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Ed asked for tips for a 45-minute session on communications:
Here are my thoughts...as they come:
Important points to make:
* Use writing to help structure communications that are orally
presented
* Ask for what you want up front...and "call for the sale" at the end
* Communicate for audience, not yourself
* Focus on what's in it for them
* Turn as many "I"s into "you"s as you can
* Ask open-ended questions of your audience to encourage participation
while selling
* If the product is good, focus less on hard "selling" and more on
description
What form to put this presentation into:
* Talk fast!
* Have very few flipcharts/overheads, with very few words. You're doing
the presentation, not the flipchart!
* Have handout, and tell them that they'll get it, so they're not
distracted with note taking
* Practice what you preach...whatever that is
* Make it interactive...ie. ask, "what communication tips have you found
that work?"
* Ask someone up to "sell" a pen, or pad of paper to the group, and then
critique this presentation based on the principles you've laid out
already
That's it for now, Ed. Good luck with your presentation. Let us know
how it went.
Doug Max
--
LR Communication Systems, Inc.
Training in business writing and presentation skills. Seminars, distance
learning/correspondence programs with personal feedback. Online options.
Editing services. Founded in 1969.
