The art of Presentation

 Presentation is a generic term that includes every time someone tells something. It could be a formal presentation to boss and colleagues with the support of technology or can be a story told to friends in a pub.

Considering the actual crisis, it could also be a presentation of a job seeker to the Human Resources department of the ideal company. Or a salesperson who has to convince a customer that is product is the best in the world, even it is not true!

 In every situation, the following elements should be mixed and used in different proportions, but every time it is important to use them. One of the best public speaker is Steve Jobs who is able to use some features to create an effective presentation.

 In this article there are highlighted the most popular secrets (most popular and secrets?!?) that are used to present our story, whatever it is.

 

 First of all, it is normal to see persons who are great to tell stories, and then they are not able to say a single word when the boss comes. Or people who could sell a refrigerator in the North Pole, but they are not able to talk to a girl. The good news is that everybody can learn how to do a convincing presentation. To have a prove of that, just check Steve Jobs in his presentation at the university talking about his life and health diseases, where everyone was crying full of emotions and his first presentations decades ago, where everyone was crying but for the horror! After that, everyone can fell better.

 

 Generally a couple of messages should pass in a presentation: to inform and to entertain. So it is important to consider what it is said as well as how it is said.

 

Plan the story

 The first step is to be prepared. Planning the plot of the story with analogical support give the possibility to be check the single parts of the story. To do that, software supports are useful but paper and pens, pencils with different colors and mind maps are much better. The explanation goes more in the mind that is more stimulated the emotional part. Planning a presentation gives also the possibility to insert into it all the possible elements toget the audience attention active. This is the time when it is possible to consider the use of demonstrations, video clips, slides and every other external elements.

 

The main message

Presentations are used to be remembered by others, therefore the main message should be clear and easy to remember. To do that a short message is more influenced. Tv spots usually use this approach and someshort sentences from the advertisements are commonly used in the normal life. Just think few minutes and you will be able to think a lot of them. The characteristic they have in common is they are short. We can compare the length as an sms or a twitter message. Even if your message will not be told by thousands of people, it must be associated to what you want to say. “The world's thinnest notebook” fits perfectly to MacBook Air.

 

The story

 Like comedians or writers, a presentation is about a story that needs a hero and an antagonist. In this way the listener can identify himself/herself with the hero and can fell the possibility to fight against the evil. Again, just think to some movies to have a clear example of that. Steve Jobs used IBM as the antagonist in one of his presentation, and Apple was the new force that could save the world.

 

Audience benefits

 The message must have a benefit for who is listening. It could be the best presentation, but if the public is not interested in it, no one will listen. Therefore, the message should be tailored around the audience, and in particular around the benefit they can get out of that. It is not interesting for customers that the iPhone can make Apple incredibly reach, popular with a huge market share (that's more important for Apple management). Customers can be attracted by the benefit for them that the iPhone is twice as fast at half of the price.

 

Rule of the three

 Once again, writers use to divide their stories into three parts. It helps to keep the attention high and it is a good number to remember. Steve Jobs used this rule in his presentation about his life and everybody can remember those three stories.

 

Logical plus emotional

 It depends on the audience, of course. In any case, a good mix of both should be used. Everybody is impressed by numbers and rational facts, and the emotional factor is usually the winning one. The presentation should convince the others with facts: for example our product is the fastest. And customers must have a good feeling about that, or about us. Sometimes a pair of jeans is nice but we don't buy it because the clerk is not polite. Even more, Steve Jobs likes to sell dreams, not products. It could be like Martin Luther King. In any case, it works and it is easier to remember. An example could be: “in our own small way, we are going to make the world a better place”.

 

Visual impact

 Words are important and images can communicate lots of them in one moment. Even more, a picture can evoke different feelings in the audience. Is the Apple Macbook Air incredible thin? A picture with the Macbook fitting into an envelop is much more powerful. And easier to remember: it has more impact.

 

Numbers for the audience

 Numbers are important because they access to thelogical part of the mind. In any case, they must beadapted to the audience. 220 million iPods is a meaningful number for sales, not for the customers. 73% of market share for iPods gives the customers the feeling they are buying the most used product in the market. No number is right or wrong in absolute: it simply depends on the audience.

 

The emotionally charged event

 In every presentation there should be the most important moment, the one everybody will remember. It must be introduce with a sense of suspense and then the main message should be launched. Prepare your audience to listen to it, or to see that.

 

Practice makes it perfect

 Training is the secret of everything. The first time could be fine, the next will be better. Steve Jobs is the example of that.

 

Conclusion

 Every time there is the possibility to show a presentation. It could be a story or us or our product, whatever. We should be ready to that moment and keep the attention high. Some rules are useful to frame our presentation in a way that will be better remember by the audience. That's a challenge, but everyone can improve himself/herself getting great results.