Steve Jobs' keynote presentation at this year's MacWorld conference was not as hyped as some of his talks in the past, but he remains one of the best corporate presenters. Consultant Garr Reynolds, on his Presentation Zen blog, culls these six lessons:
Develop rapport with the audience
Mr. Jobs walked on the stage, all smiles, without an introduction, welcomed everyone, and then very quickly reviewed the year for his company, before thanking everyone. "CEOs often say these kind of things, but in this case it seemed very natural, humble, and heartfelt. Right off the bat he was acknowledging the importance of the audience and that they are the important ones, they are who this presentation is for," Mr. Reynolds notes. Mingling with your audience before a talk is another way to develop rapport.
Give them an idea of where you're going
You don't need the ubiquitous and infamous agenda slide, but you do need to give the audience a road map for the journey you have planned for them. Mr. Jobs announced: "I've got four things I'd like to talk about with you today. So let's get started." He didn't state what those four things were - you might choose to be more specific - but just knowing to expect four major elements helped the audience prepare.
Show your enthusiasm
Most presenters show too little passion or enthusiasm. Each situation, of course, is different, but make sure you summon up the appropriate passion. In just his first few minutes on stage Mr. Jobs used these words: Incredible, extraordinary, awesome, amazing, revolutionary. "You can say he is over the top; call it hype if you want. But Steve Jobs believes what he says. He is sincere. He is authentic," Mr. Reynolds says. The point is not to be like Steve Jobs, but to indicate your own level of passion and bring that honest enthusiasm out.
It's not about the numbers, it's what the numbers mean
When Mr. Jobs uses numbers he breaks them down in ways that makes them comprehensible. For example, four million iPhones sold since the units went on sale is the equivalent of about 20,000 per day. His 20-per-cent market share is compared to competitors.
Make it visual
In unveiling the MacBook Air, the world's thinnest computer, he demonstrates how small its internal mechanism is by projecting a photograph of it onto the huge screen behind him alongside a common pencil. He also presents charts comparing its size to competitors. People may forget the specific numbers, but they'll remember his description that the MacBook Air fits easily into a standard office envelope.
Save the best for last
People make an assessment of your performance in the first two minutes, so you have to start strong. But you have to finish even stronger because people also remember that part. In Mr. Jobs' case, he saved the MacBook Air for last - the fourth thing he wanted to talk about.
