If necessary, before giving presentation, prepare a presentation slide and other visual aids. In this modern age, almost all presentations have been using computer slides using PowerPoint or other similar programs. The general principle in preparing slide is keeping it simple. Your listeners want to be explained a difficult problem that becomes easy. Not an easy problem that becomes difficult and complicated.

It should be noted that the slide of presentation is a tool, not the presentation itself. “You are the presenter, not the slide.” You are the one that determines whether the presentation will be interesting or not. If this visual tool is in line with the message you convey verbally, you can use it. But, if the tool makes the audience more confused, avoid using it.

Principle that needs to be considered in preparing slides is to use only the main and important points. Do not create too detailed slide that contains all the things you will say. If that is done, the audiences will read the slides and they no longer listen to your words anymore. As the result, the presentation purpose becomes a failure.

Some tips on making the slide is not too much text in a slide. Use drawings, diagrams and charts to help explain a concept, data and fact. Do not create a slide that is too complex because it would be difficult to understand in a short time by the audience. It also tends to make the audiences tired, so they do not focus on what you say.

In addition to the slide, there are many other tools that you can use, such as flip charts, samples, videos, and even your own body language. Consider and prepare if you need the tool.

It’s 2pm and you’re next on stage at a one day seminar aimed at small business owners. There’s over 200 delegates and they’ve had a great morning’s learning and a nice lunch and opportunity to network. How do you walk on stage and grab their attention before they slowly nod off?

There’s no worse time for anyone to be presenting at any seminar – straight after lunch. Why should they come back into the main auditorium anyway and listen to you? What’s so interesting and relevant to them that they should stop talking to that really interesting business owner they met over lunch?

This is it folks – it’s crunch time and all that work you’ve put into preparing your presentation is about to pay off. Or is it? Are you about to start preaching to them or selling them something they don’t really want or at least they don’t want yet? Are you going to literally turn them off at a stroke because you’ve got too many slides with too much information on them? Is your presentation just like all the others that you see and hear when you’re in the audience?

If you want to be remembered by the delegates, you’ve got to be different – and by different I don’t mean wacky or bizarre! I mean that your whole approach has to be different.

Top Tip Number 1 – Create a buzz about your presentation beforehand.

Have someone hand out leaflets to delegates telling them they simply can’t miss the next presentation and that it’s going to be highly relevant to growing their businesses or developing themselves. Tell them that there’s a great offer for them for free or for half price or whatever – just get them in there.

Create a Twitter #hashtag for your talk and tweet about it for weeks beforehand to delegates. Get the organisers to publicise it too in their pre-seminar marketing.

Just get people talking about it so that when they sit down to listen, they want to see what all the fuss is about. That means that you’ve got to deliver then of course… so

Top Top Number 2 – Tell a story about yourself and others rather than opening promoting your product or service

You’ve been asked to present because you have something relevant and interesting to say to the delegates, but unless you are really good at what you do, the best way to engage with your audience to to open up and tell them a story as part of your presentation. People buy from people they like and know and the best way to help people get to know you is to tell them about yourself.

I’m not talking here about the establishment of your credibility bit – your ‘marketing piece’ about why they should listen to you or buy from you. I’m talking here about what makes you tick – what your motivation is in business – why you work so many hours – who or what is special to you – perhaps even a story about why you went into business. If you inspire people with what you say – people will buy from you. If you just promote your product – most people will be turned off.

Top Top Number 3 – Don’t be afraid to tell it how it is – you’re not there to be liked by everyone

If you try to get everyone to like you – your presentation will be ‘middle of the road’, bland and potentially boring. You’re not there to be liked. You’re there to be thought-provoking, relevant, alternative perhaps, but never bland. Now there’s a difference between being rude and thought-provoking, but having the guts to stand up and say what you know is right even if it might offend some people is definitely the right thing to do.

If you know that being overweight for example is medically proven to increase the chances of cancer, diabetes, heart attacks, strokes and a whole host of other diseases, why would you hide this fact just because half your audience is overweight? You might ‘offend’ them but you might also get through to them.

If you know that most businesses fail because their owners don’t do enough of the right things, then say so – it’s absolutely true by the way!

Don’t pretend things are easy – most things require hard work and a plan and plenty of effort.

Top Tip Number 4 – Use video, pictures and images instead of words in any slides you use

Slides that replicate what you are saying are unnecessary and desperately boring. Videos, images and photos that are relevant to your talk keep the audience engaged and interested.

Keep the number of slides short and sweet even to the point of getting rid of them if you are engaging enough without them.

Top Tip Number 5 – Offer value in advance

If you want to establish credibility, offer your audience something of value to them for free – perhaps by getting them to text you before the end of the day in return for a free ebook or a free product. Anyone who does gets a free report or ebook or something that is useful to them is far more likely to buy from you.

Top Tip Number 6 – Don’t try and sell your ‘BIG’ product on stage

These days, not many people will spend £100s buying something from you unless they’ve checked you out first – perhaps by buying something cheaper and seeing what it’s like. If they like it – then you can always upsell to them later. Make a sale to get a customer and sell to that customer forever if you deliver great value and service. A customer is worth 20 times what he or she may pay for the first product they buy from you so don’t push them into a corner and insist they buy the ‘biggie’ first. Offer them something on stage that is relevant, useful and with a great deal attached to it. If they like it – they’ll come back for more – assuming you follow up of course! You will be following up won’t you?

You have done all of the hard work to get leads, you qualified the leads, you set an appointment with a great prospect but then you mangle the presentation beyond words. Do not despair, do not get upset with yourself, but do not set another appointment until you have a good game plan in place to do presentations in a professional manner.

One of the first things you need to decide is if you are going to do the presentation yourself or whether you will get someone else to do it. Normally if you get someone else to do it should be your sponsor or an upline member you have a relationship with and who you know can do a good job.

If you decide to do it yourself then you need to make sure you know your material front to back. You also need to decide if you will do a live presentation or a presentation using material available to you like a website presentation, a DVD you can play, or some other form of presentation where you can dictate what gets presented to your prospect.

Always make sure that, irrespective of what method you decide on to use that your prospect gets all of the information required to make an intelligent decision based on his circumstances.

Ok, so we now know what we are going to do, let’s get to the moment of the presentation.

You have your prospect with you in a location that will not distract his or your attention. You have your material ready and you are raring to go.

Relax, step back a minute and think this through.

Think why your prospect would join you. He is already somewhat convinced he likes you because he wouldn’t be meeting with you if he wasn’t. He probably has some positive vibe about network marketing, and he is likely looking for something different.

Your job now is to NOT sell him. Your job is to provide him with enough information to make a good and solid decision for him and his family.

I like to start things off talking about the prospects dreams. During your prospecting and qualification process you must have delved a bit into finding out what his “Why” is. Take this a little bit further now and start discussing some of the benefits of the Network Marketing lifestyle but tailor it to address the desires your prospect raised during the qualification process.

Any good network marketing opportunity should have a well designed business presentation ready for you to use that will include enough facts about your industry (for example the wellness industry or the energy industry) that you don’t have to go and dig for stuff to say.

Follow your presentation but keep on finding ways to refer to their expressed wants in the presentation. Subtly keep on bringing in ways that Network Marketing can satisfy their wants and build their dreams in a positive manner. Never make claims you cannot back up with facts and never ever lie to anyone.

When presenting your opportunity keep in mind that you are presenting yourself as a potential sponsor more than what you are presenting a vitamin or soap or berry drink. You are also presenting an alternative to your prospects current lifestyle.

When you finish your presentation and your prospect can see himself working with you and he can see himself making a positive change in his lifestyle because of his relationship with you, then he will join. If he cannot then he will give you the song and dance of not enough time, not enough money, not enough this or that.

It has always been frustrating when a teacher announces a project that needs to be done within a week. Moreover, it isn’t as simple as writing a 500 word essay about the previous summer but a public presentation in front of the entire class. For students who are not so comfortable when it comes to public relations, projects and presentations like these mark the highest worries of the week. Is it possible to prepare a professional-like presentation? The answer is an absolute yes. Preparing a professional presentation is more than possible for anyone. Preparation and repetition of practices are highly recommended as they will aid in confidence and will make sure an individual is ready to begin the presentation on the d-day.

Catch the News

The news report available both in the television and in the radio will greatly become a positive influence when preparing for a public presentation. A news reporter or even a news anchor practices their lines to master the news content within a limited on-air time. The ability to master the content and communicate within a limited period of time makes the presentation formal and professional. In order to prepare and present well to the entire class, watching or listening to how the reporters communicate will make a big difference in further presentations.

Grab a Mirror

A mirror is always a big help for students during public presentations and performances that require the presence of an audience. Looking into the mirror and practice how to make appropriate facial expressions can improve the overall mood as well as the atmosphere of the presentation. Repetition of practices will gradually master the content of the topic and will highly increase the confidence level of an individual without building up stress. It is also preferable to look into the mirror and practice how words or sentences are correctly pronounced to earn additional points.

The Visuals

The visuals or the objects displayed within a presentation needs to be neat and clean. The visuals might include something similar to: boards, power point presentations, word documents, bar graphs, and so much more. In order to communicate like a professional, the visuals and accessories needed to aid the presentation itself should be neatly done and arranged. For instance, a bar graph is depicted as it shows the interest high school students have on five major subjects. It is important to clearly show the numerical amounts, the bars, and the detailed information explaining the graph. If a power point presentation is needed in any case, make sure the background and the text colors match well and that they are not going to hurt the eyes of the viewers.

Most people have reservations about presenting to their seniors. Here are some commonly held beliefs:

1. Seniors need serious presentations that logically flow from a detailed analysis of all possible factors to a conclusion

2. They like complex and hard-to-interpret data

3. A presenter needs to be modest when presenting achievements

Remember, seniors don’t have the time and patience to listen to long-winded complex explanations. Many times, you are not the only one presenting and so they rarely have the time to remember what you said, analyze it and draw a conclusion.

Here are three things that will make your presentation to your seniors a success:

1. Start with the end objective and build your case:

Your presentation should answer the all important question upfront “What do you want from them?” Do you need approval for a project? Do you need sanction for manpower?

Say what you want upfront and build your case from thereon.

Some presenters start with an elaborate context setting, and showcase the results of their analysis and numbers before they put forth their request. They end up losing the audience and the typical response they get is “Email your presentation to me and I will think it over.”

When you start with the end in mind, your senior audience has all the time in the world to weigh the pros and cons of the decision. You will get a clear “Yes” or “No” by the end of the presentation itself. If the answer is not favorable, you can redeem the situation by showcasing some more details. If you had chosen the other path of explanations first, you have no recourse but to accept their later decision.

2. Put the conclusion of your graphs in the slide title:

I have seen countless meetings going haywire the moment a graph or table is shown by the presenter.

A graph without conclusion is an open invitation that says – interpret this the way you want. So, you end up getting all kind of questions that waste the time you have for presenting.

If you put your conclusion of the graph clearly on the top, your audience reads the title and search for the evidence in the graph and moves on to the next slide. You avoid discussions that take your meeting into a tangent.

3. Put your achievements at the beginning and at the end:

Latest research in neuroscience reveals that people give more attention at the beginning and at the end of a presentation. What you show in the middle of your presentation is not absorbed with the same interest. So, what does that mean to you as a presenter?

Start your presentation with your best achievement first, if, for example you are showcasing your team performance, talk about their best achievement first. Conclude by showcasing your best achievements again. This way, the impression you leave in your audience’s mind is a positive one.

Though the list is not exhaustive, I hope some of the old myths on presenting to seniors are busted.

Happy presenting!

Negotiation is not a process by which you try to destroy the other party. Rather, it is a process by which you reach a certain result. Good negotiation occurs when all parties are truthful, and they connect and interact successfully with each other. Good negotiation cannot happen if either party is trying to boost their ego in the process. People can win while helping the other person get what they want.

We were born to negotiate just as we were born to walk. You may not even realize that you are negotiating when you talk to business associates, friends, children, and anyone in your communication realm. Some people think negotiation is confrontational. Good negotiation is not confrontational, and you really can negotiate “win-win” results.

Preparation is the key to being a good negotiator. If you are not prepared, you may not be able to explain the results you want, you may not be able to evaluate all the issues and alternatives, and you may give up too soon. There are certain essential steps that prepare you for the negotiation:

1) Set clear expectations and clear goals;

2) Identify any undisputed points;

3) Anticipate the counter-offers you could make or receive;

4) Know every detail and every issue;

5) Anticipate what the other party wants;

6) Decide what is the highest/lowest you will give or take; and

7) Be ready to explain why this the highest/lowest you will give or take

When the negotiation starts, state that it is your objective to reach a win-win result. Keep your goal in mind and listen carefully to what is important to the other party. Take notes if necessary. Be calm, courteous, unemotional, and relaxed. Isolate the points of disagreement and try to find solutions for each of them.

Ask “what,” “how,” and “why” questions to better understand the other person’s values and what is important to them. Continue to isolate the points of disagreement and find solutions for them. Acknowledge the points of agreement that you have reached up to this point.

Repeat the process, moving each party closer to the other until you have full agreement. If you cannot reach a result that is mutually agreeable, agree to disagree at that moment, give yourselves time to think about it, and schedule another meeting. It may take time and work, but you can negotiate a win-win result.

Jo Ann Joy, Esq., MBA, CEO
Copyright 2006 Indigo Business Solutions. All rights reserved.

Businesses use commercial debt negotiation while dealing with creditors. The process of conciliation allows to lower the amount of money owed and also to obtain a paid in full designation for the settlement. Commercial debt negotiation is used as a way to become debt free in a relatively short period of time while also reducing the total amount owed by as much as sixty percent.

To begin commercial debt negotiation period one needs to hire a consultant who will help to deal with finances. The counselor helps to create a repayment plan and accumulate all the expenses to one monthly payment. Commercial debt negotiation is used by those people who have difficulties with credit cards (for example to solve insolvency issues), personal loans and collection agencies. This service helps to restore one’s financial health and reputation through repaying creditors at a reduced rate. As a result of commercial debt negotiation program one will gain control of his/her finances and will avoid filing of bankruptcy.

There are plenty of commercial debt negotiation companies that are available for customers. Their services, terms, fees differ from one company to another. So, a customer can find those whose service will satisfy his/her requirements and personal needs. That’s why it is important to review some companies, to compare their services, to evaluate which companies work better with consumers to improve their credit management skills and abilities. The two options are most commonly offered by commercial debt negotiation companies. These options are consolidation and credit card abstinence. Both the company and the customer can define that the optimal option for the customer is repayment with a reduced amount. So, a special schedule of repayment at a reduced rate will be created.

It is in company’s charge to conduct the negotiations with creditors. There’s no need to say that customers are very pleased with this service because it makes them free from communication with creditors. It happens that people get so deep in debt that every contact with creditors turns into nightmare. Because companies understand the psychology of those who are in debt they are staffed with professional, certified arbitrators who are trained to deal with all financial issues on behalf of clients. Debt negotiation company’s arbitrators are well versed in the legalities, strategies, and options that are necessary for successful interaction with even the most aggressive creditor. So, the company that prevents the customer from these contacts is a lifesaver to some extent. The fact that companies offer debt management method that is legal, ethical, and effective is one more reason why customers choose debt negotiation service. What also important is the fact that a consumer who turn to a debt negotiation company for help for the first time can usually receive a free financial analysis of his situation.

Have you observed how people use head gestures when negotiating? If not, you should. There’s invaluable information in such displays. In some cases, what might be viewed as incongruity between what is spoken and what is indicated by the movement of one’s head, may turn out to be a valid manner in which they communicate. If you misconstrue their actions, you’ll misinterpret important information you otherwise would have received.

When considering how to interpret the real meaning to incongruent head gestures, pay attention to these factors.

Head movement: Some people actually move their head from side to side to indicate they’re in agreement with you. That’s contrary to what you expect to see. In most cases, when someone moves their head from side to side, they’re indicating that they’re in disagreement. Prior to the official negotiation, verify the manner in which the other negotiator uses head gestures, by asking questions that require nonverbal responses. Then, observe his head gesture mannerisms.

Leading you to agreement: Some people will end a statement while moving their head up and down; That’s what we normally expect to see when someone is in agreement. By moving their head at the end of a statement in such a manner, subliminally, they’re attempting to lead you to agreeing with their pronouncement. Make sure you understand what their attempt is and be sure the action is aligned with their words from a congruency perspective.

Note differences in head movement: In verbal versus nonverbal occurrences, the same head gesture could convey different thoughts. Don’t assume there’s incongruence, just because the head movement and the spoken word are not synchronized. The mental state of mind of the other negotiator may be such that he expresses himself subconsciously in such a manner. Verify the ‘real’ meaning of his gestures before making assumptions.

In any negotiation, you should always create a plan before entering into the negotiation. By including the observation of how someone uses their head gestures, you’ll put yourself in a better position to avoid ‘de-feet’ (The role feet play in a negotiation will be explored in another Negotiation Tip.)… and everything will be right with the world. Remember, you’re always negotiating.

Negotiation Tips:

• Be conscious of the fact that the mental thought someone possesses can be seen in the way they move their head to acknowledge agreement, disagreement, contemplation, and/or bewilderment. In order to make such interpretations of benefit to you during a negotiation, be sure to understand the real meaning of their head movements.

• Practice using head gestures to lead people to agreeing with your thoughts. Do so with friends and observe to what degree they agree with you. By doing so, you’ll gain insight into when to use such a tool.

• Always be aware when yes means yes and no means no. You can glean such insight by observing head gestures. In so doing, you can apply order to chaos.

Most negotiators under-prepare. One area that is rarely even considered in a negotiation is how you will use your voice. Your voice is constantly giving a message to the other party. Without any conscious effort on your part, the message you give will generally be an accurate reflection of your feelings at the time. Sharing these feelings with the other party may or may not be to your advantage so it is too risky to let this happen by accident.

Your voice contributes up to 38% of your message (75% if they can’t see you). In a negotiation, your voice is contributing to how credible and confident you appear in their eyes. These two aspects are likely to significantly impact on your chances of getting the best deal, so they deserve some attention. You can do this before and during the negotiation.

Before

Think through the difficult moments you are likely to encounter. Think about a worst case scenario (say they catch you by surprise with a personal attack). How might you react? Do slow deep breathing to settle yourself as you walk into the negotiation and be prepared to repeat this as a ‘settling’ exercise if you need.

During

Slow down. Eager, anxious negotiators talk too fast. Confident negotiators speak slowly and deliberately. They are carefully watching the reaction of the other party to every word they say. They take longish pauses. They are comfortable with silence, so when asking or being asked a question they take their time.

Cross-Cultural

As we negotiate across cultures, the differences in how we use language become more obvious and important. This is because a negotiation process is based on a series of agreements which, traditionally, are signalled by ‘yes’ or ‘no’ (two words that feature in the titles of approximately half of all books on negotiation). The trouble is, different cultures use these words differently. Low-Context Cultures (very broadly, Western Cultures) freely use these words to signal agreement or rejection. High-Context Cultures – particularly Face Cultures (where ‘saving face’ is valued highly) – are much less likely to be so confrontational with their communication. They are much less likely give a direct ‘no’, and ‘yes’ could mean ‘I understand’ not ‘I agree’.

Similarly, we are often seeing negotiations between Non-Negotiating Cultures (generally, Western) and Negotiating Cultures (for example, East Asia and Middle East). In such negotiations, the former report becoming very frustrated because the person from a Negotiating Culture “would not take no for an answer!” Every time they met after they thought they had an agreement, the other person was asking for the same concessions. Of course, this was not their ‘fault’… it was their culture.

In such communications, your use of voice – particularly inflection – can add powerful meaning. Here are two examples:

1. When asking for agreement, ask ‘yes?’ with a strong upward inflection to your voice. This makes you seem less threatening and encourages them to respond. (You still may not get a ‘yes’, but you’ll probably get a nod.)
2. When giving a ‘no’ say it with a strong downward inflection. Any statement said with a falling inflection will be perceived by the listener as more authoritative and final.

People are much more likely to believe how you say something than what you actually say, so you need to think, “What message do I want to give here?” With a little attention – especially to the areas of rate of speech, pauses and inflection – you can make this a powerful ally in your negotiating.

During your negotiations, how do you gain from the perception of value? When you’re negotiating, do you even consider how you might increase the perception of value? To the degree the other negotiator perceives your offers and counteroffers as being valuable, you enhance your opportunities of receiving what you want from the negotiation.

The following are ways in which you can increase the perception of value in your negotiations.

Know The Opposing Negotiator’s Value System:

In order to gain influence over the other negotiator, you must know his value system. That means understanding what will motivate him to adopt an action based on what he wants and needs. The more insight you have about his sources of motivation, the more capable you’ll be to maneuver him in the direction that leads to a successful negotiation outcome. So, once you understand his sources of motivation, intimate that he can acquire what he seeks by following a certain course of action. If you don’t have what he wants, consider acquiring it from sources with whom you have clout, or from sources that might have a stake in the outcome of the negotiation. The dance of give and take will be the level of enticement you employ, based on how quickly or slowly he meets your requests.

Create Perception of Value Based on Perception:

When you discovered you’d won something, or was deemed to be number one, how did you feel? Most likely, you felt ‘special’. You can create that same sensation in the other negotiator by letting him know that you think he’s number one, or first in his class, etc. You must accomplish this through actions. As an example, the airlines do this when they have 1st class passengers walk upon a rug that may state ‘premier’ or something such as that. Then, for the other passengers, they walk on a rug that’s literally right beside the other one that doesn’t have such a designation. You might think that’s really silly to think that such a shallow occurrence would make someone feel ‘special’, but it does. The airlines project a perception of value with rugs that are almost on top of one another and some passengers ‘eat it up’ because it makes them feel ‘special’. You can use the same principle of increased value perception to make the other negotiator feel ‘special’.

Using Perception of Value In Your Next Negotiation:

In your very next negotiation, consider how you can create the perception of value by having the opposing negotiator walk through a magical door of more perceptional value. In so doing, also consider how you introduce it into the negotiation, when you’ll do so, and what you might do prior to the negotiation to enhance your enticement. As highlighted with the airline example, your value proposition can be enhanced in the smallest of ways and have huge returns for your efforts. You just have to give ample thought to what the other negotiator wants, how you can enhance its perception of value, and you’ll have him eating out of your preverbal negotiation hands. He’ll be happy in the end because he’ll think he received more than he’d anticipated, which means he’ll give you more of what you want, and you’ll have an easier time acquiring it. You’ll be a negotiation machine… and everything will be right with the world.

Remember, you’re always negotiating!