Business Communication Chapter 12

1
Business CommunicationChapter 12

• Designing and Delivering Business Presentations

2
Planning a Presentation

• Goal To be organized, clear, confident and
  persuasive
• Identify Your Purpose
• If your presentation were a Broadway musical,
  what tune would you want the audience whistling
  at the end of the performance?
• This primary message should be the first and last
  thought in your presentation.
• Develop a compact, clear and memorable phrase
  that expresses it.

3
Planning a Presentation

• Know Your Audience
• How many?
• Who are they (age, gender, culture, etc.)?
• What are they (occupations, levels, job titles)?
• Why are they there?
• What do they expect?
• What do they need or want?
• What will they find interesting, useful and
  credible?
• Answer the three business foundation questions.

4
Planning a Presentation

• Know Your Context
• What is the situation?
• What does it call for?
• Length and topic specified?
• Who else speaks? About what?
• Where does my presentation fit in? What time of
  day?
• Is Q. and A. expected? Panel or individual? If
  so, anticipate questions and prepare answers.
• Written, hand-out version required or can you
  speak from power point notes?
• Podium or lapel mike? What other equipment is
  available?
• Will news media attend?

5
Organizing the Content

• Tell them what youre going to tell them.
• Tell them.
• Tell them what you told them.
• S, S and I, S
• State, Support and Inform, Summarize

6
Organizing the Content

• Primary point
• 2. Supporting point
• A. Sub-point
• B. Sub-point
• 3. Supporting point
• A. Sub-point
• B. Sub-point
• II. Summary

7
Writing Process

• Research.
• Pause, ponder, analyze.
• Select your position/primary message.
• Burst write to get down the position and the
  support you have gathered.
• Read what you have written and ask, What am I
  trying to say?
• Then pretend you are verbally explaining the
  subject to a friend write a lead sentence (no
  more than 30 words) summarizing what you say to
  the imaginary friend. This is the tune.

8
Writing Process

• Select supporting points, write a short sentence
  explaining each and organize them under the lead
  sentence in descending order of importance. Or
  outline.
• Write a final statement summarizing your entire
  argument.
• Connect all pieces with smooth transitions.
• Rewrite, polish and condense removing extra
  words.
• Check the then-then-then logic chain. Is it
  persuasive? Does the conclusion stand up?
• Proof-read for syntax, grammar, spelling and
  punctuation.
• You should rewrite at least three times!

9
Introduction

• Goal to seize audience attention, generating
  involvement and rapport
• A shocking statement or startling statistic
• A quotation from a well-known person
• An open-ended question that will generate thought
  or discussion
• An appropriate joke or anecdote that can be tied
  into the subject
• A dramatic demonstration (King Kong in a tux)
• A compliment to the audience, a reference to the
  occasion of the presentation or something
  happening in the community where the presentation
  is given Linkage!

10
Introduction

• Present your purpose and preview points to be
  developed in the order in which you will address
  them.
• If it is a long complex presentation, list them
  in order on a slide.
• This is the visual equivalent of a heading in a
  written presentation a signpost telling the
  audience what to expect.

11
Body

• Use no more than 5 major (first-level) points in
  a 30-minute presentation. People cannot easily
  absorb more.
• Use conversational style, short sentences and
  simple words. Unlike the eye, the ear has only
  one chance to absorb meaning.
• Dont over-use statistics round them off 63
  or nearly two-thirds, not 62.7.
• Use humor only if it ties easily into the
  subject. Humor doesnt cross national borders
  easily. Self-deprecating humor works well.
• People like stories.

12
Close

• Signal that the closing is coming.
• Make it a memorable summary of your primary
  message (remember the tune).
• Tie it to the opening by, for example, answering
  the rhetorical question you asked to start your
  presentation.
• Practice so that you can deliver it smoothly
  while maintaining eye contact with the audience.
• Raise your voice to make it clear, emphatic and
  sincere.
• Dont say thank you. If you give an effective
  presentation, they will thank you with applause.

13
Designing Compelling Visuals

• Visuals reinforce your message by engaging the
  audiences eyes as well as ears. Research has
  shown that visuals
• Increase retention by as much as 38 percent
• Reduce time required to present concepts by
  clarifying and emphasizing vital points
• Increase consensus in a meeting by as much as 20
  percent.

14
Effective Visuals

• The goal is to clarify so keep visuals simple.
• Limit the number rule of thumb -- each visual
  uses one minute of presentation time.
• Mr. Word should match Mr. Picture. Dont show
  one thing and talk about another.
• Include only important core ideas that can be
  visually digested

15
Effective Visuals

• Use short, bulleted lists.
• Avoid condensed speaking notes as a crutch to
  accompany a boring delivery (as I am doing right
  now) instead use powerful visual symbols.
• Make certain your visuals are legal and ethical
  (dont visually distort meaning).
• Proofread them as you do text.

16
Effective Visuals

• Invite the eye with white space.
• Follow the 7X7 rule no more than seven lines of
  text, each with no more than seven words (75
  coverage or less).
• Use borders, boxes and lines to capture and
  direct the eye.
• As a rule, align text left.

17
Effective Visuals

• Limit fonts to no more than three that can be
  read easily from a distance.
• Vary font on a slide for emphasis.

18
Using Color

• Color conveys message and mood blue,
  conservative and formal yellow, informal red,
  bold, loss or stop green, calm and go white,
  crisp and clean black, profitable, etc.
• Make certain background color doesnt make words
  difficult to read.
• Use color to highlight elements of a slide or a
  particular page in a handout.

19
Using Color

• About 10 percent of people are color-impaired, so
  dont use red or green to highlight slides.
• To avoid confusing the eye, use no more than
  three different colors on a slide.
• Be aware of context for example, dark room use
  light text on a darker background (test it)
• Use complementary colors for text and background
  to heighten contrast and legibility (example,
  yellow on dark blue). If its a large audience,
  these legibility tricks become even more
  important.

20
Handouts

• A handout provides your take-away in written form
  and can provide a place to take notes (as I do
  with you by providing power point ahead of time)

21
Delivery

• Four methods memorized, scripted, impromptu,
  extemporaneous
• ___________________________________
• Memorized like a train on a narrow track no
  flexibility useful only for emphasizing short
  sections of a speech
• Scripted useful when accuracy is vital disrupts
  eye contact unless script is carefully prepared
  and presented

22
Preparing a Script

• Use heavy, easy-to-turn stock.
• Double space.
• Use at least 20-point type.
• Use no more than 2/3 of page in order to keep the
  speakers head up and foster good eye contact.
• Never carry a sentence or a paragraph over a page
  break.
• Underline and/or boldface key words.

23
Presentation Styles

• Impromptu unprepared and frightening at first,
  but experience improves you (think of meetings)
• Extemporaneous prepared but using power point or
  notes and wandering around the stage wearing a
  lapel mike. Can be the most credible and
  persuasive format if you know your material well.

24
Using Your Voice Properly

• Phonation, Articulation, Pronunciation
• Phonation masters Martin Luther King, James Earl
  Jones, Barack Obama (minister, actor, politician
  all depending on their voice)
• Pitch mid-to-low is best low perceived as
  authoritative variation necessary
• Volume make sure youre audible to the back
  row vary it to keep their attention
• Rate vary it, but in general breathe
  deeply, relax and slow down

25
Emphasis Changes Meaning

• I am happy you are here.
• I am happy you are here.
• I am happy you are here.
• I am happy you are here.
• I am happy you are here.
• I am happy you are here.

26
Using Your Voice Properly

• Articulation (not dialect) produces clear,
  smooth, pleasant speech kind of (kinda) working
  (workin) going to (gonna) this (dis)
• Work to develop American Broadcast English
• Speaking is like singing stand up with
  shoulders back support with your diaphragm
  breathe well enunciate

27
Using Your Voice Properly

• Pronunciation incorrect pronunciation can
  distract and detract from your message if in
  doubt, use the dictionary to check the word out.

28
Presenting

• Prepare thoroughly to control anxiety if you
  believe your message, your audience will feel as
  well as hear your words.
• Develop tools (visuals, handouts, etc.) and
  always have a back-up plan in case of technical
  difficulties.
• Practice to familiarize yourself with the
  material, but dont rehearse all the feeling out
  of it.
• Record it and listen to yourself. Do your ears
  catch the key phrases?

29
Presenting

• Work hard on the opening and the closing so you
  can maximize eye contact at these important
  points.
• Body left (of the audience) and eyes front check
  the slide, make eye contact and deliver the
  point.
• Move your contact around (serial conversations
  with individual audience members).
• If your hands are shaking, use a podium.

30
Presenting

• Dont bob and weave its distracting.
• Dress professionally.
• Arrive in time to check it out.
• Adopt alert, athletic posture.
• Communicate confidence and enthusiasm.
• Use natural gestures.
• Watch audience for feedback.
• Adhere to time limits.
• Always seek feedback so you can improve.

31
Crossing Ethnic/Cultural Barriers

• Speak Simply.
• Know and avoid red flag words/phrases.
• Pay attention to enunciation and articulation.
• Be careful of humor and jokes!
• What are the cultures body-language norms?
  National protocol?
• Be patient and walk in their shoes.

32
Team Presentations

• Team presentations require even more preparation,
  coordination and practice than individual
  presentations.
• Agree on a purpose and timetable.
• Pick an organized, disciplined team leader
  willing to act as referee in dividing up the
  turf.
• Use a standard, cohesive design for all parts of
  the presentation.
• Make transitions from member to member both
  verbally and physically smooth
• Field Q. and A. as a team.