Inside Small Business | Small Business & Home Business Marketing
Archive for May, 2008
The Perfect Presentation Part 1: Leave Your Audience with a Lasting Impression
Lindsay Lake
Whether your audience consists of one person or a hundred, your primary goal should always be to close each presentation with some sort of sale. This will help you to focus your presentation on what is important. Of course, that sale can come in many different formats: it may be of yourself (convincing them to do business with you in the future), your product, your idea (perhaps gaining ground from an investor perspective) or any other type of sale. But, no matter what your specific situation may be, it is vital for you to provide your audience with a few things to help them make that decision to buy.
* Content: This may seem obvious, but you would be amazed how easy it is to get this wrong. Remember your audience likely knows much less about your topic than you. By keeping the information simple and substantiated. You not only provide just the details, without extra fluff, but you also provide other sources of information, lending you credibility.
* Graphics: Finding the right images and creating the perfect charts can often be your most time consuming task throughout the process. Although sometimes overlooked, your graphics are the most important factor, besides yourself, for engaging your audience. Keep this in mind and spend the time it deserves to make it right. You’ll be amazed at how much a simple change in graphics can boost audience attention.
* Technique: If you are a veteran and have been giving presentations in some form or another for quite some time, you’ve probably crafted a technique that fits your style. If you are still pretty new to giving presentations, you’re probably looking for a technique to fit your style. Either way, chances are that it can be improved. Take a few minutes and watch some of the best presenters out there, such as Steve Jobs at Apple. These types of folks are recognized as great presenters because they know how to engage an audience and make a sale. And, since it’s always easier to do things you like, take some notes on what they do during their presentations, that you like. Then, the next time you give a presentation, implement just a few of the techniques you wrote down. Making changes to your style in this manner will be much more effective than trying to do a complete remodel right away.
Keep these tips in mind for your next presentation, and truly go for the sale.
During the following weeks I’ll be digging into each of these topics (content, graphics and technique) more deeply. Stay tuned to learn more about improving your presentation to improve your business. And, if you’d like some more ideas before the next issue, visit my blog, Presentation Perfect.
I have spent a lot of my career creating powerful, concise and engaging presentations. I started fine-tuning these skills while working in account management for Thomas Taber & Drazen, an advertising agency in Denver. While there I had the opportunity to work with a wide variety of clients in industries including financial, media, retail and non-profit. My experience has given me a great eye for design and the tools necessary to create outstanding, intriguing presentations.
To reach me, simply send me an email at lindsay.lake@gmail.com.
Complicated
David Grenda, Founder, Grenda Computer Consulting
In my work as a software developer, I use the Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 product. The product offers over 288,000 objects and features you can integrate into a software package you are writing. My clients use a myriad of software systems, server systems, and databases that they depend on to run their businesses. In typical fashion, the software makers can’t sit still and each new generation of software brings with it a big batch of new features and changes.
It’s the lament of the computer industry that everything is getting so complicated the average end-user is becoming hesitant to use new products because they just finished the learning curve for the product they are using now. We’ve seen the problems with Vista, the operating system intended to simplify and streamline. Think of the software you use. What percentage of the capabilities do you actually use? The average is 15%. 25% if you are considered a power user.
Where I’m going with this is that you have to do a couple of things to mitigate the situation. First, make sure your people are at least trained at a minimum level to feel comfortable with the software you use. Second, don’t skip upgrades on software. Going from version 2.0 to 6.0 in one jump will likely give you heartburn.
There are a lot of online resources to help you with thee training. Visit Microsoft.com to check them out.
If you would like further guidance in considering the options, feel free to drop me an email at david@grenda.com.
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