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Every team has roles. Your presentation team is no different. You must assign these roles and your team needs to “play in position”.
The alternative is “everyone for themselves”. It’s a fun alternative and good for a laugh. Not. Assign roles and you can thank me later.
THE QUARTERBACK
As soon as you have more than one person presenting, there is always the risk that instead of 1+1=2 you end up with 1+1=0.5. Almost certainly this is because no-one was put in charge of coordinating the overall flow of the presentation.
I’ll call that person the Quarterback – they are responsible for overall “running the game”. This is not the most senior member of the team or the person who will speak the most, but it is the critical role to a successful team presentation.
Furthermore, everyone – including the client - needs to know who the Quarterback is, in order for them to operate effectively. So make sure the chosen person is clearly identified to the client at the start of the meeting.
The Quarterback is responsible for:
• Time – prior to the meeting, the team needs to allocate time to every topic. Its then up to the Quarterback to monitor the time in the meeting and keep the presentation on track.
• Understanding – the Quarterback should be constantly monitoring the level of engagement from the client and adjusting the presentation flow as required to maintain their attention.
• Checklist –The Quarterback is ultimately responsible for ensuring the team has not only delivered all its key messages but also obtained the outcomes it was seeking.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN!
The Quarterback is a busy person. Their mind will generally be focused on timing and content. Ideally, someone on the team will then take on a “Captain” role. Usually, this would be the most senior member of the team.
The Captain’s role isn’t to run the meeting and the Captain needs to be comfortable leaving that role to the Quarterback. Ideally, the Captain isn’t also the main speaker.
The Captain is a “pitch hitter” - a role that works best when used sparingly for maximum effect.
• Emphasise key points.
• Emphasise the brand/relationship.
• Back-up other team members.
• Make the client feel important.
• Take the client’s side., by asking prepared questions from the client’s point of view.
• “Reading the client”. Like the Quarterback, the Captain should also be watching the body language of the client.
Depending on the seniority of the Captain, they may need to be well briefed or even “fed” their questions prior to the meeting.
THE PLAYERS.
Everyone else is a “Player”.
Picking the right team for any meeting, pitch or presentation is a whole topic in and of itself. But one critical point is that everyone who attends a meeting should “play” – ie, speak. Clients can find it very distracting if a team member is sitting silently through the entire meeting.
This also comes down to rehearsal and presentation development. Everyone needs to be allocated topics and time to speak. Even if its just a single topic, it will allow the client to understand why that person is attending and what value they bring to the team/the client.
Once you are in the meeting, the Quarterback should explain everyone’s roles at the start, including which parts of the presentation they are going to speak about or what their specialty is.
DEBUTANTS.
Pitching to a client for the first time, particularly in a formal setting and especially in front of work colleagues, is usually nerve wracking for even the most confident graduate or new recruit.
But its also a huge learning experience. So I strongly encourage you to bring junior or new team members to client presentations as quickly and as often as possible.
However, they must be given something to talk about in the meeting, even if its just a single point or page.
CONCLUSION.
Assign roles and stick to them. No matter what, you are already well ahead of most of your competitors. Remember, its not just what you say, but how you say it.