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Sales Today


Mar 21, 2024

Ever found yourself fumbling with PowerPoint slides, only to witness your audience's eyes glaze over?

 

This episode, we tackle that all-too-familiar scenario with the help of Andrea Pacini, presentation powerhouse and author of "Confident Presenter."

 

Through games and anecdotes, we reveal how to bridge the gap between what's buzzing in your brain and what resonates with listeners, ensuring your sales pitch hits home every time.

 

We tackle the common stumbling blocks encountered during presentation preparation and delivery.

 

We also share the story of Marie, a cautionary tale of overlooking audience analysis, resulting in a presentation fraught with irrelevance and excess slides.

 

We  discuss  the importance of starting with a structured approach—analysing the audience, identifying key messages, and blending logic with emotion—to craft a compelling narrative that captivates from start to finish.

 

Andrea provides actionable strategies, such as the ABC of preparation—Audience, Burning needs, Context—to refine your presentation skills, steer clear of the dreaded "death by PowerPoint," and truly connect with your listeners.

 

 

--------- EPISODE CHAPTERS WITH FULL SUMMARIES ---------

 

(0:00:00) - Effective Presentation Techniques and Pitfalls (8 Minutes)

We explore the challenge of the "curse of knowledge," where presenters, often experts in their field, assume their audience has the same level of understanding, leading to miscommunication. This concept is exemplified by the Tappers vs. Listeners game, highlighting the gap between what we know and what we assume others know. Additionally, we touch upon the importance of tailoring presentations to the audience's context and the pitfalls of diving into advanced topics without establishing a foundational understanding. Andrea emphasises the need for an external perspective to effectively communicate and engage with our audience, whether in sales or any form of presentation.

 

(0:08:18) - Presentation Challenges and Solutions (16 Minutes)

 

We explore common pitfalls in presentation preparation and execution, focusing on the significance of understanding one's audience. Marie's story illustrates the blunder of neglecting audience analysis, a mistake that can lead to irrelevant presentations, such as overloading with unnecessary slides. We also examine the misstep of jumping straight into creating slides without structuring content around key messages, and the tendency to favour visual aesthetics over substance. We discuss a structured approach to crafting presentations, starting with audience analysis, followed by message brainstorming, and the importance of blending logic with emotion. Emphasis is placed on creating a compelling narrative, the dangers of "death by PowerPoint," and the crucial role of delivery skills in connecting with an audience. Lastly, we provide actionable advice with the ABC of preparation—Audience, Burning needs, Context—to immediately improve presentation effectiveness.

 

Follow Andrea

LinkedIn:   https://www.linkedin.com/in/apacini/

Website: https://www.ideasonstage.com/

Andrea’s Book: https://linktr.ee/andreapacini

 

 

 

 

 

Follow me

https://linktr.ee/fredcopestake

 

Take the Scorecard

https://collaborativeselling.scoreapp.com/

 

Watch this episode on YouTube

https://youtu.be/I-jN_bWCjAI