Don’t wing it. The more important your presentation, the more your must organize. Rambling thoughts send audiences’ minds rambling rather than paying attention to what you are trying to get across. We’ve all walked out of presentations wondering “What was the point of that?”

Whatever the content of your presentation, there are a few basic elements that give logic, interest and clarity.

Introduction:

o Attention-getting statement. You capture the audience’s interest, or not, within the first few seconds of your presentation. What story, bit of humor, quotation, etc. will engage them immediately? The attention-getting statement should be relevant in some way to your topic and audience.
o Purpose statement. Set your audience’s expectations right away.
o Overview. State your main points very briefly.

Body:

o There should be no more than a few main points in an average presentation. Choose your main points for maximum impact, using your Purpose statement as your frame of reference.
o There should be no more than two to three sub-points per main point. Keep it simple to keep the audience’s focus.

Conclusion:

o Summary statement. Review the main points.
o Closing statement. What memorable statement will keep the audience thinking about your presentation?

Using questions:

o Think about how you want to engage the audience. Do you want to ask them questions? Do you want them to ask you questions? At what points in your presentation do you want to interact? Questions are excellent tools to understand and connect with your audience. Plan how you will use audience interaction to enhance your presentation and still stay on track.

Over the last five years, I’ve noticed a dramatic change in the field of presentation
skills. Increasingly, experts support the idea that being a “good enough” speaker is
no longer “good enough.” Mere competency as a speaker is no longer enough to sell
your ideas, bring communities together, or move clients to action.

What are the reasons for this change?  I believe it results from a unique confluence
between popular and business cultures. The private sphere has become more
public, reality shows rule, PowerPoint is the norm, and the idea of individual
“performance” is key. Whatever the reasons, the expectations of ordinary audiences
have risen. It’s no longer good enough to be good enough.

How can presenters overcome these new challenges?

Here are five essential tips to ensure you are better than “just good enough.”

1.  Ensure that you have a good design.

More presentations fail because of poor design than because of poor delivery. In
fact, high quality design actually improves delivery.

Here are the three factors most likely to cause poor design:

* Composing your presentation without an “end in mind.”

* Using PowerPoint to compose your presentation.

* Overlooking your audience’s needs, wants, anxieties, biases, “personality…”

How to avoid these pitfalls:

Always ask yourself: “What do I want to this presentationto achieve?” Many speakers
who want to persuade their audiences compose “information-only” speeches. Guess
what? The audience, in most cases, will NOT fill in the blanks. They will NOT be
moved to action. Learn how to construct the right speech for the job. (I can help –
drop me a line at [email protected].)

PowerPoint is meant to support your message, not to be used as a composing tool.
You must identify your desired outcome(s) and design your presentation to achieve
those. The best tools to do this are a pen and paper, (or Word if you are so inclined.)
Composing on PowerPoint increases the chance that you will deliver an unfocused,
rambling “data-dump.”

Know your audience. Design your presentation to answer the question, “What’s in it
for THEM?”

2. Be fit.

The best presenters, even the “low-key” ones, use a lot of personal energy. If you
feel out of shape, find an activity that strengthens you, speeds up your metabolism,
and gives you stamina. It doesn’t matter what  “size” you are. It does matter how fit
you are.

3.  Remember that presenting is a relationship event, not a performance event.

Above all, effective presenters connect with their audiences. The presentation
becomes a large conversation. Everyone feels more comfortable, even when the
topic is thorny.

How to connect? Greet people individually as they come in the door. Hob-nob at the
refreshment table. Learn people’s names. Make eye contact. Ask questions. Show
empathy.

4. Breathe. Be yourself. Have fun!

This tip is integrally attached to point #3. When we are authentic, we connect
authentically with people. They are more apt to listen to us and receive our
message. When we have enough oxygen to fuel our brains, we don’t forget our
material. We are energized. When we’re having fun, the audience is more receptive.

5. Remember that your internal voice never tells the whole truth.

You’re done with the presentation. You’re privately debriefing the experience inside
your brain.  Some presenters will hear mean-spirited comments–crueler by far than
any comment they might dream of giving someone else. Other presenters hear
overly grandiose feedback, telling them that they did much better than they actually
did.

Many presenters don’t hear much self-feedback at all, since they became oblivious
of their actions and words once they began their presentations (not a good thing.)

How do we discover how effective we actually were?

Elicit feedback from people you trust will tell you the truth. Take their comments
seriously, and then decide what, if any, changes you want to make. Don’t depend
totally on your internal voice.

Approximately 50 million presentations are given every day across the United
States. Since you sometimes give one of those presentations, why not rise beyond
being “just good enough?” Integrate these tips and you’ll present like a pro!

Suscribe to our helpful, free e-newsletter. Write to [email protected].

Article © 2005 Guila Muir and Associates

Constantly I’m stunned at how many well-known e-commerce sites have very deficient product
pages. Many large companies, especially click and mortar retailers, seem
to forget that products cannot be touched, tasted, or tested over the internet.
While the internet will never perfectly simulate the in store experience, there
are dozens of tactics that can be implemented on the product page to increase
customer engagement and convert visitors into buyers. Below I’ll describe 25
tactics I’ve either used or seen used by other internet retailers.

Better Product Pictures:

It’s important to remember that unlike you, your customers may have never seen nor handled your products before. Therefore, take pictures of every possible angle a customer
would want to see. Also, make sure the quality is acceptable. If you’re still
using a 1 megapixel camera you got for Christmas 10 years ago, it’s about time
to upgrade.

Flash Zoom w/ Different Angles:

Many advanced e-commerce customers have implemented flash technology to allow zooming and changing angles. If you have the expertise and the resources, this is a killer
add on feature for any product page.

Info about Where the Product was Manufactured:

People care immensely about this. Whether they are concerned about ethical working
conditions, or just for quality reasons, be sure to tell them where your
products are made. If they are made somewhere besides the US, be sure to put a
link to your fair labor policy, so your customers don’t think you’re using
sweatshops.

List benefits not features:

Don’t rattle of an endless bullet list of technical specifications. Tell customers specifically
how this product will improve their life.

Show product measurements and weight:

Remember, they can’t actually touch and hold your product over the internet. Give them the
next best thing with the measurements and weight.

Make “Buy Now” Impossible to miss:

The “Add to Cart” or “Buy Now” button should reach out and grab your attention. Avoid the tiny, vague “Add to Bag” buttons that are used by many online stores.

Customer generated product reviews:

This will both increase the amount of trust your website receives and add valuable content
for the search engines. Worried about negative product reviews? Don’t, the
experts say it can be one of the greatest tools to show your customers you are
transparent and trustworthy.

Ask a Question Button:

Don’t leave your customers hanging with nagging questions about a products. Add a link that emails your customer service department so customers can ask a specific
question about the product. This also serves as a great feedback tool so you
know what information needs to be put on the product page to prevent
questions. For an example of this, checkout the product pages of C28′s

Witness wear.

Show Related Cross sell items:

Having a “customer who bought this also liked…” section is a great way to cross sell. Remember, a product page can be a dead end if the customer is not interested in what
they are viewing. Always give them somewhere else to go.

Show Related Up sell Products:

Add to your average order by suggesting an upgrade to what they are currently viewing.

Show add on items:

Selling shoes? Don’t let your customers checkout without socks! Customers will
appreciate the suggestion, and you will increase your average order.

Include possible search query terms in the title tags:

If you sell moisturizer cream, don’t just put the product name in the title tag. Create an
extra field in your product database that people will likely search for such
as “Cure for Dry skin.”

Currency converter:

Have you ever been to a site that showed currency in something other than US dollars? I have, and I usually leave because I am too lazy to convert it. Including a currency
converter link near the price will help encourage your international business. If you don’t want to clutter up your product page, you can even program the link to only show if the user has a non-US IP address.

Add a Wish list:

Wish list’s are a great way to create stickiness and possibly even reduce shopping
cart abandonment. People tend to use shopping carts as wish lists, so giving
them to real thing will allow you to more accurately track your true shopping
cart abandonment.

Email Me When It’s Re-stocked Button:

Many sites, especially apparel retailers, may sell out of a certain size or variety of a
product. Rather than throwing up a “Out of Stock” notice on the product page,
why not allow people to be emailed when the item is re-stocked? In my
experience, this is one of those features that really surprises and delights
customers who are otherwise already frustrated. Checkout an example of this on
the product pages of C28′s
Faith wear and t-shirts.

Email Me Before It Sells Out Button:

People tend to wait to the last minute. But what if you warned them before the item sells
out? There’s no greater way to create a sense of urgency then by sending an
email saying “Hurry, it’s about to sell out!”

Email Me When Products Like this are Added:

Customers are tired of generic, one size fits all email newsletters. Give them something
they really care about by creating a system where they can request to be
notified when product within certain categories are added to the site.

Social Book marking Links:

Although its not typical to see a Digg or Delicious button on an e-commerce site, it may work well for certain buzz worthy products.

Bread crumb navigation:

It’s easy to get lost in a myriad of product categories, so always keep visitors informed about where they are with Bread (aka Cookie) crumb navigation. Bread crumb navs
typically are located in the upper left hand of the page and look something
like this: Home > Top Category > Lower Category > Product Name

Customer Submitted Photos:

Allow your customers to upload pictures of them using your products. This works great for
apparel retailers, or anything where people take pride in using a product.

Customer Audio Testimonials:

This is becoming common as sales pages for eBooks or other informational products. A
testimonial that can be listened to will probably hold more weight than simple
text on a page.

Customer Video Testimonials:

Even better than just audio, allow for full video testimonials. If you have the videos hosted
by YouTube, you can also spur a viral marketing campaign.

Back Button to Product Category:

This allows customers to navigate more efficiently and return to where they just were.

Browser Bookmark Button:

Don’t let them forget your site. With a simple JavaScript command, you can trigger their
browser to bookmark your product.

RSS Product Feed:

With the integration of a feed reader into Microsoft’s IE 7, Rss feeds will likely
move out of the early adopter stage and become more mainstream. With the
abundance of SPAM in the inbox, receiving product updates through an RSS feed
is a great alternative for keeping your customers informed.

I trust that some of the ideas above have given you inspiration for your website. Remember that with everything you do on your site, keep your customers top of mind. With that
strategy, you’ll never fail.