"Tell Us a Bit About Your Business"

by: Christel Wintels

As a business person you are given many opportunities to speak about your business.

It might be a formal opportunity at a networking event, or a less formal social gathering where you’re asked to “tell us a bit more about your business.”

With a little preparation, you can have a 5 minute presentation ready for whenever the opportunity arises. Your purpose in creating a ready-to-go presentation is to be able to take advantage of every chance to showcase yourself and your business. Each speaking opportunity allows you to get more comfortable and others to get to know you and like you. People do business, and refer business to individuals they know, like and trust. When you speak, your goal is to inspire others to support you as an individual. Here’s how.  

Preparation

There is a natural order your presentation can follow to make it easy for your audience of 1 or 51 to understand. Offer listeners your information in a logical manner.

1.     The Headline. Start your presentation with an attention grabber. It can be a thought-provoking question, an unusual assertion, or a humorous comparison. Experts say there are 2 critical components to a presentation. The first is the opening. People will politely afford you a short amount of time to engage them. If you fail, you’ll see it in their eyes either by glazing over or wandering around the room.

2.     The Opening. The opening of your presentation can answer the Six Magic Questions: who, what, when, where, why and how. This delivers basic information about your business. Keep in mind you’re giving a presentation about your business, not telling your life story. (Save that for your memoirs.)

3.     The Middle. The middle of your presentation shares supporting details such as features and benefits; facts and myths; your favourite type of client; and, interesting anecdotes.

4.     The Close. The close is the second critical component of the presentation because it’s probably what your audience will remember best. It’s your last chance to make a powerful impression, so make your last words memorable. Go for a laugh, if you feel comfortable with humor; or make the audience remember your strongest point.

Delivering Your Presentation

The other half of an effective presentation is delivery. Here are a few points to consider when delivering your presentation.

Your Voice

1.     Stress Important Words. By putting a special emphasis on words that are important to your audience’s understanding, you give them an audible alert that says, "This is important”.

2.     Vary Your Pitch and Volume. The pitch of your voice naturally flows up and down in normal conversation. Sometimes, inexperienced public speakers slip into a monotone (usually high) pitch. When you practice your presentation, try to achieve a normal conversational flow.

Your Body Language

1.     Facial Expression. How your face appears to an audience says a lot about your message, so smile! A smile creates instant rapport with an audience. You’ll know they are listening and like you when they smile back!

2.     Eye Contact. Eye contact is the most important form of body language. We judge the sincerity of others by what they do with their eyes. Eye contact is a major factor in credibility. Move your eyes around the group you are presenting to. Try to look at every person at least once.

Nerves

It’s normal to be nervous when speaking in front of others. According to a frequently cited survey, most people consider public speaking more frightening than death (or at a minimum, a visit to the dentist)! There are ways to reduce nervous anxiety. The easiest way to deal with stage fright is to prepare, prepare, prepare and practice, practice, practice. When you know your stuff, speaking about it in public becomes easier and easier.

Be ready! You never know when or where you’ll be the next time you hear, “tell us a bit more about your business”.  A little preparation can go a long way!

Posted in: Managing your Business