How to Increase the Economic Impact of Your Presentations

Written by Susan Trivers

What would happen to your company's revenue if you hit the proverbial 'home run' each and every time you appeared in front of an audience? Every speech or presentation has the possibility of making an economic contribution to your company, even if you're not directly involved with sales. The time is ripe--right now--to boost your E-conomic Quotient.

Here's why:

Speakers who engage their audiences strengthen the audience ties to the organization. Audiences feel connected and invested in you and your company, and they look for ways to cement and extend those feelings. This may be in the form of purchases, or referrals, or collaborations, or simply asking for more information for when a future need arises. It may be that they actually read your ezines or direct mail pieces rather than deleting them or tossing them in the trash. These are economic results from speeches and presentations.

They put you at the top of their list in your industry or category.

Do you speak to internal audiences? Your direct reports, your superiors and your peers will take the actions you recommend.

Need to increase on-time performance? Help them experience the personal benefits and they'll show up earlier.
Need to ramp up productivity? Make them see how they win as well and they'll get busy
Need to disseminate difficult information? Understand how the human brain works and you will maximize acceptance and minimize resistance.

Do you want the Number One Tip to increase the E-Conomic Impact of Speaking?

It derives from YOU, the speaker.

Not from any slide or many slides.
Not from extensive facts.
Not from logical arguments.
Not from standing just so, or using a pointer or not.
Not from bullets only or no bullets.

Your knowledge and passion put together in ways that make human brains jump for joy are the only ingredients you need to increase the E-conomic Quotient of your speaking and presenting.

Let these few brain rules guide your presentations and speeches:

1) The more the senses are stimulated, the greater the capacity for learning and creativity. (Do bullets stimulate the sense?--I don't think so!) Mix up the images and add sounds to your presentation. Bring in aromatic food to stimulate the senses of taste and smell.

2) Physical activity increases brain activity. (Google knows that the freedom to move about and play at the Googleplex generates more useable content than forcing people to stay at their desks for hours at a time.) Add a couple of movement exercises to your speeches and keep the audience paying attention.

3) Tap into the human desire to explore. (Adult human beings haven't outgrown our natural curiosity.) Ask provocative questions, provide puzzles and exercises and create challenges to be solved by the audience during your talk.

No one who advocates boring speaking and presenting practices can justify them based on brain science, psychology or the understanding of human behavior. So break free from these stifling habits and generate an E-normous E-conomic Quotient from every one of your speeches and presentations.

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