You have no choice. You do have to organise a team presentation. Let me remind you how you got there.

Because of your networking skills, you got your small business on the very short list of companies to pitch their services to a very big business.

Just when you were thinking that you can handle this, the CEO of the business kinda casually remarked ” by the way, we would love if you could make a team presentation.”

“What?! This woman mad?”

You now have to bring a select group of your employees together to make a hot team presentation. Yes…you can make a fairly decent speech by yourself but pulling a team together? 

I’m sure by now you know, that having 3 or 4 persons presenting  a case, rather than a single person, has now become the rule rather than the exception in business.

So why are you nervous?

Perhaps it’s because you know that when a business, especially a small one, brings a group of their highly skilled professionals together to make a team presentation, the stakes are usually equally high.

Therefore, you need more than speaking skills. You now have to coordinate your in-house talent to speak with one voice. Your business voice. And that requires leadership skills, serious confidence before you speak and some people management.

but the above aside, how would you feel if you could make the best presentation ever and win the contract?

This is where you get lucky. You have access to my over 25 years of public speaking training to help you pull off your best team presentation. Ever!

Here’s how I will help you.

I will tell you what to do before you speak, what to do during the presentation and what you must do after.

If you’re ready, let’s jump right in…

6 strategies to use before you make your team presentation

1.  Decide who will be on the team and why

This seems so obvious that it’s not worth mentioning. Think again!

I’ve seen leaders select people to be part of a team making an important presentation just to “give them a chance to shine” or because “I’m comfortable with him”.

It is true that “Camille” needs to get out of her shell and “Ryan” is easy to get along with. But does that qualify them to be on a team making a presentation to the Ministry of Energy on a new solar plant?

2.  Appoint a leader to coordinate the whole thing

You might not believe this after watching several team presentations – but there is really more to presenting as a team, than each person standing up and speaking.

Even before you get to presenting, you must know:

1.  The objective and overall theme of the presentation

2. Which persuasion strategy you will be using

3.  What data and how much goes into the presentation

4.  Who will be responsible for what, e.g. visual aids, editing, etc 

5.  The order of speeches on the day and any other roles of the speakers

6.  Other details which are specific to the nature of your presentation

If a single person does not assume responsibility for these areas, your team will waste a lot of time either arguing or duplicating effort, instead of focusing on the case that has to be built and presented.

And guess what? Just because you own the business does not mean you’re the best person to do this, especially if you’re part of the team presentation.

3.  Know and plan to exploit the strengths of the team

In a team presentation, each member is required to handle that aspect of the topic where s/he has knowledge and experience.

But remember, a team presentation is still a public speaking activity, so you want to make a big impact on your audience. Therefore, knowledge and experience must be balanced by the speaking skills of the various speakers.

So arrange you points in such a way that you lead off and end with your strongest speakers.

4.  Know your audience

Usually, when you’re making a team presentation, the stakes are very high. With so much at stake, knowing your audience is mission critical.

Therefore, you need to collect some serious intelligence. At minimum this should include the person or persons you will be pitching to, the level of their decision-making and their requirements for detail.

Even when I make a one-woman pitch for business, this is where I start my audience analysis.

5.  Plan the details of the actual presentation

This is a very important step. If you plan these details before, on the big day, you just have to execute…well almost.

In planning, please try to cover:

1.  How you will make the best use of the available time

2.   The way you will structure your presentation

3.  How you will create influence with your presentation

4.  The order of your speeches and what each will cover

5.  Who will be the lead speaker on the day

6.  When and how you will practice

6.  Practice your team presentation… as a team

No, I’m not crazy…just very experienced with most things public speaking.

So I have come across the situation where a small business owner claimed that he did not have a lot of time before his team made the presentation.

So what did he do?

He had each person practice at home the night before, believing that this was all that was required, anyhow.

I am still shaking my head…

So please practice your presentation as a team. Have a minimum of three practice sessions. Know who will be doing the main introductions and who will be summarising. Practice your transitions and practice with your visual aids.

Most of the points that I have listed  above should inform your practice sessions as well. In addition, you can get more tips on practicing a speech in this post. Just apply them to the team as a whole.

5 strategies to use during your team presentation

1.  Implement the structure you planned

In a good structure, your lead speaker will begin with a brief introduction of your team and follow this with your big idea for solving the problem or meeting the need. Be sure to include the benefits for the clients.

Then each speaker will follow in the order which was planned, each one stressing the benefits of their aspect of the offering. 

2.  Keep the presentation flowing

Even though your team presentation has more than one speaker, don’t make the audience wait too long between speakers.

The best way to make your presentation flow is to copy all your presentations on to one flash drive in the order they will be presented.

Another good approach is to place each presentation in one presentation file (Powerpoint?) separated by a blank slide.

3.  Be a good team player even when you’re not speaking

When other team members are speaking, give them your full attention. This might be difficult especially if you’re nervous, because you will feel the urge to read over notes or whisper to your colleagues. 

Instead, stay interested and alert. Listen attentively, smile and laugh at their humour and behave as you would want them to respond when you’re speaking.

Remember, your audience is judging you as a team.

4.  Answer questions effectively

Keep it together now. This is where many team presentations fall apart.

The leader should clarify the questions and then assign them to the team member who can provide the best response.

Furthermore, in your planning and practicing, supported by your understanding of the needs of the potential client,  you should have come up with some questions that are likely to be asked.

Here are some great tips on how to answer questions after a speech. 

5.  Wrap up your entire team presentation professionally

This is where your lead speaker takes over again to restate your big idea, remind the potential client of the key benefits and then deliver your CTA.

Yes, your Call To Action. Tell your potential client what you want them to do, now that your team has so properly built your case. This post gives you some great info on how to work the CTA.

You need to be sure of what you want though, and ask for it confidently. That’s why you start and end with your best speaker.

The #1 strategy you must use after your team presentation

Review your entire presentation process

You will realise that even though you have done many speeches on your own, speaking as part of a team is well, as they say, a whole new ball game.

When you review, check for your strengths and weakness, not only in the speeches but in the entire process. Tighten up those weak areas because you will be doing it again. And again.

And don’t forget to celebrate that you made it through your team presentation…like pros!

Your next “team presentation” step…

So there you have them!

12 practical strategies to help you just smile the next time you have to organise a team presentation.

You also now have no excuse for avoiding it or winging it. But you have every reason to pull it off with class.

Your business deserves no less.

And don’t forget, if you really want to really up your game, do contact me, I’d be really happy to provide public speaking training for you and the rest of your employees.

To your team presentation success…