| |
| |
|
Internet Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Internet Marketing and Public Speaking: The Murder Board Practice
I recently posted an article titled "Internet Marketing and Public Speaking: Ten Tips for When the Twain Shall Meet." One of the tips concerned a means to practice your sales presentation with a "Murder Board." I received several emails requesting a fuller explanation of this practice method. I decided to write two explanatory articles, so vital is this method to improve one's public speaking, specifically in preparing a presentation aimed at selling off-line your on-line product. In this article, I'll provide an in-depth explanation of this practice method; in the second, I'll cover the seven steps need for a successful Murder Board. Simply stated, the Murder Board is a realistic simulation of the actual presentation to be made. Colleagues role-play the audience, asking the type of questions they believe this specific group is likely to ask. It is intended to be more difficult than the actual presentation. If you want to become an effective and persuasive presenter to boost your on-line marketing, this realistic practice session is the most effective shortcut to speaking excellence. It allows you to make your mistakes when they don't count, increasing the odds that you will shine when the actual presentation is made. The Origin of the Murder Board The term Murder Board has its origins within the U.S. military, specifically within the extensive training system of the U.S. Army. When a person has been selected to be an instructor at an Army school, he or she must go through a demanding instructor training program. Graduation and designation as an instructor is dependent not on a written test, but successful delivery of a 50 minute class from the curriculum of the school. The audience for this crucible can be instructors who have gone through their own Murder Board, and are determined that this would-be instructor will experience the same frustration and humiliation they did. They ask tough, realistic, questions, the type of questions their students are asking. At the end of the 50 minute class, the aspiring instructor gets a a thumbs up-meaning he or she can now join this band of brothers and sisters as an instructor, or a thumbs-down, meaning another "opportunity" to go through a Murder Board. Lessons from the Pentagon This realistic simulation has permeated the military culture. As an example, when I ran the Defense Intelligence Agency's (DIA) briefing team, we had three Murder Boards before the daily briefing to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The first one was at 5:30 AM, the second at 6:30 AM, the third in front of two General officers and all the analysists, one hour later. By the time my briefer or I was standing in front of the Chairman, those intense sessions had provided the right answers to virtually any conceivable question the Chairman was likely to ask. Why have a Murder Board? This painstaking practice session has two overriding objectives: 1. Hone delivery skills 2. Anticipate probable questions and objections so succinct, accurate answers can be developed. Many presenters, while accepting the need to sharpen delivery skills, reject the idea of a Murder Board, confident they can anticipate the difficult questions likely to be asked, and need not practice in front of others, especially their peers. These people may actually be displaying a false bravado to mask their discomfort at speaking in front of a group, perhaps exposing their lack of skill in the presentation art, and/or their apprehension at giving a less than sterling performance in front of their colleaqgues. They are also very mistaken. I have given more than 3000 presentations, and always find it beneficial to conduct a Murder Board before an important talk. No matter how hard we try to think of tough questions that may be asked, a little censor in our mind generally provides only questions to which we already have answers. In my executive training workshops, I always emphasize the importance of a Murder Board, and the practice presentations made by my clients are set up as Murder Boards to get them accustomed to this simulation. I am in good company in believing that we need other minds to assist us in preparing for a sales or other presentation.. The man who possessed perhaps the greatest mind of the 20th Century, Albert Einstein, realized that even he needed help. He once said: "What a person does on his own, without being stimulated by the thoughts and experiences of others, is even in the best cases rather paltry and monotonous." The Murder Board is the presenter's version of the actor's dress rehearsal, what lawyers do in preparing a witness to face cross-examination in a trial, what the flight simulator is to the pilot. Just as with the actor, the witness, and the pilot, this simulation permits the presenter to learn from his/her mistakes, so that the actual presentation is (1) more responsive to the informational needs of the audience, (2) answers are developed for likely questions to be asked, and (3) overall speaking confidence and competence enhanced. The Murder Board enables you to visualize the presentation in advance. Not only is proficiency in speaking increased by such a meticulous practice, so too is self-confidence. Public speaking ranks high in the pantheon of phobias because, in large measure, of the apprehension that one is going to be embarrassed by not being able to answer questions from the audience. If you have been able to anticipate questions, then you can develop answers ahead of time. Think back to when you were in college or graduate school. Your GPA would probably have been higher if you could have seen the questions before the final exams. The Murder Board permits the presenter a look at the audience's probable "exam questions." The only obstacle to developing a question-anticipating simulated presentation is your imagination and willingness to take hard hits in practice so you can be more effective in the actual presentation. Copyright 2005 Larry Tracy This article is excerpted from Larry Tracy's book, The Shortcut to Persuasive Presentations. Larry, a retired Army colonel, has been cited in numerous publications as one of the top presentation skills trainers in the US. His website is at top of Google for "persuasive presentations. Visit it for FREE tips and additional articles: http://www.tracy-presentation.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Internet-Marketing - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Part Time Internet Marketing with A Full Time Approach The deluge of people wanting to make money on the internet has exploded in the past few years. It's getting to the point where anyone that has a computer has heard of or has been tempted by such income. Grab that Browser! The Captive Affiliate Marketing Model Creating mini-sites that grab your browsers and prime them into buyersIf you're familiar with autoresponders this will be simple, but yet many affiliates don't even think of this, and I can understand why - because when you glance over this idea it seems a little over-enthusiastic for making a simple commission based sale. But this is a common flaw in affiliate marketing - we're stuck in this mindset of keeping things as simple as the concept suggests. The Biggest Internet Marketing Mistake Victorias Secret Will Never Make Victoria's Secret has about 1500 retail stores, a world class catalog, and according to Alexa.com, a website that is consistently in the top 100 websites on the plenet, as measured by traffic. Strategic Internet Marketing Is Planning Strategic Internet marketing is a way to define your potential market. Before you build a website or Internet business you must studying your potential customers, examine your competition, and explore your opportunities for success. Who You Trust and Who You Dont! For the last couple weeks I have been running a 5-minute survey of marketing trends. Several hundred people have given their input. Collective Courtesy I don't know what you are promoting, or what methods you prefer, but I'll bet I know one thing for sure. When you post an ad, display a banner, or enter your site into a traffic rotation, you want people to take the time to look at your offer. Viral Marketing - Use This Free Reminder Service to Go Viral The busier you are the harder it is to remember all those appointments. Now you can get an E-Mail everyday to remind you of all your important appointments. 10 Explosive Ways To Turbo-Boost Your Sales 1. Design your web site to be a targeted resource center. Google AdWords and AdSense - A Dynamic Small Business Marketing Duo Unless you have been living under a rock for the last year or so, you probably know that Google has become the king of the search engine hill. There are many reasons for this but number one in my opinion is that above all else they put value on content. Top 3 Free Marketing Techniques If you have zero budget then this is the article for you. In this article I will discuss the best ways to market your website for free. 7 Incredibly Simple Ways To Profit Wildly From Public Domain Material If you're in the business of marketing online, a major portion of your income will come from your ability to deliver quality content and products to your market.Now, besides creating these yourself, one of the quickest and cheapest way to acquire all the content and products you need is in the public domain. Internet Promotion - Advantages and Disadvantages The emergence of globalise trade, increase in foreign investment and cross-border transactions have put many small businesses under pressure to find innovative ways to continue to market their products and services. This is especially difficult given that they often operate on tight marketing budgets. Believability - Youve Either Got It or You Aint! Believability is what's missing, and the majority of all businesses have the same problem. They advertise Institutionally, they fail to inform and educate their potential customers, they believe (and sometimes it's true), that they have the best product/service in their field. Online Promotion Ideas: How To Use 10 Free Bonuses To Increase Your Sales & Profits Free bonuses are like honey that can get your website visitors hooked to you and make them to keep buying from you.So, below are some online promotion ideas to help you implement this. Starting an Ad Campaign Developing an ad Campaign for the Startup E-businessOnline advertising has changed over the years. Some believe the internet came premature and advertisers did not know how to react at first. Marketing Rapport - 3 Tips! Establishing & maintaining rapport with your online audience is perhaps the single most important ingredient in marketing online. Actually in marketing period, but even more so online because of the lack of personal contact. Is Your Web Site Ready For Its Visitors? There's a great interest among the Internet entrepreneurs about how to promote their business on the Web. There's always a quest for new and innovative ways of promotion that promise greater results at lower cost and in shorter time. Marketing Your Business - How Do I Adapt To The Internet? The way we do business is changing rapidly. From VOIP, video conferencing, email support, telephone answering services, and the almighty internet. How To Create An Automated Income Producer One of my favorite net marketing tasks is creating a FREE report or e-course and watching it fill with subscribers on an autoresponder.You might not realize that this is one of the easiest and best methods of selling your products or affiliate products because you develop a rapport or relationship with your subscribers by giving them quality information. Internet Marketing And Public Speaking: Ten Tips For When The Twain Shall Meet Internet marketing and public speaking? Not quite ham and eggs, is it?Those two phrases are rarely found in the same sentence. After all, many people decide to do their marketing in cyberspace so they'll never be required to deliver a sales presentation or a speech.
|
|
|
|
|
