How do you start your presentation?

What is the first thing you talk about?

• If you are proposing to launch a new product, do you talk about the 'new product' right at the start?
• If you are offering a solution to a problem, do you start with the 'solution'?
• If you are seeking a sponsorship, do you start with 'how much money you want'?

Yesterday I was chatting with a senior manager from one of world's leading technology companies. This manager makes high-stakes presentations in her company. On asking, how should one start a presentation she said this:

"Find out what your audience already knows about your topic. Start your presentation from there. Start by tapping into their existing knowledge. Go where the audience is standing right now. Then take them along a journey and leave them where you want them to be by the end of your presentation."

If you are proposing to launch a new product, start from what the audience already knows. Talk about the market situation now and then draw their attention to a gap you have identified.

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