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How to make the most of PowerPoint Presentations

What Can Your PowerPoint Presentation Learn from
TV Commercials?

Do you ever wonder why some PowerPoint Presentations are so
much better than others? Why do some have amazing powers of
persuasion while others simply bore you to death? TV commercials
use these techniques to hold and fascinate their viewers. You
can too, if you follow these tried and proven techniques.

by Sean d’Souza MarketingProfs.com

Step 1: Kaboom Them Into Waking Up!

Ever noticed how most presentations start with "Welcome to this
presentation…blah, blah, blah." You don’t see too many TV ads
do that. They slam into you at a zillion miles an hour and make
sure you’re paying attention.

So how do YOU do that when you don’t have a moving picture?

The trick is to start with something that’s totally disconnected
with the presentation. For instance, you could be selling cars yet
you could start with "One day in heaven." That’s a good wake up
call for an audience that’s half asleep.

You’re selling cars aren’t you? What has heaven got to do with
cars? The dissonance of the idea has forced their attention. Now
that you’ve got their attention, you’ve got to gently massage it
into your actual message (For example…you could simply suggest
that God created man, woman and then gave them a car…)

And that is only the start.

Step 2: Always Tell A Story

Did you see "Titanic," directed by James Cameron? Couldn’t you
tell that story with reasonable accuracy? Most people can,
because all our movie and great TV commercials are in a story
format.

Do the same with your presentation. Think it through. Build up a
story first and work your presentation into it. It will not only give
your presentation some focus (and storyline) but make it easier
for your audience to remember the sequence of what you’re
saying. (Where are Adam and Eve going in the car? Did they have
a breakdown? How well does the air-conditioning work as they
drive through the desert?)

Step 3: Use Suspense, Not Mystery

Alfred Hitchcock was a master of suspense. He told you who the
murderer was right at the start. So you and every one in the
audience knew who was going to kill whom. Every one in the
theatre knew it – except the hero (or heroine) who was going to
get killed.

And that drove you crazy.

How could they be so dumb? You all knew who the killer was –
why couldn’t the hero see it? That’s what kept you riveted to the
screen the whole 90 minutes. If you establish the characters in
your presentation early and work in an element of suspense, you
can keep the audience on the edge of their seats.

Step 4: Don’t Bore Them with Your Solutions. Bring Up the
Problem!

Most communication harps languidly around Solutions. You don’t
want to do that.

Look around you. People are obsessed with problems. They don’t
walk around all excited and happy. Most people walk around with
their heads in their hands. When you bring up their "particular
problem" they snap out of their slumber in a mighty hurry and pay
attention to what you’re saying.

What you need to do is first bring up that problem and bring it up
in all it’s glory. Paint a gory picture (Read article: Is your solution
your biggest problem?) Only once you have made them feel the
pain, should you bring out the solution. The best TV commercials
always make you feel the pain.

As they say, “No pain no gain.” Learn that and use it.

Step 5: Reduce Risk

Why do people say, “I’d like to think about it.” The only reason is
because you haven’t reduced the risk to minus fifty. While there
is risk, my brain is still doing a RAM check. If there is no risk, I’ve
got nothing to lose.

How can you reduce risk? TV ads give money back guarantees,
trial periods, free test drives. Surely you can be more imaginative
than some ad guy.

Get that risk down like a limbo rocker. How low can you go?

Step 6: Let Your Audience Know They’re Not Guinea Pigs

Hey! If you’ve got a product to sell and you’re not using
testimonials, you’re missing out big time. Even if the product is
yet to be launched, you can have pre-launch tests. It all builds
up expectations for your final pitch.

This is also another form of risk-reduction. If someone else has
used it and fallen in love, you want to go into the nitty gritty of
that love story.

Step 7: Close the #@$%*&^ Sale!

I don’t know how many times I’ve seen a wonderful presentation
that takes you to cloud nine-and leaves you there wondering how
you’re going to get back to earth.

You’ve got to close the sale. Every presentation should end with
action and decision on the clients part. There’s a zillion books and
tapes on closing a sale out there. Brian Tracy has some amazing
audio on Winning Closing Techniques (www.nightingale.com).
Learn from the pros and turn a la dee dah presentation into a full
blooded sale!

Step 8: Bring on a Quirky Finale!

Every movie, every ad does it. They wrap it up in a way you
never expect.

There’s nothing worse than building up expectations, answering
all the questions, and then having a weak ending. Your end has
to be like lightning! Unexpected, brief and brilliant. It will ensure
that your product or service (or quarterly report for that matter)
gets maximum attention.

Otherwise you’re just making a Point with no Power!

Sean D’Souza uses age-old psychology and marries it to modern
technology on his website http://www.millionbucks.co.nz/.
Ok, the website name looks like puffery, but we guarantee it isn’t.

http://www.marketingprofs.com/Perspect/dsouza11.asp

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