| Conferences allow you to speak directly to your target audience enhanced by the authority of the event. Malcolm Sleath from coaching consultancy 12boxes offers some guidelines for success. |
| How to make a conference presentation work for you |
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| | By Malcolm Sleath
Question: In a
few weeks’ time I have
an opportunity to speak
on my specialist subject
to a number of
influential people at a
conference. In
particular, the audience
will include some firms
that have the right
connections to be a very
effective route to
market. I want to
convince them that I
have something special
to offer, but don’t want
to give too much away.
Any tips?
Answer: There is
a risk of being too
pleased with yourself
when you feel you have
something to offer which
is significantly better
than anything else
currently available. It
almost always provokes a
‘not invented here’
reaction. No doubt you
will have seen this
happen to other people.
The first thing to
bear in mind is that
your real target
audience may be a small
subset of the number of
people in the room, so
you have to do something
that the majority will
find interesting, but
will prompt the
important minority into
action.
It is important to
get your head in the
right place before you
begin to plan your
approach. Much depends | |
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| | on how you frame the
task you have set
yourself. Think about
what Antony Jay calls
your desired audience
response (DAR).
Telling yourself, “I
want them to be
impressed”, is likely to
result in a different
presentation to one
where you say, “I want
the right people in the
audience to come and
speak to me afterwards”.
Assuming it is the
latter that you are
interested in, how do
you set about it?
Step one: Get
their attention by
talking about something
that is familiar to them
and where they are
likely to nod in
agreement. It might
start off, “You know
when the client says...”
Examples like this are
often an opportunity for
the wry humour of
recognition. You are
putting yourself
alongside the audience
instead of above them.
The underlying message
is “this has happened to
me too”.
If you are not too
clear about what will
resonate with your
target audience, it’s
worth taking the trouble
to interview two or
three of them in
advance, just to get a
flavour of their
experience and reference
points. Of course, you | |
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| | have to avoid putting
anything into your
presentation that they
would see as betraying a
confidence, or would
embarrass them to recall
– even privately. But it
is a great confidence
booster when you know
that two or three people
in the audience will
definitely know what you
are talking about and
are already on your
side.
Step two: Having
got their attention and
interest, you now have
to get them to look at
the real consequences of
the amusing situations
you have just described.
“We have to laugh”, you
say, “but of course we
all realise this
represents an underlying
problem”, and you go on
to spell it out. The
syndrome to which you
have drawn attention
should represent a lost
opportunity not only for
the ultimate client, but
for the individuals and
firms which will provide
your route to market.
Ideally, you will be
highlighting a situation
where the resolution of
this issue will create
significant business
opportunities for them.
Otherwise, why would
they want to work with
you?
Continued on page 12
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