A recurring theme in my presentation training and executive coaching engagements is dealing with stage fright, the jitters, nervousness or the overall fear of public speaking. Presentation Anxiety (PA) – the clinical term for it – is a perfectly normal human response. But, don’t think you have to overcome it and become more confident and comfortable when presenting. Just appear that way. With the audience, perception is reality.
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Business Card Finesse
One of your most effective networking tools is your simple, low-tech business card. Since you only get a few moments to make the best possible positive first impression on a stranger, what you do – and don’t do – with your business card can make a significant difference. Consider these simple Finesse Strategies.
What’s Your Point?
Once you’ve defined your objects and analyzed your audience, the next step on your journey towards Audience-Centricity is to Develop Your Content. So, what’s your point? Really – what’s the key message you’ll be delivering that you want the audience to understand, remember and agree with after the presentation?
Taking the Pain Out of Sales Pitches
Do you experience pain when you pitch business? Do you cause some pain for your customers as a result of those pitches? If you answered yes to either question, then read these 10 Best Practices for creating confident sales pitches.
Voice Mail Makeover
Can you remember the days before voicemail? I can. Voicemail has proven to be a tremendous advantage … or disadvantage … for your business, based on the impression your customers get. The devil is in the details. Here are a few best practices learned from years helping business people communicate with more power and success on the phone:
Elevate Your Elevator Speech
Elevator Speeches … 30 Second Commercials … Shameless Self-Promotions; they’re our typical response to the often asked ‘What do you do?’ We all do them at TECA meetings and other professional group or networking events. But, most of us don’t do them with enough focus and finesse, so here are some simple and easy strategies to elevate your Elevator Speech (ES).
Smart Practicing Does Matter
Several site visitors sent in questions recently about how to practice their presentations. I responded to them individually, but thought an overall summary of my comments would be of interest to all of you.
So, let’s assume you’ve planned and organized a world-class audience-centric presentation, created effective speaker support slides and a useful handout. And you’re even ahead of the time line, since the presentation to senior management isn’t for three days.
Networking Pros are Permission Marketers
Ever meet someone at a networking event who turned you off quickly with a negative first impression? Or, who really annoyed you with ineffective follow up? I have – lots of times. I call them ‘Networking Slugs’. They earn that designation for different reasons, but mostly because they don’t practice the simple art of Permission Marketing. Here’s what Networking Pros do to avoid that title.
Know Your Audience
This article is third in a series on audience-centric presentations.
Another mission-critical component for creating audience-centric presentations is Audience Analysis. The more you know about your audience, the easier it will be for you to craft a focused message for them and achieve your intended outcomes. Let’s briefly highlight the two components of Audience Analysis – Demographics and Psychographics.
No-Budget Marketing
Identify simple strategies for marketing your business when you donʼt have the skills to do it alone or the budget to have someone else do it for you. Harness the Power of the Pen, the Platform, and the Pro Bono, along with focused networking and social media use.