Presentation Tip #52 - Open with a Success Story

Open Your Presentation With a Success StoryWhen you deliver a sales presentation, leadership speech or motivational talk - open with a success story.

Why?
It grabs attention.
It offers hope.It enhances your credibility.It's more memorable.

Success Grabs Attention
To capture attention at the beginning of your presentation deliver a success story. More people will listen because people prefer to hear from winners - not losers. Success creates positive attraction. If you start negative you will repel them.

Success Offers Hope
Start with success and you offer hope to your listeners. Hope is the universal drug. We all want it and can't get enough of it. Hope is a powerful emotion and motivator. If you are speaking to persuade then triggering hope will help move them.

Success Enhances Your Credibility
When you demonstrate success you will have more credibility. Give an example of your success - especially how you helped a client achieve success - and you appear as the expert. Success will increase your value. When you appear as an expert offering high value you will be perceived more as a helpful resource instead of an annoying sales person.

Success is More Memorable
Plant a success story in the minds of your listeners and they will tend to associate you with that story whenever they think about you. They might even repeat that story when they talk to others about you. Use that story early in your presentation and you can refer back to it when clarifying a point later in your presentation. The success story becomes a point of reference for shaping their opinions.
In my presentation skills seminars or sales presentations to prospects I have used the example of how I helped one client close a $10 million deal. Depending on the situation I might convey some of the detail and drama to effectively plant the success story in the listeners' minds.

Prepare Your Success Stories
List your success stories. Search your memory, colleagues' experiences and client testimonials for evidence of dramatic results. Then go back to those clients for more detail if necessary. Write out the best stories. Edit the story so is it easy to tell without detracting from the main message. Rehearse them so you can deliver them comfortably and convincingly.

Warning
Avoid opening with the company story about the founder's biography, corporate history and mission statements. That's usually boring. No one cares about your company until they know if you can help them.

Success Breeds Success
Lead with success stories because success is attractive and convincing.

George Torok
PS: Tell me how this tip helps you.
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Warning: Trailer Trash Words and Phrases that Destroy Your Credibility

The words that you use tell your audience who you are, where you are from and what is your level of education. Based on those blatant messages, your audience decides on what label to slap on your face.
If your audience perceives that you are “beneath” them in education they tend to be less willing to see you as an expert.

There is nothing wrong with coming from the other side of the tracks. Oprah has pointed out often where she came from. But she also made it clear that she didn’t stay there. She improved her language skills…..

Watch out for these words and phrases that might slap you with inferior labels.

You Guys

This is pure trailer trash talk. The correct term is “you”. The word “you” is both singular and plural. We learned that in high school. The phrase “you guys” is just a touch above the gang phrase “youse guys”
Anyways

This word is dismissive. It suggests that you are dismissing what the other person just said or that you wasted their time with your previous message. Avoid it.

Internet
The word is “In – ter – net”. Three syllables with a clear T in the middle. It’s not “Inner-net”.

Create
The individual who claimed to be an expert on creative thinking kept pronouncing this word as “crate”. Just plain trash talk.

Freak You Out

The individual from the previous example also used this term. The only place that I’ve heard this term is on the TV show “Trailer Park Boys”. I’ve looked at that show a few times and I don’t want to advertise that fact. Neither should you.


If you speak or present to senior executives, they will likely be “language educated”. That means that they will listen to your words and judge you and your value on the words that you use. Their ears will be tuned to key words and phrases that enable them to quickly label you and your value.

The wrong words can turn your listeners into objectors immediately. If you want to connect with these high value decision makers then learn to speak their language.


George Torok

Executive Speech Coach

Presentation Skills Seminars

Executive Speech Coach, Business presentation tips from George Torok, the Speech Coach for Executives.

For Serious Speakers Who Want to Get Much Better

Coaching program for serious speakers only


When you are really serious about improving any skill – you will work directly with a coach.

As the Speech Coach for Executives I coach business leaders to deliver million dollar presentations.

I also needed to learn from others. (Ask your teachers who they learned from.)

I attended the weekend Speaker Boot Camp with Warren Evans and Kit Grant. Both are former Chairs of the Global Speakers Federation. Both have more than 20 years of professional speaking experience including extensive international exposure.

I invested at least three thousand dollars for an intensive weekend of small group presentation coaching. I am happy with the return on my investment. I’m a much better speaker. When you get to a certain level of speaking the only improvements you can make is in the details. Warren Evans and Kit Grant pointed out those details and I’m a much better and more profitable speaker because of their help.

Here is an opportunity for you to take part in the scaled down version of that boot camp.

It’s a one day “Sneaker Camp” with Warren Evans in Toronto on Monday August 22 in Toronto.

Only 8 people can attend. It’s still intense. You get a full day with Warren Evans. You’ll benefit from the best insights that his experience and perspective can offer. He never holds back.

And the fee is only $1,265

That’s a good deal.

Here’s the bonus for you. Tell him that George Torok sent you and you will save $100 off that price.

BTW I receive no compensation for this recommendation – other than a kind thought. Perhaps Warren will buy me a beer – remind him to do that.

If you are really serious about kicking your presentations up for a relatively small investment – attend this “Sneaker Camp”.

Toronto Sneaker Camp for Speakers


PS: Maybe you're wondering why Warren offers this coaching program so inexpensively. It's to raise money for the Laura's Hope Charity.


Executive Speech Coach, Business presentation tips from George Torok, the Speech Coach for Executives.

Power Presentations Tip 30: Handle Questions with Ease

Include the group in your discussion.
While the person is asking the question maintain eye contact with that person while you move away from that individual. You do this to include the audience between you and the questioner to include everyone in the conversation. This isn't always possible - especially if you are presenting in a boardroom.

Treat questions like a gift.
While the person is asking the question look at them to demonstrate that you are listening. You could smile or nod your head to encourage the person. This also demonstrates your openness to answering questions. And that conveys confidence and aids believability.
I recommend that you don't say, "Thank you. That's a good question" because once you start you might feel compelled to say it every time. Every question might not be a good question so you will appear insincere.
You might say, "Thanks for asking the first question." But don't say, "Thanks for asking the second/third/etc question."

Repeat or reframe the question.
If you did not understand or hear the question then ask the individual to repeat or rephrase the question.
If there is any possibility that some in the audience might not have heard the question, repeat it as you speak to the group. If it was a long question you could summarize it. If the question was convoluted you can rephrase the question and ask the person, "Do I understand your question correctly?"
Repeating or summarizing the question does three things for you.
• It ensures that everyone in your audience hears the question.
• It gives you time to think about your answer.
• It enhances the value of the answer because it makes them wait a little longer for the answer.
Don't respond to the question too quickly because that cheapens the answer. Appear to think about it before responding.
Deliver your answer to the group then look back at the questioner to acknowledge that you answered their question.
In a future tip we will look at how you can successfully deal with difficult and hostile questions.

George Torok

PS: Tell me how this tip helps you.

PPS: Thanks for your comments and feedback.

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Executive Speech Coach, Business presentation tips from George Torok, the Speech Coach for Executives.

Choose Your Speech Coach Wisely

Executive Speech Coach

How do you choose your speech coach?

Working with a speech coach can be an intimate and unnerving experience.

What might you want from your speech coach?

An effective speech coach must be confident and capable enough to be direct with you – to encourage you, to challenge you and to guide you.

An effective speech coach must be able to identify and build on your strengths.

An effective speech coach must understand your needs, your audience and your message.

An effective speech coach must ask you direct, discovering and guiding questions.

An effective speech coach must demonstrate experience and success as a speech coach and speaker.

An effective speech coach must be an effective public speaker and communicator.

An effective speech coach must be constructive – not sarcastic.

An effective speech coach will help you uncover the best way for you to convey your message.

An effective speech coach will leave you a far better speaker.

An effective speech coach will leave you feeling good about yourself.

George Torok

The Speech Coach for Executives


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