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Giving the Dreaded Group Presentation

Imagine having to stand up in a room full of prospects and give a sales talk. For many people, public speaking is unbearable and, as we all know, one of the biggest fears of a large number of people. Now consider giving that same talk to a group of people, but this time you are with your coworkers next to you waiting to present as well.

It doesn't matter if there are five of you giving a presentation to a large group or just two of you in the home of client, you have to be prepared ahead of time. Determining who is going to do most of the talking, the order in which you speak and where you will sit when others are talking are important in keeping the audience engaged.

Years ago when I first got into the selling professionally, my sales manager would take me with him (or ride along with me to my clients' homes) to critique each other's talks. Mostly he was there to make sure I didn't say something stupid. Before we would go inside a home we would discuss the plan of attack in the driveway. 

Sitting in the car he would say, "I'm going to do all the talking on this one. Don't interrupt unless I say something completely dumb or incorrect," or "You talk and I'll only jump in if you need me." That may sound harsh but it worked. Then he would add, "And act like every word I say is gospel."

 Following his instructions I would sit quietly and act as if I hadn't heard this presentation 100 times already. The client would pick up on this and look at me from time to time. I would glance at the client and then turn my attention back to the manager who was giving his sales pitch with great enthusiasm. The client would then revert their attention back to the manager. 

None of this would have worked if I was looking at my phone (we didn't have cell phones back in the day) or watching the TV. I had to focus on the speaker to get the client to focus on the speaker. And if I acted distracted, so would the client.


This is true when giving presentations to large groups as well. If you are on a dais or stage behind a speaker, act as if you are listening to the person talking. When the audience sees you looking enthralled, no matter how boring the topic is, they will do their best to listen. 

A couple of years ago I was giving some presentations to school teachers about their benefits. Trust me when I say that this is one of the worst topics ever. Teachers work hard, put up with bratty kids and have heard the "benefits talk" dozens of times. You can literally see their eyes glaze over while you discuss their disability plan.

A coworker and I decided to take turns speaking, as there were several talks each day. I noticed that when I spoke my coworker would be staring at her phone or looking at the art work the students had made. I tried to discreetly mention that my talk would be more effective if the teachers saw her paying attention. "Oh, yeah, I guess I shouldn't get distracted," she said looking off into the distance.

Of course she went back to looking at her watch and reading her email while I spoke, so I tried a different approach. At the beginning of my talk I introduced her as "my coworker and personal mentor" as sarcastically as I could. That got a small laugh. Then I would randomly ask her questions as if I was needing her approval. "Did I say that correctly?" I'd ask. She would look up, confused because she had not been listening. 

"Sounds good to me," she would say without a clue. 

Then I would throw in some bizarre reference or observation about one of the products. "This policy will cover you even if you are missing a forehead!" The teachers would start to chuckle and my coworker would look up as if she had missed out on a joke. After doing this several times, she put her phone down and began to wait for my next absurd comment.

Generally speaking, it's best if you have your group discuss a game plan ahead of time. If you are speaking, ask the other speakers to pay attention to you for "feedback" later. And if you are waiting to speak, have a pen and a pad of paper with you to look as if you are taking notes. The end goal is to keep the audience engaged, because if one of you makes the sale, you all make the sale. 

Chris Castanes is a professional speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. He's also the author of "You're Going To Be Great At This!", a humorous look at sales. For booking information, click here. He's also the president of Surf Financial Brokers selling life and disability insurance in several states.

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