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 –
- Do you sound energetic to the audience?
- How do you address diverse interests of everyone on the call?
- 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:
- A creative opening to engage your audiences attention
- A relevant topic that demonstrates a process or a job function
- 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?
Demo and Sales Excellence 