Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Use Copywriting principles for your presentations:

If you create presentations to sell or to persuade, deciding what you want to say, and in what order, is obviously extremely important. Copywriting is the best way to do so. Copywriting is usually defined as the art and science of writing to sell. From this process, copywriters have derived tried and true principles for effective selling and persuading.
The most common structure is called AIDA:
• Attention: Get attention.
• Interest: Keep interest
• Desire: Create desire
• Action: Spur action
Get attention
In traditional copywriting, you use the heading to get attention. In a presentation, the first words out of your mouth should get your audience's attention.
• Say or do something to get attention.
• Ask the audience a challenging question
• Display a striking, full-slide photo.
• Put a thought-provoking quote on a slide.
• Tell a meaningful story
Keep interest
You hold people's interest by:
• Making sure the content is relevant to your audience
• Providing information they don't know
• Using the Tell 'n' Show (SM) method to communicate visually
• Interacting with the audience, including eye contact, answering questions, and asking questions
Create desire
Create desire by showing the audience how they can benefit and what your points mean to them. Highly sensorial images also help. If you have customer testimonials, use them.
Spur action
At the end of your presentation, summarize what you've said and state your conclusion. Invite comments so that you have a chance to respond to any concerns. Finish by asking for the next step, whether it is signing a contract, approving a project, or setting up another meeting. Have the necessary materials (the contract, approval form, your calendar) so you can accomplish your goal.

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