Advanced Presenting Techniques

by

Piet van der Laan

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical Questions• Dramatic Contrasts• Tripling• Machine Gunning• Build-ups• Knock-downs• Simplification• Creating Rapport

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical QuestionsTo make your talk more interesting you can present your ideas as questions instead of direct statements.Questions:- make your audience feel involved- make your talk more conversational- Create anticipation

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical QuestionsExample:As you know, many of our competitors have shown disappointing results last year.So, why haven’t we been able to capitalize on this?Obviously, we won’t see the results of these lay-offs in the near future.So, how do we know they’ve been effective?

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical QuestionsStarting with a rhetorical question can be used to create empathy.Example:So how big ARE the consequences of this economic down-turn going to be?They’re likely to be giGANtic

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical QuestionsSo how big ARE the consequences of this economic down-turn going to be? They’re likely to be giGANtic.

- The adjective in the question is reinforced with a stronger adjective in the answer.

- The verb and the strong adjective are stressed.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical QuestionsRhetorical questions can be made more powerful by repeating important words. This can be done by using the following pattern:

Statement + Rhetorical Question + Answer

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Rhetorical QuestionsExample:The fact is that one of our competitors made a take-over bid last week.(S) So WHAT CAN BE DONE about this?(Q) WHAT CAN BE DONE is keeping the share price high.(A)

The key words in the question are repeated in the answer.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Dramatic ContrastsDramatic contrasts can be used to reinforce a point that’s being made.Example:A year ago we were the market leader.Today we are on the verge of going under.

Making a point using two strongly opposing ideas is a great way of getting the attention of your audience.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Dramatic Contrasts

Famous examples:One small step for man, One giant leap formankind. (Neil Armstrong)The difficult: that which can be doneimmediately. The impossible: that whichtakes a little longer. (George Santayana)

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• TriplingTo make what you say morememorable, your points can be chunked inthrees.Examples:Our service is swift, efficient, andprofessional.What’s needed now is time, effort, andmoney.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Machine-GunningThree points seem to be the most an audience can remember.

Making it six, seven or eight will impress the audience with the force of your overall argument, even though they will forget some of your points.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Machine-GunningExample:It is cheaper, newer, faster, bigger, clearer, safer AND better designed. WHAT MORE CAN I SAY!

The list of points should be delivered at speed with each point stressed to create a machine-gun effect. Bang, Bang, Bang!Add a powerful remark at the end.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Build-upsAn effective way of emphasizing a point is to present several connected pieces of information which build up to a short and simple conclusion.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Build-upsExample:As far as this contract in the Emirates is concerned, we’re pretty tied up with a lot of other projects at the moment, so there’s no way we could meet their deadlines. We have very little experience in this line of work, anyway. And, to be honest, they’re not prepared to pay us what we’d want ….BASICALLY, its out of the question.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Build-upsAs far as this contract in the Emirates is concerned, we’re pretty tied up with a lot of other project at the moment, so there’s no way we could meet their deadlines. We have very little experience in this line of work, anyway. And, to be honest, they’re not prepared to pay us what we’d want ….BASICALLY, its out of the question.

The last sentence is a summary of the situation in a word or a phrase. It is delivered after a short pause.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Knock-downsPresenters who want to sound provocative build up a series of points which seem to oppose their main argument and then knock them all down in a single sentence.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Knock-downsExample:Of course, the experts said that a palm-top computer could never succeed. They did market research which showed that people would just see it as a gimmick. They said its memory capacity would be too limited for serious business users. And they did a feasibility study which showed that the keyboard would be too small for even the fingers of a five-year old!So, how come it sold more than a million units in the first year?

The presenter should pause before the final knock-down?

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• SimplificationGeneral Rule:The simpler what you say is, the more impact it wil have.Example:Should we be thinking of expansion? No, that would not be a good idea. Why wouldn’t it? Well, that should be obvious. It’s much too risky.

Expansion? Not a good idea. Why? Obvious. Too risky.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Creating RapportBuilding up a good relationship or rapport with your audience is important, especially in the early stages of your presentation. Personality plays a part, but some simple language patterns help.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Creating Rapport1 Use the words we (all), us (all), our an ours as

much as possible.Basically, we all share the same goal. And our goals is increased profit.

2 Use question tags to push for agreement.And we all know what that means, don’t we?

3 Use negative question forms to appeal to your audience.Haven’t we all had similar experiences at one time or another?

These three things involve your audience. Eye contact is also important.

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Creating RapportUsing a few simple words and phrases which do not mean very much will change the tone of your presentation and make it less formal and more friendly.Examples:You know, You see, As a matter of fact, Now, Then, Well, Actually, OK

Advanced Presenting Techniques

• Creating RapportMany of the best presentations sound more like conversations. So during your talk keep referring back to your audience as individuals.Examples:If you are anything like me ,…And if I were to ask you ….Now, I know what you’re thinkingBut, you seeLet me ask you something

Questions?

This presentation was based on:

Presenting in English

By Mark Powell