Friday, June 06, 2014
Business Presentations
I have seen two different types of business presentations:
1 Self-promotion where an editor or author tries to present themselves, their book, publishing company, marketing company or service to friends and strangers, and rivals, including a mix of fans and foes
2 Company presentations and conferences where the presenter thinks everybody else knows slightly more or slightly and is trying to impress
When preparing a speech you have three different objectives:
1 Satisfy yourself - are you being paid. If not, does your speech ensure you sell yourself or your product?
2 Satisfy the audience - what's in it for them? A signed copy? Reduced price book/product? Save on postage? Two for the price of one. Can't buy it elsewhere? Out of print - last one? Chance to learn more about the subject of your speech? Whodunnit - answer is in the book. Problem solved - this gadget / software will solve the problem described in your speech. A free handout/ copy of your talk if they send their email or give you a business card.
3 Satisfy organiser - did you thank them, relate how you know them, their skill in finding you or suggesting the subject, how lucky the audience is to have such a great club chairman
4 Self-deprecating/ delayed reaction - more information on your website, or free newsletter, or how to find the book/product if they choose to buy it later.
5 Glossary of terms used if they need it or are mentoring a novice in their club/company who needs it.
Self-promotion Challenges
1 Q You arrive in the village hall on a wet or snowy January Monday to find au audience of one, or two. When this first happened to me I was too embarrassed to tell anybody. Then I heard the same story from lots of authors. And lots of events and club meetings.
Lots of causes include:
a) Rival events - ranging from The World Cup, to a fete in the car park outside offering free food.
b) Small potential audience not reached.
c) Lack of publicity.
d) You are too shy to promote yourself.
e) Organisers did nothing - although they promised help. (Reasons ranging from their memory loss to the fact they or their next of kin died or they lost their job.
f) Venue shut down, car park closed, police closed road.
g) Bad weather. Good weather sent everybody out to play or on holiday.
i) Event or transport to get there too expensive.
j) Potential audience needs transport. (Answers: School bus, lifts in cars, coach party, you taking three supporters, neighbours, friends, rivals who want to learn how it's done, in your car.)
My first inkling that I wasn't the only author to find After they'd had the opposite experiences at two venues the same week, they knew that it was not solely their image as a speaker. If it was, marketing the event was the first problem which needed to be addressed. Maybe these things happen to everybody, like so many ups and downs in life and you simply need to shrug and move on, or to think confidently, 'you can't win them all'.
1 A
2 Q You have your dream audience of 500 people but the publisher has not sent your books.
1 Q How do you promote a book without getting all the rival authors looking sour, saying, 'He/she was just promoting their book - told us nothing about writing at all.
1 A
Successful Self Promotion
Public Presentation Challenges
What do you do to solve the following problems?
1 Q You are last minute substitute speaker, know the subject but no notes and no visuals.
2 Q Slide/video fails.
3 Q You forgot your notes.
4 Q Audience includes novices and foreigners and spouses.
4 A Always include a glossary, however small the print. If any know-all objects that 'everybody knows that' explain that somebody else (your proof-reader at the slide company - people on the web) will need to know, and the presentation could be used again later for a wider audience. The glossary also helps foreigners who know the term but cannot understand your pronunciation. When they see the words, they will get an extra clue as to what the speaker is saying. It also helps late-comers, and those hard of hearing.
1 You can't start by saying you are the substitute because the audience then feels you are aggrieved and they are getting second best. However, the chairperson thanking you, before question time, could praise you for willingness to step in at short notice.
2 Lost Slides - Print out the slides to remind yourself. Hold them up so the audience can see them. Let them come up and look afterwards in case those at the back could not see. Keep the printed version with you so if the airline loses your computer you can still give a talk - or get the print-outs copied onto another laptop and projected.
In Singapore the club president who invited me to evaluate his speech on aquarium fish - all visual, lost all the slides except the title because of a projector failure. At a Swanwick writers opening evening the main speaker suffered a video blackout. Whether his fault or not, he did very well by having a backup talk not needing the visuals.
3 Lost notes - Email your talk and visuals to your smartphone or to the organisers the day before as backup.
4 Email the notes to your phone the day before.
Glossary
Q question
A answer
FAQ frequently asked question
i.e. that is
1 Self-promotion where an editor or author tries to present themselves, their book, publishing company, marketing company or service to friends and strangers, and rivals, including a mix of fans and foes
2 Company presentations and conferences where the presenter thinks everybody else knows slightly more or slightly and is trying to impress
When preparing a speech you have three different objectives:
1 Satisfy yourself - are you being paid. If not, does your speech ensure you sell yourself or your product?
2 Satisfy the audience - what's in it for them? A signed copy? Reduced price book/product? Save on postage? Two for the price of one. Can't buy it elsewhere? Out of print - last one? Chance to learn more about the subject of your speech? Whodunnit - answer is in the book. Problem solved - this gadget / software will solve the problem described in your speech. A free handout/ copy of your talk if they send their email or give you a business card.
3 Satisfy organiser - did you thank them, relate how you know them, their skill in finding you or suggesting the subject, how lucky the audience is to have such a great club chairman
4 Self-deprecating/ delayed reaction - more information on your website, or free newsletter, or how to find the book/product if they choose to buy it later.
5 Glossary of terms used if they need it or are mentoring a novice in their club/company who needs it.
Self-promotion Challenges
1 Q You arrive in the village hall on a wet or snowy January Monday to find au audience of one, or two. When this first happened to me I was too embarrassed to tell anybody. Then I heard the same story from lots of authors. And lots of events and club meetings.
Lots of causes include:
a) Rival events - ranging from The World Cup, to a fete in the car park outside offering free food.
b) Small potential audience not reached.
c) Lack of publicity.
d) You are too shy to promote yourself.
e) Organisers did nothing - although they promised help. (Reasons ranging from their memory loss to the fact they or their next of kin died or they lost their job.
f) Venue shut down, car park closed, police closed road.
g) Bad weather. Good weather sent everybody out to play or on holiday.
i) Event or transport to get there too expensive.
j) Potential audience needs transport. (Answers: School bus, lifts in cars, coach party, you taking three supporters, neighbours, friends, rivals who want to learn how it's done, in your car.)
My first inkling that I wasn't the only author to find After they'd had the opposite experiences at two venues the same week, they knew that it was not solely their image as a speaker. If it was, marketing the event was the first problem which needed to be addressed. Maybe these things happen to everybody, like so many ups and downs in life and you simply need to shrug and move on, or to think confidently, 'you can't win them all'.
1 A
2 Q You have your dream audience of 500 people but the publisher has not sent your books.
1 Q How do you promote a book without getting all the rival authors looking sour, saying, 'He/she was just promoting their book - told us nothing about writing at all.
1 A
Successful Self Promotion
Public Presentation Challenges
What do you do to solve the following problems?
1 Q You are last minute substitute speaker, know the subject but no notes and no visuals.
2 Q Slide/video fails.
3 Q You forgot your notes.
4 Q Audience includes novices and foreigners and spouses.
4 A Always include a glossary, however small the print. If any know-all objects that 'everybody knows that' explain that somebody else (your proof-reader at the slide company - people on the web) will need to know, and the presentation could be used again later for a wider audience. The glossary also helps foreigners who know the term but cannot understand your pronunciation. When they see the words, they will get an extra clue as to what the speaker is saying. It also helps late-comers, and those hard of hearing.
1 You can't start by saying you are the substitute because the audience then feels you are aggrieved and they are getting second best. However, the chairperson thanking you, before question time, could praise you for willingness to step in at short notice.
2 Lost Slides - Print out the slides to remind yourself. Hold them up so the audience can see them. Let them come up and look afterwards in case those at the back could not see. Keep the printed version with you so if the airline loses your computer you can still give a talk - or get the print-outs copied onto another laptop and projected.
In Singapore the club president who invited me to evaluate his speech on aquarium fish - all visual, lost all the slides except the title because of a projector failure. At a Swanwick writers opening evening the main speaker suffered a video blackout. Whether his fault or not, he did very well by having a backup talk not needing the visuals.
3 Lost notes - Email your talk and visuals to your smartphone or to the organisers the day before as backup.
4 Email the notes to your phone the day before.
Glossary
Q question
A answer
FAQ frequently asked question
i.e. that is
Labels: book signing, presentations, self-promotion
