READY, SET, PRESENT
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January 2014

Imagine you are in front of a customer and it’s time to present your solutions. Coming into this presentation, you were expecting to have 30 minutes to cover your solutions. At the last minute, your customer decides to give you a limit of 6 minutes and 40 seconds to deliver your presentation! Additionally, the customer also said that you couldn’t present more than 20 slides of information during this time. With this in mind, how can you deliver the same message that was designed for 30 minutes in only 6 minutes and 40 seconds?

Simple…make it crisp! Okay, maybe this isn’t as simple as it sounds, but just like with anything in life, practice makes perfect. Becoming a more professional, engaging and effective speaker starts with you and your very next
presentation. Before presenting to your next client, use
the following 3 steps to guide you:

Don’t Wing It: Have you ever heard the expression,
“The first time you try something is always the best you
will ever be at it.” Of course you haven’t. Luck favos those
who prepare, and the more time you give yourself to review
your presentation and practice your delivery, the more
concise and straightforward you will be.

Keep It Simple: Instead of designing your presentation to include everything and fit into the time you are given, focus on cutting things back. There is a style of presentation referred to as PechaKucha, and in this type of presentation, the focus is on speed and graphics. Typically, you have 20 slides and only 20 seconds per slide to present. If you have more than 20 topics, too bad, isolate the important ones. If you need more than 6 minutes and 40 seconds, then too bad, consolidate your main talking points. If you lose your audience’s attention by having to take over 20 seconds to explain a topic or graphic, then too bad, rethink your approach. The goal of this exercise isn’t to diminish the importance of the presentation, but to instead, make it shine again by honing in on what’s really important.

Know Your Audience: Even identical twins have different fingerprints. Similarly, not everyone has the same interests and buying motives. When preparing for your presentation, keep this in mind, and leave out the information that has little meaning to your prospect. For example, a CFO may likely care more about the dollar signs, while someone like a Production Director may be more concerned with increased productivity. When in doubt, ask yourself, “How will this impact my prospect?”

Saying more by saying less is a skill that everyone has available to them, and all it takes is practice. Remember the next time you deliver a presentation, don’t rely on luck, keep it simple and focus on your audience. Now you’re working effectively!

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