Kick Off Your Presentations With a Bang!
Eleni Kelakos, CSP
Step into the spotlight with confidence & charisma! Helping executives, entrepreneurs & consultants speak and lead with maximum impact.
At a business pitch workshop for entrepreneurs, I watched as a man I’ll call David struggled to grab our attention and set up the value of his product-- an ingenious device that kept electrical cords from tangling. It was a simple concept that should have been easy to convey. Unfortunately, from the moment David started, he lost us: he was wishy-washy and long-winded.
“David,” I said, “I think there’s a way of making your point simply, quickly and compellingly. Let me model it for you.”? Then I gathered up a tangled heap of orange extension cord, carried it to the center of the stage, and dropped it with a thud. “Have you ever had to untangle a mess of cord like this?” I asked? The audience nodded. "It's such a time suck, and it's so frustrating, isn't it?" The audience nodded again. “Well,” I said, “what if you never had to untangle an electrical cord again?”
The audience was instantly hooked, and I had made my point: Start your presentation with a bang!
How You Open Your Presentation Matters!
The opening is possibly the single most important part of your presentation. So don’t squander it by kicking things off in a ho-hum manner.?You want the first thing you say to get your audience to shift forward in their seat, eyebrows raised in interest. So don’t squander your opening by kicking things off in a ho-hum manner.
There are three great ways to start with a bang:? One is to tell a brief personal story that sets up your intention or purpose. Another is to ask a provocative question that gets the audience to immediately engage. Still another is to make a startling statement relevant to your intention. However you choose to begin, you must bring energy and conviction to your opening.? Hook the audience from the start, and they'll be much more willing to hang in there with you for the duration
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How Do You Typically Start Your Presentations?
Think about a presentation you’ve given in the past.? What one thing could you have done to kick it off in a more compelling manner?? What could you choose to do in the future to make the opening of your presentations more engaging for both you and your audience?
There are no limits to how you can begin your presentation, as long as what you choose to do underscores your main intention or purpose. Make bold, intriguing choices. The more you load up the opening with material that engages you- a soul-stirring quote, a mind-blowing image--the more you’ll engage your audience.
Need some help bringing greater impact and engagement to your audiences? Let's talk!
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1 个月Eleni Kelakos, CSP The power of a strong opening in a presentation cannot be overstated. I've seen firsthand how a captivating introduction can instantly grab an audience's attention and set the tone for the rest of the talk. I've experimented with different approaches, from sharing personal anecdotes to posing thought-provoking questions. I'm curious about your experiences with different presentation openers. Have you found any particular strategies to be particularly effective in engaging your audience? I'd love to learn more about your insights on this topic.
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1 个月Eleni Kelakos, CSP, I love the example with the tangled cords—such a simple yet powerful way to hook an audience! It really shows how a strong opening can make all the difference. I’m curious, what’s your favorite way to start a presentation that always grabs attention?
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1 个月great visual Eleni Kelakos, CSP. how impotant do you think props are to a business presentation? And how do we work best with them?
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1 个月Eleni Kelakos, CSP Excellent advice! I work the most on developing an effective beginning of any speech or presentation I give. It's usually a relevant story or a series of opening questions, and you're so right that it's critical to not waste that opportunity to engage the audience right from the start.
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1 个月Eleni Kelakos, CSP we have to get the audience hooked immediately. If you don’t all is lost. It’s that important. What are your thoughts wrapping up a presentation?