Grand Opening: The Key To Great Presentations

Whether you are speaking in front of a civic group or making a sales presentation, your opening can make or break the deal. Unless you grab the audience at the beginning, they'll be sleeping through your most important information.

You must craft an opening that cannot be ignored. Great openings have three things in common:

? they grab the audience's attention away from whatever else they're thinking

? they maintain the audience's interest

? they are colorful, not black and white

So, you might be wondering how to create an opening that will do all those things. Let's look at my top three tips that will help you create your own grabber openings.

#1. Make a startling statement.

There is nothing like a statement that startles, either because it is so counterintuitive or so amazing, that it gets an audience to sit up and take notice. Here's one friend Harry Hoover used recently in a talk about how to think like Leonardo da Vinci. "95 percent of what we know about the brain we have learned in the past 20 years." Now, that got my attention.

#2. Use a powerful quotation.

You can find quotes from famous and not-so-famous people that are applicable either to the speech topic itself, to the audience or best of all to both. For instance, if you were speaking at a Democratic event on the subject of achievement, you might pull out this one from Rose Kennedy. "Superior achievement, or making the most of one's capabilities, is to a very considerable degree a matter of habit."

#3. Use historic events.

Historic events provide much fodder for openings. If you are giving a speech on perseverance on April 16th, see what happened on that day in history. For example: What do the mimeograph machine and the airplane have in common? Their inventors, A.B. Dick and Wilbur Wright were both born on April 16th, and they both toiled for years before their inventions were perfected.

Here's a bonus tip for creating a grabber opening for a speech in a strange city. Check out the telephone directory. Toward the front, they have great information on local history, as well as more contemporary facts. It's a great resource to help you connect with your audience. There you have my top tips for helping you craft grand openings. Now, go grab your next audience.

Ty Boyd, CEO of Ty Boyd Executive Learning Systems (http://www.tyboyd.com), is in the Broadcast Hall of Fame and the Speakers Hall of Fame. He has taught presentation skills to Fortune 1000 executives in more than 34 countries. His Excellence In Speaking Institute celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2005.

---

Planning a Group Meeting

CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE FACILITATOR: As chairperson, focus on the... Read More

Story Telling As a Business Tool

Long long ago, it was the time when time itself... Read More

Super Preparation ? Keys to Getting a Great Start to Every Presentation

Super Preparation ?Keys to Getting a Great Start to Every... Read More

Too Many Choices - Dont Confuse Your Customers

Conventional wisdom is that the more choices customers have, the... Read More

How Storytelling Can Grow Your Business

People love stories. We love to hear about other people,... Read More

The Relationship between Information Sender and Receiver: The Art of Communication

For communication to take place, a message must be transmitted... Read More

A Discussion about Facilitation Skills

Interview with Julia Apple-Smith, Manager of Employee Development at Sauer-Danfoss... Read More

Transitions: Building Bridges to Your Points

Presenters often tell me that they fear losing their train... Read More

How to Convert PowerPoint to Flash Manually

Converting PowerPoint to Flash would be absolutely a good choice... Read More

Fading into Sameness: How Too Many Slides Can Ruin Your Presentation

"I have a love/hate relationship with PowerPoint. In the right... Read More

Painless Presentations

Did the "Painless" part of the title get your attention?Speaking... Read More

Choosing a Company Shirt vendor

Where can you choose a company shirt vendor? There are... Read More

How You Can Save On Conference Calling

In recent years, companies have recognized the need to expand... Read More

Top Ten Rules for Effective Presentations

I am of the belief that the majority of people... Read More

Data Visualization Flash Charts: Information in a Flash

Flash chart, flash map, flash graph may be mistaken for... Read More

Let Me Tell You a Little Story

Once upon a time there was a businessperson who had... Read More

Nonverbal Communication in Business

There are five key elements that can make... Read More

Trade Show Victory!

So you're going to have a booth at a trade... Read More

35 Surefire Ways to Kill a Meeting

1. Play "find the meeting" by changing the location and... Read More

Leaves Your Audience Hungry For More! -- Presentations That Get Results

Regardless, if your goal is to make a sale or... Read More

Tips to Energize Your Presentations

"There can be no knowledge without emotion. We may be... Read More

Presentation Power Does Not Come From PowerPoint

You speak before a group. You present your message. You... Read More

Using Your Audience to Your Advantage

Regardless of what response technique may be convenient in a... Read More

How to Begin a Lesson Plan

DEVELOPING LESSON PLANS: In developing lesson plan formats, two things... Read More

Projector Hire - Choosing the Right One for Your Presentation

Calling a projector hire company will often get you confused... Read More

Cell Phone Dos And Dont During A Meeting

What would we do without our cell phones? Wow, there's... Read More

The Crucial Components of a Lesson Plan

MAKING INFORMATIVE LESSON PLANS: --The performance objectives should answer this... Read More

Problems with the Lecture Format

ALTERNATIVES TO THE LECTURE FORMAT: How often do you use... Read More

Ancient PowerPoint Secrets: Ask Your Grandma!

Yes, there are ancient PowerPoint secrets...secrets your grandmother knows and... Read More

Tough Talk: Bad News Delivered the Right Way

Communicating Bad News The Right WayIt's the rare executive who... Read More

Media Training 101: Mastering the Television Interview

As I travel around the world I always enjoy sampling... Read More

Coaching Tips for Powerful Presentations

Tip #1 The purpose of your speech is to get... Read More

The Who, What, Where and When of Color In Your Documents

This article will help you to assess and maximise the... Read More