Selling your ideas isn’t easy, especially in today’s dynamic business climate. Listeners go from meeting to meeting. They are on information overload. Without Reaching, Teaching and Touching your listeners, it is likely your content will be overlooked. The question is how do you do it?
Reach:
The way to reach any audience, whether it is a senior leadership team, your customers or fellow colleagues attending a conference, is by discussing things your listeners would find interesting or valuable, rather than what’s top of mind for you.
To reach listeners quickly, begin by showing them you understand what is going on in their world- the problems facing them. Then, link your ideas to how these will address or resolve your listeners’ issues. For example, you might open your conversation with this statement. “I know marketing dollars are tight, and you’re concerned with investing more money in a faltering brand. I believe by re-focusing our consumers on what was unique about the brand when it was launched in a tight economy in the late 70’s, we will see the uptick we desire. I would like to talk about the results of our market research team and get your input on how we might approach our campaign. The benefits we believe we will derive in sales within the next six months are quite remarkable.”
Throughout your conversation, you must continue to link your ideas to what listeners find important with statements such as, “how this will help the brand grow is….” or “the benefit to our organization for doing this is….” You must do the same thing as you summarize. One of the biggest mistakes we see presenters make is not linking. Do not assume the connection is obvious.
Teach:
Anytime someone attends a meeting, they expect to learn something new. If you present trends, analyses, data or technical information of any sort, people need to understand what it means or how to use that information. Instead of being a presenter, think of yourself as an interpreter. An interpreter makes the information clear and understandable by all. A good interpreter might say, “While the results are not as strong as predicted, we know that the campaign in the metropolitan areas was an enormous success. Where the numbers fell dramatically is the rural areas, particularly in Virginia, Ohio, and Maine where unemployment is the highest. Had we focused on cities and suburbs, it would have been 2.3% higher than our original prediction.”
Touch:
To touch people, you must move them emotionally. One way to do that is through a dynamic delivery style that shows you are very committed and passionate about what you say. People see how you feel by the look on your face, your gestures and the intensity of your gaze. They also hear it in the tone and inflection of your voice.
Other ways to reach people are through stories and examples. Who doesn’t love a good story, assuming there is a business point to it! Relevant examples can also make people imagine a similar experience or envision an outcome.
People who present like a pro do what it takes to make their ideas resonate and come alive. They know they have to create content to Reach, Teach and Touch.
Ask your question and learn from the pros. Impact Communications is ready to offer suggestions and insights to help solve your communication issue. Plus visitors to our website, some who are expert communicators, will offer their thoughts as well.
We’re interested in hearing about your experiences making presentations. What have been positive situations where your presentation went well or for some unknown reason your presentation went off track?
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Impact Communications, Inc. consults with individuals and businesses to improve their presentation and telephone communication skills. It is not what you know but how you communicate it that makes a difference. When you have to have impact, phone (847) 438-4480 or visit our website, www.ImpactCommunicationsInc.com.
Impact Communications, Inc. was established in 1998. It is a national presentation communication skills and telephone communication skills training company that excels at defining and developing the core elements of effective business communication. With presentation communication skills training, telephone communications skills training, every encounter can be an efficient and lucid transmission of information.
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