A Helpful Process for Hot Presentations Every Time

Does a presentation process sound good to you? If you’re practicing the delivery of key communications for your business, then maybe that’s a big YES!

Are you warming up to using video for business yet?  Trends, analytics, and your most trusted friends in Digital Marketing are all supporting the path leading to video marketing for your brand. 

That’s why I’m researching, writing about, and testing a few things lately. Also, I’m watching tons of videos and LIVE streams to understand what people are doing, and how, with video production.

Let’s face it; there are a million ways to go about it! But in the digital space, video in just about every format creates a massive content library for VOD. And, Video-on-Demand is in a powerful position for overtaking traditional programming and shaking production companies, even major studios, at every level.

Networks are scrambling to gain back their notice or find their place in the digital realm, facing increasing competition in vying for eyes and time. Plus, disruption in the advertising industry is quickly evolving and in total flux, impacting media operations as a whole.

While this portrays opportunities at every turn and in endless directions, it also ups the anti to rising levels of professionalism and creativity along with good old value in every piece of content you deliver.

Digital on Demand

While digital welcomes all—large or small—it can quickly feel like content overload. All of this means that what you produce, present, and how matters more than ever in creating your everlasting digital footprint. Sure, it’s natural that you’ll improve as you go, and you do need to get started. However, delivering value with each production is the key to growing and developing your audience. 

Luckily, Donald Miller (have you read his book, StoryBrand?) recently held a webinar talking about making every presentation valuable by delivering well thought out content, in a compelling way. No matter your topic or industry, Don’s formula for making winning presentations seems spot-on to meet your audience with high value. Best yet, the steps he suggests are repeatable. 

Donald Miller’s Presentation Process Outline

Implementing these rules will help you become a better communicator, and that, says Don, can be a substantial competitive advantage for your business. Further, he suggests that you can increase your professional or “economic” value as a better communicator while delivering memorable presentations. 

I love this system for filtering your communications to ensure you are always bringing the most significant value and presenting the banging best content possible. 

To me, communicating your point compellingly and memorably is the goal of each piece of video content you produce. Having a system like Don’s allows you to look at your thoughts and words more critically to assess whether you are on point. Besides saying exactly what you intend, are you supporting what you say in a way that’s meaningful to others? 

When you are checking off Don’s 7 Rules to filter your thought or message through, you are developing a usable process for creating presentations as a repeatable model. And all while actively organizing an outline for your content delivery plan! 

Don says you can use index cards to work this filtering process and run through the seven rules. Perfect, since streaming pro, Ross Brand just suggested index cards to organize my LIVE stream presentations recently! Sometimes low tech is all you need:)

7 Rules to Filter Your Communications 

Podcasting taught me you do improve with time and practice, but for me, my best podcasts are scripted far more often than spoken off-the-cuff. But for video, especially LIVE video, reading from a script isn’t considered best practice and is usually frowned upon. Except, I don’t want to talk in circles because I’m nervous enough on video, LIVE VIDEO no less! 

Hence the big problem, because doing podcasts as a LIVE streaming video means presenting, not reading, your show’s content. Geez, this means a presentation on camera LIVE—as is in the flesh. Are you feeling your knees wobble right now, too? I think we need Donald Miller’s help right now.

Here’s the list of the 7 rules (or maybe these are more like checkpoints) to guide you in the direction of a solid presentation process. 

First, identify the main idea. “Filter everything through a controlling idea” to create a theme to thread through as you prove this one fundamental idea with your presentation. The central point you are talking about and want people to remember. Working from a controlling idea gives you focus and clarity. It also provides that secret thread to weave throughout! 

Secondly, repeat your main point over and over. Don’t be afraid to make sure your controlling idea is memorable and everyone “gets” it. It’s okay to repeat yourself, just like in branding, because you want your point remembered. You want to be repeatable.

Don suggests that the third technique is for you to “foreshadow a climactic scene” to pull attention and build tension. To do this, you want to allow people to visualize the big victory, or the win, your idea will guide them to—the destiny. 

Bring on the (Reasonable) Drama

Next, or fourth, don’t forget to “apply the proper amount of drama” to make it interesting. Use high and low charges along the way, taking guests closer and then further from the painted destiny for an exciting ride. 

However, don’t apply drama you can’t support, or you’ll be “the boy who cried wolf,” misrepresenting reality and losing credibility. Still, go ahead and pump up your idea! 

Fifth, Don says, be sure to “define what’s at stake.” This is about showing the win or the fall by using a something-is-at-stake story. You want to give people a reason to act and motivate a “do,” which is a strong thread to make your point hit home in a memorable way. 

Sixth, deliver your controlling idea by opening and closing “story loops” to keep an audience’s attention throughout the presentation. These story loops present questions and create cliffhangers to keep the momentum going.  They offer plots and subplots as supporting materials for your big idea and help motivate human behavior. Resolve story loops with a call-to-action or CTA. 

Rule number seven sounds like a simple one, but it is probably one of Don’s list’s most essential concepts. When you are presenting, be sure to “create simple talking points” to maintain clarity. This list acts as your “narrative transportation” for revealing the controlling idea powerfully. 

A Proven Presentation Structure

Adapting your presentations, whether they’re delivered in person or via LIVE or recorded video, using a proven story structure to move or compel people takes practice. But when you get disciplined in covering key talking points, filter ideas through the above rules, and organize your thoughts cohesively, your communications become memorable. 

Ultimately, more than the millions of other aspects to creating fantastic presentations I have been researching and practicing, Donald Miller’s thought, “Great communications can be a competitive advantage for your business,” stands out above all. 

Also, because I’ve been observing examples and sharing what I learn, respecting a person’s time and putting out consistent value is my top priority. It absolutely haunts me to deliver compelling information and ideas to you and do it well. 

So, I’m happy I caught Don’s talk and am pleased to share this presentation process with you. All the bells and whistles, video tricks, and production magic you can find won’t negate the utter importance of your verbal message and delivery. Your thoughts?

Do you have a process for consistently stunning and memorable presentations you use? Let me know in the comments.