Category Archives: Memorable

Learn and Lead by Example

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There is a difference between learning the theoretical and applying what you learn in a business situation. Ensuring a way to bridge the two to converge and support each other has always been a challenge. How do you coach great individuals in a classroom to prepare to deliver a memorable presentation and then follow it with an example from the outside, “real” world.

Whenever I’m afforded the opportunity to be on stage I apply the techniques and tips I teach to Sales and Pre-sales teams. It’s rare I capture those moments in a recording.

Today’s post includes a link to a recent webcast I delivered as part of a series of prospect-facing webinars at Microsoft. Each month, spanning the last nine months, I delivered 30-minute webcasts designed to convert new prospects into leads for partner distribution.

Anyone familiar with delivering demonstrations via webcast is intimately aware of the challenges germane to this environment –

  1. Do you sound energetic to the audience?
  2. How do you address diverse interests of everyone on the call?
  3. How do you keep the remote audience engaged without receiving immediate feedback?

Regardless of delivery – in person or via the web – a persuasive demo scene should always be structured to include:

  1. A creative opening to engage your audiences attention
  2. A relevant topic that demonstrates a process or a job function
  3. A closing statement that offers the audience a reason why you felt this was important to mention.

The embedded video is 25 minutes short. There were techniques I deliberately applied during the webcast to engage my audience every 3-6 minutes. What were they? As you listen to the recording, what did I do well? And, as with any presentation, there were areas for improvement. What suggestions can you offer?

Keep Tuning Your Message

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1839 Macmillen

OFTEN when I coach sales teams I emphasize the importance of incorporating a theme in a presentation so that your audience connects with your message and they remember you.

Today, audiences are inundated with presentations, demonstrations which tend to blur together and speakers begin to all sound the same. Yes, I know your software, your solution, is unique which is exactly what your competition tells audiences too.

In a previous post I discussed how essential it is to have a theme in order to make yourselves memorable. It’s simple, easy and extremely impactful. And it has been proven to contribute to the narrow margin of winning opportunities. I guarantee you and your audience will enjoy it!

Sometimes your theme won’t connect with your audience. What do you do? Hone your message? Abandon? Give up? Hone your message?

MOMENTUM

I recently visited four cities in the past three weeks speaking to over 200 business owners, salespeople, consultants and developers.

Kicking off our first event in New York City I led with a PowerPoint slide,

P = m v

in large, bold font on a white background. This is the formula for momentum. Momentum of a particle equals mass * velocity and it become the theme for my presentation. Throughout my presentation I referred to momentum frequently but the theme didn’t connect with the audience as I had planned. I even found myself jokingly saying “we have a lot of P right now.”

Amateur-hour, right?

Returning home I recognized my theme was satisfactory but the delivery needed improvement. A great idea or theme needs to be tested. Although I practiced my delivery the entire week leading up to the first event, the live session in New York became a beta for subsequent events.

The following week in Chicago I arrived with cycling gloves, nutrition bars titled “Momentum Bars” (a great give-away) and a cow bell. This time while the formula was on the screen, I provided three examples of momentum:

  1. What momentum means to avid cyclists and how early season training can impact momentum on uphill climbs and downhill descents.
  2. What momentum means as a Cubs fan. The evening before our event I attended a game at Wrigley Field and I marveled at the Cubbies 1-game winning streak.
  3. What momentum means as a Microsoft seller supported by the positive momentum of our respective businesses.

Fine tuning my original theme made an impact on the audience. There was a definite buzz in the room.

Can I attribute the excitement solely to my refinement?

No, but it certainly provided a connection to my audience. As a result co-presenters elevated their presentation delivery often referring to the theme, we delivered a consistent message as a team and I know my audiences will remember P = m v.

MOMENTUM

 

What is Your Point

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three handprints

It’s as simple as 1 – 2 – 3.

Last week I was an audience member for two, in-person presentations. On Monday, I attended the Kickoff Breakfast during Denver’s 3rd annual Denver Startup Week. A week bustling with excitement and enthusiasm centered around technology and local startups. While Denver has not reached Silicon Valley status with regards to volume of startups and VC funding, it’s hard to ignore Denver’s growth and how our “town” has morphed from it’s frontier days to the technology bubble it has become today. The sessions were categorized by Business, Design, Technology, Manufacturing and Headline Event and judging the sentiment during breakfast, it was sure to be a fantastic week.

On Tuesday, I was invited to join existing customers who were hosted by a local business partner. Kudos to this organization for continually driving the number of attendees to dedicate an entire day to learn about their products and solutions. There were over 90 customers interested in new features, product roadmaps and of course … free training.

For both events I was anxiously excited to hear the respective keynote’s message.

Both disappointed.

The first, a self-noted successful entrepreneur from Silicon Valley spent more energy delivering profanity-laced rants about race and sexism than making an actual point. A lost opportunity to what appeared to be 500+ professionals excited to start the week. The second, a seasoned veteran who delivered a presentation that had audience members studying smartphones and recalling Ben Stein mumble role call. Anyone? Anyone?

The most basic public speaking skill learned from the first time you stepped in front of a microphone is to have a message. It’s easy. Ask yourself, why is your audience listening to you? What is it your want them to take away from your speech? What is your point?

Steve Martin captured it best in Planes, Trains and Automobiles — “if you are going to tell a story have a point. It makes it so much more enjoyable for the listener.”

The next time you step up to a podium, grab a microphone or don a headset ask yourself, what is your message. Remember, it’s much easier for the listener and it’s as easy as 1 – 2 – 3.

Becoming a Captivating Speaker

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Last week I was inspired by a recent blog article titled 7 Lessons From the World’s Most Captivating Presenters.I often coach teams and individuals to recognize the distinction between a good and great presenter. The author offers us great suggestions on how to captivate your audience. Three memorable quotes for me were:

  • “there is no shortcut to excellence”
  • “simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”
  • “people will never forget how you made them feel”

I was so elated after reading the article I immediately distributed it to several organizations the old-fashioned way – email. It’s been fascinating to read many of their responses and what they connected with most in the article.

Today, I’m distributing via my blog to share the message to a wider audience. You can access the link @ http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/34274/7-Lessons-From-the-World-s-Most-Captivating-Presenters-SlideShare.aspx