by Anne B. Freedman
Went to an excellent Business Plan “Boot Camp*” yesterday and a good chunk of it was spent urging us to write tightly, to try get across our new business concept in seven words or less at first, and then, down to three words. I confess, despite being an experienced writer and former journalist, it was a humbling exercise.
When you start putting your ideas together for a spoken presentation – whether a “pitch” for business or an internal meeting – one of the most challenging parts is condensing your many varied and often brilliant thoughts into convincing ones that will capture and keep the listener’s attention.
After determining exactly who they are trying to persuade and why, I encourage my clients to begin by letting it “all hang out.” That is, write down everything they could possibly say, in no particular order. Then, write out what the competition might say about the idea, product or service. Consider and list what it doesn’t do. Identify at least a half dozen distinct benefits for the listener (your boss, client, board, investor, etc.) that will accompany a decision to give a “yes” answer to your presentation and list them. This process is similar to any other important business or nonprofit organization writing project, and to what I saw in the Business Plan Writing Boot Camp.
The key difference between writing well for the eye – which is what a business plan, blog, proposal or brochure requires – and writing effectively for the mouth, is that once you assemble your message, you’ve got to be able to say it, comfortably and convincingly.
My recommendation? As you brainstorm and write out your points and ideas, speak them aloud right away. It may slow up your “let it all hang out” brainstorming a bit, but you’ll have a much better handle, far sooner, on what you can express well face-to-face. Save or edit the stuff you trip over saying or that sounds boring to you, for a written document. In other words, get out of your own way, and you’ll enjoy better connections between your ideas, your mouth and your listener. As always, rehearse, rehearse, rehearse! Remember, actors practice for hours to make their performances look “natural.”
(* http://www.entrepreneurship/fiu.com. Don’t miss the great Boot Camp series at Florida International University’s Pino Entrepreneurial Center. Upcoming, very reasonably priced sessions focus on Marketing, Finance, Networking and Selling. I am still sifting through what I’ve learned and realize how much I don’t know!)
