I was trying to distill some good advice for OP, but you said something that struck a chord, and so I'm just going to reiterate it: >"tell 'em what you're goin

I was trying to distill some good advice for OP, but you said something that struck a chord, and so I'm just going to reiterate it: >"tell 'em what you're going to be telling them, tell them, and then tell 'em what you told 'em". Telling them exactly what you're going to tell them provides an incredibly effective anchor for their attention. It gives them a quick mental road map, and the opportunity for them to think about and place each point you make on that map as you move through the presentation.