Three Great Ways to Start a Presentation
by Christina McKenna
Three Great Ways to Start a Presentation
A while back, some longtime clients asked me to sit in as a salesman made his pitch to them. His firm had just launched an innovative new program and my clients were eager to learn how it might improve outcomes for their company.
As the salesman organized himself at the front of the room, a good-sized audience gathered and anticipation grew. Finally, the host introduced the speaker, and the room hushed. We were ready to be wowed.
But instead, fizzle.
“Thank you all for being here, especially on such a dreary day. I know you have a lot of other things you could be doing. I apologize in advance for my voice, but I just got over a cold. Also, I know you were expecting Ed to join me, but his mom’s in the hospital so he’s not coming. So, let me start by telling you a bit about me … “
Ugh. Such a waste of what we at Bluestone call a “Magic Moment.”
There are two Magic Moments for every presentation and one is the very beginning. (The other--you guessed it--is the close.) It’s not that Magic Moments contain the pithiest content. But, word for word, they get the most audience attention. Savvy speakers capitalize on this phenomenon and deliver an intentional open that accomplishes two tasks: It draws the audience in and it tees up the main point.
If you struggle with effectively starting speeches and presentations, here are three great opens to try:
Tell a story. Audiences love a good story. Afterall, stories harken back to childhood memories and offer temporary reprieve from thinking about matters at hand. To find stories, draw on personal experience, books, movies, history, case studies, or even a hypothetical scenario you create yourself. Just be sure you’re transparent about where the story comes from and that it tees up your main point.
Lay out a problem. Every speech or presentation should advance an idea, and the best ideas address a problem. Give some thought to the problem your idea is intended to solve and use your open to lay out what the problem is, why it’s troubling, and why it should be fixed. This opening perfectly tees up your main point, which just so happens to be the solution.
Be the audience’s surrogate: Many speakers like to start by speaking about themselves. But while you may be the one standing at the front of the room, there’s someone with whom the audience is much more concerned: Themselves! So, begin by talking about something you know is important to the group (their shared interest, their passion, their goal, their need). Then connect that to the ideas about which you’ll be speaking. Once you have them hooked, you can pause to share a bit about their talented speaker.
Finally, don’t let the pressure of crafting a compelling start stymie progress on the rest of the talk. If it’s easier, draft a placeholder open to get things moving. By the time you’ve hammered out the rest of your content, you’ll likely have come across several great ideas for an actual open. Choose and refine the best one, and then when it’s go-time, watch it work like magic.
Give it a try and let us know how it works for you and what else has worked better. For more great tips on powerful public speaking and great presentations, visit us at bluestoneexec.com or give us a call at 248.514.7085.