Presenting at Xinchejian
We're glad you're interested in presenting at Xinchejian. Here is all the information you need to know.
Contents
Presenting at Xinchejian
If you're interested in giving a presentation at Xinchejian, you must do these things:
Send an email to tell Xinchejian Staff
- wednesday@xinchejian.com
Inside the email, you must include:
- Name
- Personal Description (a few sentences about YOU)
- Description of your talk / project / presentation (< 300 words)
Please make sure you send it at least 24 hours ahead of time. (Tuesday 18:00). This is so we can include it on our newsletter and our social media posts.
Presentation Rules
We want everyone to feel relaxed presenting at Xinchejian. However, we also have some important rules.
TIME LIMIT: 9 MINUTES MAXIMUM
We have a time limit so that other people can present that night. Please do not run over this time. Our staff will stop you. It is also disrespectful to other presenters that night. Don't worry about not having enough time. After your presentation, many people will contact you to learn more about your project.
NO SPAM, NO ADVERTISEMENTS
We are interested in projects and ideas, not advertisements for your company or service. DO NOT give an advertising pitch. Our staff will stop you. If your idea is related to a company, focus on the technology or the non-commercial aspects of the idea. Don't worry -- people who are interested in learning more about your company, business model, or investment plans will contact you afterwards. Xinchejian is NOT A PLACE TO PITCH FOR CUSTOMERS. If we catch you, you will be ridiculed and pushed off stage.
Other Recommendations
CHINESE and ENGLISH are both good
Use whatever language you're more comfortable with. The audience is generally capable of understanding both languages.
Keep your slides short
We recommend having at most 10 slides. Most people speak at a rate about 1 slide per minute. Do not put lots of small text on your slide. Nobody will read it.
Do Demonstrations!
Everyone prefers to see a real live working object. The next best thing is video, then pictures.
Less theory, more reality
We also prefer talks about live projects, and not your "idea". Practical tips for making things are better than theories about what is possible. Tell us about what problems you ran into building your thing. These are the tips our audience really appreciates.
Be yourself, but practice
You don't have to be a great speaker, but it helps if you have practiced giving your talk before. Since this is a presentation, make sure you rehearse it at least once to make sure your timing is ok. It's sad when we have to stop people after 9 minutes and they are only just starting to talk about their project.
Do not be boring
Do not tell us all the irrelevant details about how to pronounce your name or which government guy / investor you spoke to. Start talking about your project. Talk about the good stuff first. People will ask questions about the rest later.
Special Needs or Requirements
Xinchejian has a video projector and sound system. If you need something more, please let us know ahead of time. If you want to be safe, also make a PDF version of your presentation, so that anybody can use their computer to project it.
