A Great Presentation Has One Goal

I’ve notice that people often categorize the kind of presentation they’re giving. They’ll say they are giving an update presentation to tell the client where they are on a project, or they are asking permission to do something, or they are trying to get buy-in to a program.

I would suggest that there is just one kind of presentation. It is a presentation to persuade. The goal of every presentation is to get the people on the other side of the table to vote in favor of whatever it is you want to do. To support you.

Even if you are giving a presentation to inform your superiors of where you are on a project, you are still asking them for their Ok to continue on a certain path, to accept the information you presented as credible and to bless your continued investment in the program. In other words, you are trying to persuade them to stand in your corner.

If you go into a presentation with the mind-set that the purpose of what you are doing is to get people to vote your way, it can only make your presentation more powerful.  I always picture myself in a court room standing in front of a jury.  I build arguments to win their favor.  I smile and want them to like me. I want them to see me as confident and believing to the core in what I’m saying. I’m charged up and totally focused on them and the issues. 

I purposely ask them for their support in my close.   Presentations that just give information are like kissing your sister.