Delivery Techniques

Steve’s Sales Coaching Tips

Presenting with Power and Getting Results! – Part 6

Your success is determined by how well you coordinate a mix of messages, spoken and unspoken. You are the presentation. Control the situation. Don’t get in the way of your words. Use any creative means available to tell and sell your story effectively.

Control and authority

-Exert some energy. Be yourself AND THEN SOME! Show that you are confident and excited about what you are about to say.

-Pause...relax before you begin.

-Don’t demand the attention of a noisy audience. Politely wait for attention to come to you. They will settle.

-Establish personal contact before you begin speaking. Lock onto a person in your audience.

-Make a positive first impression with a sincere smile and nod of acknowledgment. Excited about the subject? Well for heaven’s sake ...tell your face about it and smile!

The body

-Maintain a relaxed, natural stance. Avoid shifting your weight, leaning on the lectern, or fidgeting.

-Stand on the left side of your visual aid (from the audience’s perspective).

-Gesture naturally. Avoid forced movement. Spontaneity, personality, and feeling for the subject are the keys to movement. When you’re excited about the subject and intent upon reaching the audience, gesturing takes care of itself.

The eyes

-Maintain eye contact. Effective communication is a two-way street. The audience’s eyes give constant feedback as to how well you’re communicating.

-Concentrate on one person and hold them until you’ve made your point. Then move on to another. You will find this helps you focus on your message and avoid that glazed, faraway look that comes from scanning the audience.

-Key: Maintaining eye contact is the single most important thing you can do to improve your presentation style.

The message

-Learn to use the power of silence. Some inexperienced speakers feel the need to deliver an uninterrupted stream of words. They end up with “ums,” “ers” and “ahs.” Effective pauses show that you are in control of your message and the audience.

-Involve the audience. Make a provocative statement, or ask a rhetorical question.

-Personalize the talk to gain audience empathy.

-Don’t let visual aids compete with your for attention. Avoid fast slide show clicking.

Remember:
Don’t distract the audience. This is the all-encompassing rule of effective delivery skills. Make it easy for listeners to understand the message by working hard on how you say it.

Good selling!