Presentations to City Councils for Truck Wash Locations

The first sentence was; Not in my backyard! And that is how the presentation to the City Council began. We came with information and data and a perfect plan, but the Sierra Club Lady and resident hippie stood up just before we started talking and said; not in my backyard! Well, you can imagine how I thought that night might end.

Luckily for us we were told in advance the objections of this particular resident hippie and her friends she brought with her to the City Council Halls. Her ob ...more

Presentations to Non-Profits for Car Wash Fundraisers

Giving a business presentation to a nonprofit group is very similar to what a sales team does when it pitches its services, ideas or innovations to a corporate Board of Directors. Having done many business presentations in my life it came natural to meet when I was asked to talk to a PTA or parent teacher association about an upcoming fundraiser in which my company would be assisting the washing of cars.

It was amazing to me how the word got out around town and soon I was giving present ...more

What Does Your Body Language Tell the World?

If your business requires you to travel internationally, or meet regularly with people of other countries, are you aware of what your gestures and body language are communicating? We all know that different cultures have different gestures and different levels of comfort with certain body language, but do you know the specifics for the nationalities you deal with? You should, as your trustworthiness and credibility may be at stake. Here are a few tips to remember about your body language in ...more

What Has Matching Got To Do With Presenting?

The secret to presenting to a potential client is "matching." Prior to presenting, you would have asked plenty of questions and uncovered the problems they want solved. The next step then is to present your solution and to do lots of matching.

What do I mean by matching? Matching is where you make the connection between the problems a potential client wants solved and the features/characteristics of your service that solves those problems.

Your solution has lots of features/charac ...more

Establish Credibility as a Powerful Presenter – One Communication Detail at a Time

Consider and count all of the details - the little steps - to pay attention to that add up to big results - especially with regard to our credibility. In this article I share some of the details that I feel make us more credible as powerful presenters. It does take time and effort, but when we add them all together, our reputations will shine.

Accept the fact that there is no "quick fix" and that "overnight" success may take many years. Yes, we do belong to a society in a ...more

Good Presentation of Your Product or Service Pays Off Every Time

It is essential that you have a good presentation of your product or service if you expect to sell your product or service in the marketplace and that you can afford to produce it and retain a profit. You cannot spend too much on presentation as you are liable to overdrive the headlights on the price and run over the deer in the road (customer) with sticker shock, but you must maintain proper presentation.

Customers or drawn to products and services which have good presentation and you ...more

Hurricanes and Business Presentations

If you're planning a business presentation or any sales interview with a large company during the hurricane season you may find yourself being postponed and you may want to cancel and reschedule the appointment for the business presentation until everything is back to normal.

This is because the decision-makers and the Board of Directors of the Corporation in which you are giving your sales presentation or business presentation pitch to, will have on their minds many other things that a ...more

Business Presentations and the Iranian Presidency

If you want to learn how to do the best business presentations then be sure not to take advice from the President of Iran. You see the President of Iran is trying to convince the IAEA that he wants to use nuclear power and tells the world and the people he will; Blow Israel off the Map. Interesting and ironic statements full of hypocrisy indeed; be careful not to do this in business presentations. So often when giving sales presentations the presenters will over embellish a problem and claim ...more

What to Do With Your Hands – Two Tips for Feeling Comfortable at Events

Maybe you are giving an informal presentation, at a networking event or a trade show, and you see these folks - fidgeting with change in their pockets, standing with hands over crotch in the classic fig-leaf position, leaning on a counter, twirling a pen, or tossing a give-away from hand-to-hand.

Maybe you do the same thing. What does it say to the folks in your audience or who are walking down the aisle? I'M BORED and uncomfortable and I don't know what to do with my ha ...more

Presentation Skills – The 10-Second Rule

Your main job as a presenter is to ensure that throughout your presentation, you and everyone in the audience remain on the same page, even the same wavelength, every step of the way. If your slides contain more information that it takes the average listener more than 10 seconds to comprehend, you can't possibly make this happen. People process information at different rates; faster processors will take a shorter time and the slower processors will take longer. Before you know it, you've g ...more