Most corporate presentations lack that little bit of ‘story structure’ that is the foundation of making sense to, and being remembered by, the audience. A simple, 3-act story requires that your presentation has- A definite beginning- That sets the context, introduces the characters (the presenter and the subject of the presentation), and sets the question to…
It’s all about knowing your audience isn’t it? If you don’t know what will ‘fit’ for them, you’re almost always forced into a detailed presentation- or an overview presentation as Olivia Mitchell has usefully labelled such a thing. It’s a real dilemma for presenters, illustrated by the following example. I was working with a UK based…
I’ve mentioned Orwell before- See here. And it’s still my view, as a speechwriter and presentation coach, that if more speakers followed these rules than the kind of stuff we tell them on training corses, the quality of corporate presentations would improve beyond measure. They’d be- Shorter Simpler Easier to understand For a simple explanation…
It’s a question I’m often asked by clients- “what’s the best way to sell an idea in a sales pitch?”. The honest answer is, obviously, ‘It depends on who’s in the audience’ but in reality you often have to choose an influencing strategy as you start to prepare your pitch. Most people only have one…
I saw an article the other day that said 30% of new publishing contracts for business textbooks are being offered to bloggers, on the basis of their published work online. Makes sense doesn’t it? A blog shows a potential publisher that you can write; you do write, and that what you write has interest to…
We’re restoring our house. A beautiful, but bedraggled victorian place, in Oundle, UK. The previous owner lived here for thirty years and spent virtually nothing on maintenance. Unfortunately he was a DIY enthusiast and had very little skill. We bought the house for its potential and saw past the tacked-up, bodged and home-made titivations that…
I got it for Christmas. From my wife. She loves me. I was indifferent, to him. For an Englishman, Lord Sugar of Clapton, as he is now, is unmissable, ubiquitous and often unintelligible. He’s the ‘Donald Trump’ of our little island and he’s become the (grumpy and sometimes curmudgeonly) face of the ‘self-made-man’ in the…
A successful business proposal begins with a compelling framework – a structure for your proposal that sells your ideas in the context of the customer’s needs, wants and preferences. It’s applied thought, not just an explanation of what you do. Let’s Talk Proposals It’s easy to get caught up in thinking too much about the…
Whenever I say to someone ‘I’m a salesman’, it seems to put them on their guard. Why? Probably because the reputation of salespeople generally, is framed by the reputation of salespeople in western culture. We’re not know as philosopher poets. We’re infamous for all of the Ponzi, pyramid, get rich quick scandals that we never…