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February 2009 Visit Distinction's Digital
Coach Podcast Library! |
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Fresh
New Approaches for Challenging
Times
This quarter you'll notice we've changed our newsletter
format a bit. The reason? Your Inbox is probably a lot
like ours - too much email, too few hours! So we've made some
changes to respect your time. Enjoy these short subject TIPS.
Our goal is always simple - we want you and your important
messages to stand out from the crowd every time. Can you think
of anything more important in times like
these? |
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One Audience - Two Very Different Expectation
Levels
Here's the
challenge: You walk into a meeting room and in your
audience you have some senior managers, mid-level directors and a
group of engineers. Most likely, each group is looking for some very
different things from you. The senior managers in the room typically
want a 30,000-foot level briefing on your proposed initiative or
product. Unfortunately, there are others in attendance who are
looking for a more granular level of detail into how
you're going to make it all work. Someone is going to be
disappointed somewhere. In the past, you've probably met the
expectations of one group or the other... but rarely both.
The
solution: Here's a proven tip for giving everyone
what they need. During your introductory comments tell your
mixed audience you will be providing two levels of information
today...
"Good
morning. I want to respect your time this morning. During
the first 10-minutes of my presentation I'd like to provide a
high level summary of the value of our new product (or project) and
the impact it's having on organizations like yours. Then we'll be
taking a brief one-minute break. If you've got
all the information you need from me today, please feel free to
leave. You have my email address if you need additional
detail. Following a short break, I will be doing a deeper dive into
the specifications for the product and how it can
easily integrate into your current IT processes. At the
end of that time, I'll take your questions. Let's get
started..."
You've just pulled off
the impossible - The attending executives got
what they wanted. The mid-level managers and
engineers got the detail important to them. And you're the hero
because you've clearly demonstrated you respect their
time equally. You've put a strategic and tactical message
in one presentation and made it work. Expect an invite
back. | |
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A Personal Note from Jim
____________________________________________________
Let us know what
you think of our new format. Feedback for Jim.
Communication
excellence as a competitive advantage
This coming year will certainly bring some new
challenges for all of us. And Distinction wants to make sure
you and your teams make every high stakes sales message, every
leadership communication opportunity and every
partner pitch count. There's no such thing as a "do-over"
presentation and opportunities should never be lost based on a
failure to deliver an effective message.
Here are some
ways Distinction can dramatically impact how your organization
communicates your important messages in
2009...
Why? Because there has
never been a more critical time for leaders to build
trust. And trust and confidence is rarely a by-product of
what is communicated, but most often how.
Better equip your sales
organization with more confident sales
presentation skills
You may lose a deal because of better competition - but
NEVER lose a sale because of weak
presentation skills. It's happening today more than you can
imagine.
Let us re-message/design your
presentations so they are powerful vehicles for creating
action. Good presentations should help your prospects actually
"get" key messages much more quickly. How do your
presentations measure up today?
Let Distinction help you
leverage every important moment in 2009! 
Jim Endicott,
President - Distinction Communication, Inc.
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