Tag Archives: theme

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 the Theme of Your Presentation?

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LAST month I led a 90-minute, Deep Dive session at Microsoft’s Convergence. The session was designed for a 100-level audience spanning topics from CustomerSource, Dynamics Marketplace to SQL Report Builder and PowerPivot. According to the post-event report, the session drew just under 100 people.

MY THEME:

I opened with a story about my first job; at 15 I began my career as a DJ for a mobile music service on Long Island. Then, I segued into the evolution of the music industry over the past 20+ years. From LPs to CDs to MP3s to iPods to Xboxes. Today ERP software, like music,  has grown more complex than ever. While we have so much more access to resources, modules and services … finding, learning and implementing presents another set of challenges.

SO WHAT?

Creative themes are extremely effective ways for people to remember you and your pitch.

The reason for today’s “TIP” is that almost 30 hours after I delivered my session, a woman sitting across from me at lunch on Wednesday   afternoon turned to her co-worker and said ‘see that guy, he was a DJ in New York, when he was 15 years old’. It’s amazing if you consider how many people she met during that span at Convergenc and she still remembered my story/theme from the session she attended.

Consider how many sales organizations, or vendors, your prospect meet. My guess is much fewer than 100 people. What are you doing to ensure your prospect remembers you when you leave the room?

And remember, if you have a creative idea but you are not confident it will resonate with a prospect, test it on a friend, spouse or a co-worker.