Rexi Media

As virtual presentations become ubiquitous, and more and more attendees complain how dull they are, one has to ask the question: how do we present better virtually? How do we capture and sustain attention? The industry is perfecting the conferencing technology that can now reach tens of thousands of viewers. But how do we ensure they are really watching? And how do we make that event worthwhile? To find answers, Connect Solutions, the company who is leading the webcast space, has recently interviewed Dr. Carmen Taran, from Rexi Media.

Cory Lovell: Audiences often voice unfavorable opinions towards virtual presentations. What is missing?

Carmen Taran:Edge, energy, and emotion. This is a mandatory formula for any presentation. The “edge” part is often catered for because most industries are adding edge through advanced technology. For instance, computer scientists are working on enabling us to turn different surfaces into touch screens. Soon you will be able to have a chat window right on the breakfast table. Medical technology is now prolonging life spans. Soon you will be able to celebrate your 200^th birthday. Connect Solutions can bring HD video broadcasts right to your desktop. Soon, you will be able to reach 100,000 people with a presentation. As you can see… there is lots of edge through technology. However, being able to send emails using your shower wall, or to outlive turtles, or talk to very large audiences is not sufficient; you still have to have something meaningful to say and be able to say it with just the right energy and emotion. It’s what completes the formula to sustain attention.

Cory Lovell: How do you get to just the “right” balance of energy and emotion in virtual presentations?

Carmen Taran: Content design and delivery style. Neglecting one or the other is an invitation to audiences to multitask. Content design should involve the writing of a powerful script, intended for the mind and the heart; it should also involve the creation of enticing media, such as PowerPoint slides, graphics, animation, and, video. Unfortunately, audiences have been hit with too much “sameness”. How often do you see the typical PowerPoint slides, with the typical robotic language of bulleted text? And how often do you see graphics purchased from a stock database, showing people shaking hands or looking through binoculars into the future? Mediocre content design leads to mediocre presentations, regardless of how powerful the technology.

Another culprit for sameness is the use of templates. Templates are great for ensuring consistency in branding and cutting design costs, but are not always conducive to creativity or aesthetics (both important for adding energy and emotion). I remember a great TV ad, which showed the owner of a hair salon placing a banner outside his business, advertising “$6 Haircuts”. A competitor next door saw the banner, and instead of being bummed that he could not compete on price, he placed this banner above his salon: “We fix $6-haircuts”. We witness the same in presentation design, especially for virtual presentations. A lot of companies come to us to “fix presentations designed with templates”. Remember: If you’re using generic stock photography and templates, you are more at risk. It’s worthwhile to invest in good design if you want to sustain someone’s attention.

Cory Lovell: I know you always advocate the importance of aesthetics in presentations…

Carmen Taran: Yes, aesthetics as defined by a harmonious blend of text, graphics, lines, shapes, colors, and textures, attracts attention and invite users into a space that they want to share. In which room below would you rather spend some time to read and relax? It’s the same with presentations: strive to show viewers areas that are balanced, pleasing, and harmonious. No longer distinctive, PowerPoint slideware has become stigmatized by mass-manufactured graphics and hurried thoughts expressed as bullets. Research shows that products perceived as beautiful are considered more useful and are used for longer periods of time. Imagine the return on investment then for your presentations if your viewers go back to them frequently and for longer periods of time. Imagine how that could impact your persuasive power. Aesthetics is a silent sales partner.

Corry Lovell: What about delivery style in virtual presentations?

Carmen Taran: It’s a fallacy that good face-to-face presenters are good virtual presenters. Additional coaching is needed for virtual presentations, particularly in the areas of audience participation, vocal variety and media training. Maneuvering chat boxes, polling questions, and interactions with media files such as Flash can add participation, which implies action, which implies attention. Melody, pitch, articulation, pace, pauses, and volume – all these are necessary to force the ear to listen. Some presenters think vocal variety happens naturally. This is an illusion. Practice and feedback from a qualified coach lead to an attractive voice. As webcasts become more prevalent, presenters need media training. This should be mandatory. For instance, in video, knowing where to stand in relation to PowerPoint visuals or other presenters is crucial because the right-hand side of the screen is dominant. Other details such as how to use the microphone, where to look, what to wear, and how the camera perceives your posture, are just a few of the elements that contribute to a well-done webcast. Given that most presentations these days are recorded, everything about that event will live forever. With adequate coaching, you will be excited when peers, bosses, potential employers or future spouses access those recordings.

Cory Lovell: Once the excitement of the virtual technology wears off, how do presenters still add edge?

Carmen Taran:With a little conflict. Conflict generates cognitive tension, which in turn generates attention. Throw your viewers off a bit. I remember listening to a presentation that started with “Follow your heart, says your brain”. Or another presenter who said “Once upon a time an ethicist had a brilliant idea for a prison. Today we all live in it.” This kind of unexpected, incongruous information gets attention immediately. I remember buying a bottle of juice just because the label on the back told me how the ingredients would fight off bad molecules, the kinds that “trash your cells like rock stars trash hotel rooms”. Do you feel the edge, energy, and emotion? Compare that to a label that advertises a refreshing drink. A tiny touch of conflict can be created with visuals. For instance, if you had to speak to an audience on the topic of trust, which slide below would capture attention and pique interest more?

Cory Lovell: Overall, how can presenters generate more energy and emotion?

Carmen Taran: Chemistry. Presenters need to feel something for the content they deliver. Presenting well is a bit like being in love. The closer you feel to the material you’re disclosing, the more energy and emotion you exude. When there is chemistry, you can also find what’s juicy about your content and squeeze it in your presentation (versus presenting whatever has been given to you). Don’t present out of obligation or speak on matters that are not appealing to you. Get excited about something when presenting, even if it’s just about presenting itself. The difference between one speaker’s good presentation and another’s bad one is just that: chemistry.

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by Carmen Taran

Has anyone ever told you before a presentation: ” I won’t be attending, can I have the handout?” While such request hits right into the ego, the question raises another that all of us presenters should answer before an event: Are we better than a handout? What do we do or say that attendees could not get out of a printed piece of paper?

Whether you present at a small meeting or a formal large event, here are four ways you can convince an audience that your presentation is worth attending:

1)      Incorporate audience interaction. Connecting with the presenter or with other members in the audience is an appealing promise and something that cannot be done with a handout. Participants get motivated when they can connect with others who validate their own point of views (because of similar interest) or show opposing views (therefore inviting further reflection). Printed paper does not talk back. And the silence of a handout does not lead to action.

2)      Promise customization of content and flow. When you announce that you will answer questions from the audience (whether 3 or 300 people), and adjust the presentation to their needs, the event is worth more than the fixed sequence and generic, limited approach of the printed word. Such promise also creates curiosity and promises entertainment, through the element of improvisation. When there is no strict flow and rigid structure, attendees are enticed to put away their mobile devices, pay attention, and be happy they didn’t stay home to be barraged by some downloaded slides. In addition, if some of the content is more difficult and requires more processing power, participants will benefit from your presence more than flipping through pages and trying to figure things out on their own.

3)      Allow them to practice and offer feedback. When you allow participants to put your message into practice and provide immediate and customized feedback, you have more chances to persuade them. Repetitive interactivity and practice lead to modified behavior. Mere reading has less probability of moving people into action.

4)      Liven the content with non-verbals. A handout, even if it’s well written, contains two-dimensional information. Written words can leave a reader flat. Posing and posturing can sometimes be more effective than words and numbers. You can bring the content to life with flamboyant body gestures and optimal vocal variety. Would you rather read a book by Tony Robbins or see him present live?

Next time you ponder scheduling  a live presentation (whether face-to-face or online), be exigent with your delivery approach. If you meet at least two of the four points above, deliver a presentation. If you don’t,  a handout will do just fine.

Download Rexi Media’s Presenter Pro iPhone app for more tips on how to deliver an outstanding presentation so that an audience gains much more than if they had engaged in solitary reading. Apply the Rexi Media tips and make them say “That was worth an hour of my time.”

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Have you noticed any substance abuse in presentations? In the sense that we either offer too little substance, fearing that our listeners are overwhelmed…or…we offer too much, fearing that our listeners might feel cheated if there was not enough volume. In either case, the effect is drowsy to the audience and to the presenter.

I recently wrote an article on the subject of superficiality as it applies to online learning. However, the principles and premise are very similar to presentations.

Read the entire article

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by Carmen Taran, Rexi Media

Have you ever heard a speaker deliver a presentation so eloquently that you were completely captivated, curious of what comes next, and did not even consider checking your mobile phone? Complete captivation happens when the advanced presenter makes words flow smoothly and harmoniously, in constant connection with our current state and expectations. One mandatory skill to make this happen is the ability to transition well from one part of the presentation to another.

Transitions are important for a successful speech

Advanced presenters create smooth transitions after the introduction, between each main point, and before the conclusion. Here are three ways in which they make their transitions seamless:

• Previous/next. Presenters often summarize what they have just presented and what they will address next. “You’ve seen what the software can do; now let’s look at some individual features.” This approach is also called a progressive summary. If there are three steps to consider, after discussing step 1, you might say “now that we have looked at step 1, let’s move on to step 2.” After step 2, the summary includes the first steps and the build for step 3. This approach works very well because it helps the audience crystallize the main points in their minds and remember them later.
• Question. Sometimes, presenters pose a rhetorical question that invites participants to ponder what they will cover next. “How do you think this type of software is priced? [Pause and acknowledge responses]. Let’s take a look at the different cost plans.”
• Guided tour. Present a structure, process or theme and reference each part. “Here’s the three-step process for effective recruiting. Let’s take a closer look at each of the steps. In step one…”

Smooth transitions employ specific conjunctive words or phrases, which act like connective tissue between sentences. Advanced presenters use these phrases in different ways depending on the argument they make. Here are three linguistic techniques with associated transitional phrase for different types of rhetoric:

• Elaboration. Use this technique when a sentence describes what you just said. “Our Internet service is fast. In fact, it is the fastest one on the market.” Conjunctive phrases in this category include: in fact, in short, for example, at least, in other words, in particular, in conclusion. Using them frequently through your presentation solidifies the message.
• Extension. Use this technique to extend the meaning of a sentence by adding something new. “Our online service enables you to do data analysis through comprehensible and aesthetically pleasing reports. On the other hand, the traditional software available on the market does not provide such usable reports.” Conjunctive phrases in this category include: also, in addition, on the other hand, instead, or alternatively.
• Enhancement. Use this technique when you wish to further qualify a sentence by adding details about time, place, manner, cause, or condition. Popular conjunctive phrases in this category include: next, at the same time, finally, until then, meanwhile, likewise, as a result, otherwise, yet, still, despite this.

Paying attention to little linguistic details, such as transitional words and rhetoric techniques, is one of the elements that distinguish the advanced presenter from the intermediate presenter.
Repetition also acts as a cohesive tool in your delivery, tying sentences and paragraphs together to make a clear point. You can repeat the same word or phrases that have similar meaning: “This software tool increases your productivity by 40%. When you use this software tool, you…” When you have a word or an idea that you want your audience to remember, repeat it often, almost like a mantra.

Repetition makes your content more memorable

The marketing department at Coca Cola can teach us a good lesson in using repetition as a transition technique and persuasive tool. Not a day goes by that we don’t hear from the folks at Coca Cola. Closely following in persistence are messages from Nike, McDonalds, and Microsoft. These companies know that repetition builds memorable images in viewers’ minds. Even though you don’t have the same resources, know that repetition is key to increasing the retention rate of your message and establishing good transitions. If you found yourself singing jingles or repeating lines from TV ads, you know repetition works.

For more formal presentations that have a title, you can repeat the words used in the title or the theme that you created for the presentation. If you remember president Obama’s inauguration speech, most of the paragraphs went back to the main theme, which he repeated often: “Yes, we can.” When you repeat a word or a phrase, ensure that the audience can see the connection between each paragraph and the main theme or the mantra you selected. In fact, having a mantra you plan to repeat makes it a lot easier to determine what you include in your presentation and what you can leave out.

Transitions do not imply linearity. I am often asked by business presenters: how do I prepare a presentation yet adjust it to participants’ questions on the fly? The answer is: the advanced presenter does very few things “on the fly.” The advanced presenter anticipates participants’ reactions and questions, and is prepared to jump from one part to another in the discourse to address them. A famous Goethe quote reminds us that every word we say will spark in the listener’s mind “an idea of its opposite.” This means that we should already consider what the audience’s concerns may be and be ready to transition to the parts that address them quickly.

When you have only one main idea that you intend to deliver and you prepared thoroughly, you have more chances to jump from one part to another and bring the conversation back to the main path. Preparation enables you to handle non-linearity. Impromptu exercises are also an excellent technique that prepares you to react to those moments we could not possibly anticipate. Mastering smooth transitions allows you to switch between what you prepared, to what the audience asks about, to what unexpected circumstances may offer, and back to the main goal of the presentation.
Studies show that when people read or listen, they form hierarchical frameworks in their minds (or schematas) in order to comprehend the content. They determine what is important and how the different pieces fit together. The more the speaker does to connect pieces to orient the listener, the better and more persuasive the presentation.

Transitions do not always have to be literal. Sometimes, you can simply stop, look around, move to another section of the room, and start another point. The visual transition will work just as well as a verbal one.

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