Point Advantage is on a simple mission: to deliver the best training for those desiring PMI Certification. When you are presenting to busy professionals you and your staff have to hold the attention of the audience and make sure that they will be richly rewarded for their investment of time. (Read on …)
NSA Colorado will hold our monthly meeting for professional speakers this Saturday, April 14th from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm. The meeting will be at the Renaissance Denver Hotel. Not a professional speaker? Don’t worry, you will get great insights on running your business as a speaker, consultant or trainer. In addition, you will always get great presentation skills tips! Our featured speaker will be Mark LeBlanc. Mark became a professional speaker in 1983 and NSA Colorado welcomes Mark. Mark is also the incoming President of the National Speakers Association. (Read on …)
Happy New Year! I apologize for the lack of posting-it has been hectic around here. I’m going to share with you a lot of great questions that have been coming in and Google searches that you have used to find this site. In the upcoming weeks we will get all your Sales Presentations questions answered. (Read on …)
The Colorado Chapter of National Speakers Association will hold our November meeting November 11,2006. The meeting goes from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm. We are pleased to welcome Steve Rizzo, CPAE, as our featured speaker. Steve is a fabulous speaker and a former stand up comedian. At our monthly meeting Steve’s topic will be “Why Not Enjoy the Process?” His message is one of developing balance in business and personal life for all of us speakers. I can’t wait to hear Steve as he always delivers a humorous, compelling and educational message. Welcome to Denver, Colorado Steve!
LeAnn Thieman, CSP, will speak on From Platform to Print: “How to Write and publish Your Signature Story”. LeAnn is one of my favorite speakers as well as a great friend. LeAnn was a nurse for thirty years and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup for the Soul Books! One of my favorites was Chicken Soup for the Nurse’s Soul. LeAnn is a very talented and inspirational speaker!
Steve Mertz, yours truly, will speak on blogging and specifically : “How to Rank in The Google Top Five.”
My talk will focus on the power of blogging and the specific Search Engine Optimization techniques I employed in taking Sales Presentations Training to the number one position in Google search! I’m honored to share my experiences with my peers.
If you are in the Denver, Colorado area and plan on attending our November meeting-Please come up and introduce yourself! Here are the details for getting the very best presentation skills in Colorado.
Steve Mertz
NSA/Colorado
Technorati Tags: Steve Rizzo, LeAnn Thieman, Steve Mertz, National Speakers Association, NSA/Colorado
The monthly meeting of NSA Colorado will be October 13,2006. The meeting will be from 2 to 6pm. We will be hearing some great public speakers including Shep Hyken, CSP. Shep will be speaking on Getting clients and selling product! Sales strategies for speakers and consultants. Shep has built and sustained his successful business for twenty years. Shep brings real life experiences that new and seasoned speakers can use.
Next on the agenda will be Michael Benidt and Sherly Kay speaking on Perfecting Internet Connecting. Their program will show you how to get crucial information faster! If you are overwhelmed by information overload-Don’t miss this great information!
We are also pleased to be joined by Scott Halford, CSP. Scott is a former NSA/Colorado President and Emmy award-winner. Scott has a very successful business model. Instead of 100 speeches to 100 different clients a year, he strategically selects 5-7 companies and works in each one 10-20 times per year-Great information!
This will be a great Friday meeting on Presentations, Marketing and Internet Searches. Don’t miss our NSA/Colorado meeting this Friday!
Steve Mertz
See You Friday!
Technorati Tags: NSA/Colorado, Shep Hyken, Michael Benidt, Sheryl Kay, Scott Halford
A friend of mine has to give a one hour presentation before a committee next month. It will determine whether or not she gets to manage her own Starbucks store-I’d say a lot was riding on her presentation! It’s been a pleasure to watch this young lady grow over the year that she has been working at my favorite Starbucks and I’m pleased that she asked me for some presentation advice.
I asked her about the process. She told me that she will be presenting to about seven managers who will be looking for her best ideas on increasing revenues for the store. She mentioned to me that she had seen two previous presentations by her peers to the committee. What struck me the most is when she said how a particular individual was so out of character at his presentation. Gone was the smiling, gregarious and joking young man that we all had come to appreciate-In his place was the serious, no smile, no humor, stoic presenter!
I’m sure we all witnessed the same occurrence. What strikes me funny about this is that everyone knows “you” and they love your ability, leadership and unique character…so, why would you leave that at home the day of your presentation?
I get the fact that this is a huge deal for these young up and coming stars but my advice to my friend is to let the committee she the real her and her delightful humor. I can work with her on her presentation skills and ensure that she will give a very tight presentation but as with all speakers-it’s up to us to let the committee see our real and genuine self!
Steve Mertz
Let the Genuine You Shine Through!
Technorati Tags: Career Training, Public Speaking, Presentations Skills, Starbucks
I was on a conference call last evening with some speakers. A woman on the call mentioned that she had given a presentation last week that lasted an hour and thirty minutes…And her presentation included 129 PowerPoint slides! At first, I thought she was joking.
When we called her on it, she became a little defensive. She saw no problem at all showing 129 PowerPoint slides in a 90 minute presentation. Let’s see-that’s only one slide every 1.4 minutes!! (Check that, 1.4 slides every minute) Which begs the question-Was the audience paying for a PowerPoint slide show or the speakers expertise?
I’m sure you all know by now that I believe slides should only be used to clarify or accentuate a point in your presentation. When PowerPoint becomes the show it makes it easier for the meeting planner to hire someone else who will give a cheaper slide show. Audiences want to learn from your experiences and your expertise!
Steve Mertz
Beyond PowerPoint!
Know Your Audience is always a critical factor in the success of your presentation. Thomas P. Mullen and Mala Narain of the Park Li Group strategy consulting group, stress you need to know how they listen!
People have distinctly different way of dealing with presentations about strategy, David Wagner writes in Sloan Management Review.
“Each audience member will emphasize one of four primary focuses-data, structure, vision and the human element-and the
effective speakers are those who integrate all four aspects into their presentations.”
Listeners who are primarily data driven will be evaluating your presentation to see if “it is grounded in the appropriate facts and figures.” My translation: Engineer types, CFO’s!
Audience members who look first for structure want to see how all the different aspects of your talk fit together. My translation: College Professors
“Where are all these strategy discussions going to lead us,” is what the people who are listening for vision want to know. My translation: CEO’s, Consultants
And, finally people who focus on human dimension want to know where they-and everyone else-fit in. My translation: You and I!
“The key to success is to always assume all four types of listeners are present in every audience. Identify your default mode and leverage those skills as much as you can, but address the needs of the other types of listeners as well.”
While this information is not new it certainaly is valuable and gives us a timely reminder when giving presentations. It also gives credence to the fact that speaking off the cuff-puts you at a distinct disadvantage with audiences. Lastly, let’s not forget to chart out our use of humor in our presentations!
Steve Mertz
Know Your Audience
Technorati Tags: Sloan Management Review, Presentations, Humor, Career Training
With the ever increasing global economy-many of us have been exposed to international opportunities. The opportunities can be very rewarding but Dr. Gary Goodman gives us some timely advice on the hidden costs of delivering an international speech. Read his full article here.
Steve Mertz
International Opportunities
NSA/Colorado Chapter is having it’s first meeting of the 2006-2007 year this Saturday ,September 9th, 2006. The meeting will be at the Renaissance Denver Hotel located at 3801 Quebec Street, Denver, CO. 80207
The featured speaker will be Ford Saeks and his topic is Information Marketing mastery for Professional Speakers. Ford is the real deal and this high-energy “how-to” session offers you a multitude of creative direct & internet marketing techniques for professional speakers. Ford’s presentation will be one hour.
Next on the agenda is Tim Gard, CSP, CPAE. Tim is Colorado’s newest member of the Speaker Hall of Fame and will show you how he confounded experts be being true to himself and riding irreverence all the way to the top
of the speaking profession. Tim will share the secrets of how he runs his business and how you can create your own model for speaking success!
Debra Fine will conclude our monthly meeting. She talks on some of your best marketing opportunities are right around you and cost little or nothing. Debra, a nationally recognized expert on conversational skills and author of the acclaimed book, The Fine Art of Small Talk, will show you how to turn every conversation, hospitality suite, conference, golf outing, and chamber, civic or association event into a powerful business opportunity!Our Chapter meeting will run from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm
The charge for guests is $65
This will be a fabulous meeting with a lot of great information for public speakers, trainers and authors. Hope to see you this Saturday at our meeting Here is the link to National Speakers Association/Colorado chapter for more information.
Steve Mertz
Come To a Great Meeting!
Technorati Tags: NSA/Colorado Ford Saeks Tim Gard Debra Fine National Speakers Association Public Speaking Presentations Money