The Compelling Communicator: Mastering the Art and Science of Exceptional Presentation Design - Softcover

Pollard, Tim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0998237310 ISBN 13: 9780998237312

Publisher: Conder House Press, 2016

Synopsis

You attend numerous presentations and meetings a year--filled with the typical dense and disorganized PowerPoint decks--and leave most of them thinking, "Well, that's an hour of my life I'll never get back." But out of this sea of mediocrity, a rare few rise up, captivating you and driving you to action. What makes these few so special?

Despite what most people think, it's not because they were delivered well. It's because they were crafted in a way that deeply aligned with how your brain wants to consume information. The presentations that failed did so precisely because they violated the largely unknown "natural laws" that govern how people actually learn.

In The Compelling Communicator, you will learn a proven process for designing presentations that touch your audience in a highly impactful way, motivating them to take your desired action by:

• Building around a small number of powerful ideas
• Keeping content within the audience's "brain bandwidth"
• Developing logical narrative structure
• Anchoring communication in the listener's priorities
• Creating "mind-sticky" storytelling and visuals
• Crafting handouts that allow your presentation to live on after the handshakes

Filled with examples of exceptional--and not so exceptional--presentations, along with clear explanations of why they do and don't work, this comprehensive guidebook provides every tool you need to become a standout presenter whose message is certain to leave a powerful, lasting impression.

About this title

About the Author

TIM POLLARD is the founder and CEO of Oratium. Throughout the course of designing and delivering approximately 1,000 complex presentations to boards, national conferences, and executive committees, while working for companies as diverse as Unilever, Barclays Bank, and the Corporate Executive Board, Tim never stopped seeking to understand and capture the underlying "science" of extraordinary communication. The result of this journey has been the development of a unique set of tools and processes, and a remarkable ability to teach and coach others on their journey toward exceptional communication. As a result, Tim is one of the world's leading thinkers and writers in the field of advanced communication skills. He is a sought-after speaker, particularly on the topics of executive communications, sales messaging, and donor messaging. Tim and his wife Ruth are British by birth, but now reside in Montana where they're raising their four wonderful kids - three in college and one in high school. Tim is passionate about his family, fly fishing, and his church. You can contact Tim at: TimPollard@Oratium.com

Review

"We've used the approach outlined in this book to change the way our executives make presentations. It has made a huge difference in our success rate with both internal and external customers. It's is actually a fun read, and the concepts aren't hard to implement, but you have be committed to changing the focus of your presentations to what the audience needs to know." -- Sue Graham, CEO, Elantas

"What I most like about this book is its solid basis in cognitive neuroscience, and in particular its focus on how the (audience's) brain really deals with big ideas. This means that the presenter must operate at the level of ideas rather than simply bombarding the listener with data. This was liberating and I'm already seeing the difference it makes." -- Chris Dimock, Company Leader, Elation

"Full disclosure: we used this communications model to move all our solutions messaging away from dense PowerPoints and towards true 'insight messaging' -- with transformative results. This book clearly explains that journey, and the models and tools presented here will make any executive or sales communication radically better; whether a formal presentation, speech or meeting with the boss." -- Michael Edmonds, President - US Business, S&C Electric Company

"I learned more from this book than from my Communications degree. It explains so many things I'd always suspected about the problems of traditional communication." -- Susan S., Instructional Designer, Fortune 50 Company

"This stuff really works. Even though it's rooted in brain science, the process is so practical and easy to apply that you can literally start using the principles the next day. You'll quickly find that your presentations are dramatically better -- more impactful, more memorable, and most importantly, more effective." -- Drew Pace, Executive VP and Head of Global Sales and Marketing (retired), Mellon Financial

"We saw great results out in the market when we used this approach to redesign some really complex commercial messaging. The value of this book is its ability to get you to simple, crisp, clean, compelling messaging that really resonates with your customer's day-in-the-life experience." -- Dave Moeller, National Market Manager, Graybar

"We used this methodology to build several complex research presentations, and the outcome has been outstanding. By applying brain science to business presentations, the author has finally explained WHY "death by PowerPoint" is so serious, and how to fix it. This book is great reading for anyone who wants to be a better communicator." -- Suzanne Duncan, State Street Center for Applied Research

Edition details

• Publisher: Conder House Press
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 0998237310
• ISBN 13: 9780998237312
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 318