In the business world, there are all types of presentations that we do on a daily basis: sales presentations, prospecting meetings, staff meetings, client meetings, introductions…the list goes on and on. Instead of reinventing the wheel every time you face a new presentation, knowing the 10 elements to a powerful presentation will cut down on your preparation and save you from unnecessary stress.

1. Theme: What is point of the presentation? You should be able to answer that question in one sentence. The benefit of having a theme: Knowing your theme during the development phase of a presentation you keep you on track and help you avoid tangents. It also helps your audience remember your message.

2. Opening and Closing: Yes these could be two different elements, but they serve a very similar purpose. The opening and closing are the bookends that give you the opportunity to once again state your beyond benefits (#3) and you theme. Ideally, your closing should tie into your opening, creating the feeling of coming full circle.

3. Beyond Benefits: The focus of the presentation is not you, it’s the audience. Write down a list of the benefits of either working with you, implementing this method, following this strategy, using this product, or buying you services. Then, look at the list and for each item ask yourself this magic question, “So what?” See if you can take that benefit one step further and find the Beyond Benefit. What is the true end result that your audience is looking for? How will what you’re offering make their life easier?

4. Stories: People process information intellectually, they buy based on emotion. Creating an emotional connection with your listener(s) leads to a relationship which leads to more business. So in your presentations, how do you create that emotional connection? Stories. Find a story that is analogous to your discussion. Use the story that ties into your theme. A great place for your story is in your opening and closing.

5. Powerful Questions: Anthony Robbins so wisely says “Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.” Your presentations should have opportunities for dialogue. Learn what your prospect or client is needing and wanting. Assuming too much is just bad business. Remember, it’s not about you, it’s about them. (Aside: If you are giving a keynote to a large group, you rarely want to open the floor for dialogue. However, you still want to ask powerful rhetorical questions to keep them engaged and thinking.)

6. You and We Statements: The first half of your presentation should have a high ratio of “you statements”, ensuring that you are engaging them by stating their needs and the Beyond Benefits of what you’re offering. In the second half, there should be a seamless transition to high ratio of “we statements”. Subconsciously your audience will start to see you as already part of the team.

7. Options: When you’re giving a presentation to a prospect or a current client trying to convince them to try a new endeavor, it always helps to give them options. I learned this from Alan Weiss. It then changes the listener’s thinking from “Should I do business with Shari’?” to “How should I do business with Shari’?”

8. Talk Back: No, I don’t mean be rude. When you ask your powerful questions, it is always a good idea to repeat what you heard. “I understand that you are looking to…” This will help you clarify the needs of your audience. Then, your audience will be thinking, “She knows what I need. We’re on the same page!”

9. Planned Follow-Up: Make it easy on yourself! In the meeting, set a time and method for follow-up. This way it opens the door to make another “touch” with your client or prospect. That way you are not call out of the blue when they thought everything was said and done.

10. Preparation: This is the most important. Prepare for your presentation ahead of time! It is the most simple and yet the most overlooked. You never know what curve balls are going to be thrown your way, but if you have a plan and a clear picture in your mind of what you want to cover, you will always get back on track. Now that you know what the 10 elements are to powerful (and profitable) presentations are, you have an outline to follow and your preparation time will be cut in half.

Presentations are a vital part of any business. Don’t lose business because of a bad presentation. Implement these 10 elements and watch your business grow!

Surely Christmas has gone desperately awry
When for presents we do manipulate and cry
While entirely neglecting the reason why
Christ the Savior of the world was born
Did humbly come to earth and was crucified
Died for a sinful humanity and rose miraculously
Yet most in the world only celebrate the baby
Christ the King born in a humble manger
However only remembering Him as such
Is by far more odd, awkward, and stranger
To not embrace the fullness of the blessing of Christ
Being forgetful of His supreme blood sacrifice
When He died on the cross of crucifixion
To liberate and give us newness of life
Why then all the commercialism and materialism
When we commemorate and remember His birth
Have we forgotten the King of kings divine worth
The awesomeness of His mighty, powerful Presence
Seeking to replace it with something called presents
Wherein we lose the precious value of the divine
Passing by the importance of peace within sublime
Opting and preferring shopping with greed’s slime
Seduction, attraction, and evil consumeristic allure
Of this one thing I am sure. We have lost the meaning
Of the blessed Christ and the season called Christmas
As we salivate and refuse to hesitate to restrain ourselves
From pursuing gifts under the tree, while we simultaneously
Sway in instability having been robbed of inner tranquility
Which we’ve replaced with stuff and things materially
That mesmerize and leave us afterward feeling empty
Therefore as for me and my family, give us divine Presence
Because Christ’s divine Presence is the most special present
Any person or family could receive and embrace daily
Hence a gift exchange of presents for divine Presence
Is always blessed and bestows gifts of divine intangibility.
I pray the warmth of Christ’s Spirit will help you feel and see
The wonders of Christmas today, tomorrow, and eternally.

Add one or a few quotations to your presentation to make it more entertaining and insightful. Your quotation might spur your listeners to think or laugh. Sprinkle lightly like pepper. Use a quotation that emphasizes or clarifies your message.

Here are three sources you can search for quotations:

Quote a Famous Person

This is the most common method. Be sure to quote from a person who is well known and well liked by your audience. That ensures that the quotation lends more weight to your message.

Name the person who said it. Don’t pretend to be the source of that phrase and don’t make your audience guess. An appropriate quotation helps you tap into the credibility of the person who first spoke that piece of wisdom. Select the right quotation from Albert Einstein and it sounds as if he agrees with you.

Avoid repeating the overused quotes. It looks bad when speakers are using the same quotations. If most people have heard the quotation several times you appear unoriginal in your thinking.

Instead, search for a quotation that is not so well known.

“I went to the gym on the days that I felt like it and I went to the gym on the days that I didn’t feel like it.” Muhammad Ali

Quote a Client, Colleague or Industry Expert

Another source of valuable quotations could be your clients – especially if you are talking to your staff or company colleagues. You could use praise or complaints.

The company or association founder could be a source of colorful insights. But don’t just look to the leader for words of wisdom. With a little research you might uncover hidden gems from the janitor or the guy on the loading dock.

“We hurry to ship it out and it comes back on the next truck. Why not get it right the first time?” Truck Driver

The Twist

A third variation is to take a common phrase or quotation and twist it. This technique can add an engaging element of surprise and humor to what might have been a dull presentation

“He who laughs – lasts.”

Children will offer you useful twists as they rephrase the words they hear and describe the world as they see it.

“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us some email.” 4 year old girl

How to Deliver the Quotation with Drama

Pause just before you deliver the line and just after. While you are stating the quotation, shift your stance so you look slightly different and alter your voice a bit. Then resume your previous stance and voice to demonstrate that you are back to your own words. You don’t need to deliver a perfect impersonation of the person. Just make the little shifts. Those tiny changes will help the audience perceive you as the character you are quoting. It adds drama to your presentation and makes your message more memorable.

What if you can’t remember who said it or you’re not sure if you’ve got the words right? Then preface the line with, “As my grandmother used to say…” No one will get annoyed with your grandmother for altering the line.

The right quotation and appropriate source can inject spice into your presentation. It will help make your message more engaging, insightful and memorable.

“All we have to fear – is being boring.”