The third key to creating a killer presentation is to rock the introduction. Now, there will be situations where you will introduce yourself and in other circumstances, other people will introduce you. But here is some valuable advice: If other people are introducing you, do not let them introduce you with their own words. Give them the words you would like them to use when they introduce you.
It may be that they do not know you and therefore may not present you in the best light, so help them out. You will likely find that the people introducing you at events or the people who invited you to speak in the first place will be grateful that you gave them material for the introduction, because they are probably also working from notes. They might even be panicking about needing to stand up in front of everyone to introduce you. You are worried about your thirty-minute presentation and here they are worried about a thirty-second introduction. You have it in your power to help them and be there for them. Create a brief introduction by including a little about your background and anything else you need them to know.
Earn The Right
You will also need to introduce yourself as well once you stand up to speak but the main point is you have to earn the right. After all the work that has gone into this program, the people sitting there need to believe that you are the expert and they will only believe this if you tell them. You’re going to accomplish this by telling a short story about your life. What have you done with your life? You could take a humorous approach and tell them a story about one of the dumbest things you have ever done in your life so that they don’t have to repeat your mistake. It doesn’t need to be about a great accomplishment. It could be a silly story, but the key is it needs to contain emotion.
This is called an ETR. Earn The Right. You are earning the right- the right to be standing in front of them and teaching them, so you have to present your credentials. The objective is to let people know through ETR is who you have helped, how many, and perhaps for how long you have been helping people. How have you assisted them and how were their lives changed based on the information you shared with them?
Qualify Yourself and Prime Your Audience
After you have qualified yourself with this information, you also want to prime the audience by letting them know what they are going to get out of this presentation. You want to communicate to them, “Hey listen, by the end of tonight, my intention is that you are going to walk out of here with strategies that will change your life in whatever your field is.”
So, let them know that by the end of your workshop- however long it will be- how they will be changed after being with you. It gives them a structure, a framework, on which to hang their own expectations and to get the most out of your presentation. What problem are you going to solve for them, and what will they come away with after investing their time in listening to you? Priming your audience will increase their confidence in you and you will be able to feed off their confidence to give an influential, memorable presentation.
