The 4 E’s THE FOUNDATION OF A BUSINESS WINNING CONVERSATION

Following on from my recent talk at the Executive Association of Great Britain I though it would be helpful to identify the key elements of my presentation.

If I have already posted this I hope you don't mind a refresher?

Accordingly, here are the notes on the topic that I hope will enhance your business winning conversations.

How to win over your audience.

The framework of a business presentation should be built on the 4 Es:

·???????Engage

·???????Enlighten

·???????Entertain

·???????Excite

Engage

The importance of engagement cannot be overstated. Here are some golden rules to help you start a presentation with power and impact.

● The 7 – 30-second impactful opening.

● The 7-10 minute rule of pressing the attention reset button to re-engage the audience.

● Pattern Interrupts – Doing something different and unexpected.

● Use a prop or other device to reengage.

The keys to Engagement:

● Know your material – reading off the slides can damage your credibility.

● Make it relevant to the audience – starting with a pitch alienates your audience.

● Tell stories rather than show heavily text-filled slides – tell me what you do for your clients, not just what you do.

● Maintain passion throughout all elements of the presentation.

● Keep eye contact with the audience – don’t read the slides or your notes

● Refer to your notes only to confirm where you are in the presentation.

Enlighten

There are three main reasons why people read a book, listen to a presentation or go to a seminar:

TO GAIN INFORMATION or acquire a nugget of insight that is valuable to them or their organisation. The ability to report back on or teach others in their company about something validates them spending their and their company’s valuable time and money.

TO GAIN CONFIRMATION that what they are doing is right and that they should keep on doing it. There is great comfort knowing that what you believe and do is valid with supporting evidence. It is also provides a benchmark of success and everybody, regardless of their position in a company, seeks positive endorsement for their activities.

F.O.M.O. (Fear Of Missing Out) – This is the greatest driver and motivation for learning something new. The concern that your competitors are doing something that you are not, that they are stealing a march on you in your market place and that you may be losing out to them is a powerful driver.

PAIN is a compelling reason to get people to change, do something differently and think in a different way.

Entertain

Even in a situation where the topic you are speaking on is weighty, important and, maybe, controversial you still have to entertain.

As before this doesn’t mean you have to sing and dance, tell jokes or juggle in front of your audience. Think what you can do to get your key points across with impact so that people remember them and are motivated to take action.

?The 4th E – Excite

If you’re not passionate about what you do, how can you make others passionate about it? This may appear obvious, but how many of us have seen presentations where the presenter was not fully engaged with their topic and it came across as lacklustre and unconvincing?

The phrase that comes to mind is “If you are really excited about what you’re saying – tell your face.” In other words, let your feelings show, it helps your audience to engage emotionally.

In fact there is a 5th E and that is EMOTION

That word again - it’s the seam that runs through this framework and all that you do and say.

Remember the problem that our clients/customers bring to us is never the real problem. We need to probe and ask deeper and more searching questions to elicit the real pain a few layers down.

When we seek to truly understand the real problem we cease to be another ‘salesperson’. We become a confidant and there trust is formed.

PEOPLE BUY EMOTIONALLY – THEY DECIDE LOGICALLY.

For a sample of the book go to Stand Up and Sell - Why Work the Room when you can Command It