The presentations are absolutely critical in the marketing and sales strategies of any company. They happen everywhere – in one-on-one sales situations, workshops or seminars, demonstrations, launching of new products, trade shows, or the internet webinars.
They’re highly personal, too, whether they are for B2C (Business to Consumer) or for B2B (Business to Business) transactions. Decision-makers are all individual people after all.
But what excites people is not always the same.
- Many people are visual; cues they can see excite them the most.
- Others are driven by what they hear, such as sound effects in a multimedia presentation.
- And some folks are “kinesthetic” – they’re thinkers. They look for insights and reasoning behind a presentation.
It’s a good idea to make sure that your presentation includes all three of these elements.
A few other things that I have learned while preparing and giving presentations:
- Have a clear idea of your message. Keep it singular. Your presentation should be designed with one objective in the mind. Write it down first, before writing any part of the speech or presentation.
- Think about what your target audience is seeking – answer their questions, give a solution for their problem, or provide a new idea. Every product or service you offer should provide those things. Focus on how your audience can use what you are offering, and don’t waver from that.
- People love a rousing success story, a sincere client testimonial, detailed case studies. I know I do, and I’m no different than most people.
- If practical, demonstrate your product or service. Show it solving a problem, or show a video of how the product works, maybe with a customer’s comments. That beats a dry, hard-sell pitch any day.
- If you use tools like PowerPoint to support your presentation, make sure they do just that – support you. For that short time, though, you are the center of the universe to your audience.
- Keep your language simple.
- Practice. The best ball players, musicians, artists all practice before they go public. Why not a business presenter?
Get comfortable in the public speaking. That improves ALL of your communication.
The very thought of going before a group of people used to make my stomach queasy. I got a lot of inspiration about public speaking from my experience at the opening residential of the MBA program I completed at The Paul Merage School of Business, at the University of California at Irvine.
I am a member of the Toastmasters International. The toastmasters program has also helped me become a better communicator, and a better leader.
What is the most important part when it comes to the presentations? I think your actions speak louder than the words. Show your product or service in action.
What is your experience with the presentations? I would love to hear more about your ideas as well.