How do you create powerful presentations for agribusiness stakeholders?

Be crystal clear, avoid ambiguous industry jargons and use an appropriate tone of confidence and yet humble about what you are still learning and not sure about

Farmer purchasing behavior And climate change which affect crop shift Solution selling in place of product selling. People first

Condition your audience to be objective rather than subjective in their views and understanding by engagement in a brain storming exercise to realise the dependent variables that determine some commonplace phenomenon to overcome any subjective views that may exist

Develop a well-organized story that is quick to the point and fills in details after the main point. Have an introduction that stimulates questions at the beginning. Be willing to pivot away from your prepared slides if the audience/questions dictate it. You are more likely to generate more questions from the audience. Plan to bring back your main point(s) before you finish. Try to walk away with a conversation instead of a monologue.

Prepare by consulting with practitioners (be cautious of self-appointed ‘experts’) and try to get farmers to participate, particularly during Q&A. Real world challenges beat theory all the time.

End with key takeaways and or perspectives , if you have unanswered questions indicate what they are . Link your points , thread them

Give examples that will guide them, Focus on the challenges and opportunities in the Agricultural sector. Keep it simple and straight to the point

Do not clutter your slides , your slides are guides to what you will be saying and or outlining hence your slide should have you key message clearly and that only, speak to your slides . Folks have difficulty reading slides with lots of data

Make your slides short with infographics and images that will help take the message to the participants. Ensure also the presentation is focused on the region where your participants come from.

Imagine people in your audience listening to you, what questions would they have ? What imagery do you want to leave them with ? Should they remember you , what you said or both ?

Be willing to listen to the participants that way you will have an engaging session that will keep the participants awake and able to listen through out the sessions.

I like to offer clear options as "calls to action": People like to know what they can do with the information you are sharing with them. Make sure you have options such as networks to join, specific hashtags to engage in the conversation with, or even suggestions to where they can get more information about the subject.

If you know a member of your audience and you know they may have a point of view on the subject of your presentation , invite them to comment on a particular issue or recognize their expertise or knowledge

Involve the participants to share their experiences or challenges they faced and how the over came the obstacles. Discuss the way forward and plan ahead.

I use Socratic method during presentation, I used to ask some questions about main theme in order to engage my public. It’s great!

No matter what your content is, how well you narrated the story, how good your presentation was prepared.. one of the biggest factors that is of utmost importance is “one Takeaway from each slide for the audience”. They will not remember your pitch for long, so be very clear on what one message you want your audience to take away after your presentation gets over.

Your customers are not interested in your (standard) presentation, they want to know how you are going to help them solve the problems they face in their operation. And to find out what their real challenges are, you need to engage in a conversation and ask questions. So instead of opening your laptop and presenting why your solution/service/company is the best, focus on understanding what problem your customer needs solving. That allows you to present a solution that is tailored to your customer’s needs. And if you manage to do that well, a deal is within reach.

Always check numbers, references, or any data sources you use in your presentation. Cite them accurately, and put their credits on your slides.