Audience-Centric presentations should end, not just stop. And they should end strong. Introductions are critically important because you’re ‘Telling ‘em what you’re gonna say.’ Now, we focus on the equally important summary or conclusion, where you’re ‘Telling ‘em what you said.’
Presentations
What to say & not say
The last two issues of ‘Communicate Confidently!’ discussed the ‘why’ and ‘when’ of managing the audience question process. Today, we move on to the ‘how’ and what to say and not say when responding to those questions. So, learn from these Best Practices for Success:
Two Smart Alternatives
Looks like last month’s piece on handling audience questions generated a lot of interest, especially about the two smart alternatives I indicated would be in this month’s issue of ‘Communicate Confidently!’ So … here you go.
Any Questions?
It’s time to add some Best-in-Class strategies for handling audience questions to your growing Workplace Presenter’s Tool Kit. What they ask and how you respond can make or break your credibility, impact your confidence and influence your outcomes.
Keep an Eye on Them
Nothing says more about your credibility, power and confidence as a presenter than what you do – and don’t do – with your eyes. Here’ are my responses to two very interesting recent reader questions about eye contact.
Question – ‘What if I look at someone in the audience who isn’t looking back at me? Then what do I do?’
What’s Your Point?
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? Your Main Point (MP) is the essence of your message, boiled down to one concise, specific, positive sentence. You should be able to write it on the back of your business card.
Harness Audience Centricity
How do you get to the Presenters’ Hall of Fame? Before you all chime in with ‘Practice, man … practice‘, consider this – practice doesn’t make perfect, it only makes permanent. Only perfect practice makes perfect.
So, Best-in-Class Presenters got in the Hall of Fame by perfect practice. They also got in there by harnessing the power of Audience-Centricity, the art and science of crafting and delivering audience-centered messages. What follows is a brief summary of Best Practices learned from those presentation pros.
How Beats How Much
How you practice is often more important than how much. Last month’s ‘Communicate Confidently’ eLetter article on practicing presentations generated several reader questions. Here’s a summary of some of the comments I offered in my email responses:
- Practicing out loud, standing up, working with the slides is the most productive method. Pretend you’re talking to the audience.
How much should you practice?
Last month’s ‘Communicate Confidently’ eLetter article on practicing presentations generated several reader questions. Here’s a summary of some of the comments I offered in my email responses:
Start with the End in Mind
Regular readers know that I often write about the importance of Audience Centricity – the single best strategy for getting into the ‘Workplace Presenters’ Hall of Fame’. So, if that’s your goal, the most critical component for creating a Best-in-Class Audience-Centered presentation is … to Start with the End in Mind, as Dr. Stephen Covey teaches us.