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Category: Presentations Private

Table of Contents: Presentations

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START HERE>  This Post is the table of contents for the Presentations Module. Please review the articles you want to look at and click on the article. It will take you to that article. You can then click back to this page and select another article you want to read or re-read, You also have the option to simply read all of the articles as they were posted on this module. 

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Core Story

Why A Core Story Is Critical To Your Success

Preparing Presentations

How To Start Preparing Your Story

Persuasive Presentations Get Results

How To Get Audience From Point A (skeptic) To Point B (convinced)

Every Presentation Is Mission Critical

A Quick And Effective Way To Tell Your Story

Structure and Flow

How To Find The Structure And Flow Of Your Presentation

Why A Core Story Is Critical To Your Success

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Why A Core Story Is Critical To Your Success

When you look at startups that have developed into very successful companies, you find that one of the things that make them so successful is that they have a core story, which is also their strategy. These core stories sound deceptively simple but are extremely powerful. You should be able to tell your company’s story in one sentence or even a tweet.

Here are a couple of examples:

Google’s core story is Google: provides access to the world’s information in one click.

Apple’s core story is: Apple empowers individuals with well designed, easy-to-use computers.

Your target audience will be able to “get it” immediately if they don’t get it; they are probably not in your target audience. Once prospects understand who you are, what you do, and the benefits of what you do, expanding on your story is easy. You can direct the conversation in many different directions, depending on who’s in the audience.

Now, you need to implement this core story/strategy into everything you do, from product design to hiring people, to operations, marketing, and after-sales service.

If you live your story, you will have the ability to grow and add to your product line over time. It will be easier because you will have loyal customers who trust you. Think about how Apple and others have expanded over the years with the same core story/strategy and maintain a loyal customer base.

Now, for the hard part. Defining and creating your core story/strategy is challenging to do and takes time, But, take the time. It might be the difference between success and failure.

Now, let’s look at defining the core story/strategy in a little more detail. There is additional material on the different aspects of creating and telling your story that you will want to read as well.

What is a core story/strategy

Simply stated, a core story is a powerful narrative about your company, which explains what you do (problem, solution, benefit, or results) plus why you do what you do.  In other words, your core story is your strategy, and it drives success.

A core story also creates an emotional impact, will hold the reader’s attention over time and is flexible enough to be able to explain your company in different ways to different audiences.

This core story is not a  story about you, its the company’s story about your customers. Carmine Gallo, the author of “Talk like TED,” states that a company story is the company strategy, and the CEO is the keeper of the story. You are creating a clear and compelling vision and story around the “why,”  which is a fundamental task of leadership.

Answering the why question is how you build trust and eventually loyalty,  Business books are full of advice on how to achieve specific objectives and goals, but they are light on the Why questions. Carmine Gallo, the author of TED Talks, says to ask the following questions, Why are we doing this? Why should I join the company? Why should I invest in this company? Why should you buy this product or service from this company? The answer to why is the company story.

A core story also motivates employees, defines company culture, and provides a vision to attract investors and even define future product development. However, your story must be authentic or the results could turn customers away.

According to Christan Riedal at Mind Caffeine, a core story is the basic narrative that structures why we believe something is meaningful. It is the story you live by. The core story of a company can be an experience, a specific moment in time, or a belief that shows the real purpose of the enterprise: why you are doing what you do.

It is also a story that is designed to create relationships and gently persuade an audience into suspending their cynicism to buy into an emotional point of view. We make decisions with emotions.

 If you take the time to refine your story, you refine your thinking and the company strategy, Companies that don’t have a clear, articulated core story don’t have a clear and well-thought-out strategy.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the story is just about marketing. It’s bigger than just marketing. The story is your strategy. If you make the story better, you make your strategy better.

 

A Quick And Effective Way To Tell Your Story

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Some people find it hard to develop an easy way to create a story or get it started. We usually use the three steps of problem, solution, and results or outcomes. Here is another way to get you started. Nick Morgan, author, and coach, tells people to use the story formats of famous and well-known stories as their framework, Then explain their story within that framework,

Before you start, don’t confuse a story with an anecdote, which is more of a description of something that happened. Nick says a story has three parts: a situation, a complication, and a resolution,

You need to tell a story if you want to grab someone’s attention and hold it until you reach the Call To Action (or, as Jerry Weissman would say, get them from point A to Point B).

You can do that with stories because stories work the way your mind works, Memory depends on attaching emotion to facts, Too many people try to use lists (3 of these, 6 of those) but people have a difficult time remembering those lists. Stories do a much better job.

But if you are having a hard time creating a story, use one of the traditional story frames that have proved themselves over the years,

Here are the five frames you can use.

Quest is the most fundamental frame. In this scenario, the hero goes off to achieve a definite goal but runs into a problem(s), generally finds a mentor, and then, throughout the story, reaches the target (for example, a new solution to a problem).

The Stranger in a Strange Land is a much different story; the hero finds himself in a strange place where he is unsure of what to do (e.g., maybe a research task without any defined criteria), the rules, or even the path forward. But he finds a mentor and a solution to something he didn’t know he was looking for initially.

Rags To Riches is the traditional story of starting out with nothing and, through hard work and some luck, ending up with fame and fortune. Maybe an investor pitch showing the investors how your startup started with nothing, is now at milestone B and is ready to scale.

Revenge is simply about a wrong done to the hero who, through no fault of his own, loses everything/. Then, he prepares a plan and sets out to get revenge for the wrong done to him. For example, this could be a public relations story about a company getting its reputation back after some false stories about it. This happened to one of our clients years ago.

Love stories are about both love found and love lost. For example, a new great partnership being formed or a partnership is dissolved,

The main point here is that you can use a story’s frame to help you create your own story without having to create a new structure. Also, these frames are familiar and understandable from the beginning, which makes your job and their ability to follow your story easier.

Do you have a situation in which one of these frames would make sense as a starting point to create your unique story?

 

How To Find The Structure And Flow Of Your Presentation

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You are now ready to shift to your left brain and put the clusters you identified in a sequence and logical flow. You need to develop a pathway to determine the best order to present the clusters in your presentation. Again, this material is from Jerry Weissman’s book.

Here is the problem you are facing. If you read something and you don’t understand it, you can go back to the book, find the material and reread it. When you are presenting, listeners can’t do that, so if they miss something, they have to start thinking and stop listening or interrupt you or give up. None of these options are acceptable.

Therefore, you have to become the navigator for your audience, make it easy for them. To do this, you have to have a way to put these segments into a logical sequence to create a lucid and persuasive presentation. These techniques are called Flow Structures, and there re 16 of them to cover various types of presentations. 

Following are the 16 flow structures identified by Jerry Weissman in his book, “Presenting To Win”.

Modular

A presentation using a modular flow structure means that each cluster within the story stands on its own, and the clusters are interchangeable. Examples would be a CFO making a presentation on the company’s financial results or a new product presentation on a product’s unique features. You do have to link the clusters together so the audience can follow along.

Chronological

The chronological flow structure connects your clusters along a specific timeline connecting time and change. The emphasis here is on the change that occurs or occurred.

Physical

The physical flow structure is organized around time and a physical place. For example, how and where and why a distribution company added 12 additional distribution facilities over the past year.

Spatial

The spacial flow structure organizes your clusters according to spatial dimensions. For example, describing something from the top-down or bottom-up or the inside out. Illustrations like concentric circles or a product cutaway can help clarify and tie this presentation together.

Problem/Solution

The problem/solution flow structure is very attractive because it has a natural, built-in benefit for its conclusion. Explain the problem and then spend more time talking about the solution. This flow structure is very popular. 

Issues/Actions

The issues/action flow structure is similar to the problem/solution, but it is less harsh. Especially if the problem has to do with the company. Some industries don’t like talking about their problems and would rather talk about an issue and the action that leads to the solution.

Opportunity/Leverage

The opportunity/leverage flow structure is similar to problem/solution and issues/Actions but instead of a problem, you are talking about an opportunity and how you plan to exploit that opportunity. 

Features.Benefits

The features/benefits flow structure explains the product or service features and the benefits these features deliver. 

Case Study

The case study flow structure tells a story about how your company solved a problem or met a special need. It uses your clusters to explain and guide the story to its conclusion. The story needs to be a problem or opportunity that is important to the audience.

Argument/Fallacy

The Argument/Fallacy flow structure is for when you have to face a very skeptical crowd. Here you have to raise arguments against your case and rebut them by pointing out the fallacies or inaccuracies that underlie them. Only choose this strategy when the arguments against you are widespread.

Compare/Contrast

The compare/contrast flow structure is used to compare your company or product or program, etc. against others. Take a specific point and show why you or your product is superior. You have to be careful when using this flow structure because you will have to talk about the other company or its product. You al have to know your audience before using this structure, so you don’t offend people in the audience.

Matrix

The matric flow structure is familiar to most people. It is two-by-two or four-by-four boxes that compares two different issues or opportunities against each other. It can make a complicated topic easy to understand and visually easy to remember. For example, equity types vs. inflation expectations.

ParallelTracks

The parallel tracks flow structure is a complicated structure and is used to explain complicated issues like biochemistry more easily. It takes the matrix and then goes more in-depth into each matrix box to provide additional information. 

Rhetorical Questions

The rhetorical questions flow structure takes the audience’s point of view, states their queries, and then answeres those questions. This flow structure is especially useful if you use issues that are on the minds of the audience rather than making up the questions yourself.

Numerical

The numerical flow structure is very familiar. The “ten reasons you should ….”  This structure is easy to use, and the audience knows where you are in the presentation at all times, but it can be overused and not as exciting or suspenseful as other structures. 

Conclusion

 The flow structure you should use is the one that best fits your situation, your style, and helps tell your story. Remember, the mission is to get to Point B, the call for action. It’s more important that you select one or two flow structures to use. Not choosing a  flow structure risks that your presentation rambles along, confusing the audience.  

Before choosing, ask these four questions:

  1. What is your Point B?
  2. Who is your audience, and what’s in it for them (what benefits)?
  3. What are the main clusters you need to address?
  4. Why have you organized the clusters the way you have?

 

 

How To Start Preparing Your Story

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Anyone who has sat through a presentation knows what a data dump is. The presenter goes on an on in minute detail until you want to cry. During the presentation is not the time to use the data dump, but all this data is essential in preparing to tell your story.

Begin with a data dump in a brainstorming session

Jerry Weissman, the author of “Presenting To Win,” has better use for this data. Instead of using it in your presentation, set up a brainstorming session, and do your data dump there.

Preparation for your story begins with the data dump, and the way you arrive at the data dump is through a brainstorming session. Brainstorming is a process of free association, creativity, randomness, openness. It helps you consider all the information you think should be in the presentation without consideration of it being logical or valid. 

Logic comes later when you sort, select, and eliminate data into a form that flows logically to help you get the audience from A to B.

 Here are the good news and the bad news about getting the information we need. The right part of our brain thinks creatively, and the left part of our brain thinks analytically.  Business people are mostly left brain or logical thinkers. So they want to apply logic immediately. But in brainstorming, we want the free flow of creative thinking, so we can get all the information needed to tell our story. We will sort the data out later.

 Another point. The right side of the creative side of our brain controls language. The left side controls our written communication. So the brainstorming session has to be verbal because we are looking for creativity. Creating a presentation is a creative task.

How to manage the brainstorming session

Start with a blank whiteboard and draw frame. The frame is a concept developed by Jerry Weissman. On the outside of the frame, identify the outer limits of the brainstorming session.: 

  • Point B. The objective of the presentation or the Call To Action
  • The audience, Their knowledge level and what they need to know to understand, believe, or act on what you will tell them
  • Benefits. All the audience benefits pertinent to the product or service 
  • External Factors. This term refers to is information that could be positive or negative such as faster-growing market or a new competitor 
  •  Presentation Setting. Who is presenting, when, before or after who, where, audio-visuals available, etc.

Now you are ready for the brainstorming session itself. 

The Brainstorming Session

On the whiteboard, draw the Frame described above. You can use colored markers for different groups of main points and different levels of ideas. The only rule is that every thought is acceptable at the time given.  The idea of the brainstorming session is to identify significant or parent ideas and as many ideas as possible. One person’s “bad idea” may trigger a good idea from someone else. 

Ideas should be free-flowing without structure and be whatever comes to mind. When a significant idea is expressed, write it on the whiteboard and circle it. When supporting ideas are given, also put them on the whiteboard and draw a circle around them. Then connect each one io the major idea. Going through the brainstorming process, you will see a panoramic view of the entire presentation.

When you finally run out of ideas, you can begin to use your brain’s logical side to organize, delete, rearrange, and add data. The next step is to put this data into a structure.

Begin clustering the data into a viable structure

Clustering is how you get from the data dump to a structure for the presentation. Clusters are the major parent ideas. Move the parents and data around if needed. However, it would be best if you reduced these parent ideas down to four or five clusters. Then evaluate and prioritize the data attached to each cluster. These four or five significant clusters and their supporting data form the basis for your presentation. Next, you want to think about the organization and the flow of this information for your presentation.

Persuasive Presentations Get Results

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Your Presentation Needs To Be Modified For Each Audience

 

How many presentations have you listened to that were more annoying than informative or persuasive? Most, I’m sure.

Why didn’t your audience jump at the chance to invest in your deal or buy your product?

Was it the opportunity, the product, or the presentation? Many times, it’s the presentation.

 

Most presentations are designed to put every possible piece of data regarding the “opportunity” on a slide.

These “data dumps” do not impress audiences.

They turn audiences off. If you are talking to investors, they want to know

your product or service and how you will deliver it to a large market.

But they do not care to know about every product feature and function;

they want to see why they should invest in your opportunity.

 

As Jerry Weissman, in his book, “Presenting To Win,” states:

Your job is to get the audience from A (uninformed) to B (wanting to accept your call to action), and you do it through persuasion.

 

So the first thing you need to do is recognize that you must customize each presentation to the specific audience you are addressing.

One standard presentation will not do the job. For example, if you have a complicated, technical, or medical product,

will everyone in the audience understand your description, jargon, etc?

You better make sure everyone knows.

 

How much data do they need? Only enough data to get them from A (uninformed) to

B (further discussions, commitment to investing, a sale), etc.

 

But facts alone will not persuade them.

They need to know how they will benefit from your opportunity.

What’s in it for them?

Benefits are one area that is missing from most investment presentations.

A simple exit statement is not enough.

One way to accomplish the desired result (B) is to list the important facts you need to convey

and the benefit related to that fact. The fact then benefits, then fact, then benefit.

Rinse and repeat. You don’t need that fact if there is no benefit to the audience for a given fact.

 

You will know if you got through to the audience if you get a lot of difficult questions.

If you don’t get questions, you probably missed the mark.

 

How To Get Audience From Point A (skeptic) To Point B (convinced)

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Being persuasive is one of the most important skills one can develop. Compelling situations themselves will be varied, each one posing its unique challenges and opportunities.

All presentations have one common element. To take the audience from Point A, the start of your presentation and move them to your objective Point B (your call to action). This dynamic shift is real persuasion.

 According to Weissman, your presentation may be entertaining, most everyone wants that, but entertainment is not the primary purpose. When your point is not clear, you have committed one of the five cardinal sins. When your position is readily apparent, you have the opportunity to achieve your call to action.

Here is a closer look at your challenge. Point A is where your audience starts: uninformed, uninformed, dubious and skeptical about your business. Or in the worst-case, resistant, firmly committed to a position contrary to what you are asking them to do.

Weissman puts it simply. To reach point B, you need to move the uninformed audience to understand, —the dubious audience to believe, —and the resistant audience to act in a neutral way.

Understand, belief, and act are not three separate goals but three stages in reaching a single, cumulative, ultimate goal. Audiences will not act as you want them to if they don’t first understand your story and believe the message it conveys. Point B is the objective of every presentation, and the sure way to create a successful presentation is to begin with, your goal in mind.

You would be surprised at how many people forget to ask for the order at the end of their presentation. At the same time, to reach this goal, you have to understand that you have to see yourself and your presentation from your audience’s point of view. In other words, there must be empathy, an emotional connection, between you and the audience.

One way to do this is to shift your focus from features to benefits. Simply stated, a feature is a fact about your product. A Benefit is how that fact will help your audience. A feature may be necessary, but a benefit is always required. It’s their reason to act.

Every Presentation Is Mission Critical

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Every business presentation that requires a decision is critical and depends on your ability to tell your story. You have one objective, persuading your audience to say yes to your call to action.

Most presentations are not stories they are lists of their product’s features and functions. Most presentations are designed to convey data, not to persuade the audience to grab your opportunity. Also, most presentations are packed with technical information, and jargon they may not understand. That means they have to think. Don’t make them think.

When the audience has to think, they are not paying attention to you, and they will soon lose interest and become irritated. Consequently, your message becomes the casualty.

The focus of your presentation must be on the story. It’s your story that makes the presentation powerful and persuasive. A compelling story will also make you more confident. How many times have you sat through a presentation counting the minutes until the pain would be over?  

According to Jerry Weissman, author and Coach, many presentations commit the following five cardinal sins,

1. No clear point. The audience wonders why they are there. This sin is called the data dump.

2. No audience benefits. The presenter talks about things the audience may not care about.

3. No clear flow. The presenter jumps from topic to topic, and the audience has to try to keep up.

4. Too detailed. Too many facts not relevant and too technical

5. Too long. The audience gives up before the presenter does.

When you commit these sins, you waste everyone’s time, and you miss your opportunity to persuade your audience.

Entrepreneurs are often absorbed in the many issues that have to deal with; they think every tree is necessary when the audience only wants to know about the forest. “They think that for the audience to understand anything, they have to be told everything.” The solution to these problems is to focus on your goal: persuading the audience to go from skeptic to evangelist.

Presentations

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Presentations

Presentations seem to be one of the most difficult tasks for entrepreneurs to do and an area that often little preparation is done. To start off with, most people, surveys reveal that 85% of people are terrified of giving presentations. Then, many business presenters believe they know their product or service so well that all they have to do is stand up and tell the audience what they know. Unfortunately, that doesn’t work well. Having sat through many, many presentations, I can tell you that a lot of skills are required to create, deliver and answer questions. The good news is that anyone willing to learn can give a presentation that gets the audience from being skeptics to being believers who want to embrace your call to action. This module will cover presentations from A to Z, one step at a time. Click on the article you wish to read and you will be taken to that article.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]