothing is being shared with the public.

There are a lot of situations that call for communicating internally. Some are more serious than others, but the successful transferring of information should never be undervalued. Proper communication can make a big difference in any situation.

Below is an example of internal communications in the form of a business email . Someone is addressing the team and providing them with simple yet useful information about signing up for a headshot. It is a completely internal function and no information was released to anyone outside of the organization.

Internal communication is also a great tool for reiterating the big-picture goals, mission, vision, and values of a business. While everybody has personal goals and a general idea of what the company stands for, the actual statements can often be forgotten.

Below is an example of a refresher of goals for the month. Big-picture projects are important for employees to keep in mind as they go about their work. Providing a reminder in a presentation, memo, meeting invite or email attachment is a good internal communication practice.

A solid internal communications strategy can make the difference between a business operating like a well-oiled machine or flopping like a sinking ship.

External communication

External communication is the transferring of information between a business and another entity outside of the organization. People within the organization might still have access to the message, but it is intended for an external audience.

External communication is a function of a marketing plan . The messages sent are crafted towards a specific audience with the goal of earning new customers and increasing revenue. Developing the right message can be done within the organization or by marketing services providers that will tailor the materials for you.

External communication includes a lot of different types of messages. Advertisements, press releases, social media posts, and even your company’s website all fall under the category of external communication.

Below is an example of a tweet from G2 that was intended for a public audience. Information gathered within the organization was compiled and then released to external audiences. Keeping these outside entities informed will hopefully lead to them becoming familiar with the business and interested in what they provide.

Mass communication methods are helpful when members of a large audience could benefit from the same information, but businesses also have methods to communicate directly with individuals. Below is an example of a chat window, where anyone can submit a question and eventually receive the information they need.

External communication is what keeps consumers up to date. Whether they were originally seeking the information or not, making sure worthwhile information reaches external audiences can lead to them understanding your business and becoming loyal customers.

Talk it out

Businesses need active internal and external communication skills to survive. An uninformed person cannot add value to a business. Employees can’t do their job if they don’t know the company’s goals, and people can’t buy your new product if you don’t tell them it exists first. Find the right communication tools for internal and external audiences and keep the information flowing.

Want to learn more about how to communicate in the workplace? Check out our resource on the types of communication and tips for using each one!  

Mary Clare Novak is a Content Marketing Specialist at G2 based in Burlington, Vermont, where she is currently exploring topics related to sales and customer relationship management. In her free time, you can find her doing a crossword puzzle, listening to cover bands, or eating fish tacos. (she/her/hers)

Recommended Articles

How to Create an Internal Communication Plan in 7 Easy Steps

Acting on a whim can make life fun.

Contributor Network

How Do Global Companies Benefit from Language Solutions?

If your organization wants to promote global growth, you must be able to communicate...

by Jason Richardson

Data-Driven Marketing: A Modern Business Approach to Data

The rise in data-driven marketing is unmistakably visible in recent years.

Never miss a post.

Subscribe to keep your fingers on the tech pulse.

By submitting this form, you are agreeing to receive marketing communications from G2.

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

• Carmine Gallo

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

• Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

Partner Center

• Productivity

How to Enhance Your Brand’s External Communication

Businesses must communicate with external audiences to sell products, get investor funding, inform the public, and more.

Understanding how to plan external communication successfully helps increase stakeholder engagement while building trust. However, the rules of external communication can feel a bit abstract—for instance, how do you choose the right tone of voice?

Keep reading—this guide will define external communication and outline how to create an external comms strategy with examples.

What Is External Communication?

External communication in business refers to any messaging it sends to stakeholders other than its workforce.

For instance, external audiences include customers, suppliers, shareholders, government bodies, and the public, while communications include emails, chat messages, social media posts, and meetings.

What Is the Difference Between Internal and External Communication?

Internal communications target employees and contractors, whereas external ones address audiences outside the business.

For instance, external communications could be:

• Customer newsletters and sales emails
• Quarterly investor presentations
• Social media company announcements

Meanwhile, internal communications include:

• 1-to-1 emails between managers and direct reports
• Management updates in the team chat
• Task assignment mobile notifications

The communication’s purpose also differs. Internal comms help manage, engage, and retain the workforce, while external ones seek to enhance profitability and reputation by converting customers, influencing public opinion, and persuading investors.

So, the tone of voice will vary. You can afford to be direct and informal in internal comms, but an external tone may vary from inspiring to respectful or formal, depending on the audience.

6 Steps to Create an External Communication Strategy

Here’s a step-by-step guide to building an external communication strategy.

1. Research your audience

First, list the types of external audiences you’re targeting, from customers to investors. Then, research each audience type by reading studies, sending surveys to your contacts, or holding 1-to-1 interviews.

Document your findings into categories including:

• Demographics such as age and location
• Firmographics such as company and job title
• Pain points such as cost optimization
• Buying or investing behaviors such as product preferences

Finally, use the insights to group your audience into multiple segments—they’ll help you personalize communications later on. For instance, segment an investor audience into firmographic categories like venture capital firms and angel investors.

2. Set SMART goals for each audience type

Goals guide your external comms decisions while acting as benchmarks for results. Let your audience research and business needs inform your goals. For example, launching new products could prompt customer conversion goals, whereas ambitious growth plans could spur investor funding goals.

Use the SMART framework to set goals that are:

• Specific : Target your objectives with precision, such as “Boost engagement among [target demographic]” instead of a vague “Engage more customers.”
• Measurable : Quantify your goals to track progress effectively, like aiming for a “25% increase in website traffic” rather than simply wishing for “more website visits.”
• Achievable : Set objectives within reach, like “Reduce operational costs by 5%” instead of an overly ambitious “Slash all expenses in half.”
• Relevant : Tailor your goals to align with your organization’s core mission. For a tech company, enhancing software efficiency is more aligned than branching out into unrelated retail ventures.
• Timely : Assign a clear deadline to your ambitions, such as “Launch the new product line by Q3” rather than an indefinite “Launch the new product line eventually.”

3. Pick appropriate channels

Research which channels your target audiences use and ensure they provide the tools you need to add value—such as information or offers—to your audience.

Generally speaking, here’s what key channels are useful for.

• Email: Build relationships with, convert, and negotiate with warm contacts such as current and potential customers, investors, and suppliers.
• Social media: Increase product awareness, share company news, and create interactive content showcasing your brand values.
• Blog and white papers: Build trust , increase web traffic, and generate new customer leads.
• Business messaging app : Resolve everyday problems securely with clients and suppliers.
• Video calls and webinars: Collaborate, train, and bond with customers and the public in real time.

4. Define your tone of voice

If your brand were a person, how they sound to others is their tone of voice. So, define that tone for each audience type. For instance, your customer-facing tone could be friendly and informal, while the regulator-facing one is formal and precise.

However, all your tone choices must match your brand’s mission and values. For example, values like excellence and innovation go well with a confident, inspiring tone of voice.

Here’s a quick way to define your tone of voice for a customer audience. You can expand on this example to create a 1-2 page definition document for your comms team.

• Target audience: Busy senior managers in [industry]. They need precise and quick information about [specific product]. They’re cost-conscious but prioritize quality.
• The tone of voice: Our communications are informative and concise. We address customer pain points with empathy and confidently emphasize our unique value proposition.

5. Create a communication playbook

A communication playbook is the go-to manual for employees running your external comms.

The playbook should outline the goals, channels, and tone of voice for each external audience. Then it should provide guidance and examples for communications:

• Timing: Specify the frequency, dates, and times for communications on different channels.
• Editorial guidelines: Confirm grammar, spelling, punctuation, and other styling decisions.
• Best practice: List tips and techniques such as phrase repetition, the rule of three, and first-person stories.
• Content and topics: Confirm key messages that engage audiences and support internal goals.

6. Create a communications plan

A communication plan includes campaign phases, tasks, stakeholders, deadlines, and key messages. Create one for each audience type and campaign. For instance, a product launch campaign could have a threefold plan engaging customers, investors, and the public.

Use project management software to share your plan with key stakeholders, track task progress, and enable collaboration. Remember to update your plan based on audience insights or feedback.

Bonus tip: Align your external and internal communication plans. Your team must be in the know about significant external announcements and campaigns.

Enhance Your Communication Efforts with Spike

External communication increases engagement and trust with non-employee stakeholders like customers and investors. To build a successful strategy, you must research your audience, set SMART goals, pick the appropriate channels and tone of voice, and create a comms playbook and plan.

You also need a secure, easy-to-use platform—like Spike- to communicate effectively.

Spike is a team communication app that brings emails, chats, and channels into one inbox. Your conversations are quicker and more effective thanks to AI-generated message suggestions, plus you can collaborate on files, track tasks, and more.

Try Spike for free today!

Gain Communication Clarity with Spike

You may also like, 15 best business communication software & platforms in 2024.

In today's fast-paced business environment, effective communication is vital. Read on to explore 15 essential communication platforms and software that can help businesses stay connected and productive.

4 Best Free Email Tracking Tools for 2024

Learn about how email receipt notifications and email trackers can help you and your business be more productive.

Agency Podcasts: Essential Audio Insights for Every Marketer

Learn about top agency podcasts that every marketer should tune into. From 'Build A Better Agency' to 'Agency Leadership Podcast', discover insights that fuel your growth.

The big SlideLizard presentation glossary > External Communication

External Communication

Term explanation  •  category communication.

Definition and meaning

External communication is the exchange of information between two organisations. For example, it can be an exchange with customers, clients or traders. Feedback from a customer also counts as external communication.

To give successful presentations, it is important to get feedback. SlideLizard allows your audience to give anonymous feedback via their smartphone.

Other glossary terms

Social events.

Social events in companys can be to celebrate an anniversary or to bond better as a team. They should address the personal interests of employees and revolve around things like entertainment and food.

Microlearning

Microlearning means learning in small quantities. It is especially used in E-Learning.

Virtual Event

Virtual events take place entirely online. They are very convenient as anyone may join from wherever they are via a smartphone or computer.

PowerPoint Online

PowerPoint Online is the web version of PowerPoint. You can present and edit your PowerPoint presentation with it, without having PowerPoint installed on your computer. It's only necessary to have a Microsoft - or a Microsoft 365 account.

The big SlideLizard presentation glossary

The SlideLizard presentation glossary is a large collection of explanations and definitions of terms in the area of presentations, communication, speaking, events, PowerPoint and education.

Top blog articles More posts

4 easy ways to create a WordCloud for PowerPoint

Top 10 Tools for increasing Audience Engagement

Get started with Live Polls, Q&A and slides

for your PowerPoint Presentations

Be the first to know!

The latest SlideLizard news, articles, and resources, sent straight to your inbox.

- or follow us on -

We use cookies to personalize content and analyze traffic to our website. You can choose to accept only cookies that are necessary for the website to function or to also allow tracking cookies. For more information, please see our privacy policy .

Cookie Settings

Necessary cookies are required for the proper functioning of the website. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information about the number of visitors, etc.

Presentation

• Written By Gregg Rosenzweig
• Updated: November 8, 2023

We’re here to help you choose the most appropriate content types to fulfill your content strategy. In this series, we’re breaking down the most popular content types to their most basic fundamentals — simple definitions, clarity on formats, and plenty of examples — so you can start with a solid foundation.

What is a Presentation?

A communication device that relays a topic to an audience in the form of a slide show, demonstration, lecture, or speech, where words and pictures complement each other.

Why should you think of presentations as content?

The beauty of content creation is that almost anything can become a compelling piece of content . Just depends on the creativity used to convert it and the story that brings it to life.

The long and short of it

Although the length of a presentation in terms of time can depend on the overall approach (Are you talking a lot? Are you referring to the screen in detail or not?), consider the number of informational content slides when tallying the overall presentation length. For instance, don’t include title slides in your tally when conveying length to a content creator.

A general guide to presentation length:

• Short Form (5 content slides)
• Standard Form (10 content slides)
• Long Form (20+ content slides)

Popular use cases for presentations…

Let’s consider TED Talks for a minute: one of the best examples (bar none) of how words, pictures, and a narrative can make people care about something they otherwise might not.

These “talks” pre-date podcasts and blend a compelling use of language and imagery in presentation format to spread ideas in unique ways.

TED Talks have been viewed a billion-plus times worldwide (and counting) and are worth considering when it comes to how you might use video-presentation content to connect with your customers in creative, cool, new ways.

Business types:

Any company that has a pitch deck, executive summary , sales presentation, or any kind of internal document that can be repurposed into external-facing content pieces — without pain.

Presentation Examples – Short Form

Presentation Examples – Standard Form

Presentation Examples – Long Form

Understanding Content Quality in Examples

Our team has rated content type examples in three degrees of quality ( Good, Better, Best ) to help you better gauge resources needed for your content plan. In general, the degrees of content quality correspond to our three content levels ( General, Qualified, Expert ) based on the criteria below. Please consider there are multiple variables that could determine the cost, completion time, or content level for any content piece with a perceived degree of quality.

Impress your clients, co-workers, and leadership team with exceptional content for your next presentation, product demonstration, and more. If you need help getting your message across in a succinct, attention-grabbing, and persuasive way, talk to one of our content specialists today.

Stay in the know.

We will keep you up-to-date with all the content marketing news and resources. You will be a content expert in no time. Sign up for our free newsletter.

Elevate Your Content Game

Transform your marketing with a consistent stream of high-quality content for your brand.

You May Also Like...

Measuring What Matters in Your Collaborative Content Approach

Amplifying Your Content Strategy: Harnessing User Feedback for Effective Content Audits

Content Decay and Revival: Identifying and Updating Underperforming Content

• Content Production
• Build Your SEO
• Amplify Your Content
• For Agencies

Why ClearVoice

• Talent Network
• How It Works
• Freelance For Us
• Statement on AI
• Talk to a Specialist

Get Insights In Your Inbox

• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Service
• Intellectual Property Claims
• Data Collection Preferences

External Communications

External communication refers to exchanging information between a company and external entities such as customers, suppliers, investors, media, and the general public. It involves conveying messages and information about the company, its products or services, and its values to the outside world. 

The focus of external communications is simple: to build a thriving relationship between your organization and your customers, other companies, your suppliers, and other entities in the value chain distribution. 

So, every strategy, every message, and every image are carefully designed to create and sustain external communications with every other entity your company interacts with. Understandably, this can create a good bit of pressure to get these communications right!

What Is External Communications?

To thrive in the 21st-century marketplace, every organization must understand the importance and necessity of external communications. Even though the media and methods have evolved, the goal remains the same — maintaining a reputable brand image to increase output and sales successively. 

To structure your business with no thought toward maintaining external communications is to crash your company even before it gets off the ground. It sounds harsh, but it is true. This is why many large corporations and organizations that trade different products and services sink millions and billions into maintaining a steady stream of external communications. 

Your company may have fewer resources than other giant corporations. However, you can find a path unique to your organization’s visions and goals and leverage that to boost your external communications process. With the rise of the digital workplace , strategic communication within and outside is paramount to the organization’s smooth operations. A lot can go wrong within a day if there is no proper means of communication in place.

In today’s world of business, effective corporate communication is crucial and a big part of external communication. What else is? In this article, we’ll explores external communications, their importance and benefits, various channels of external communications, and how you can leverage these channels to boost your brand relations and increase productivity and sales. 

What is it used for?

External communication promotes the company’s image, enhances its reputation, and builds relationships with its stakeholders. It is also used to inform and educate the public about the company’s products or services, new developments, and changes in policies or procedures. External communication aims to create a positive image of the company in the minds of its stakeholders and the general public.

Previously, before the advent of the media, companies focused on channels like customer relations, advertisements, events, conferences, etc., to foster external communications. However, the digital age soon ushered in many changes and the development of new communication channels. These channels will be explored further in the article. Before that though, we need to differentiate between internal and external communications and how they each impact your company.

Internal communications vs. external communications

Internal communication refers to the exchange of information between employees of an organization. On the other hand, external communication is directed at establishing relations and communication with individuals or entities outside the organization. 

Various internal communication channels include memos, company workshops, internal meetings, intranets, etc. While internal communication focuses on coordinating and managing internal activities and employee engagement , external communication aims to promote the company’s image, generate new business, and build relationships with external stakeholders.

Even though external communications are vital, it is necessary to highlight that the goal of your company’s external communications plan can only be achieved when there is synergy between the employees and management. A good internal communications strategy in place will ensure that:

• Employees are encouraged to share creative ideas within the workplace to boost productivity . 
• Conflicts are managed and resolved effectively, which in turn, increases employee retention . 
• A non-toxic work environment is created and maintained to facilitate an excellent employee experience . 
• Employees understand their roles and responsibilities and carry them out effectively and efficiently. 

Maintaining external relations with other entities outside the organization becomes easier with good internal communications strategies. Many companies have failed at sustaining external communications because they needed (and lacked) an excellent internal structure like an intranet . 

It is crucial to emphasize the advantages external communications provide for your company in the short and long run.

Importance and benefits of external communication

Effective external communication goes a long way in defining the success rate of any business. A solid external communication game makes customers feel more connected and emotionally attached to brands. 

A simple monthly newsletter about an upgrade to a product or service keeps the customer in the loop with an assurance of security dealing with the brand. As an aside, it is also a great way to boost employee experience when employees receive timely updates about happenings in the company. 

Here are some other advantages of external communication:

• Developing community relations: External communication helps businesses build community relationships. By sharing information and updates about the company’s activities, businesses can create a positive image and build trust with the community.
• Communicating and leveraging information: External communication helps businesses share information about their products or services and their benefits which can be used as leverage to attract new customers, retain current ones, and gain a competitive advantage in the market.
• Building brand identity: External communication is critical to building a brand identity. A consistent message across all external communication channels helps to create a strong brand identity and increase brand awareness.
• Optimizing external networks: External communication helps businesses optimize their external networks by building relationships with suppliers, investors, and partners.
• Relations with suppliers: External communication helps businesses to maintain good relations with their suppliers. By sharing information about their plans and requirements, companies can ensure a steady supply of goods and services.

External communications tools

Technological advancement and digital transformation have significantly boosted public relations and communications in the business world. There is no excuse for a lag in communication between stakeholders, as many tools have been designed to answer all of these needs for good, and with little hassle. 

Your business can leverage many external communication tools to communicate with external stakeholders. The following are some examples:

• Social media: Businesses can effectively communicate with customers and establish brand recognition by utilizing social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
• Email: An email is a powerful tool for businesses to communicate with customers, suppliers, and investors. It is an efficient way to share updates, news, and other important information.
• Newsletters: Newsletters are a great way to inform customers and other stakeholders about the company’s activities, products, and services.
• Presentations: Presentations are an effective way to communicate with investors, partners, and other stakeholders. They help to showcase the company’s strengths and plans.
• Events/Conferences: Events and conferences allow businesses to network with stakeholders, showcase their products and services, and build relationships.
• Press releases: Press releases are an effective way to share important news and updates with the media.
• Blogs: Blogs are an excellent tool for businesses to share information, insights, and ideas with customers and other stakeholders.

One great benefit to many of these tools is that they cost less to implement and maintain than traditional external relations. This ensures that no matter your company’s financial capacity, you can find several tools to help you get off to a great start. 

Another important factor is that external communications will increase sales and reduce customer turnover if carefully built and sustained. These savings and enhanced ROI can be further utilized towards investing in more communications tools as the organization expands.

Tips for developing an external communications plan

Developing an effective external communications plan is crucial for any organization. Knowing the tools is not enough though. It would be best if you had a team ready to design a plan suited to your company’s needs. 

Listed below are some valuable tips to assist you in crafting a profitable external communications strategy:

• Know your audience: A deep understanding of your audience is the initial step in formulating a successful external communications plan. Understand the people you are trying to reach, including their interests, values, and needs. This will help you create messages that resonate with them and connect with them on a deeper level.
• Select the right platforms: Once you know your audience, the next step is to select the right platforms to reach them. Consider the social media channels they use, the publications they read, and the events they attend. Use this information to create a plan that targets the proper channels and platforms.
• Deliver value: Your external communications plan should focus on delivering value to your audience. It is vital to offer valuable information that supports problem-solving, learning, or enhancing their lives. This will help you build a relationship of trust and credibility with your audience.
• Be relatable: People connect with people. Your external communications should be relatable and human. Utilize true anecdotes, individuals, and concrete encounters to establish an emotional connection with your audience. This will help you build a strong and lasting relationship with them.
• Listen and respond: External communication is a two-way street. Listen to your audience and respond to their feedback. This approach will strengthen your relationship with your audience and demonstrate your appreciation of their viewpoints. According to Social Habit , 80% of consumers expect companies to respond to their comments or questions on social media within 24 hours. Companies can enhance their reputation and foster a more loyal customer base by actively listening and promptly responding to feedback.
• Show off your unique personality: Your external communications plan should showcase your brand’s personality. This could be in the tone of voice you use, the style of your graphics, or the types of stories you share. Showing off your unique personality will create a stronger emotional connection with your audience and stand out from the competition.

To design an external communications plan tailored to your company’s goals and objectives, you must invest sufficient time, energy, and resources to achieve great results. 

Also, note that an external communications plan is not a one-size-fits-all strategy. It must be constantly reviewed in light of the company’s goals, results (or lack thereof), and the changing needs of the entities involved, especially the customers.

Examples of companies doing it right

Here are some examples of companies with excellent external communications. These companies have not only adopted various communication channels to boost brand visibility and image, but they have also adapted their methods over the years to fit the new demands of the digital age while maintaining a great employee experience strategy to execute their missions. These companies include:

• Nike: Nike is known for its inspiring and empowering messaging. The company’s Just Do It campaign is a perfect example, encouraging people to push themselves to be their best version. Nike also leverages social media to bond with its audience and cultivate a community centered on its brand.
• Apple: Apple’s external communications align with its reputation for cutting-edge and stylish products. The company’s marketing materials maintain a clean and contemporary aesthetic, and its messaging emphasizes the benefits of its offerings, such as heightened productivity and creativity.
• Coca-Cola: Coca-Cola’s external communications are all about happiness and joy. The company’s messaging is designed to make people feel good and connected. Coca-Cola also uses social media to build a community around its brand and share positive stories and messages.
• Airbnb: Airbnb’s external communications focus on the experiences people can have when they travel. The company’s messaging encourages people to explore new places and connect with locals, which helps to build a sense of community and adventure around the brand.
• Tesla: Tesla’s external communications are all about innovation and sustainability. Tesla’s communication strategy emphasizes the advantages of electric vehicles and their environmental impact. Furthermore, the company utilizes social media to engage with its audience and keep them up-to-date on its offerings and endeavors.

Note that the goal is not to copy these organizations. Instead, see how some of their approaches fit into their business models, study their results (successes and struggles), note how they constantly evolve, and then apply this knowledge to create an external communications plan that is right for you. And be sure to explore using tools tailored to your needs.

External communication is an essential part of any business strategy. It involves creating and sharing messages with external audiences, such as customers, suppliers, investors, and the media. By developing a solid external communications plan, businesses can build relationships with their audiences, create a strong brand identity, and grow their networks. 

By following the tips outlined in this glossary and learning from companies doing it right, You can create effective external communications that deliver real value to your audience with less stress by simply incorporating these strategies. Simpplr is an employee experience platform leveraging powerful AI capabilities to transform the work experience for billions of people worldwide. It can help you better understand your internal audience and apply that understanding to better connect with your external audiences. It’s worth a demo to consider, for sure!

You can start today by exploring how Simpplr’s modern intranet and corporate communication tools can help inform your external communication strategy and identify existing gaps and flaws. We also offer advanced training for a successful implementation and give your employees valuable information that keeps your company on the global market map. Reach out for a demo to see it in action!

Related Resources:

• Exploring the Role of Corporate Communications in Brand Management
• Why Internal Communication Matters in the Workplace
• Enhance Internal Communication Strategies
• The Evolution of Intranets: Why They Still Matter
• Setting Internal Communication Goals for Success

External Communication: Types, Examples, Importance

Introduction.

Transferring information between a business and other businesses or persons outside the business environment is termed as external business communication. Organizations are supposed to communicate with other organizations or persons to achieve their goals. These people may include investors, current or potential customers, shareholders, society, government organizations or other business units, etc. So, external communication happens when business organizations exchange information with the above-mentioned business units or entities.

External communication generally has different mediums of communication like email, advertisements, brochures, newsletters, content marketing, etc. The purpose of external communication is to have smooth communication between different organizations or entities.

Types of External Communication

External communication is broadly categorized as formal and informal business communication:

1. Formal External Business Communication: It is considered as the initial element in building the appropriate corporate image. This includes different formal letters, memos, reports, or presentations. The main objective of external communication in business is to intimate the work and quality of products or services of a business to its external environment.

Different types of formal external communication are as below:

a. Content of website and blogging: Different advertising strategies like developing useful website content, Search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, etc. are also beneficial in providing crucial information about the organization or brand. Websites play a great role in building strategies of external communication as these act as a hub for a business’s other activities related to building its brand. Similarly, through content marketing, organizations can ensure the increasing visibility of their website on search engines. Moreover, by inviting comments and people to contact businesses through the comment section and contact page, organizations ensure two-way communication.

b. Conferences and live consorts: Different conferences or seminars and live events are considered as one of the important types of factors to boost external communication in business.

c. Email and newsletters: One another type of external business communication is an email system. It is used for both purposes i.e. to demonstrate new offers to customers, to increase sales and also to build a long-term relationship with different stakeholders that are external to an organization.

d. Social media: Social media is considered as an advanced and the latest external communication medium. Different social media platforms like Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Whatsapp, etc. are very much beneficial in interacting with external people of an organization.

c. Press releases: Press releases and press coverage also play a vital role in external communication as organizations can improve their brand image and credibility through media outlets and press releases. Also, connecting with different potential customers is possible through these.

Examples of External Business Communication:

Different organizations use external communication mediums to communicate about the cost of their products and services. This medium can be newspaper advertisements, broadcast on radio channels, the internet, etc. The different promotion offers like coupons, bonus points, buy 1 get 1 free, etc. are designed by the organization to increase sales, attract and retain loyal customers.

E-mail messages are also forwarded to customers to inform them about discounts, free samples, etc.

2. Informal External business communication: It is the one that is not in direct control of an organization. For example, employees absorb and strengthen their knowledge about their work and organization daily and when they discuss the same in the external environment of the organization then it’s considered informal external business communication.

Importance of External Business Communication

1. Communicating news or information: External communication is considered as a communicative tool for other organizations and persons that operate in the external business environment. It facilitates business in spreading any information and news related to organizations to its customers, shareholders, suppliers or other people.

2. Image building: The success of any business not only depends on its sales but also its image perception in its customers and other stakeholders. Through external communication an organization can establish its image, workplace culture to its stakeholders through different communication mediums like newsletters, press releases, media related stories, etc.

3. Potential customers : Through different external communication mediums like websites, social media sites like Facebook, Linkedin, etc. businesses can increase awareness of their products or services to its audience as these are the convenient way to reach the target audience and also cost-effective promotion strategies.

Related Posts

Line Management

Socialization: Definition, Purpose, Process

Strategy Consulting

The Hawthorne Effect: Definition, Examples

Johari Window Model Examples

Employee Performance Review, Evaluation, Errors

One response.

request for index article

Add Comment Cancel Reply

Improve your practice.

Enhance your soft skills with a range of award-winning courses.

How to Structure your Presentation, with Examples

August 3, 2018 - Dom Barnard

For many people the thought of delivering a presentation is a daunting task and brings about a  great deal of nerves . However, if you take some time to understand how effective presentations are structured and then apply this structure to your own presentation, you’ll appear much more confident and relaxed.

Here is our complete guide for structuring your presentation, with examples at the end of the article to demonstrate these points.

Why is structuring a presentation so important?

If you’ve ever sat through a great presentation, you’ll have left feeling either inspired or informed on a given topic. This isn’t because the speaker was the most knowledgeable or motivating person in the world. Instead, it’s because they know how to structure presentations – they have crafted their message in a logical and simple way that has allowed the audience can keep up with them and take away key messages.

Research has supported this, with studies showing that audiences retain structured information  40% more accurately  than unstructured information.

In fact, not only is structuring a presentation important for the benefit of the audience’s understanding, it’s also important for you as the speaker. A good structure helps you remain calm, stay on topic, and avoid any awkward silences.

What will affect your presentation structure?

Generally speaking, there is a natural flow that any decent presentation will follow which we will go into shortly. However, you should be aware that all presentation structures will be different in their own unique way and this will be due to a number of factors, including:

• Whether you need to deliver any demonstrations
• How  knowledgeable the audience  already is on the given subject
• How much interaction you want from the audience
• Any time constraints there are for your talk
• What setting you are in
• Your ability to use any kinds of visual assistance

Before choosing the presentation’s structure answer these questions first:

• What is your presentation’s aim?
• Who are the audience?
• What are the main points your audience should remember afterwards?

When reading the points below, think critically about what things may cause your presentation structure to be slightly different. You can add in certain elements and add more focus to certain moments if that works better for your speech.

What is the typical presentation structure?

This is the usual flow of a presentation, which covers all the vital sections and is a good starting point for yours. It allows your audience to easily follow along and sets out a solid structure you can add your content to.

1. Greet the audience and introduce yourself

Before you start delivering your talk, introduce yourself to the audience and clarify who you are and your relevant expertise. This does not need to be long or incredibly detailed, but will help build an immediate relationship between you and the audience. It gives you the chance to briefly clarify your expertise and why you are worth listening to. This will help establish your ethos so the audience will trust you more and think you’re credible.

Read our tips on  How to Start a Presentation Effectively

2. Introduction

In the introduction you need to explain the subject and purpose of your presentation whilst gaining the audience’s interest and confidence. It’s sometimes helpful to think of your introduction as funnel-shaped to help filter down your topic:

• Introduce your general topic
• Explain your topic area
• State the issues/challenges in this area you will be exploring
• State your presentation’s purpose – this is the basis of your presentation so ensure that you provide a statement explaining how the topic will be treated, for example, “I will argue that…” or maybe you will “compare”, “analyse”, “evaluate”, “describe” etc.
• Provide a statement of what you’re hoping the outcome of the presentation will be, for example, “I’m hoping this will be provide you with…”
• Show a preview of the organisation of your presentation

In this section also explain:

• The length of the talk.
• Signal whether you want audience interaction – some presenters prefer the audience to ask questions throughout whereas others allocate a specific section for this.
• If it applies, inform the audience whether to take notes or whether you will be providing handouts.

The way you structure your introduction can depend on the amount of time you have been given to present: a  sales pitch  may consist of a quick presentation so you may begin with your conclusion and then provide the evidence. Conversely, a speaker presenting their idea for change in the world would be better suited to start with the evidence and then conclude what this means for the audience.

Keep in mind that the main aim of the introduction is to grab the audience’s attention and connect with them.

3. The main body of your talk

The main body of your talk needs to meet the promises you made in the introduction. Depending on the nature of your presentation, clearly segment the different topics you will be discussing, and then work your way through them one at a time – it’s important for everything to be organised logically for the audience to fully understand. There are many different ways to organise your main points, such as, by priority, theme, chronologically etc.

• Main points should be addressed one by one with supporting evidence and examples.
• Before moving on to the next point you should provide a mini-summary.
• Links should be clearly stated between ideas and you must make it clear when you’re moving onto the next point.
• Allow time for people to take relevant notes and stick to the topics you have prepared beforehand rather than straying too far off topic.

When planning your presentation write a list of main points you want to make and ask yourself “What I am telling the audience? What should they understand from this?” refining your answers this way will help you produce clear messages.

4. Conclusion

In presentations the conclusion is frequently underdeveloped and lacks purpose which is a shame as it’s the best place to reinforce your messages. Typically, your presentation has a specific goal – that could be to convert a number of the audience members into customers, lead to a certain number of enquiries to make people knowledgeable on specific key points, or to motivate them towards a shared goal.

Regardless of what that goal is, be sure to summarise your main points and their implications. This clarifies the overall purpose of your talk and reinforces your reason for being there.

Follow these steps:

• Signal that it’s nearly the end of your presentation, for example, “As we wrap up/as we wind down the talk…”
• Restate the topic and purpose of your presentation – “In this speech I wanted to compare…”
• Summarise the main points, including their implications and conclusions
• Indicate what is next/a call to action/a thought-provoking takeaway
• Move on to the last section

5. Thank the audience and invite questions

Conclude your talk by thanking the audience for their time and invite them to  ask any questions  they may have. As mentioned earlier, personal circumstances will affect the structure of your presentation.

Many presenters prefer to make the Q&A session the key part of their talk and try to speed through the main body of the presentation. This is totally fine, but it is still best to focus on delivering some sort of initial presentation to set the tone and topics for discussion in the Q&A.

Other common presentation structures

The above was a description of a basic presentation, here are some more specific presentation layouts:

Demonstration

Use the demonstration structure when you have something useful to show. This is usually used when you want to show how a product works. Steve Jobs frequently used this technique in his presentations.

• Explain why the product is valuable.
• Describe why the product is necessary.
• Explain what problems it can solve for the audience.
• Demonstrate the product  to support what you’ve been saying.
• Make suggestions of other things it can do to make the audience curious.

Problem-solution

This structure is particularly useful in persuading the audience.

• Briefly frame the issue.
• Go into the issue in detail showing why it ‘s such a problem. Use logos and pathos for this – the logical and emotional appeals.
• Provide the solution and explain why this would also help the audience.
• Call to action – something you want the audience to do which is straightforward and pertinent to the solution.

Storytelling

As well as incorporating  stories in your presentation , you can organise your whole presentation as a story. There are lots of different type of story structures you can use – a popular choice is the monomyth – the hero’s journey. In a monomyth, a hero goes on a difficult journey or takes on a challenge – they move from the familiar into the unknown. After facing obstacles and ultimately succeeding the hero returns home, transformed and with newfound wisdom.

Storytelling for Business Success  webinar , where well-know storyteller Javier Bernad shares strategies for crafting compelling narratives.

Another popular choice for using a story to structure your presentation is in media ras (in the middle of thing). In this type of story you launch right into the action by providing a snippet/teaser of what’s happening and then you start explaining the events that led to that event. This is engaging because you’re starting your story at the most exciting part which will make the audience curious – they’ll want to know how you got there.

• Great storytelling: Examples from Alibaba Founder, Jack Ma

Remaining method

The remaining method structure is good for situations where you’re presenting your perspective on a controversial topic which has split people’s opinions.

• Go into the issue in detail showing why it’s such a problem – use logos and pathos.
• Rebut your opponents’ solutions  – explain why their solutions could be useful because the audience will see this as fair and will therefore think you’re trustworthy, and then explain why you think these solutions are not valid.
• After you’ve presented all the alternatives provide your solution, the remaining solution. This is very persuasive because it looks like the winning idea, especially with the audience believing that you’re fair and trustworthy.

Transitions

When delivering presentations it’s important for your words and ideas to flow so your audience can understand how everything links together and why it’s all relevant. This can be done  using speech transitions  which are words and phrases that allow you to smoothly move from one point to another so that your speech flows and your presentation is unified.

Transitions can be one word, a phrase or a full sentence – there are many different forms, here are some examples:

Moving from the introduction to the first point

Signify to the audience that you will now begin discussing the first main point:

• Now that you’re aware of the overview, let’s begin with…
• First, let’s begin with…
• I will first cover…
• My first point covers…
• To get started, let’s look at…

Shifting between similar points

Move from one point to a similar one:

• In the same way…
• Likewise…
• Equally…
• This is similar to…
• Similarly…

Internal summaries

Internal summarising consists of summarising before moving on to the next point. You must inform the audience:

• What part of the presentation you covered – “In the first part of this speech we’ve covered…”
• What the key points were – “Precisely how…”
• How this links in with the overall presentation – “So that’s the context…”
• What you’re moving on to – “Now I’d like to move on to the second part of presentation which looks at…”

Physical movement

You can move your body and your standing location when you transition to another point. The audience find it easier to follow your presentation and movement will increase their interest.

A common technique for incorporating movement into your presentation is to:

• Start your introduction by standing in the centre of the stage.
• For your first point you stand on the left side of the stage.
• You discuss your second point from the centre again.
• You stand on the right side of the stage for your third point.
• The conclusion occurs in the centre.

Key slides for your presentation

Slides are a useful tool for most presentations: they can greatly assist in the delivery of your message and help the audience follow along with what you are saying. Key slides include:

• An intro slide outlining your ideas
• A  summary slide  with core points to remember
• High quality image slides to supplement what you are saying

There are some presenters who choose not to use slides at all, though this is more of a rarity. Slides can be a powerful tool if used properly, but the problem is that many fail to do just that. Here are some golden rules to follow when using slides in a presentation:

• Don’t over fill them  – your slides are there to assist your speech, rather than be the focal point. They should have as little information as possible, to avoid distracting people from your talk.
• A picture says a thousand words  – instead of filling a slide with text, instead, focus on one or two images or diagrams to help support and explain the point you are discussing at that time.
• Make them readable  – depending on the size of your audience, some may not be able to see small text or images, so make everything large enough to fill the space.
• Don’t rush through slides  – give the audience enough time to digest each slide.

Guy Kawasaki, an entrepreneur and author, suggests that slideshows should follow a  10-20-30 rule :

• There should be a maximum of 10 slides – people rarely remember more than one concept afterwards so there’s no point overwhelming them with unnecessary information.
• The presentation should last no longer than 20 minutes as this will leave time for questions and discussion.
• The font size should be a minimum of 30pt because the audience reads faster than you talk so less information on the slides means that there is less chance of the audience being distracted.

Here are some additional resources for slide design:

• 7 design tips for effective, beautiful PowerPoint presentations
• 11 design tips for beautiful presentations
• 10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea

Group Presentations

Group presentations are structured in the same way as presentations with one speaker but usually require more rehearsal and practices.  Clean transitioning between speakers  is very important in producing a presentation that flows well. One way of doing this consists of:

• Briefly recap on what you covered in your section: “So that was a brief introduction on what health anxiety is and how it can affect somebody”
• Introduce the next speaker in the team and explain what they will discuss: “Now Elnaz will talk about the prevalence of health anxiety.”
• Then end by looking at the next speaker, gesturing towards them and saying their name: “Elnaz”.
• The next speaker should acknowledge this with a quick: “Thank you Joe.”

From this example you can see how the different sections of the presentations link which makes it easier for the audience to follow and remain engaged.

Example of great presentation structure and delivery

Having examples of great presentations will help inspire your own structures, here are a few such examples, each unique and inspiring in their own way.

How Google Works – by Eric Schmidt

This presentation by ex-Google CEO  Eric Schmidt  demonstrates some of the most important lessons he and his team have learnt with regards to working with some of the most talented individuals they hired. The simplistic yet cohesive style of all of the slides is something to be appreciated. They are relatively straightforward, yet add power and clarity to the narrative of the presentation.

Start with why – by Simon Sinek

Since being released in 2009, this presentation has been viewed almost four million times all around the world. The message itself is very powerful, however, it’s not an idea that hasn’t been heard before. What makes this presentation so powerful is the simple message he is getting across, and the straightforward and understandable manner in which he delivers it. Also note that he doesn’t use any slides, just a whiteboard where he creates a simple diagram of his opinion.

The Wisdom of a Third Grade Dropout – by Rick Rigsby

Here’s an example of a presentation given by a relatively unknown individual looking to inspire the next generation of graduates. Rick’s presentation is unique in many ways compared to the two above. Notably, he uses no visual prompts and includes a great deal of humour.

However, what is similar is the structure he uses. He first introduces his message that the wisest man he knew was a third-grade dropout. He then proceeds to deliver his main body of argument, and in the end, concludes with his message. This powerful speech keeps the viewer engaged throughout, through a mixture of heart-warming sentiment, powerful life advice and engaging humour.

As you can see from the examples above, and as it has been expressed throughout, a great presentation structure means analysing the core message of your presentation. Decide on a key message you want to impart the audience with, and then craft an engaging way of delivering it.

By preparing a solid structure, and  practising your talk  beforehand, you can walk into the presentation with confidence and deliver a meaningful message to an interested audience.

It’s important for a presentation to be well-structured so it can have the most impact on your audience. An unstructured presentation can be difficult to follow and even frustrating to listen to. The heart of your speech are your main points supported by evidence and your transitions should assist the movement between points and clarify how everything is linked.

Research suggests that the audience remember the first and last things you say so your introduction and conclusion are vital for reinforcing your points. Essentially, ensure you spend the time structuring your presentation and addressing all of the sections.

Researched by Consultants from Top-Tier Management Companies

Powerpoint Templates

Icon Bundle

Kpi Dashboard

Professional

Business Plans

Swot Analysis

Gantt Chart

Business Proposal

Marketing Plan

Project Management

Business Case

Business Model

Cyber Security

Business PPT

Digital Marketing

Digital Transformation

Human Resources

Product Management

Artificial Intelligence

Company Profile

Acknowledgement PPT

PPT Presentation

Reports Brochures

One Page Pitch

Interview PPT

All Categories

Top 11 Templates to Advance Your External Communication Plan

Deepika Dhaka

Is your firm preparing for a major announcement? Are you working on a new marketing effort to get the word out? Of course, you'll start by talking to your internal team. But don't forget about all the other people who can help spread the news outside. Or have you already forgotten?

Regardless of how well-organized an internal communication plan is, it's practically useless if it doesn't reach the intended people. You must, therefore, establish an external communication plan as it guarantees that the message reaches your target audience. 

So what is an external communication plan?

An external communication plan or strategy is designed to engage with the audience outside of your firm and convey your brand’s purpose, personality, and progress. It aims to connect your company with a larger audience through several mediums such as presentations, investor campaigns, blogs, conferences, live events, email, social media, and press releases. Other than these, PR agencies and influencers can also be utilized to build a robust external network.

Now that you know what an external strategy is, the next question that might haunt you is “how to develop one for your brand?” We've, therefore, compiled the best external communication plan PowerPoint slides to save you time and effort while providing high-quality results. 

The editable PowerPoint templates in this collection will assist you in developing a solid broadcast approach that can help your marketing efforts succeed.

So let's explore these 11 PPT templates without any further ado!

Template 1: External Communication Plan for Online Marketing

Check out this super handy external communication PPT template for online marketing! It can make your planning for social media posts and emails so much easier. It features a beautiful design and leaves plenty of room to jot down your strategy. In addition, it's content-ready to save your effort. Download it now! 

Download this template

Template 2: Elements for External Communication Plan

This PowerPoint design is an excellent starting point for any external communication strategy. It includes six essential components to help you create the best advertising system for your company. Consider this comprehensive and trendy framework to develop a compelling marketing memorandum and get you ahead of the competition. Grab it now!

Template 3: Tools For External Communication

This PPT slide explains various external communication tools that you can use to inform your stakeholders about the most recent accomplishments. Use this structure to develop a strategy that works for you and ensures that your message gets across clearly. Furthermore, this dark theme with a pop of blue and green hues is attractive enough to capture the audience's attention. So download it now! 

Template 4: Objectives and Channels of External Communication Strategy

This valuable PPT template can help you establish clear objectives and identify the most suitable channels to reach your target audience. It has columns for constituencies, objectives, and communication methods to ensure that your plan is comprehensive and well-executed. Additionally, this tabular format is an excellent choice for organizing and analyzing your message plan, thereby making this design an unquestionable pick.

Template 5: Barriers of External Communication

This stunning PPT layout can help you spot any communication obstacles and develop tactics to overcome them. It contains a variety of variables, such as noise and distractions, unpleasant environment, and technological restrictions. You can use this well-informed design to streamline your approach to addressing these potential issues. So don't wait any longer; download now!

Template 6: External Communication Tools

Presenting a simple yet appealing layout that can be used to explain your marketing collaterals in the most efficient way possible. It's a great slide to include in your PowerPoint presentations because of its circular design. Moreover, the vibrant colors used in this slide make it aesthetically appealing. Get it now and see the impact yourself!

Template 7: Benefits of External Communication

Here's a PPT theme to help you understand the advantages of improved external communications with your consumers, vendors, and other crucial audiences. It becomes an ideal choice for your presentation when infused with different themes and useful content. Apart from this, it is an editable slide, so that you can add additional perks. Download it today!

Template 8: External Communication Plan with Delivery Medium

Use this PPT template to plan out activities, delivery methods, and communicators for multiple campaigns. This methodical chart ensures that your developments and updates are delivered via the most efficient channels and reach the greatest possible audience. Also, if you're unsure of how to include so many variables in one place, get started with this slide now.

Template 9: External Communication Plan for Projects

Another excellent example of a perfect external communication plan is this well-designed PowerPoint template! Its professional format and uncomplicated structure can explain even the most complex concepts with ease. You can also use it to transmit two ideas at once since it includes a table and pointers. Grab it now!

Template 10: Internal and External Communication Plan

Check out this fantastic PPT design that helps you display the internal and external communication plans at one place. Thanks to the artsy combination this design is a visual treat to the eyes. The ombre effect in this slide differentiates it from other presentations. So get it now!

Template 11: External Communication Strategy Template

Here's a unique PPT graphic that informs and explains the spread of words creatively. It determines how awareness is generated between the company and the ultimate consumer. If you want to gracefully include the notion of communication into your presentation, download it now!

Now that you know how to create an impactful external communication plan, it's time to put your learning into action. Choose a PPT design from the collection above to download and build a solid strategy to ensure that you reach your target audience in high numbers and have a significant impact on them. We would like to know your experiences in the comments section below. Moreover, you can explore our communication plan template

P.S: If you are looking for a resource to develop a good market communication plan, here's a handy guide with stunning editable templates. So do give it a read! 

Related posts:

• Top 10 One Page Communication Plan for Formulating Effective Business Strategy!
• 20+ PowerPoint Templates for Quality Management in Sports Club
• How to Design the Perfect Service Launch Presentation [Custom Launch Deck Included]
• Quarterly Business Review Presentation: All the Essential Slides You Need in Your Deck

Liked this blog? Please recommend us

Why Brand Communication is Important in Presentations (and How to Crank It up a Notch)

Top-Notch B2B Communication Strategies For Marketing Like a Pro (Top 10 Templates Included)

Top 10 Mass Communication Templates to Expand Your Brand Outreach

[Updated 2023] Top 13 Templates to Present Change Management Communication in Your Organization

This form is protected by reCAPTCHA - the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Digital revolution powerpoint presentation slides

Sales funnel results presentation layouts

3d men joinning circular jigsaw puzzles ppt graphics icons

Business Strategic Planning Template For Organizations Powerpoint Presentation Slides

Future plan powerpoint template slide

Project Management Team Powerpoint Presentation Slides

Brand marketing powerpoint presentation slides

Launching a new service powerpoint presentation with slides go to market

Agenda powerpoint slide show

Four key metrics donut chart with percentage

Engineering and technology ppt inspiration example introduction continuous process improvement

Meet our team representing in circular format

Happy anniversary … 30 years at one company! While some would say that is unheard of in today’s norm of multiple jobs, and even multiple careers, some of us still remain.

As a leader and long-tenured associate, one can easily get trapped in the day-to-day operations of the business. The focus, while well intended, is on internal happenings. How do we continue to grow revenue? How do we become more efficient? Are my team members being adequately trained and developed? How do we meet the ever-changing needs of our clients? These vital demands can be all-consuming. Does this sound familiar?

Even with so many years under my belt, I recently had an “a-ha” moment. I recognized that despite my passion, commitment and loyalty to my team and our company, I need to put renewed focus on gaining and maintaining an external perspective . While completing an external scan exercise to assist with defining our division’s strategic plan, I experienced the importance of not only remaining aligned with our company’s vision, but also understanding best practices and changes in our industry, with our competitors, and in the world beyond our front doors.

It only takes a few minutes a day to take off the blinders, lift your head out of the sand and see what’s going on around you. So how do we take the right steps to make sure we build and maintain this perspective?

Identify ‘quick hit’ resources There is an abundance of knowledge at our fingertips. In today’s information age, it’s easy to identify meaningful sources that can be quickly scanned for relevance. Information may come from an impactful “Tweeter,” an insightful LinkedIn blogger, or an expert in your particular industry. Regardless, it’s imperative to stay current on the periodicals to which you subscribe, not letting them gather dust on your credenza. Listen to the news during your commute. Each day, commit to spending 10 minutes gathering just one piece of external insight and you’ll be ahead of the game.

Tap into your full network In addition to these “quick hit” learnings, your network is also full of potential knowledge. Attend professional affiliation luncheons, take advantage of that local college course and the experience of the people who are attending or see what is trending on YouTube. Tap into the friends you are hosting for dinner on Saturday night or sitting next to at your child’s soccer game. Chances are these acquaintances know something that is applicable and transferrable to your industry. Are you a “Facebooker?” If so, dig beyond the surface to find meaningful nuggets. When your friend posts that he just attended a fantastic conference in Dallas, understand the topic, what he learned and how it might relate to you and your business.

Understand the benefits While it is beneficial to keep an external focus, the true significance comes from taking what you have read or learned and asking yourself… so what? How will this impact me, my team and our company? What are the potential short- and long-term implications? To have a balanced perspective, ask yourself these questions through various lenses. Are there economic, political, technological or even social implications? At least once a year, make a concerted effort to complete a thorough external analysis – a deep dive into the world around you to augment strategic planning efforts. I think you will find the output will be more robust and thoughtful.

The advantages of an external focus are numerous, particularly if you have lengthy tenure. External perspective fosters proactive versus reactive decisions. It leads to innovation and idea generation that may positively influence the future of your team and organization. It ensures ongoing relevance, and on a personal level, builds credibility.

Whether you have been with your company for 30 years, 30 weeks or 30 days, it only takes a few minutes each day to learn from all that is happening around you and provide valuable insight to your company.

You May Also Be Interested In

• Key Differences

Know the Differences & Comparisons

Difference Between Internal and External Communication

In the process of management, communication plays a preeminent role because, in the absence of effective communication, no superior-subordinate relationship will thrive as well as employee’s commitment towards organization also depends on it. It is the transfer of information between two parties, which can take place, with or without the use of words. The two types of communication are very important to the success and growth of the enterprise.

Content: Internal Communication Vs External Communication

Comparison chart, definition of internal communication.

The communication is said to be internal, when the exchange of information, message, facts, opinions, etc. takes place between the members of the organization or various units of the organization, for business purposes. It can occur between individuals, groups, departments or units. It can be:

• Formal Communication : Communication that passes through predefined channels is formal communication.
• Informal Communication : Communication that flows in all directions and that arises out of social and personal needs is informal communication.

Internal Communication works to establish and disseminate the objectives of the undertaking, developing plans for accomplishment, organizing the resources in an optimum way. It assists in selecting, training and appraising participants within the organization. It is a business tool which leads and motivates the employees to put their best in the job.

Internal Communication uses memo, circulars, staff news letter, fax, notice, minutes on meetings, video conferencing, presentations, seminars, agenda, manuals, etc. as a mode of communication.

Definition of External Communication

External Communication can be understood as the sharing of information between the company and any other person or entity from the external environment, i.e. customers, suppliers, investors, clients, dealers, society, government agencies, general public, etc. In general, external communication is formal and largely documented.

External Communication determines the way organization connects or disseminates information to the audiences external to business. These have a great impact on the minds of stakeholders, as their opinion about the company, brand and its variants largely depends on it.

It focuses on facilitating cooperation with the groups so as to build and maintain good public image through relationships. Advertisements, customer’s feedback material, service calls, press releases, invitations, circulars, price lists manuals, customised reports, etc are some of the methods of external communication.

Key Differences Between Internal and External Communication

The differences between internal and external communication can be drawn clearly on the following grounds:

• Internal Communication refers to the communication which takes place among the participants within the business organization. On the contrary, external communication is a communication that occurs between the organization and other individuals, groups or organizations.
• Internal communication can be formal or informal but external communication is mostly formal and highly documented.
• Internal communication aims at transmission of information between various business units and departments. Conversely, external communication focuses on maintaining relationship or exchanging information with the parties external to the business.
• The participants of internal communication are employees and the company’s management. As against this, the parties to external communication include customers, shareholders, investors, clients, general public, suppliers, creditors, etc.
• Both internal and external communication are regular but the frequency of internal communication is relatively higher than that of external commnication.
• Internal communication flows within the organization, whereas the external communication flows in the vast business environment.

All in all, internal and external communication are vital to the business for its effective functioning. The former is used to guide, inform and motivate individuals to work efficiently for the success of the organization. The latter helps in presenting a good image of the business to the public.

You Might Also Like:

Dr.M.DOSS says

July 2, 2018 at 6:43 am

Highly useful for students concerned. Students with real commitments to studies will find these materials highly useful for academic purpose.

December 3, 2018 at 6:09 am

Awesome ✌️🏻

September 13, 2021 at 9:04 am

Thank you for help it’s very helpful content keep it up

Henry Balondemu says

March 24, 2022 at 7:03 pm

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

NEW! Get featured in USA Today, IB Times, Hollywood Life, and more!

Pr fundamentals: what is external public relations.

Internal vs. external PR

There are many different PR terms that are important to understand for anyone who works in PR or who is aspiring to work in PR in the near future. 

Thankfully, most of these terms can be explained with simple common sense and don’t require a great deal of study to grasp. 

But here’s something we get asked quite a bit: what is  external public relations ? External public relations is unfortunately one PR term that isn’t immediately accessible to most people. 

So what does it mean? 

In the most simplistic form possible, internal PR is about how you communicate with people within the company, including employees and managers, and external PR is PR aimed at external entities, such as customers, the general public, governments, and company shareholders. 

In other words, the type of PR that most people are familiar with is external PR. Commercials are external PR, as are billboards, websites, and company-run social media profiles. 

A very  important note  before we move on: external public relations should not vary in message, only in how those messages are communicated to each group of people. 

Now that we have the basics nailed down, we will run through several different groups at which external PR is aimed and how PR materials might differ for each one. 

For the general public 

Typically, a client only needs to start worrying about marketing toward the general public after they have grown to a certain size. 

In most cases, clients are most concerned about communicating with their target audience and with their shareholders. These are the people who will have  the most direct impact  on the overall health of the company. 

But after a certain point, every client utilizing PR services of some kind needs to think about how they are viewed by the general populous.

Any PR materials created for the general public should be as broad and widely appealing as possible, and they probably shouldn’t get into specifics about the company’s operations or the fine details of their products. 

Think of any major television commercial for Coca-Cola. In general, these commercials will show happy people with Cokes in their hands. The commercials are as pleasant as possible and might feature one or two lines about a new green initiative the company is undertaking. 

It won’t talk about how the stock price is faring or how many products they sold during the last financial quarter. 

PR like this meant for the general public should generally try to  create positive associations  with a brand. If a viewer wants to dig deeper and get more info, they can do so via other resources. 

For existing customers 

PR meant for a client’s existing customer base can be extremely important.  Customers like knowing that they’re important  and valued, and that any concerns they might have will be taken care of. 

External PR materials for this group could still involve commercials or online ads, as long as they’re aimed at their target audience and people who the client knows are already customers. 

It could also be promotional emails sent out on a consistent basis, offering discounts, loyalty programs, and cursory updates about how the company is doing and their plans for the near future. 

PR for customers should really only venture into more somber territory if there has been a crisis of some kind, such as a product defect or recall. 

Rather than letting customers stay angry about the situation indefinitely, they at least get to hear an apology from the company and receive any important information about what the company plans to do to correct the situation. 

But in most instances, PR designed for customers should make the customers feel valued and gently convince them that they made the right choice by purchasing these products. 

In fact, if you check your inbox right now, you’ll probably be able to find  dozens of emails that fall under this category,  even if most of them get sorted into a separate ‘Promotions’ folder.

Read through a few to get a better sense for how different brands take slightly different approaches to keeping customers in their camp. 

For shareholders 

Shareholders are incredibly important to any company that offers shares in any form, and they are especially important for large, publicly-traded companies, who rely on their shareholders for  a large percentage of their overall funding.  

Sure, shareholders are interested in a company’s products, but really only to the extent that each new product has the potential to make all of them a lot more money.

You’ve probably heard of companies holding semi-annual shareholder meetings, which are often in-person events specifically designed to make shareholders feel confident in their decision to support this company. 

The event itself definitely qualifies as external PR, as well as the presentation given and all the information provided. 

A PR team may even choose which executive within the company should deliver the presentation. 

Obviously, PR materials for shareholders focus a lot more on hard numbers and data. Shareholders get to hear and see information that would probably never make it into a public-facing commercial. 

One of the most important aspects of PR materials for shareholders is  projections for future performance. 

While these projections can never be 100% accurate (predicting the future never is), they definitely cannot mislead shareholders, as this would constitute fraud. 

Still, companies tend to be very optimistic with their financial outlooks, in the hopes of encouraging shareholders to send even more funding their way. 

For governments 

All companies need to cope with government regulation in some form, even if it’s only the payment of taxes and adhering to federal workplace requirements. 

But for certain very large corporations, making efforts to communicate effectively with government representatives is extremely important.

In fact, this is the biggest reason for  the ubiquity of lobbyists. 

Rather than seeking special treatment from governments at the local, state, or federal level, this form of external PR is all about making sure that everyone is on the same page. 

No company wants to be unfairly regulated, and every company definitely wants governments to understand exactly what kind of work they’re doing and that it’s all above-board and eco-friendly. 

Don’t expect to be creating PR materials for the federal government your first year on the job, but  familiarizing yourself with all these different types of external PR  will be very important for the success of your PR career.

Featured Articles

Print vs Online Media — Which is Better for Your Reputation?

Professions That Will Make You Famous

How To Write A Letter To Request For Media Coverage

How To Become Famous Without Social Media

How To Promote Your Music In Bandcamp

Instagram Pages That Promote Music

How to Get Your Short Film Nominated for an Oscar

This is How To Sell Your Lyrics to Record Labels

THIS is How To Get Free Clothes to Promote on Instagram

Suggested Campaign Structures

• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Meaning of presentation in English

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

presentation noun ( EVENT )

• talk She will give a talk on keeping kids safe on the internet.
• lecture The lecture is entitled "War and the Modern American Presidency".
• presentation We were given a presentation of progress made to date.
• speech You might have to make a speech when you accept the award.
• address He took the oath of office then delivered his inaugural address.
• oration It was to become one of the most famous orations in American history.
• The presentation was a collaborative effort by all the children in the class .
• The charity invited the press to a presentation of its plans for the future .
• The magazine asked its readers to send in their comments about the new style of presentation.
• Jenny's retiring and I think there's going to be a small presentation this afternoon .
• Graduates must be in full academic dress at the presentation of certificates .
• call for papers
• extemporize
• maiden speech
• talk at someone

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

presentation noun ( APPEARANCE )

• adverse conditions
• good/bad karma idiom
• have it in you idiom
• unaffiliated
• undercurrent

presentation | American Dictionary

Presentation | business english, examples of presentation, collocations with presentation, presentation.

These are words often used in combination with presentation .

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

Translations of presentation

Get a quick, free translation!

Word of the Day

have your hands full

to be so busy that you do not have time to do anything else

Binding, nailing, and gluing: talking about fastening things together

Learn more with +Plus

• Recent and Recommended {{#preferredDictionaries}} {{name}} {{/preferredDictionaries}}
• Definitions Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
• Grammar and thesaurus Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English Grammar Thesaurus
• Pronunciation British and American pronunciations with audio English Pronunciation
• English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
• English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
• English–Dutch Dutch–English
• English–French French–English
• English–German German–English
• English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
• English–Italian Italian–English
• English–Japanese Japanese–English
• English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
• English–Polish Polish–English
• English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
• English–Spanish Spanish–English
• English–Swedish Swedish–English
• Dictionary +Plus Word Lists
• presentation (EVENT)
• presentation (APPEARANCE)
• American    Noun
• Business    Noun
• Collocations
• Translations
• All translations

Add presentation to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

{{message}}

Something went wrong.

There was a problem sending your report.

• Reviews / Why join our community?
• For companies
• Frequently asked questions

External Representations

Literature on external representations.

Here’s the entire UX literature on External Representations by the Interaction Design Foundation, collated in one place:

Learn more about External Representations

Take a deep dive into External Representations with our course AI for Designers .

In an era where technology is rapidly reshaping the way we interact with the world, understanding the intricacies of AI is not just a skill, but a necessity for designers . The AI for Designers course delves into the heart of this game-changing field, empowering you to navigate the complexities of designing in the age of AI. Why is this knowledge vital? AI is not just a tool; it's a paradigm shift, revolutionizing the design landscape. As a designer, make sure that you not only keep pace with the ever-evolving tech landscape but also lead the way in creating user experiences that are intuitive, intelligent, and ethical.

AI for Designers is taught by Ioana Teleanu, a seasoned AI Product Designer and Design Educator who has established a community of over 250,000 UX enthusiasts through her social channel UX Goodies. She imparts her extensive expertise to this course from her experience at renowned companies like UiPath and ING Bank, and now works on pioneering AI projects at Miro.

In this course, you’ll explore how to work with AI in harmony and incorporate it into your design process to elevate your career to new heights. Welcome to a course that doesn’t just teach design; it shapes the future of design innovation.

In lesson 1, you’ll explore AI's significance, understand key terms like Machine Learning, Deep Learning, and Generative AI, discover AI's impact on design, and master the art of creating effective text prompts for design.

In lesson 2, you’ll learn how to enhance your design workflow using AI tools for UX research, including market analysis, persona interviews, and data processing. You’ll dive into problem-solving with AI, mastering problem definition and production ideation.

In lesson 3, you’ll discover how to incorporate AI tools for prototyping, wireframing, visual design, and UX writing into your design process. You’ll learn how AI can assist to evaluate your designs and automate tasks, and ensure your product is launch-ready.

In lesson 4, you’ll explore the designer's role in AI-driven solutions, how to address challenges, analyze concerns, and deliver ethical solutions for real-world design applications.

Throughout the course, you'll receive practical tips for real-life projects. In the Build Your Portfolio exercises, you’ll practise how to  integrate AI tools into your workflow and design for AI products, enabling you to create a compelling portfolio case study to attract potential employers or collaborators.

All open-source articles on External Representations

External cognition in product design: 3 ways to make use of external cognition in product design.

• 3 years ago

Open Access—Link to us!

We believe in Open Access and the  democratization of knowledge . Unfortunately, world-class educational materials such as this page are normally hidden behind paywalls or in expensive textbooks.

If you want this to change , cite this page , link to us, or join us to help us democratize design knowledge !

Privacy Settings

Our digital services use necessary tracking technologies, including third-party cookies, for security, functionality, and to uphold user rights. Optional cookies offer enhanced features, and analytics.

Experience the full potential of our site that remembers your preferences and supports secure sign-in.

Governs the storage of data necessary for maintaining website security, user authentication, and fraud prevention mechanisms.

Enhanced Functionality

Saves your settings and preferences, like your location, for a more personalized experience.

Referral Program

We use cookies to enable our referral program, giving you and your friends discounts.

Error Reporting

We share user ID with Bugsnag and NewRelic to help us track errors and fix issues.

Optimize your experience by allowing us to monitor site usage. You’ll enjoy a smoother, more personalized journey without compromising your privacy.

Analytics Storage

Collects anonymous data on how you navigate and interact, helping us make informed improvements.

Differentiates real visitors from automated bots, ensuring accurate usage data and improving your website experience.

Lets us tailor your digital ads to match your interests, making them more relevant and useful to you.

Advertising Storage

Stores information for better-targeted advertising, enhancing your online ad experience.

Personalization Storage

Permits storing data to personalize content and ads across Google services based on user behavior, enhancing overall user experience.

Advertising Personalization

Allows for content and ad personalization across Google services based on user behavior. This consent enhances user experiences.

Enables personalizing ads based on user data and interactions, allowing for more relevant advertising experiences across Google services.

Receive more relevant advertisements by sharing your interests and behavior with our trusted advertising partners.

Enables better ad targeting and measurement on Meta platforms, making ads you see more relevant.

Allows for improved ad effectiveness and measurement through Meta’s Conversions API, ensuring privacy-compliant data sharing.

LinkedIn Insights

Tracks conversions, retargeting, and web analytics for LinkedIn ad campaigns, enhancing ad relevance and performance.

LinkedIn CAPI

Enhances LinkedIn advertising through server-side event tracking, offering more accurate measurement and personalization.

Google Ads Tag

Tracks ad performance and user engagement, helping deliver ads that are most useful to you.

Share the knowledge!

Share this content on:

or copy link

Cite according to academic standards

Simply copy and paste the text below into your bibliographic reference list, onto your blog, or anywhere else. You can also just hyperlink to this page.

New to UX Design? We’re Giving You a Free ebook!

Download our free ebook The Basics of User Experience Design to learn about core concepts of UX design.

In 9 chapters, we’ll cover: conducting user interviews, design thinking, interaction design, mobile UX design, usability, UX research, and many more!

Internal presentations are vital to your career

More presentations are conducted internally than externally, such as in meetings on decisions, projects, reviews, and sales. In fact, internal presentations are often the most important and influential presentations you will ever make. The stakes are often higher – these presentations can have a bigger direct impact on financial performance, share price and operational results of your organization or business unit. Therefore, internal presentations are vital to your career.

This article discusses in-person presentations. You can read helpful insights on virtual presentations in my article, “ Ten tips for delivering an effective virtual presentation .”

Two levels of internal presentations

To audiences of  middle managers

You know what works in team meetings at your peer level : stories, PowerPoint slides, one-way communication with minimal Q&A, and no interruptions.

To audiences of C-Suite executives

For effective presentations to top executives, know the people and the big picture, go very early to bottom line impact, deliver with confidence, and be prepared to answer questions. You must gain approval from the people at the top to get things done. Resources are limited, and managers from other departments, eg finance, IT, and marketing, are competing for the same resources. Refer to my article, “ Make persuasive presentations to senior executives ” for more tips on persuading top management to support your case. Here’s the formula:

Know the people and big picture

• Who will be in the meeting?
• What are their titles?
• What are their agendas, and how do they feel about each other?
• Who will support you and who will oppose you?
• Ideally you will have a sponsor, a senior executive. They can tell you what to expect, and can get the meeting back on track if it derails.

My own experience (sad to say) is that the unspoken intent of many senior executives is to preserve and extend their own power base and territory as their highest priority. Therefore, you need to consider your proposal in that light and try not to cause any perceived threat to their sources of power. You could use the fear and self-interest approach: suggest subtly that if they don’t act they will cause problems for the organization – and for their own areas.

Summarize to start

Top executives are under great time-pressure. They don’t want to sit through a neat and carefully-ordered presentation. So go straight to the important stuff up front, especially the data and financial implications. Give them high-level conclusions, recommendations and a call to action. Briefly cover important supporting information after that, and then seek discussion and questions. Start the presentation by letting them know this. Structuring in this way will ensure internal presentations are vital to your career prospects.

Go to the bottom line at the top

A key rule of content development for a C-suite presentation is to focus as a priority on budget impact. If you want money, include ROI calculations so the executives will know what they’ll get for their investment.

Skip the storytelling that works so well at your peer-level team meetings. Executives simply don’t have time for it. Get right to the point using data.

Be careful with PowerPoint. The C-suite wants a discussion, not a slide-driven lecture, so to increase your credibility with them, cut the number of slides to a minimum. When you are finished with the slides, ensure the screen is blank. This will refocus the attention back on you.

One option for good PowerPoint slides is to go to Slidehunter , who offer more than 4,000 free ppt templates with pre-designed slide themes within the categories of business, strategy, process, timelines, roadmap and funnel. Worth a look.

Familiarity means internal presentations are too often taken for granted

For several reasons, internal presentations are not treated as important as external ones. Familiarity and frequency mean they are often taken for granted. If the people in your intended presentation audience are casual about internal presentations, you can consider sending them an email or report as an alternative. But if there are significant issues at stake, then it is worth the time and effort to get face-to-face with the decision makers.

Similarly, as some meetings are regular and compulsory for employees, presenters might take the attitude of having a ‘captive audience.’ the attendees may switch off and be mentally somewhere else, even though they may be physically present. So the onus is on you to be professional in preparing your presentation.

To attend your internal presentation, the attendees have to sacrifice some of their working day, which can be difficult. Recognize this and seek to maintain their attention. Keep in the front of your mind that internal presentations are vital to your career.

Audience engagement

To keep your internal audience engaged, think carefully about what both you and the audience want to achieve from the presentation and build it around this core thinking. Use a strong message to convey the theme you have decided on.

Ask them questions, and encourage their questions. You should expect and prepare to answer probing questions, not because managers think your idea is bad, but because this is how they will arrive at a decision quickly— such as whether your proposal fits within the current business strategy and budget, and whether it has the potential for an acceptable return on investment.

Reinforce your brand internally

If your organization takes your brand seriously, make the brand essential to internal presentations:

• Ask yourself how the key attributes of your brand impact on internal actions and behaviors. How can you convey these attributes in internal presentations? How do you get colleagues to feel that?
• If you have a slogan, how does it run through the presentation? Is it implied? Can it be included in wording and stories? How does it become tangible?
• If you have a communication role, what can you do to make presentations easier for fellow employees to project the brand? You can provide slide templates, narratives or storylines, graphics, adaptation of corporate identity requirements.

How to overcome these problems

Dull content

Few internal presentations are exciting. But they don’t need to be boring.

You can lift interest by involving the audience. For example:

• Tell a story that supports or illustrates your main message.
• Use metaphors and similarities to make numbers more meaningful.
• Engage the audience – interaction with questions or role-playing.

Put conviction and even passion into your words. After all, if you’re not convinced the subject is important, how do you expect them to care?

Concepts aren’t visual

You may not think your concepts are suited to exciting visuals.

Use a little imagination to lift visual attractiveness. For instance, experts quote Seth Godin, who wrote :

Talking about pollution in Houston? Instead of giving me four bullet points of EPA data, why not read the stats but show me a picture of a bunch of dead birds, some smog, and even a diseased lung?

Get creative. Decide the emotional core of your message and find metaphorical images that support them. For instance, a food retailer talking about wasted food could show the stats with a background of starving children, a truck at the rubbish dump or a shot of a rat, etc. You could access free stock photos at sites like freeimages.com . You could even take your own good photos. But don’t overdo the visuals. If your audience is not used to strong visuals in internal presentations, be prudent about the extent you use them.

No time to prepare

“I’m just preparing my impromptu remarks.”

Sir Winston Churchill

Allow enough time for proper preparation

No excuses! The experts believe that saying ‘I don’t have time’ is virtually the same as saying, ‘I don’t want to.’ This reflects the low priority you place on internal presentations. If you think it is important, you will make time for it. Remember that internal presentations are vital to your career.

Further reading

My ebook, Deliver Winning Business Presentations: Persuade your audience to your point of view , is available as a PDF if you wish to continue strengthening the success of your business presentations.

Kim Harrison

Kim J. Harrison has authored, edited, coordinated, produced and published the material in the articles and ebooks on this website. He brings his experience in professional communication and business management to provide helpful insights to readers around the world. As he has progressed through his wide-ranging career, his roles have included corporate affairs management; PR consulting; authoring many articles, books and ebooks; running a university PR course; and business management. Kim has received several international media relations awards and a website award. He has been quoted in The New York Times and various other news media, and has held elected positions with his State and National PR Institutes.

Content Authenticity Statement. AI is not knowingly used in the writing or editing of any content, including images, in these newsletters, articles or ebooks. If AI-produced content is contained in any published form in future, this will be reported to readers.

Leave a comment

Please read and respect our Comments Policy before engaging.

Submit a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my details

Send your comment

Further Reading

Related Articles

How to be strategic about public speaking opportunities

Public speaking is a leadership role. You may speak in public yourself or you may write speeches or speech notes for your CEO and senior executives, or you may do all these things. Speeches are a powerful way to directly communicate with and influence target...

Master impromptu speaking in business: Essential techniques and tips

When you master impromptu speaking in business settings, this may be the most important and influential verbal communication you will ever undertake. This applies in face-to-face and virtual discussions; and internally as well as externally. However, I have seen...

No products in the cart

• More from M-W
• To save this word, you'll need to log in. Log In

Definition of external

 (Entry 1 of 2)

Definition of external  (Entry 2 of 2)

• adventitious
• supervenient

Examples of external in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'external.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Latin externus external, from exter — more at exterior

1542, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

circa 1635, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing external

• external combustion engine
• external degree
• external respiration

Dictionary Entries Near external

external account

Cite this Entry

“External.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/external. Accessed 17 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of external.

Kids Definition of external  (Entry 2 of 2)

Medical Definition

Medical definition of external, more from merriam-webster on external.

Nglish: Translation of external for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of external for Arabic Speakers

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the day, circumlocution.

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Your vs. you're: how to use them correctly, every letter is silent, sometimes: a-z list of examples, more commonly mispronounced words, how to use em dashes (—), en dashes (–) , and hyphens (-), absent letters that are heard anyway, popular in wordplay, a great big list of bread words, the words of the week - apr. 12, 10 scrabble words without any vowels, 12 more bird names that sound like insults (and sometimes are), 9 superb owl words, games & quizzes.

Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning pp 2016–2019 Cite as

Learning with External Representations

• Erica de Vries 2  
• Reference work entry

355 Accesses

2 Citations

Learning with graphical representations ; Learning with symbol structures ; Learning with visualizations

External representations designate structures in the environment that allow the learner to interact with some content domain. They most often consist of configurations of inscriptions using a two-dimensional plane (paper, screen), but three-dimensional physical objects (mock-up, beads of an abacus, objects of a game or pieces of a puzzle) also fall under the designation. Representation comes from the Latin repraesentatio , which refers to the act of presenting something to someone’s eyes or to someone’s mind. In research on learning with external representations, the noun “representation” is used in a metonymic way for the result of the act, for that which represents, such as the figure, the picture, the graph, the statue, or the model; the adjective “external” specifies that these are outside the head and should be distinguished from internal mental...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution .

Buying options

• Available as PDF
• Read on any device
• Instant download
• Own it forever
• Available as EPUB and PDF
• Durable hardcover edition
• Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
• Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Ainsworth, S. E. (2006). DeFT: A conceptual framework for learning with multiple representations. Learning and Instruction, 16 , 183–198.

Google Scholar  

Bertin, J. (1983). Semiology of graphics . Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. Original work published 1967.

diSessa, A. A. (2004). Metarepresentation: Native competence and targets for instruction. Cognition and instruction, 22 , 293–331.

Duval, R. (1995). Sémiosis et pensée humaine, registres sémiotiques et apprentissages intellectuels. In Semiosis and human thought, semiotic registers and intellectual learning . Bern: Peter Lang.

Palmer, S. E. (1978). Fundamental aspects of cognitive representation. In E. Rosch & B. B. Lloyd (Eds.), Cognition and categorization (pp. 259–203). Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Zhang, J. (1997). The nature of external representations in problem solving. Cognitive Science, 21 , 179–217.

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Laboratory for Educational Sciences, Pierre-Mendès-France University of Grenoble II, BP 47, F-38040, Grenoble, Cedex 9, France

Dr. Erica de Vries

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Erica de Vries .

Editor information

Editors and affiliations.

Faculty of Economics and Behavioral Sciences, Department of Education, University of Freiburg, 79085, Freiburg, Germany

Norbert M. Seel

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this entry

Cite this entry.

de Vries, E. (2012). Learning with External Representations. In: Seel, N.M. (eds) Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1428-6_675

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-1428-6_675

Publisher Name : Springer, Boston, MA

Print ISBN : 978-1-4419-1427-9

Online ISBN : 978-1-4419-1428-6

eBook Packages : Humanities, Social Sciences and Law

Share this entry

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

Final Project Details

The final project for CIT 5940 is an open-ended group project to be completed in teams of three.

You should choose a project idea that interests you and your group. The broad requirements are listed below. In order for a project to be approved, you must indicate how you plan to satisfy several important requirements. Keep in mind that features like GUIs, web deployments, or the use of libraries in other programming languages are acceptable to include in your project but that they do not count towards the overall completeness & grading of your project.

• Your project must show meaningful, novel, and rigorous use of material from one unit in this course. There should be at least one data structure or topic that is central to your project and shows thoughtful application of the material from that unit to the specific problem at hand.
• Your project should show efficient and well-motivated use of other at least two data structures covered in this course. These uses & implementations can be “off-the-shelf” to some degree, but should show that you have thought about the problem and chosen the right data structure for the job.
• Your project should feature one of the software design patterns discussed in this course. You are allowed to choose patterns not discussed in the course as long as you get approval.
• story points
• feature branches + pull requests
• a UML design diagram
• interfaces for all non-trivial classes
• thorough testing
• a clear README
• neat & informative comments

The first point is one that will likely shape the direction of your project, and is also one that is likely to generate the most questions. There is a list of acceptable & unacceptable project ideas at the end of this writeup that can be used to help gauge whether your project develops an idea to a sufficient degree.

Final Project Proposals

By April 23rd @ 11:59pm, please upload a 1 page PDF of your Final Project Proposal. Additionally, one person from your group must fill out this form .

Each proposal should include:

• A list of participants.
• An explanation of the project idea, including a discussion of why your group chose this idea.
• Mark which feature or features is the one that you feel is the most meaningful and novel use of material from this course.
• Which software design pattern you intend to implement.
• Any outstanding questions you have that you would like the course staff to help you answer about your project.

Project Update & Check-In

By May 3rd @ 4:59pm, please email the instructors and your project TAs with:

• any questions you would like answered
• What have you completed so far?
• What is giving you trouble?
• UML diagram(s) & interfaces for feedback

This will count for a portion of your final project grade. A template for this email is provided here .

Final Project Deliverables

The final project deliverables (detailed below) will be due on May 10th. Each group will be assigned TAs; please check in with them if you have any project-specific questions! Groups are encouraged to finish the project & present it early—start your summer break as soon as you can!

Interfaces + Documentation

Full credit will be given for clear method input/output (methods should always have an input and an output for testing), minimization of instance variables, and high cohesion/low coupling. Each class should have its own unique and clear purpose. A class should avoid requiring the use of another class for a significant portion of its methods.

Uploaded to Git + emailed to assigned Project TAs by May 10 and at least 2 hours before project presentation.

GitHub requirements

• Assignment created in GitHub
• milestones, issues, story points, code review

Code coverage minimum: 80% (only for Java parts). Will be checked during live/final presentation.

Final Presentation:

Sign up for a timeslot on May 9th here (TBD), or reach out to your assigned Project TAs to potentially schedule an earlier demo.

Detailed 15-20 minute explanation of problem, interfaces, data structures, design, GitHub use, testing, project demo, and individual team member contributions.

• This category includes the portion of your grade that comes from correctly using appropriate data structures to implement your project.
• This category includes the portion of your grade that comes from completing the project to the extent that you proposed.
• Same rules apply as for the homework assignment for all components of the project written in Java.
• This category accounts for your successful implementation of the chosen software design pattern.
• Presentation: 5%

Acceptable and Unacceptable Ideas

There might be several ideas for projects that center around the use of graphs. Some will be suitably novel and complex and others will not. A graph representing physical adjacency (such as the Engineering Quad example from lecture) or a graph representing a social network are both examples that do not represent sufficiently large developments from straightforward uses of graphs. On the other hand, finding data that can constitue a matching problem and representing that data in a graph in order to find some solution to the problem could be acceptable.

Indexing is often a suitable topic for a project, but it requires data that can be organized and queried in several useful ways. Maintaining a database of image files like the Facebook Haystack architecture would be suitably complex, but building an individual primary key index over a series of text files would not be. For an indexing project to be acceptable, it should be able to answer queries that are not trivially answered by a linear search or binary search over a single view of the data.

Some other potentially interesting data structures & project combinations:

• An experiment demonstrating the effectiveness and drawbacks of several different hashing implementations, including different choices of hash functions and collision resolution strategies.
• Creative uses of graph algorithms to solve problems like matchings, set packing
• Modeling particles in a simulation using a point-based quadtree or octree
• Exploring the use of a kd-tree for nearest neighbor search in a high-dimensional space
• Implementing a bloom filter and benchmarking its performance with different settings and also against a deterministic hash table
• Using the UNION-FIND data structure.

Some data structures or topics that are unlikely to be suitably complex to base a project around:

• queues & stacks
• trees & graphs for well-known problems like shortest path, minimum spanning tree, etc.
• lists, sets, maps

Google Cloud Next 2024: Everything announced so far

Google’s Cloud Next 2024 event takes place in Las Vegas through Thursday, and that means lots of new cloud-focused news on everything from Gemini, Google’s AI-powered chatbot , to AI to devops and security. Last year’s event was the first in-person Cloud Next since 2019, and Google took to the stage to show off its ongoing dedication to AI with its Duet AI for Gmail and many other debuts , including expansion of generative AI to its security product line and other enterprise-focused updates and debuts .

Don’t have time to watch the full archive of Google’s keynote event ? That’s OK; we’ve summed up the most important parts of the event below, with additional details from the TechCrunch team on the ground at the event. And Tuesday’s updates weren’t the only things Google made available to non-attendees — Wednesday’s developer-focused stream started at 10:30 a.m. PT .

Google Vids

Leveraging AI to help customers develop creative content is something Big Tech is looking for, and Tuesday, Google introduced its version. Google Vids, a new AI-fueled video creation tool , is the latest feature added to the Google Workspace.

Here’s how it works: Google claims users can make videos alongside other Workspace tools like Docs and Sheets. The editing, writing and production is all there. You also can collaborate with colleagues in real time within Google Vids. Read more

Gemini Code Assist

After reading about Google’s new Gemini Code Assist , an enterprise-focused AI code completion and assistance tool, you may be asking yourself if that sounds familiar. And you would be correct. TechCrunch Senior Editor Frederic Lardinois writes that “Google previously offered a similar service under the now-defunct Duet AI branding.” Then Gemini came along. Code Assist is a direct competitor to GitHub’s Copilot Enterprise. Here’s why

And to put Gemini Code Assist into context, Alex Wilhelm breaks down its competition with Copilot, and its potential risks and benefits to developers, in the latest TechCrunch Minute episode.

Google Workspace

Image Credits: Google

Among the new features are voice prompts to kick off the AI-based “Help me write” feature in Gmail while on the go . Another one for Gmail includes a way to instantly turn rough email drafts into a more polished email. Over on Sheets, you can send out a customizable alert when a certain field changes. Meanwhile, a new set of templates make starting a new spreadsheet easier. For the Doc lovers, there is support for tabs now. This is good because, according to the company, you can “organize information in a single document instead of linking to multiple documents or searching through Drive.” Of course, subscribers get the goodies first. Read more

Google also seems to have plans to monetize two of its new AI features for the Google Workspace productivity suite. This will look like $10/month/user add-on packages. One will be for the new AI meetings and messaging add-on that takes notes for you, provides meeting summaries and translates content into 69 languages. The other is for the introduced AI security package, which helps admins keep Google Workspace content more secure. Read more

In February, Google announced an image generator built into Gemini, Google’s AI-powered chatbot. The company pulled it shortly after it was found to be randomly injecting gender and racial diversity into prompts about people. This resulted in some offensive inaccuracies. While we waited for an eventual re-release, Google came out with the enhanced image-generating tool, Imagen 2 . This is inside its Vertex AI developer platform and has more of a focus on enterprise. Imagen 2 is now generally available and comes with some fun new capabilities, including inpainting and outpainting. There’s also what Google’s calling “text-to-live images” where you  can now create short, four-second videos from text prompts, along the lines of AI-powered clip generation tools like Runway ,  Pika  and  Irreverent Labs . Read more

Vertex AI Agent Builder

We can all use a little bit of help, right? Meet Google’s Vertex AI Agent Builder, a new tool to help companies build AI agents.

“Vertex AI Agent Builder allows people to very easily and quickly build conversational agents,” Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian said. “You can build and deploy production-ready, generative AI-powered conversational agents and instruct and guide them the same way that you do humans to improve the quality and correctness of answers from models.”

To do this, the company uses a process called “grounding,” where the answers are tied to something considered to be a reliable source. In this case, it’s relying on Google Search (which in reality could or could not be accurate). Read more

Gemini comes to databases

Google calls Gemini in Databases a collection of features that “simplify all aspects of the database journey.” In less jargony language, it’s a bundle of AI-powered, developer-focused tools for Google Cloud customers who are creating, monitoring and migrating app databases. Read more

Google renews its focus on data sovereignty

Image Credits: MirageC / Getty Images

Google has offered cloud sovereignties before, but now it is focused more on partnerships rather than building them out on their own. Read more

Security tools get some AI love

Image Credits: Getty Images

Google jumps on board the productizing generative AI-powered security tool train with a number of new products and features aimed at large companies. Those include Threat Intelligence, which can analyze large portions of potentially malicious code. It also lets users perform natural language searches for ongoing threats or indicators of compromise. Another is Chronicle, Google’s cybersecurity telemetry offering for cloud customers to assist with cybersecurity investigations. The third is the enterprise cybersecurity and risk management suite Security Command Center. Read more

Nvidia’s Blackwell platform

One of the anticipated announcements is Nvidia’s next-generation Blackwell platform coming to Google Cloud in early 2025. Yes, that seems so far away. However, here is what to look forward to: support for the high-performance Nvidia HGX B200 for AI and HPC workloads and GB200 NBL72 for large language model (LLM) training. Oh, and we can reveal that the GB200 servers will be liquid-cooled. Read more

Chrome Enterprise Premium

Meanwhile, Google is expanding its Chrome Enterprise product suite with the launch of Chrome Enterprise Premium . What’s new here is that it mainly pertains mostly to security capabilities of the existing service, based on the insight that browsers are now the endpoints where most of the high-value work inside a company is done. Read more

Gemini 1.5 Pro

Everyone can use a “half” every now and again, and Google obliges with Gemini 1.5 Pro. This, Kyle Wiggers writes, is “Google’s most capable generative AI model,” and is now available in public preview on Vertex AI, Google’s enterprise-focused AI development platform. Here’s what you get for that half: T he amount of context that it can process, which is from 128,000 tokens up to 1 million tokens, where “tokens” refers to subdivided bits of raw data (like the syllables “fan,” “tas” and “tic” in the word “fantastic”). Read more

Open source tools

At Google Cloud Next 2024, the company debuted a number of open source tools primarily aimed at supporting generative AI projects and infrastructure. One is Max Diffusion, which is a collection of reference implementations of various diffusion models that run on XLA, or Accelerated Linear Algebra, devices. Then there is JetStream, a new engine to run generative AI models. The third is MaxTest, a collection of text-generating AI models targeting TPUs and Nvidia GPUs in the cloud. Read more

We don’t know a lot about this one, however, here is what we do know : Google Cloud joins AWS and Azure in announcing its first custom-built Arm processor, dubbed Axion. Frederic Lardinois writes that “based on Arm’s Neoverse 2 designs, Google says its Axion instances offer 30% better performance than other Arm-based instances from competitors like AWS and Microsoft and up to 50% better performance and 60% better energy efficiency than comparable X86-based instances.” Read more

The entire Google Cloud Next keynote

If all of that isn’t enough of an AI and cloud update deluge, you can watch the entire event keynote via the embed below.

Google Cloud Next’s developer keynote

On Wednesday, Google held a separate keynote for developers . They offered a deeper dive into the ins and outs of a number of tools outlined during the Tuesday keynote, including Gemini Cloud Assist, using AI for product recommendations and chat agents, ending with a showcase from Hugging Face. You can check out the full keynote below.

Watch CBS News

What is Eid al-Fitr? 6 questions about the holiday and how Muslims celebrate it, answered

By Ken Chitwood

Updated on: April 9, 2024 / 8:03 AM EDT / The Conversation

Ken Chitwood  is a senior research fellow, Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis and journalist-fellow at the Dornsife Center for Religion and Civic Culture at the  University of Southern California Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences .

Eid al-Fitr, one of Islam's principal festivals, will be celebrated April 9, 2024, according to the Fiqh Council of North America . At the middle of June, Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Adha. Ken Chitwood, a scholar of global Islam, explains the two Islamic festivals.

1. What is Eid?

Eid literally means a "festival" or "feast" in Arabic. There are two major eids in the Islamic calendar per year – Eid al-Fitr earlier in the year and Eid al-Adha later.

Eid al-Fitr is a three-day-long festival and is known as the "Lesser" or "Smaller Eid" when compared to Eid al-Adha, which is four days long and is known as the "Greater Eid."

2. Why is Eid celebrated twice a year?

The two Eids recognize, celebrate and recall two distinct events that are significant to the story of Islam.

Eid al-Fitr means "the feast of breaking the fast." The fast, in this instance, is Ramadan , which recalls the revealing of the Quran to Prophet Muhammad and requires Muslims to fast from sunrise to sundown for a month.

3. How do Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr?

Eid al-Fitr features two to three days of celebrations that include special morning prayers. People greet each other with "Eid Mubarak," meaning "Blessed Eid" and with formal embraces. Sweet dishes are prepared at home and gifts are given to children and to those in need. In addition, Muslims are encouraged to forgive and seek forgiveness. Practices vary from country to country.

In many countries with large Muslim populations, Eid al-Fitr is a national holiday. Schools, offices and businesses are closed so family, friends and neighbors can enjoy the celebrations together. In the U.S. and the U.K., Muslims may request to have the day off from school or work to travel or celebrate with family and friends.

In countries like Egypt and Pakistan, Muslims decorate their homes with lanterns, twinkling lights or flowers. Special food is prepared and friends and family are invited over to celebrate.

In places like Jordan, with its Muslim majority population, the days before Eid al-Fitr can see a rush at local malls and special "Ramadan markets" as people prepare to exchange gifts on Eid al-Fitr.

In Turkey and in places that were once part of the Ottoman-Turkish empire such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Azerbaijan and the Caucasus, it is also known as the, "Lesser Bayram" or "festival" in Turkish.

4. How do Muslims celebrate Eid al-Adha?

The other festival, Eid al-Adha, is the "feast of the sacrifice." It comes at the end of the Hajj , an annual pilgrimage by millions of Muslims to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia that is obligatory once in a lifetime, but only for those with means.

Eid al-Adha recalls the story of how God commanded Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ismail as a test of faith. The story, as narrated in the Quran, describes Satan's attempt to tempt Ibrahim so he would disobey God's command. Ibrahim, however, remains unmoved and informs Ismail, who is willing to be sacrificed.

But, just as Ibrahim attempts to kill his son, God intervenes and a ram is sacrificed in place of Ismail. During Eid al-Adha, Muslims slaughter an animal to remember Ibrahim's sacrifice and remind themselves of the need to submit to the will of God.

5. When are they celebrated?

Eid al-Fitr is celebrated on the first day of the 10th month in the Islamic calendar.

Eid al-Adha is celebrated on the 10th day of the final month in the Islamic calendar.

The Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar, and dates are calculated based on lunar phases. Since the Islamic calendar year is shorter than the solar Gregorian calendar year by 10 to 12 days, the dates for Ramadan and Eid on the Gregorian calendar can vary year by year.

6. What is the spiritual meaning of Eid al-Fitr?

Eid al-Fitr, as it follows the fasting of Ramadan, is also seen as a spiritual celebration of Allah's provision of strength and endurance.

Amid the reflection and rejoicing, Eid al-Fitr is a time for charity, known as Zakat al-Fitr. Eid is meant to be a time of joy and blessing for the entire Muslim community and a time for distributing one's wealth.

Charity to the poor is a highly emphasized value in Islam. The Quran says ,

"Believe in Allah and his messenger, and give charity out of the (substance) that Allah has made you heirs of. For those of you who believe and give charity – for them is a great reward."

This piece incorporates materials from an article first published on Aug. 28, 2017. The dates have been updated. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.

More from CBS News

Here's how much Caitlin Clark will make in the WNBA

Historic Copenhagen old stock exchange building erupts in flames

What Iran attacked Israel with, and what actually made it through

Log book from WWII ship mysteriously ends up in piece of furniture

Huge debt costs mean climate spending could make emerging nations insolvent

• Medium Text

The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here.

Reporting By Libby George; Editing by Aurora Ellis and Kevin Liffey

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. New Tab , opens new tab

Sustainability Chevron

Ecopetrol and Petrobras should collaborate on green hydrogen, Colombian president says

Colombian state energy company Ecopetrol and its Brazilian counterpart Petrobras should work together on developing green hydrogen, Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on Wednesday after meeting Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.