How to Pitch a Perfect Presentation
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presents How to Pitch a Perfect Presentation EMILY GREEN @emilynaglegreen
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Startups make pitches all the time; to potential investors, for sure, but also prospective employees, customers, landlords, and more. Do you really need that 20-slide PowerPoint deck? Maybe not -- but with the stakes so high, it's worth your best effort. A presentation can make or break a company, and having the skills of a good presenter are invaluable in all aspects of life. How do you persuade people with your words and your voice? You don't need Dale Carnegie -- but you might be able to use a few simple pointers to help craft your perfect presentation.
Transcript of How to Pitch a Perfect Presentation
presents
How to Pitch a Perfect Presentation
EMILY GREEN @emilynaglegreen
Emily GreenEmily Green is a long-time technology sector executive and thought leader. Currently she's the CEO and Chief Lunch Lady of Smart Lunches, a rapidly growing startup bringing fresh nutritious meals to children away from home with an award-winning online ordering and delivery platform. She is a past Chairman of MITX, the nation's largest Internet advocacy association, and currently serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the Board of the Mass Technology Collaborative, and as a Director on the Board of Casella Waste Systems.
Pitch perfect
How to give a great speech
Emily Green
Smart Lunches, Inc.
Who are you?First name !
Company, if you want !
Best or worst moment
pitching something to someone
Great speakers aren’t born – they’re made
Agenda
1. What is a great pitch?
2. Preparing the pitch
3. Preparing yourself
What’s a pitch?Founder presenting to an investor
Salesperson selling to a prospect
Manager asking for resources
Team members reporting updates
What’s a great pitch?Memorable.
“Wow, that was awesome!”
Impactful.
“We decided to go with her plan.”
“That changed our view completely.”
A speech needs both results to be great.
Preparing the pitch1. Start with a clear goal
2. Know your audience
3. Define a time budget
4. Use a simple structure
5. Guide your listeners
Start with a clear goalMuddy ambitions produce muddy presentations
Clear goals begin with a sharp verb
Persuade …
Inspire …
Frighten …
Teach …
The verb shapes content and delivery
Know your audience ü Size, age, origin and status determines how formal you should be
ü Awareness of topic determines depth
ü Attitude guides how much proof is needed
Define a time budgetWhat’s right for this opportunity?
Let it shape length
Too long is never OK
“Aim to stop talking before they stop
listening.”
Use a simple structureTheme (say what you’re going to say)
If your listeners remember one thing...
Agenda (what you’re going to say)
Just the 2, 3, or 4 points you need!
Summary (say what you said)
Let’s try it
Plan a simple structure to sell me on using Acme widgets to
catch roadrunners
Buy Acme Widgets! Theme
Acme Widgets are the only way to capture roadrunners
Agenda 1.You have problems catching
roadrunners
2.Acme Widgets deliver unique solutions
3.Coyotes have won with Acme 4.Next steps for Wile E. and Acme
Summary • Roadrunners are hard to catch
• Acme Widgets work • Enjoy your tasty roadrunner!
A few words about your words
Bullets, not buckshot
It’s about them, not
you
Speak Anglo-Saxon
Don’t be a weasel
Improve these phrases“Could potentially decrease substantially”
!
“Contemplate addition of incremental investment”
!
“We have arrived at critical juncture”
“Will go down -- a lot” !
!
“Spend more” !
!
!
“Go time!”
If you use slides...Keep them simple
Say what they say!
Build, build, build
Balance text and graphics
Don’t go all Disney
Prove it! Season with care
Examples win
Know what data says
Source it
Strip it back
Preview and build
Our behaviors are changing fast
Source: Yankee Group Anywhere Consumer survey 2011, waves 2 (February) and 5 (May)
Perc
ent o
f res
pond
ents
0%
18%
35%
53%
70%
57%
65%
43%
35%
Do you ever use your smartphone to compare prices or find reviews while shopping?
Yes No
Eight-point rise in 4 months
Guide your listenersAttention wanders
constantly
Tell them where
they are regularly
Repeat your theme
Great speakers aren’t born – they’re made
Agenda
1. What is a great pitch?
2. Preparing the pitch
3. Preparing yourself
Preparing yourself1. Plan your style
2. Practice the pitch
3. Optimize your environment
4. Manage your nerves
5. Polish to eliminate distractions
Plan your styleSpeeches aren’t one-
size-fits-all occasions
Remember your verb
Consider style,
posture, expressions
Imagery helps
Practice the speechTalk it out alone -- watch the time
Get feedback
REVISE ruthlessly!
DON’T memorize it all – just the phrases that matter
Optimize your environmentTest… and have a backup
Have room to move
Don’t let the room go dark
Don’t let your clothing
distract
Limit clutter around you
Delay the handouts!
Manage your nervesü Welcome the symptoms
ü Memorize your first sentence
ü Breathe s-l-o-w-l-y and very deeply
ü Collect survival stories
What’s the thing you fear most?
Polishing pays offVolume and tempo make the biggest difference after
thoughtful content
Critique other speeches
Knock out habits that distract your listeners
Repetitive words or phrases
Fussing with hair and clothing
Pacing
Avoid. these. mistakes.Too many ideas Too much preamble Too much text Too much multimedia Too much apologizing Too much fussing Too much time
Too little thought
Too little structure
Too little rehearsal
... too little impact
Summary
Plan Practice Polish !
… repeat!
