In this chapter

• The importance of your role as presenter
• Beware relying on facts alone
• The 4 Ps of presenting: Principles, Purpose, Planning and Pre-qualifying
• Five key questions to focus your mind on your purpose
• How to fact-find
• Elevator Speech shortcut

Your business presentations will usually be about some aspect of your business, so they may be regarded as a marketing activity, and need to fit with your company’s marketing objectives. Marketing has endless definitions, but essentially it is the process of discovering what people will buy and offering it to them on terms they find acceptable.

A presentation is one of the means of delivering that offering. It has a bearing on the way the company is perceived in the market place, even if it is about some activity that seems far removed from marketing.

Obviously a business presentation cannot be considered in isolation. Being part of the marketing plan it must fit with the disciplines of that plan. Even before getting down to preparing a presentation we need to think about the people it is intended for, and the reasons why they should be interested in what we have to present.

The more you think about that, the more obvious it will become that you need to be persuasive, and that means appealing to people’s emotions. It has been well documented that we buy on emotion and justify with reason. So it’s not enough just to state your proposition. You have to do what it takes to get your point of view accepted. That requires persuasion. And persuasion follows a particular path.

Before we go into how that works, let’s consider the part that you play, as the presenter.

The importance of your own role

A business presentation is a sales pitch, pure and simple. You have a proposition to put before a chosen audience, and you want them to listen, accept and act. It could be a plan, a strategy, a piece of research, a project, an event, a charity sponsorship ... anything at all.

The important question is, why are you making the presentation? If it’s purely to inform, why not send the information by email? If, on the other hand, you want your audience to accept what you present and make a decision about it, you will be aiming to persuade, and that means making a pitch.

You need to understand the vital part that you play, quite apart from the content and the visual aids that you may employ. You, the presenter, are the key component of any presentation, and it will be essential to get your own thinking right if your presentation is to succeed.

Whether it is an ‘in house’ presentation delivered to a single client, or an ‘open’ presentation delivered to a self-selecting audience, as in a seminar, conference or other general event, the rules tend to be the same. While there may be some differences in approach, your role is always paramount, as the expert on the topic being presented.

Elevator Speech

A very good starting point is to identify why it is you making the presentation. What are your credentials? Do you have an Elevator Speech?

You should be able to state, in 15 seconds, why someone should be interested in doing business with you, or at least in finding out more about you. You should be able to say what your personal added value is, and why your audience should be receiving the presentation from you, and not some other person.

You need to be sure that the presentation derives from your own expertise, and feel confident that you could field questions and explain your personal point of view on the topic. When you can do that, you will have confidence in the message of your presentation.

To develop your own Elevator Speech, just answer these questions:

1. Can you name one or two problems (in your field) that others can identify with and which make them nod their heads in agreement?
2. What is the consequence, to them, of that problem or those problems?
3. How do you provide the solutions?

Your objective is to get the other person to say, ‘Tell me more.’ Just that.

Beware relying on facts alone

In the previous chapter I mentioned the ‘engineer’s mentality’, a concept put forward by Tom Peters, the American business guru who co-authored In Search of Excellence. It refers to a belief that the facts speak for themselves, and that ‘truth’ will automatically be its own reward, as though there were no need for any of us to intervene or help the process of getting that truth accepted. If that were so, there would never be any need for sales people or advertising.

Think about your own experience of reading about some topic that may be new to you. It’s all there, in the book or handbook, but don’t you sometimes wish you had an expert there, telling you what it all means, and explaining how it works? A lot of people say they have that experience every time they assemble flat-pack furniture!

Clearly the facts do not speak for themselves, and we need someone to explain them to us in terms that we understand. I recently had a meeting with a bright young man with a specialist knowledge within the financial sector – a topic which many might consider arid. He took the view that, when he attends a conference on his subject, he is there to learn something new and doesn’t care how it is packaged or delivered. By claiming that he was interested only in the factual content of a presentation, he seemed to be endorsing the engineer’s mentality and he would not, at first, admit to any emotional response to the content of a presentation, or to being interested in the presenter beyond their credentials.

As we discussed his typical response to new information, he eventually admitted to a feeling of ‘satisfaction’ at receiving and recognising some new angle on his subject, because his own market value depended on his knowledge, and on being up to date.

I put it to him that his satisfaction came from realising the potential in the new angle, not from the facts alone, and he agreed. If it caused him to open his eyes a little more and think to himself, ‘That’s interesting!’ he was responding to more than the information alone. He was responding to the possibilities in the new information. The ‘satisfaction’ at realising those possibilities and how they added to his own fund of specialist knowledge, constituted an emotional response. He accepted that.

Getting that agreement was not easy because I noticed that he is not easily engaged. He gets lost in his own thoughts, and his attention is intermittent. He probably listens to presentations in the same way, not fully engaged. It’s quite common for listeners to drift off, which is why, as a presenter, you must strive to engage them, and create in them a realisation of the possibilities in the information you impart.

To get you started on the right track, we should remind ourselves of the fundamentals, the 4 Ps of presenting:

1. Principles.
2. Purpose.
3. Planning.
4. Pre-qualifying.

Principles

Let’s return to the question that is important to ask at the start: why do you make a presentation?

Whenever I ask that question in the training room, someone always says, ‘To communicate some information.’ I then suggest that it would be more efficient in an email, which could be read at a time that suits the recipient. Everyone’s time would be saved, and it would be much less expensive than a formal business presentation. There must be some greater purpose, and that would be the first general principle.

So the first general principle is: aim to bring about some change – in the thinking, attitude or behaviour of the audience.

If you do not have a change in mind, don’t make the presentation, unless you are happy to treat your presentation as an entertainment. You need to determine at the start what your objective is, and what action you want your listeners to take when you have finished.

It goes without saying that if you do not have a change in mind at the start, then it is highly unlikely that any change will result from your presentation. It will be as though you were like a stick in a bucket of water. When the stick is removed, there are ripples for a time, but when they subside, there is no evidence the stick was ever there.

The second general principle is: filter the facts.

Facts and figures are neutral. They require interpretation and context to become Information. For example, consider a table that measures 6ft × 4ft. Is it a large table or a small one? If you wanted to fit it into an alcove that’s 3ft wide, you’d say it was too big. But if you wanted to use it as a dining table for 20 people, you’d say it was too small.

Similarly, if I told you that a certain person could run half a mile in two minutes and ten seconds, you’d need to know the age and gender of that person, typical performances and the record for the half mile in that group, before deciding if that was a good performance or an average one. For an international level event it’s a poor performance. But for 13-year-old girls it would be fantastic!

Information needs to be understood if it is to become knowledge. But that knowledge needs to be internalised and passed through your personal filter to become your point of view, your wisdom. So ask yourself:

• What do you think about the facts?
• What do you want your audience to think about the facts?
• What do you want them to do with the facts?

The third general principle is: communication requires a receiver who is able to understand what is being said.

Picture yourself alone on a desert island. No communication is possible because you have no one to receive what you say. Now imagine a new castaway, someone who doesn’t speak or understand your language, nor you theirs. This person can receive what you say, but not understand it. How effective will your communication be? You therefore need to frame your content in terms that are easily understood by your audience.

Purpose

In Chapter 1 I mentioned my time at the Daily Express, and the effect of changing the approach of the advertising sales team. I gave them five questions to ask themselves before every sales appointment, and said, ‘You must have the answers to those five questions on the tip of your tongue before going in to see a prospect.’

The same five questions will help your focus when preparing a presentation. They are:Five key questions for focus

1 Why am I here?

It’s not enough to say, ‘Because someone arranged it.’ Why have you set up the presentation? Is it to promote some new idea, is it part of a rolling campaign, is it to make a sale or to create an awareness, is it to create advocates among influencers? Have a purpose that’s more specific than just to throw mud at the wall and hope that some will stick.

2 Why should they see/hear me?

Just imagine arranging a presentation for a large corporation and receiving a phone call from them to ask for a postponement. As you start to match diaries for a new date, the other person says, ‘Just remind me, what will the presentation be about?’ If you do not have a compelling reply on the tip of your tongue, you’ll be blown out of the water. You should also be very clear about why they need to hear it from you, and not from anyone else.

3 What can I offer that’s different?

This is about your USP (Unique Selling Proposition) and more besides. You must know what is different and special about your offering, even if it’s about an idea, not a product, or a new way of looking at some well-established process, a new twist on a known idea. It should form the core message of your presentation – the one thing you want your listeners to receive and remember.

4 What do I want at the end?

You must have a clear idea of what you want to happen when you have finished speaking. Never assume that your listeners will rush at you with open chequebooks to buy your product or service. However much they may be impressed with your offering and what it will do for them, most people like to be asked. Tell them what you want them to do, and make it easy for them to comply.

5 What’s the least I’ll settle for?

Few people get a 100 per cent acceptance of their propositions, so be prepared for rejection, and have a plan B. That might be something as simple as agreement for some follow-up activity. You need something that lets you come away with your tail up. If you have planned your presentation properly, you should have agreement on the problem and on your solution. The least you should come away with should be an understanding of why your solution is not seen as strong enough to cancel out the problem or remove the pain.

Planning

You know what you want to give a presentation about, you have a date, a time and a venue arranged, and you have some idea of the people who will be in the audience. Or do you? It’s very important to have a clear idea of the kind of audience you will be addressing, even if you have to make an educated guess about them (see Pre-qualifying below). The content of your presentation, the tone and the language you use, could all derive from what you know and feel about the audience.

Here are some questions you should ask about them in advance:

• How many will be present?
• Who are they (job titles, level of seniority, gender mix)?
• Are they likely to be friendly or resistant?
• Do they already have a position on your topic? What is it?
• What is their current approach to the problem you can solve?
• What is the pain that you can remove?
• Are there any cultural or educational issues you should consider?
• What are their expectations?

Pre-qualifying

There are two basic rules about making a pitch, which will save you a lot of heartache and avoid wasted effort – if you follow them.

The first comes from the field of direct marketing. It is this: don’t try to convert non-users into users, just concentrate on converting users to your brand.

The second comes from direct selling: make your pitch only when you are addressing decision makers or decision influencers.

I learned the first when I worked for Reader’s Digest, one of the most skilled practitioners of the art of selling in print. In their huge database, in addition to names, addresses and purchasing history, there was information on the known preferences for the various products in our portfolio. Our testing programme (pre-qualifying) was designed to discover more about those preferences, to identify those people who were most likely to buy the product we were about to offer.

For example, the mailing for a music collection went only to those who were known to be interested in music ... of that kind. It reduced wastage, generated high levels of acceptance, and updated the known preferences. And it was entirely consistent with the marketing principle: find out what people want and offer it.

Trying to convert non-users into users is a slow, expensive process, with very small returns. It may work some of the time, but is best avoided.

The second basic rule is just common sense. Unsuccessful salespeople often launch into their pitch to people who do not have the power to buy. In my very first job, fresh out of university, I was the most junior person in the advertising department of an industrial company. One day a salesman asked to see the head of my department, and I was sent to get rid of him. I found his product fascinating and asked lots of questions about it. He gave me the full presentation, although I was clearly too junior to make any buying decision. I gained some new knowledge, but he just wasted his time.

His focus was wrong. He must have known I was not the decision maker, yet he ‘hoped’ I would transmit his message to the real decision maker. In other words, he was prepared to rely on someone less knowledgeable about his product and less skilled in the process of persuasion, to do his job for him.

The exception is when you are faced with genuine influencers, people with the power or responsibility to select and nominate the chosen few who will have the chance to pitch to the decision makers. In such cases, it is fine to make the pitch, but only if you also determine the rules of engagement, i.e. what happens next, and the basis on which the selection will be made.

For ‘in house’ presentations, whether one-to-one or to a group, always ask how decisions are made on the product, service or whatever else you are offering, and whether it would be possible to include all those involved in such decisions. Much depends on how you set up the appointment. If you are open about your purpose, and its likely benefit to the prospective customer, you are far more likely to present to the right people.

For ‘open’ presentations, always include some qualifying statements or questions in your promotional material, such as, ‘Intended for people who buy (product or service)’ or ‘If you have ever wanted a safer way to avoid wasting time and money on the wrong (product or service), this presentation provides the answer.’ For seminars, you may care to consider sending out a pre-qualifying questionnaire which asks about their expectations and makes clear what your own objective happens to be.

Pre-qualifying is one of the important tasks to undertake when planning a business presentation. It includes asking the right questions, partly for your own sake, and partly to condition the thinking of your prospects.

Four kinds of questions

Fact finding

Every sales manual tells you to start by asking questions to ‘fact find’. But unfortunately that prompts most people to ask factual questions: how long have you been in business, how many staff, current position, etc. Factual questions can be irritating, so keep them to a minimum, and relevant.

Move on quickly to the important persuasive questions, about:

• problems;
• effects;
• importance.

About problems

Be direct. After all, you are there to try and solve problems.

Examples:

• What are the main issues you have with this type of product?
• Have you ever been let down by your current supplier?
• Is there information you’d like to have, but which you are not getting now?
• What would simplify your procedures?
• Do you need to cut costs/save time/extend the application?
• Some of our customers have had reliability problems with this (competitive) product in the past. Has that been your experience?

About effects

What are the consequences and knock-on effects of the problems you have persuaded your client to reveal?

Examples:

• Is this slowing down your overall rate of production? By how much?
• What is the effect of a delay in delivery?
• If the system is dependent on Ernie’s knowledge, what happens when he’s on holiday or off sick?
• How long before this glitch leads to a full breakdown of the system?
• Will this lead to job losses and budget cut-backs?

About importance

Find out how important it is to correct the problem – to the company and to the decision maker. Focus on the cost of not correcting it.

Examples:

• Have you worked out what this problem is costing you?
• How urgent is it to put it right?
• What is it costing you to have unreliable deliveries?
• How much market share do you think you are losing because you don’t have up-to-date information?
• How would it be if you could have [your corrective benefit]?

You must aim to get your prospect to admit that the problem is serious and costly and that they want it corrected NOW.

The next chapter deals with the content, and deciding what to say.

Summary

• The Elevator Speech helps identify the added value that you provide
• Deliver your personal ‘take’ on the facts
• Follow the 4 Ps of presenting: Principles, Purpose, Planning, Pre-qualifying
• Five key questions to remind you of your purpose
• Use fact-finding questions to uncover where the real ‘pain’ lies