by Al Golzari
team some information/facts on a new product.
After you’ve given the information, you may ask
something like:
Now how are we going to get our customers to see
the bril iance of this new product?
Then you go into your suggestions for doing so.
While there are many transition styles you can use,
make sure that you’re “setting things up” as
necessary. Also, remember that transitions are not
optional. They are necessary. Again, you can think of
them in different ways but remember that
ultimately, they are the “connectors” in your overall
story. They are smooth runway that allow you to
move from one thought to the next. Without them,
you’l be riddled with potholes, speed bumps, and
detours.
TRANSITIONS WITH GROUP
PRESENTATIONS
Group presentations are common in both industry
and academic settings, and they also need
transitions. Those transitions are easy to identify
since typically each individual is given a sub-topic to
present.
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Most of the time, people in group presentations wil make a basic transition and say something like this:
I’m now going to hand it off to Melissa.
There’s nothing wrong with this, although I wil admit it’s pretty basic and not very impactful. There are
more sophisticated transitions. I’l share a few
examples that are not only more sophisticated and
impactful but are dual purpose; you get two for the
price of one. In other words, these examples also
provide a nice summary/reinforcement/conclusion
of what the previous speaker just presented.
Instead of simply providing the name of the next
presenter, you can be impactful by doing something
like this:
Now that we’ve shared why embracing social media
like Instagram can real y help improve your business,
Melissa wil walk you through how to execute some
real y exciting Instagram campaigns.
This is much more impactful, in my opinion. Also, this
statement is versatile. In other words, it can be used
by the outgoing presenter or the incoming presenter,
which of course in that case, you replace “Melissa”
with “I” or “We.”
You can also try something like this, which in this
case would be mentioned by the incoming presenter:
Wow! Mike just gave us three real y compel ing
reasons why we need to increase security on our
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corporate IT platforms. Now I’l walk you through which one makes the most sense for you.
The incoming presenter provided a summary of what
Mike just did –the three compel ing reasons—and
then segues into her section.
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CHAPTER TEN | PRESENTATION
INTRODUCTIONS
The most important thing to remember about
introductions is your intended purpose. This can
sometimes be independent of the overall objective
of the presentation but be sure that your opening is
not arbitrary.
Before we discuss some of the different techniques
(the “what”), you’l need to understand your reason
(the “why”) for using them – the strategic part. No
one really tel s you these aspects, so I hope to give
you a better understanding.
If you’re going to start your presentation by asking a
question, don’t do it for trivial reasons. Even if you
correctly execute the technique, it may not be
effective. So, think about why you are asking the
question and what you are looking to accomplish.
Ask a question because you want the audience’s buy-
in and because you think this is the most efficient
way to engage them.
On another strategic note, make sure that no matter
which introduction technique you use, it captures
the overall tone of your presentation. This is a bit
nuanced and may take practice. Think of the
opening credits of a movie or TV show. Generally,
the opening credits wil reflect the flavor of what’s to
come.
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Ever watch Larry David’s show Curb Your
Enthusiasm? His opening is very short, but the light-
hearted theme song sets the mood of the show. This
is the same for Alfred Hitchcock movies, etc. You get
the point.
Another thing I’l quickly share –and granted, this is
probably reflective of my style—is I’m not a big fan
of shocking the audience. Some people wil tel you
that’s a legitimate opening technique, and maybe so,
but I don’t see why you would ever need to shock
your audience for attention. Shocking the audience,
to me, seems as though you’re trying to get attention
for the sake of attention. You’l get attention by
delivering something good.
I prefer openings that captivate my audience.
They’re more sophisticated, for the most part. Also,
it can earn you the reputation of being a thoughtful
presenter, regardless of the subject matter.
PRESENTATION OPENERS
Here are some techniques for openings that are
useful and handy. I can’t take credit for most of
these, but I’l put my own spin on them for you.
The most common first:
1. Ask a Question
There are several ways do this effectively.
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While this is probably the most common way to start a presentation, you should truly understand the
purpose of this technique. Seriously. It’s not as
obvious as it seems. I’ve seen so many people use
this technique and, either it wasn’t clear why they
used it, or they only used “half” of it. In other words,
they ask a question but don’t do anything with it.
You should anticipate how your audience wil
respond. If you ask a question, do “something” with
it. For example, if you ask:
How many people here know about al of the
atrocities happening to children in country X?
By asking this question you probably assume that the
majority of the audience doesn’t know the answer.
If this is the case, you can then “finish” by
transitioning into your overall theme. This is the
proper execution.
Whether you are asking a question because you
genuinely want feedback, or it’s meant to be
rhetorical, make it clear. It’s fine if you want to make
it rhetorical but make that clear in your tone and
inflection. Here’s an example of a rhetorical
question used to open:
How many of us are tired of paying so much for Wi-
Fi?
This would work wel , rhetorically, because you can
be reasonably assured that most, if not all, of the
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audience agrees. In this case, you don’t need any weigh-in.
If by asking a question your intention is to get a
response, make sure that you get one. Surprisingly,
many presenters who want a response may not get
one, especially with an unfamiliar audience.
In short,
make it clear that you want a response through your
tone and body language. Alternatively, an easier
route is to simply say “by show of hands…” This
works very wel and leave no ambiguity.
Another nuance part of the ask-a-question approach
is to make sure you have a Plan B in your pocket, just
in case it doesn’t work out. It shouldn’t happen too
often, but there may be instances where, either you
didn’t research your audience, or you did research
them but didn’t accurately assess them. In either of
these cases you might not get the response you
hoped for. This is where having a Plan B is crucial. For
example, let’s say I expected the majority of my
audience to familiar with marketing, but it turns out
to be the opposite; almost no one knows about
marketing.
By show of hands, how many people here have a
basic understanding of marketing principles?
You were anticipating many hands but got only a
few. Your Plan B in your back pocket can go like this:
Even better! Because the information I’m going to
share with you today is especial y essential for non-
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marketing people. The last thing I’d want is for you to get tricked by advertisers.
You just got yourself out of a jam and, if you pul it
off smoothly, the audience wil never know. Again,
this shouldn’t happen too often, but it can, and you’l
need to do a little adjusting on-the-fly to keep
moving forward.
Have a plan B in your back pocket. Don’t get tripped
up!
2. Be Bold
This can be done several ways, but whichever way
you do it, don’t be afraid to start off with a bold
statement. Obviously, you need to back up whatever
you’re asserting as you go through the presentation,
but this style can help you to exude confidence from
the start. You may use this technique with
something like this:
Today, I’m going to give you three reasons why
Hamilton (the play) is worth the hype.
This is bold for two reasons. First, you’re articulating
that you have three reasons as opposed to just
reasons, and this specificity exudes a level of
confidence because it demonstrates that you’ve
thought this out in advance. Second, using a strong
term like “worth the hype” implies that you
acknowledge that some people think the play is over-
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rated. You’re going to provide three reasons why it’s worth all of the fuss.
3. Say Something Provocative
If you use this technique, don’t confuse it with
shocking your audience. That’s a separate technique
that I won’t get into, but you’re not trying to shock
your audience here. You’re trying to make them
THINK. Making a statement that may make your
audience members a little uncomfortable or get
under their skin may be fine. But it is your
responsibility to understand how fine the line is
between your intended effect and offending your
audience.
Remember, you’re trying to provoke thought, not
insult. You may want to “poke the bear” a little but
know how much is too much. For example, if you’re
doing a presentation in front of a group of rich
donors, don’t make general statements that are
insulting to wealthy people.
4. Be Sincere
In 2014, when Ziauddin Yousafzai, the father of
Malala Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel laureate
winner, did a TED Talk on his daughter, he started his
presentation with:
“In many patriarchal societies and tribal societies,
fathers are usual y known by their sons…but I’m one
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of the few fathers who is known by his daughter, and I’m proud of it.”
That’s a pretty powerful statement. Plus, it gives you
a strong glimpse of what he’l be talking about.
5. The “Stereotype” Approach
Another clever introduction technique is what I call
the stereotype approach. With this technique,
you’re feeding the audience the typical stereotypes
that you can reasonably assume they already
associate with the topic. For example:
When you think of mil ennials, you probably think of
them as:
• Lazy
• Spoiled
• Entitled
• Selfish
• Always on their phones
And that’s probably just getting warmed up, right?
Then you can begin your presentation by trying to
dispel the stereotypes. This works wel in some
cases since you are really providing your audience
with instant credibility.
6. Instil Curiosity
This can be a clever intro technique if used in a
situation that really calls for it. Don’t confuse this
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with the ask-a-question technique. Here, you are probably asking a question, but you’l want to
provide either portions of facts or figures, or perhaps
purposely leave out some information for the time
being. The idea here is to get the audience thinking
about your question/statement on a deeper level. It
doesn’t have to be a deep topic, but you want to get
them thinking. For example, let’s say you started a
presentation with:
What if, exactly one day before you were born, you
can select some of your own attributes? Your race,
gender, nationality. Remember, you’re not born yet,
so you have no preconceived notions. You’re just
selecting off of a menu. Would you do it?
OR
If you were able to meet any three people in the
world, living or dead, who would they be, and why?
This technique can really evoke thought and
curiosity, even if they haven’t had enough time to
think of all three names.
7. Share a Story
If you want to use this technique, make the story
personal. It doesn’t have to be about something
tragic or sad. It can be though, if your
topic/presentation calls for it. But there are many
story types –inspirational, humorous, etc. Just keep
in mind it shouldn’t be too long. As we’ve discussed
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in a previous chapter, the wonderful details may matter to you, but not to everyone else. Again,
make it personal, but relevant. Also, do your best to
make sure the audience wants to hear it.
8. Quote Someone Famous
I’d be careful with this one. Yes, CAREFUL! You
don’t want to come across clichéd by using an over-
used quote. This is just a suggestion, but I’d probably
stay away from quotes and references such as:
Albert Einstein defined insanity “by doing the same
thing over and over again and expecting a different
result.”
Don’t get me wrong; it’s a fine quote. But since so
many people are already familiar with it, it’s not all
that impactful, in my opinion. Thousands of people
around th
e world probably say that every day, so
that’s why I think it’s not impactful or interesting.
9. “Process of Elimination”
I once saw a presenter start his intro with four
photos of people and asked the audience to pick out
the CEO of company X. While I don’t remember the
whole speech, I remember that this actually worked
very wel . It had purpose, wasn’t too obvious, and
wasn’t elementary. This method has an interactive
element that engages the audience from the start,
without them having to work too hard.
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10. Humor: Tel a Joke or Use Sarcasm
This is pretty self-explanatory, so you don’t need me
to offer an example. Just make sure that you’re
funny, as mentioned in chapter 7, and that it’s
appropriate for your particular audience. Sometimes
sarcasm can be just as effective as tel ing a good
joke. But if you’re going to use sarcasm, I
recommend that it be used appropriately; you
should have proper inflection, tone, and body
language. Facial expressions are also particularly
important here. In other words, make sure you
exaggerate, otherwise your audience might take you
seriously, and your entire intro is ruined. I once had a
graduate student use sarcasm at my expense to start
her presentation:
FINALLY, Al al owed us to pick our OWN topic for the last presentation of the semester! I’m so happy and
felt like I was waiting FOREVER!
It was funny! I have to admit I laughed a lot, too.
11. “Imagine”
This is a very interesting technique. I used it once
and it really worked wel . This technique requires
the right inflection though, so when you start off a
presentation with the word “Imagine” you’l need to
do it in a sincere way. It wil help to say it a bit slowly,
giving great eye contact, and then pausing for a
moment before you continue. For example:
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Imagine (PAUSE)…imagine living on a deserted island, al by yourself, and cut off from the rest of the
world…
If you see your audience’s eyes light up, then you did
it correctly.
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CHAPTER ELEVEN | SLIDES
Let me start by saying that PowerPoints are NOT
presentations. YOU are the presenter. A
