Giving a presentation can be completely challenging, still when you see decision makers giving you negative body language clues, stop, slow down and address those issues, even engage those decision makers to find out their objections, complaints, or concerns. If you wait, or ignore them you lose an opportunity, one that you may not get a chance to have again.
When it comes to negative non-verbal body language, most people cannot hide, or do not try to hide their facial expressions or body language when listening to a presentation. What sorts of things should you be looking for? That's a good question here are a few; Crossing of the hands, raising of an eyebrow, or pushing back from the table.
Sometimes they will stop listening to the presentation altogether and look at the clock, and I've even seen them pull out a personal tech device and shoot off an e-mail or a text message. When this happens you know you've lost them and obviously these are definite signs of disapproval. You might also watch, as the decision-makers look at each other and tilt their head or give a small negative nod.
If an executive gets up from the table and excuses themselves, and leave your presentation folder and paperwork on the table, you aren't getting their vote, and you better hope it didn't matter. If someone is acting in this way, or any of the ways listed above and they ask a question, you had better get their question right.
Any attempt to dodge the question, or not giving a straight answer will either turn them off completely to your project, or you'll be hit with another question and several others in rapid-fire succession and it will all be very difficult for you to answer and you may not even have time to answer them before they shoot off the next one. Please consider all this and good luck.
