Be friendly . Ask open-ended questions just below the surface. Try to find out what they did last weekend or what they're doing this weekend. Ask about a movie or TV show. Avoid politics, their personal problems and, for goodness sakes, don't lament your problems.
People love to talk about themselves.
Ask the right question and it's tough to shut them up. The object is for you to find a subject, idea or situation that you both are interested in. You're on a mission. But I can assure you the mission is most likely to be accomplished if you have made a friend before make the presentation. People love to talk about themselves.