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How to Give a Speech
About Your Product or Service
by Silvana Clark
As your business gains local
visibility, you may be invited to speak about your products or services to
business or civic organizations. Here are some tips to help you present a
professional speech while increasing your business contacts.
Public speaking is the number one fear of adults, so
standing before a group of 50-100 people can be a daunting task. But there
are a number of things you can do to ease your stress and present an
effective talk.
1. Practice, practice, practice! Never think that you can speak
casually off the top of your head. Use a few note cards with the key
points written on them. Practice to the point where you can maintain eye
contact with the audience.
2. Find out all you can about the audience ahead of time. What is the
size of the group? Their ages? Is a microphone available? Can you distribute
brochures or business cards?
3. Begin and end your speech with an interesting story, a unique fact,
or a question.
The worst opening is: "This afternoon I'm going to
talk to you about my homebased business." When it is time to conclude
your speech, sit down. The person planning the meeting is on a tight
schedule and will appreciate you speaking for your exact allotted time.
4. Always ask a friend for an unbiased evaluation of your speech and
delivery.
Do you mumble, jingle coins in your pocket, or avoid eye
contact? Is your speech punctuated with "ahs" and "you
knows"? If your speaking ability could use some help, contact a local
Toastmaster's group. They teach public speaking skills in a friendly,
non-threatening atmosphere.
5. Find some way to add an extra touch to your speech.
Bring a sample
of your product or a prop to represent your service. I frequently use
costumes in my speeches, along with small gifts taped under everyone's
chair. I also pass around a hat during my speeches, asking everyone to put
in their business card. Then I hold a drawing and award several door
prizes such as flowers or gourmet coffee—a small price to pay for
getting the names and addresses of everyone in the room.
© by Silvana Clark. Silvana began her professional speaking career in 1990 when
people wanted to know how she got her dog to star in commercials for
leading companies. Those marketing ideas led to her most popular
presentations on marketing and recreation, and the publication of six
books, including Taming the Marketing Jungle, (available on
SilvanaClark.com.
Two of her books are
co-authored by her daughter, Sondra (who wrote her first book at the age
of 8 ).
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