Unforgettable Presentations Darren LaCroix, Mark Brown

Script writing takes work and the practical, time-saving methods that Darren and Mark discuss today will make the process easier. Listen as they examine how to create your first script, edit with impact, and use your script as a presentation roadmap. 
 
SNIPPETS:
• You can’t edit what you don’t create
 
• In Microsoft Word use DICTATE to generate a transcript
 
• Create your ‘sloppy first copy’
 
• Separate each line of your script
 
• Add LINE NUMBERS in Google Docs, MS Word, etc.
 
• Add WORD COUNT
 
• Insert PAGE NUMBERS
 
• Insert LINE NUMBERS
                                           
• Customize with pause cues, timing cues, emotion cues, and stage direction
 
• Color code notes as you wish
 
• Say it better with fewer words

Quotations from famous speakers, authors, and celebrities can be very appealing and can support your message. The same can be said of oft-quoted statistics. Today Mark and Darren discuss the importance of accuracy when using quotes and statistics, share a few examples, and provide simple yet effective advice for ‘getting it right.’
 
SNIPPETS:
 
• Do due diligence
 
• Your reputation and credibility are at stake
 
• Verification sources abound…web searches, AI, etc. Use them
 
• “Stop quoting dead white men!” – Patricia Fripp
 
• Create your own quotes
 
• Quote the people who have influenced you…teachers, friends, family
                                           
• Your audience needs your perspective
 
• Verify EVERY quotation for accuracy
 
• Double check the context of every quote and statistic
 
• Name the source of each quote and statistic
 
• Your accuracy…and inaccuracy has a global reach

Sometimes, even after your best pitch, the answer is “No.” But that need not be the end of the relationship. Darren and Mark offer some sage wisdom about taking advantage of every ‘no,’ and sometimes turning a “no” into  “yes.”
 
SNIPPETS:
• No can mean several things
 
• “Not yet, not the right time, not the best fit”
 
• Be remembered
 
• Have CONTENT and INTENT
 
• Don’t take “no” personally
 
• Build relationships, regardless of the outcome
                                           
• Play the long game
 
• Record and replay each sales call to learn from every “no”
 
• Be a referral resource when you get a “no”
 
• Be a favorite

In this follow-up to Episode 253 (What Do You Ask An Event Planner) Mark and Darren talk about questions to ask participants ahead of your speaking engagement. This episode will help you to unearth critical material and help you to customize your unforgettable presentation. 
 
SNIPPETS:
• Discover the organization’s mentors, matriarchs, patriarchs, and legends
 
• Get permission to call event attendees
 
• Schedule a 10-minute call to weeks before the event
 
• Ask questions and listen carefully to answers
 
• Learn the organization’s language
 
• Find out why they attend these events
                                           
• Ask about taboo topics
 
• Find stories that connect to your content
 
• Invite them to seek you out at the event
                                           

You’ve got the speaking engagement, now what? What can the event planner tell you to help you to deliver an unforgettable presentation? Darren and Mark discuss the pre-event questionnaire and offer insight into how you can set yourself up for presentation success.
 
SNIPPETS:
• Prepare an Event Planners Questionnaire
 
• Have a call and connect casually first (video is ideal)
 
• Ask questions and listen carefully to answers
 
• Your client is the event planner
 
• Identify the economic buyer
                                           
• Read the Zoom room
 
• Be a Planner-Pleaser
 
• Critical question: Ask about taboo topics
 
• Ask about recent company/organization changes
                                           
• Strive to be their favorite
 
• Ask permission to interview 10 event attendees
                                           
• Start your own questionnaire as an editable document

“Why would I need TWO coaches?” you may ask. To answer that question, Mark and Darren have a conversation with Stage Time University coaches Chris McGuire and Mike Davis. They have coached together, as have Mark and Darren, and in today’s discussion they explain the benefits of having a duo coaching team.
 
SNIPPETS:
• Different coaching styles are complimentary
 
• Different perspectives create multiple options for clients
 
• Client gets twice the value in half the time
 
• Coaches learn from each other
 
• Coaches become better when they coach together
                                           
• Duo coaching is more engaging
 
• Duo coaching is more dynamic
 
• Duo coaches trigger each other’s thoughts
 
• Duo coaches must check their ego
                                           
• Duo coaches grow in each other’s strengths
 
• Duo coaches must be sponges
                                           
• Batman and Robin roles interchange