Looks like a good book and I am thinking of reading it over the next couple of weeks. (Between the other rash of books I need to read) But it really started me thinking, some of the best presentations that I have delivered have actually been without software.
Don't get me wrong, I am a dedicated PowerPoint user, all my courses, seminars and presentations generally involve some element of PowerPoint slides in them. But I have also been on the receiving end of several presentations that could only be described as "death by PowerPoint". So I think it is wise, as well as good practice, for every consultant to be versatile enough to deliver a presentation "cold" without any software at all.
it is ...good practice, for every consultant to be versatile enough to deliver a presentation "cold" without any software at all
So here are my top ten tips for delivering presentations without software, feel free to add to them if you think I have missed something.
1. Don't rush!
It is always tempting to tell them everything you want to tell them within the first five minutes of starting. Particularly if you don't have a visual aid to slow you down.
Resist the temptation - show a little restraint. Your points need to be built up, and laid out in a manner that will ensure they are understood. Also, don't try to fit everything you could possibly do into a one hour slot, just build the key issues up.
2. Have a routine
If you are going to go without a net then you need to make sure you know what you are going to say. In the early stages try to have a rough outline of what you are going to run through. Have your strap-lines well rehearsed, sound-bites, emphasis points, sequences and transitions are all a key part of delivering a smooth and coherent message.
Map out your presentation before hand, make sure you have the customary beginning - middle and end, and make sure you reveal the right points, with the right emphasis, at the right time.
Big tip - commit it to memory in the beginning. After a while your goal is to have a range of "routines" that you can pull from your memory depending on the situation. I have a vast number of these that I have built up over the years related to the areas I consult on personally.
I once arrived at a site in Canada (from the UK at the time) only to find that I was expected to deliver a three day course. I had nothing prepared, the client was paying good money for this engagement, and I had not bought a lot of my normal training materials with me. (Aargghhh!)
The results? A three day stand up routine with flip charts and the white board... a resounding success and I still provide advice to these professionals today. (Now from the Middle East)
3. Use Graphics
Even with PowerPoint graphics are an essential element to the transferral of knowledge. They tie in with peoples ability to learn visually and to perceive things without words. They also do a darn sight better at relaying a message than two pages filled with hard to read text.
So, if you don't have software what can you do?
Flip charts are a fantastic prop to work with. In my view even better than PowerPoint in some aspects. Why? Because they provide you with a level of interaction with the audience that software does not, and you can easily flip between them to discuss previous points etc.
So have a few illustrations ready to go, develop routines to allow you to build them over time, revealing key points along the way, and try to build them to provide a prop for discussions with your audience.
4. Be Socratic
You can either "tell them" or "ask them". If you are telling them, then they may listen, they may take notice, and they may recall what you were burbling about. But if you ask them then an entirely different dynamic starts to take place.
- If you ask then whether they answer you or not, they think about your question... it is an unconscious reflex.
- If you ask ... they answer..
- If you ask and they answer, then they are more likely to think it is "true", because it reflects their own experience, than if you tell them and they just listen passively
- If you ask then then they interact with you... and you begin to build the number 1 sales tool... a relationship!
- In brief, if you ask... then they are far more likely to become engaged in the process.
if you ask... then they are far more likely to become engaged in the process.
I have integrated Socratic principles into my training, sales presentations, seminars and consulting discussions. (Socratic Conversation) For me, this was a revelation in training techniques and it is something that has undoubtedly improved my fortunes in the consulting game.
5. Tell Stories
There is something almost primal about the power of storytelling to make a point, relay a message, or to transfer knowledge. Storytelling, when well done, allows you to present facts to back up your case, provides you with an opening to establish the relationship with the client, and gives you some borrowed credibility (from the originator of the story) to make a specific point with some authority.
Stories build over time, I have been able to gather together lots of stories from my own experiences and those that have been shared with me by clients. All good stuff, all great for making very exact points, and they are also all generally very inspiring tales about the potential of human beings to achieve great things.
6. Make Connections
When you don't use a presentation another dynamic starts to take place. Instead of looking wearily at a screen on the wall, people start to look directly at you! So things change right? You now have a direct opening to create a relationship. (Which is always part of the goal of any presentation - sales or not.)
- Use your voice! Soft speaking draws people in, changes in volume emphasizes points, load speaking creates urgency, fast talking creates an illusion of depth (sometimes - Tom Peters style)
- Move! Controlled and contrived movement draws attention. Set out your routines to be done with two flip charts, u-shaped tables allow you to get close to everyone in the room ... and so on. Speak to them, not at them!
- Eye contact! Look at them in the eye, make your points seriously, non verbal cues like nodding agreement, or shaking your head in complicit disagreement (with their issues like "management doesn't listen" etc)
Also there seems to be another dynamic happening when you talk, particularly Socratically. The believability factor, for reasons I don't quite understand, seems to go up markedly!
