| Tired of having
your ideas ignored, compromised, talked down? Here is
a way to make sure that your messages capture hearts
and minds. In five steps we show you how to win when
putting your case.
1 Know your audience
The most powerful way of differentiating yourself is
to know your audience – one person or many. If
you are trying to influence someone you don’t
know, then you’re just guessing.
- What do your listeners want, what do they trust?
Take a little effort to find out.
Ask what is important to them right now. What is their
work/social/educational situation? What makes them
proud or loyal? What excites them, gets them interested?
- Find out by chatting to people; use the internet,
read reports, other messages they have received and
information relevant to them. Finally, be prepared
to talk directly to them in advance to understand
their needs.
2 Understand their agenda
From the knowledge you now have of your listeners, what
will most influence them to make a decision in your
favour? What is their criteria? Experts have identified
three factors which motivate us:
- What’s practical and logical? Appeal to the
rational side of people. If you don’t do this,
you aren’t connecting with their map of reality.
Cost, efficiency, delivery, fitness for purpose, are
the things that people have on their checklist.
- What are the key cultural influencers? Think about
the culture in which they operate, peer group pressures
or position in the organisation. Who do they answer
to and what are they responsible for? List the factors
that you think are important from your step one research.
- Empathy: how does it feel? Less tangible and predictable
is how people respond emotionally to a proposition.
Even if you get the first two right, people may still
make an emotional decision about you or your message.
Understand the inconvenience, discomfort, frustration
or disappointment people have which your proposal
might address. Empathy helps create rapport and provides
comfort.
3 The building blocks
Think more than you write or speak. Most people want
to fully understand the point of your message –
the proposition, idea, solution – rather than
the detailed process behind it.
- Be concise. Less is more. At this level you need
to gain their interest as the first stage of buy-in.
If they come back asking questions, you have rapport.
Use few, clearly presented benefits.
- Spell out the benefits. What will your proposition
offer that your audience don’t have now? What’s
in it for them? Make sure that what you offer is relevant
and that the benefits are real for them.
- Prove it. What is your evidence that what you propose
is right, will work, is better etc? Use facts, statistics,
examples, demonstration to support your case. Wherever
possible use a picture or graphic to make the point
– it’s more memorable and has greater
impact.
4 Putting it all together
A simple structure for your message provides coherence,
comfort and clarity and avoids leaving your audience
confused.
- Decide precisely your subject. Write a simple one-line
objective which best describes the point of your message.
Then expand it into a series of stages, adding in
the information you need. You then have a basic structure.
- Review what you have developed and now, with an
editing hat on, make it as concise as you can, cutting
out extra detail and making tough decisions on what
should stay.
- You should have a beginning which sets the scene
and shares with the audience the challenge, pain points
or opportunity. This should lead the audience through
curiosity, expectation or even drama to your proposition.
The benefits can follow or even be introduced in advance
of the proposition. Use your evidence at all stages.
At the end, summarise both the proposition and benefits.
5 Delivery
Engaging your audience. Stories play well and are memorable,
but be sure that they don’t overcomplicate and
add time to your presentation. Choose wisely. Always
visualise how you want people to feel at the end of
your presentation and work to achieve that effect in
your choice or words, images and visuals and stories.
- Involve your audience at the beginning. If you are
presenting to one or many, ask questions to understand
what they expect from your presentation – you
have a better chance of managing their expectation.
Tell them what is important (for them) in what you
are presenting and what time you will need.
- Move through your structure, preferably with some
visual support. Make eye contact with all of your
audience and look for their agreement or recognition
as you build your case.
- When you are finished, clearly restate your key
points and recommendations, and take questions. Be
prepared to be honest and if you can’t answer
a relevant question, turn it into a constructive audience
involvement and promise to come back with an answer!
Could our specialist internal communications consultancy
help your organisation to be more effective? Click
for an initial discussion.
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