Guest post by Brette Goldstein, Casting Director & Coach, NYC
Even though tons of marketing is done online these days, there is still a critical marketing skill that a lot of entrepreneurs and marketers haven’t mastered: how to do a great presentation.
Part 3. Continued from last week.
Action!
“I love the smell of napalm in the morning!”
Tips for the big day. Don’t over caffeinate. Do wake up refreshed, do brush your teeth and do rinse with Biotene to avoid cotton mouth. Do wash pits and wear antiperspirant. I have refrained from giving actors callbacks based on funk and yellow pit stains. Basic rule: Your audience should think you’re not gross. They’ll be more likely to not text or run to the restroom during your presentation.
Look decent. Shave. Or don’t. Wear whatever makes you feel strong and f*!%able within the context of the where, when, who, what, how of your presentation. We listen to people we like to look at. And if you look like Paul Giamatti, don’t forget your sense of humor.
“You talkin’ to me?”
Make eye contact with audience members. Even the ones at the back of the room. Hey, focus on the pretty ones if you want to…or the smiley head-nodders, whatever floats your boat. The goal here is to make sure that every man and woman in the room feels that you know them, you “get it” and that they’re going to be better for listening to your spiel.
“This one goes to eleven.”
Raise your voice only if it won’t turn people off or physically hurt them. Know your space. You should be speaking fully and clearly so that the person farthest away can hear you. That’s it. Pause on the “beats” (or the end of thoughts or ideas) so that your audience can take in what you just said, regroup and join you on your next train of thought.
“I feel the need—the need for speed!”
Don’t rush. Actors often rush through monologues because they’re concerned about taking too much of my time. Rushing never works.
“Houston, we have a problem.”
You might lose that train of thought. That’s just fine. You can mess up as long as you do it with humor. I am much more inclined to hire an actor who stops a few lines in to a sucky audition if they laugh and shake it off with something like, “Wow. I have no idea what’s coming out of my mouth right now. Whoo! Let’s take this from the top, shall we?” If you get disoriented, nervous, tongue-tied, distracted or just plain ol’ lost, show your audience that you’re human. It’s okay to be honest, laugh at your mistakes and re-start your train of thought. Just breathe. We like knowing that speakers (our fearless leaders in that set of given circumstances) are just like us. Don’t people fear public speaking more than death?
“I see dead people.”
Relax. It’s cool. I do a lot of presentations on acting technique. Sometimes actors look bored, annoyed or downright hostile while I am speaking. This is surprising because I’m pretty funny and say the f-word a lot, which people seem to dig. What’s interesting is that these always seem to be the folks that come up to me later and tell me how amazing or life-changing my presentation was for them. I like to laugh and tell them that they could have fooled me with their grumpy douchebag face. (I wouldn’t do this unless you’re a casting director.) Just know that some people are intense and look mean when they listen (apparently I do this once in a while) or they are auditory and take in information with their ears, not their eyes. I’ve been in audition sessions for plays where the director looks up at an actor during his or her audition once or twice. They’re not bored, they’re listening. It’s annoying, but don’t take people and their stuff personally or make any assumptions. The guy in the second row nodding enthusiastically as you are talking may just be thinking about sex and Chinese food.
“A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.”
There may be questions. Listen and then breathe so you can respond intelligently. If you don’t know, you don’t know. Don’t make s^%t up. Some of your audience members may have things to say. Some of it won’t be nice. Practice fielding hostile questions or responses with your wolf pack. It’ll save you a lot of grief. Stay open and don’t forget that humor is key.
“You can’t handle the truth!”
To that end, some information and stats may be difficult for your audience to receive. Remember, personal stories – your own and others’ – are a palatable and digestible way to ingest challenging information. Especially if there is a happy ending. They’re easier to empathize with and harder to refute.
“Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
Don’t just disappear. Let your audience know how to communicate with you, even if that just means referring them to your website. If your audience and your colleagues are one in the same, invite them to continue the “dialogue”. People want to feel that their voice is being heard…that they have a say. They don’t want to be lectured.
“May the force be with you.” or “I’ll be back.”
Now go out there and kick ass, tiger.
Brette loves to bring her clients’ compelling energy, voice, strength, humor and f*&%ability to the forefront; coaching leaders, businessmen and activists in media, image and presentation. In her other life as a casting director, Brette loves great actors, directors and scripts and bringing everyone together for one big lovefest.
She has cast over 40 films and lots of theatre, commercials and other cool stuff.
