Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story

In Presenting to Win: Persuading Your Audience Every Time, the world's #1 presentation consultant shows how to connect with even the toughest, most high-level audiences--and move them to action. Jerry Weissman shows presenters of all kinds how to dump those PowerPoint templates once and for all--and learn to tell compelling stories that focus on what's in it for their listeners. Drawing on dozens of practical examples and real case studies, Weissman shows presenters how to identify their real goals and messages before they even open PowerPoint; how to stay focused on what their listeners really care about; and how to capture their audiences in the first crucial 90 seconds. From bullets and graphics to the effective, sparing use of special effects, Weissman covers all the practical mechanics of effective presentation--and walks readers through every step of building a Power Presentation, from brainstorming through delivery. Unlike the techniques in other presentation books, this book's easy, step-by-step approach has been proven with billions of dollars on the line, in hundreds of IPO road shows before the world's most jaded investors. Foreword to the Paperback Edition xxiiiPreface: What's Past Is Prologue xxviiIntroduction: The Wizard of Aaaahs xxixChapter One: You and Your Audience 3Chapter Two: The Power of the WIIFY 15Chapter Three: Getting Creative: The Expansive Art of Brainstorming 27Chapter Four: Finding Your Flow 51Chapter Five: Capturing Your AudienceImmediately 83Chapter Six: Communicating Visually 109Chapter Seven: Making the Text Talk 123Chapter Eight: Making the Numbers Sing 143Chapter Nine: Using Graphics to Help Your Story Flow 157Chapter Ten: Bringing Your Story to Life 189Chapter Eleven: Customizing Your Presentation 215Chapter Twelve: Pitching in the Majors 231Chapter Thirteen: Animating Your Graphics 237Chapter Fourteen: The Virtual Presentation 257Appendix A: Tools of the Trade 273Appendix B: Presentation Checklists 277Acknowledgments 283Index 287