The perfect marketing presentation - It's all in the details

You are on your way to creating the perfect marketing presentation.

4. Prepare for the big day ... it's all in the details

A. Prepare your handouts ahead of time

What you prepare as a handout, if any, will depend on the complexity of your presentation and the preference of your audience.

Again, get input from your audience to find out their needs, or ask your manager for guidance. Oftentimes, I have found that senior management want a summary handout with the high level strategies or the high level financials only. Sales reps, on the other hand, need to take notes on all the promotional materials that you are presenting, so they either need a copy of your presentation or a detailed Plan-of-Action (POA) booklet with a detailed summary of your presentation.

B. Know the layout of the room before presenting

This is important yet it is often ignored by marketers. I remember presenting to a group of sales representatives in a very long narrow room. There weren't that many people in the audience, so if I had not known that the room was so long, I maybe would not have requested a mic, in which case people at the back would probably have not heard me.

C. Get a copy of the agenda and note when you are presenting, who is presenting before and after you and what they are going to say

If there is any potential content overlap between your presentation and that of another, go talk to that individual to identify the duplication and determine a way to deal with the situation. There is nothing worse for an audience to hear 2 or more speakers repeat something that was already discussed. This is especially frustrating if a meeting is already going overtime.

It is also helpful to know if the person presenting before you is giving good news or bad news, especially if this is a forecast update meeting . This prepares you for the mood of the audience when comes the time for you to present.

F. Know your content inside-out

Remember that you are the expert on the content that you are presenting. If you cannot explain a graph, how you came up with a certain number or what a word means, then you are better off not including it at all. Anything that you present is fair game for your audience to point out and ask questions.

E. Prepare your equipment ahead of time, and have a backup ready

Will you need to bring your laptop, your memory stick, or will your presentation already be cued in the master computer? Will you be changing your own slides, or will somebody else? If somebody else, how will they know when to change your slides? If you are using your own laptop for the presentation, make sure it is fully charged just in case there is no plug-in available where you are presenting.

It is much better to get up early and do an IT check than be surprised when you are on stage in front of the audience. This gives you a chance to get assistance from IT before the audience walks into the room. And if you want to be super-prepared for the big day, have handouts ready for your audience members… just in case the projector lightbulb decides to blow in the middle of your presentation!

F. If you can, assign responsibilities.

When you are presenting, taking time to write down comments or questions as they arise can be distracting both to you and the audience. It can also be nerve wracking to focus both on your presentation and on all of your audience’s comments and questions! If possible, assign somebody to take notes for you during the presentation so that everything gets captured and followed up on.

If you are presenting to senior management, beware that they are hungry for data and details on how you came up with certain numbers. Have a few key Excel spreadsheets open in the background so that you can refer to them as required. However, this can be quite cumbersome and time-consuming. Therefore, it may be best to assign somebody who is familiar with the data to have their laptop running with the spreadsheets open. That way, when a question comes up, you can ask the person to give you the exact figures from the data source.

G. Practice. Practice. Practice. And if you think you’ve practiced enough, practice one more time.

My best presenters were always the ones who practiced over and over again. Practice whenever you get a chance and try to get feedback from your manager and colleagues.

Here's a checklist for you to consider when you are practicing delivering your marketing presentation;

- Is there a clear and simple message for each slide? If so, why should the audience care about this message? - Are some of the slides repetitive? If so, you might consider showing only the slide that gets the message across the most effectively and hide the others. If during the presentation you feel you need to go to these slides, they are available. - Is there a good flow from one slide to the next? The slides tell a story, so you should be able to easily transition from one slide to the next. - Are your slides clear and easy to read? If you have more than 5 bullets, or if your font is too small, you should consider reworking the slides to simplify them, or break them into separate slides if there are more than one message per slide. - Are all images appropriate for the audience? If pictures are fuzzy, it might be worth removing them completely or replacing them with a clearer image. - Do any of the PowerPoint transitions and enhancements distract from your presentation? Typically, it is best to minimize the number of fancy PowerPoint transitions and enhancements because the audience can get distracted or tire of them quickly. - Does your last slide summarize the key message that you want the audience to remember?

Remember that your manager should never be surprised by anything that you are presenting, so always make sure to set a meeting with him or her to go over your slides and presentation so that they can provide suggestions and guidance. Your manager might be able to help you identify and prepare responses to potential objections and questions. Even if they don't come up, it is best to be prepared ahead of time, and ideal to have a coordinated response with your manager. That way, your manager can quickly jump in and support you during the presentation if a tense situation comes up.

H. Look the part

When you are presenting, your audience will be looking at you. Your words are trying to get a message across, and the way you dress can help strengthen your credibility.

For example, if you are presenting a plan-of-action (POA) to the sales force, and the theme is based on the key strategy of ‘knocking out the competition’, then you might want to take a risk and dress as a boxer. Trust me, this will be memorable in the reps’ minds, and this will help ensure that they understand your key message.

Now if you are presenting financial or strategic data to senior management, you will be best served by dressing professionally. Remember that as a marketer, you are always selling, even to senior management. You want the management team to trust your capabilities and to buy into the financial or strategic plan that you have put together.

I. Be yourself

Of course your style will be influenced by the purpose of your presentation and your audience, but it is important to be yourself. A genuine presenter will usually win the audience over. Also sometimes, despite the best pre-presentation preparation, things happen. Instead of freezing or being mortified, it is best to laugh it off and move on. Things happen and most people will be understanding if you roll with the punches with a sense of humour.