My student began her 4-minute-safety-moment presentation… “My sister-in-law was waiting for my brother to come home from work one night. It was getting dark. He must be running late. Finally headlights showed up in the driveway. But they weren’t his headlights. It was his manager and the safety manager. Three days later we buried my brother.”

WOW! She had the audience’s attention. For the next 3 minutes she gave us simple safety measures we can all take to make sure we are aware of our surroundings and cognizant of our actions. This is a great example of starting off a presentation with something different. Within 10 seconds of speaking, she had everyone paying attention. We all wanted to hear what she would say next.

Choose to Open and Close Presentations Different

As we pointed out last week, your audience will tune out if you start your presentation and it sounds like every other boring presentation they’ve heard before. You’re doing your audience a favor by giving them something different. You’re actually engaging their brains at a whole new level.

Two models we teach in our Corporate Ovations workshop for opening and closing a presentation are called CABA (to open) and MAS (to close.)  Most professionals I see presenting will deliver the C and B of the CABA model. And, most will only give the A and the S of the MAS formula. Here’s a quick tutorial on how to use each model to engage your audience with your next presentation.

CABA to Open

• Credibility – Let the audience know why YOU are speaking, without crossing the line into arrogance or bragging. The audience just wants to know that you are a trusted source for the information.
• Attention – You’ve heard this before, get the audiences’ attention right from the start. So, do it! Use a story or an interesting fact, or refer to something one of your executives said to shareholders.
• Body – This is the easy one. It’s a preview of the presentation body. Just tell the audience where the bus is going.
• Audience – Give them a reason to listen. How will they benefit from what you are about to share?

MAS to Close

• Memorable – Leave the audience with something memorable. Just like my student in Houston did. No one will ever forget the importance of safety in the workplace. (See her memorable close below.)
• Action – If the audience liked what they heard, they’ll want to know the next step. What is it they should do now? Tell them what to do next! (e.g. “Remember this”, “share this”, “approve this”, “teach others”, etc.)
• Summary – Remind them where they started and give a brief summary of the trip (presentation). Don’t go into a lot of detail here. Adult audiences do not appreciate being told the same thing over and over.

Do you want to know how my student finished her safety-moment presentation in class? I’ll never forget it and I don’t think the other students will either. It was enough to draw tears from the audience. You could’ve heard a pin drop. It was what I call a “drop-the-mic” moment.  Here’s what she said…

“At the end of the day it’s not about the free hats, free t-shirts, or even the safety bonus… It’s about YOUR headlights… in YOUR driveway.”

DOUBLE WOW!! We don’t have to try and draw tears every time we speak, but I wanted you to hear one example of just how powerful this formula can be when it’s used properly. If your audience isn’t listening, you’ll have a hard time conveying anything to them.

Don’t let your audiences down by giving them the same old presentations this year. Make a New Years’ commitment right now to try something different in your next presentation. Try the CABA and MAS formula. Then, leave comments here so we can all learn together.

Thanks for starting your year with me.
Best,
Russ

LAST WEEK:  One thing you can do this year to improve your influence – Leverage “Different”
THIS WEEK: Part 1 of 3: How to Leverage the Power of Different – Place Bookends on your Presentation
NEXT WEEK:  Part 2 of 3: How to Leverage the Power of Different – Visual Attention
IN 2 WEEKS: Part 3 of 3: How to Leverage the Power of Different -Stories vs. Data

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Russ Peterson Jr. is the co-founder and Managing Director of iSpeak, Inc. – An award-winning professional development training company. Russ is a published author on Professional Sales Communication and Business Communication. He delivers workshops, keynotes, and personal communication coaching services to business professionals in the US and around the world. You can connect with Russ directly through Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.