Presentation Principals for Entrepreneurs

It’s the small things. Even with the best idea, concept or business plan, when someone is late for a meeting, unprepared or lack appropriate research and facts in a presentation and rely on claims and promises – it tells me everything. If there is time to sleep, eat, or update a social status, there is time to perfect your skills, get down to work, and prepare.

Hold a higher standard for yourself, your work and your abilities. This shows your professionalism, focus, resourcefulness and that you demand the best out of yourself and those you attract.

Presentation Principals for Entrepreneurs

1. Know your prospect.

While approaching or presenting to a potential investor or team member, you may lose rapport in an instant if you haven’t done your homework of knowing the person who you’re asking support from.

2. Start the way you finish.

Prepare your mind, enthusiasm, and focus before the meeting. The level of energy should be the same as you end your presentation. Under no circumstances do allow yourself to warm up during the presentation. You have to be warmed up before you walk in the door.

3. The big picture.

Illustrate the big picture of your idea through your verbal and non-verbal language – make sure it’s crystal clear in the other person’s mind. This big picture must be elaborated, and the way you solve this problem must be stated in one sentence – no more.

4. Build rapport before asking for anything.

Rapport is a feeling of understanding and trust between two or more people, otherwise expressed as a feeling of familiarity or sameness. When rapport is established, it suggests that they are open and engaged to what the other is saying.

5. Tell a story. Get engaged.

One of my clients has a service to help those who have English as a second language learn how to negotiate and do business with American companies. Instead of starting with another mission statement, I advised him to start with a story.

6. Be clear of the outcome for a proposal, and of the meeting.

Never assume the person in front of you knows the outcome. Be sure they are seeing you with genuine interest, and knows the reason before the meeting.

7. Operate with a physiology and psychology of excellence.

Before a meeting, prepare your mind with confidence, excitement, and focus. Speak confidently and not loudly. Stand tall, not small. Look at them, and not at the floor or your presentation. Keep your body calm, and not anxious or uncomfortable.

8. Ask questions.

Questions draw in those you are talking to, give you a control on the direction of the presentation, show your concern on their understanding and the beneficial outcome of the meeting. Then follow through with the question.

9. Earn the right. Why you, why now?

Be clear on your strengths, skills, your resourcefulness, networks, and commitment. In addition, be honest in the areas where you are focused to develop and the areas where you need full support.

10. Balance the technical, facts, and emotion.

Ensure that the technical information and facts about your projects have an element of emotion as well. Emotions here mean anticipation, excitement, power, confidence, curiosity, pressure, sincerity, responsiveness, and attentiveness to name a few.

11. Three parts OOOH. One part OUCH!

For every challenge or opportunity, have at least three ways to resolve and approach it. This applies to all elements of your presentation, your emotional, technical and factual sections.

12. Your personal presentation.

Be professional, neat and dress appropriately to the industry you will be part of. Don’t leave anything to chance — the heat, your breath, your shoes, and tidiness of your clothing and its sharpness.

13. Have skin in the game.

Your investor or partner must know with unbreakable confidence that you won’t walk away when things get tough –or they will. Do you have your own life savings or that of your family invested? Do you have your name, your reputation in the industry or a professional license? Be clear and specific in your presentation – what you will continually invest in the business.

14. Master words that inspire and influence.

Whenever I hear the word “try,” “maybe,” “I think so,” or “NO,” it’s a warning sign. These weak words never create momentum, inspire creativity or harness focus. For example, the words “maybe,” “someday,” “I think so,” and “try” are investors’ worst nightmares. Learn powerful words that bring excitement, flexibility, alignment, and focus.

15. Have a plan B, C, D.

Have multiple strategies to reach to your outcome and multiple ways to present your idea or plan. Something always unexpected will come up like a failure in technology, additional people brought into the meeting or having to cut the meeting from 1 hour to 10 minutes. You should have at least three variations of your presentation.

16. Don’t leave empty handed.

Ask if they are interested and what additional information they may need or require for your next meeting, and schedule the next meeting before you leave. If they are not interested, ask if there may be a time in the future where this may fit into their future plans, or ask for three people who they think could support you in your business.

17. Your ultimate success.

If they downright refuse you, remember its not you as a person, it’s the idea or the presentation, or it simply doesn’t fit into their objectives. Also, consider asking their advice on how to specifically improve in the future (this shows your commitment to improve). For your ultimate success, feedback is worth more than its weight in gold. Remember, a delay is never a denial especially when you put into action all of that you learned here today.

One of the best principles you can take from this initial teaching is to ensure the success of your presentations is this: Always focus on what you can ultimately do for the them, what you can solve and why its their best choice to choose you and your product or service.

To your success,

Erik Kikuchi