I got your attention, didn't I? You must be wondering.. what is it I need to know, more than anything else. And the more I digress, the more you want to know. You may be thinking right now whether I am dangling a carrot right in front of you. Yes, you are absolutely right. Question is, why are you still reading this since there’s every possibility I may just be playing a fool with you. Well, let’s just say that you have no choice. You have come thus far and you seriously need to know what is that something that now, more than ever, you need to know. Give you a clue. It is a secret that a lot of top-notch speakers adopt to have their audience eating from their hands. It is a persuasion technique that has been subtlely added in the sales pitch, without you knowing. It is a formula that once you understand will serve you well.

In James C. Hume’s bestseller “Speak Like Churchchill, Stand Like Lincoln”, he termed this secret, technique and formula as the Power Button.

In an essay, you can easily draw attention to phrases or words by highlighting it, increasing its font size or italicizing it. But how do you do that in a speech? Well, you can raise your voice or switch the tone of your voice. However, I have seen skilful speakers adopting the Power Button Strategy to have you eating from their hands. It preps you up for the line to follow, usually an important line that the speaker wants you to remember.

For example, LET ME AGAIN SAY WHAT I ALWAYS TELL THOSE CRITICS OF AMERICA [pause]… we will…

Or THE SECRET OF HOTEL MANAGEMENT IS SIMPLE. IT CAN BE SUMMED UP THIS WAY [pause]… our customers must always come first.

The line in caplocks is the power button. Once you hit the power button, you effectively get the attention of your audience. They are going to pay attention to what you have to say next. However, a power button only works when the proceeding sentence is an important one. It could be your message or key idea. The zinger line that you want to use to burn a hole in your listeners’ ears.

You can think of the power button as a preamble to what’s important. It can be as simple as “WhAT I AM GOING TO SHARE WITH YOU NEXT IS GOING TO WORTH ALL YOUR TIME SITTING HERE…” Remember to insert a pause before you tell them the zinger line.

That’s right. The power button preps your audience for something impactful or important to come. The pause creates the suspense. And of course the zinger line blows your audience away.

Eric Feng is the go-to guy if you want to learn how to impress your investors and customers through public speaking. For more tips and tactics that you can use immediately in your next presentation, visit The Public Speaking Blog.

• 0 Comments

  

Comments

 Add your own comments

Name:

Email Address:

URL:
Remember Me? YesNo

Comments: (you may use HTML tags for style)

What next?

 Digg it

 Save This Page

 Subscribe to GetEntrepreneurial.com

 Leave a comment

Next Article: Selling the Customer What the Customer Needs - Not What You Want »

Previous Article: Why Sleep Is Not An Option! »

Eric Feng is a GE Network Expert. View Eric Feng's profile or read more articles from Eric Feng. Learn more about the GE Experts Network.

Have an expert opinion on issues entrepreneurs and small business owners face everyday? Join the GetEntrepreneurial.com Experts Network and share your expertise with the community!

The new GE Experts Network is inviting seasoned entrepreneurs and small business owners to come on board and contribute small business advice to our community of aspiring entrepreneurs. If you have an effective way of generating sales or you know how to use social networking to connect with your customers, join us in providing wider entrepreneurial content that would benefit small business owners worldwide.

Click Here to Learn More >>

Related Articles

 Green Liquids to Make Your House Clean » Trendwatching: In an ECO-ICONIC world, visibility counts, for big and small products alike. Which, in the case of cleaning products, means exposure will...

 Lava Lamp Shot Glasses » CoolBuzz: They say after you have had your fill of booze, you might just end up seeing stars. But here's an innovative idea...

 Shirt History » CoolHunting: Re-Shirt is an Austrian-based company that resells second-hand t-shirts. What sets them apart from other online boutiques is that every shirt comes...

 Urban Mining » A recent Reuters wire story (picked up here in the International Herald Tribune) describes the new trend of "urban mining" - of...

Need more brand new promising business ideas and innovations around the world you wish you'd thought of? Visit CoolBusinessIdeas.com now!

Ever wanted to be the CEO of your very own Starbucks or Amazon.com? Fire your boss and be your own boss? Now you can, with BIZNESS! - the free biweekly business newsletter about new business ideas, opportunities and innovations from around the world. More than just new business trends, BIZNESS! helps the aspiring entrepreneur (you!) with small business advice, business tips, and entrepreneur resources and opportunities.

   Subscribe for free now!    

---