James Tibos is the National Account Manager for Kubota Power Equipment. James is primarily responsible for the achievement of the pre-determined sales and market share targets and works closely with a National Dealer Group of 40 Power Equipment dealers. James is also heavily involved in the marketing of Kubota’s exciting products. He delivers one on one presentations and he also speaks at Kubota’s National Conference every year.
What did James say after attending Michelle’s Persuasive Presentation Skills Masterclass?
“I loved learning the 13 steps and the 4Mat procedure. I really enjoyed Michelle’s energy and easy communication style. An excellent program for anyone who wants to improve their persuasive communication.”
What kind of presenting do you do at work?
I am presenting in some kind of fashion on a daily basis: with customers or senior management. I also present twice a year to management on sales results and market activity. And I also present at the yearly Kubota National Conference to an audience of around 200 people.
What prompted you to study with Michelle?
I was especially interested to attend the training to pick up techniques for being more persuasive. I wanted to learn some “tricks” to make some of the mundane sales figures l need to present more engaging and exciting for the audience. I also really wanted to learn techniques for structuring a presentation from start to finish.
How did Michelle’s teaching change your attitude to presenting in business?
- The training helped me realise that following the 13 steps of the presentation process is a fool proof method of nailing any presentation.
- Using more positive language in business presentations helps with any possible objections.
- Now I can control potential tricky questions our executive management might have by using Michelle’s Q&A technique. I’m pleased to say that now l get to control the questions coming back at me!
In general, what positive outcomes have you achieved from improving your presentation skills?
- I’ve honestly achieved a lot. The initial positive outcome was a much improved conference presentation at our recent national dealer conference.
- l was able to take advantage of the 13 step process, I knew what words to “avoid” when presenting, as well as what words to “replace” them with.
- Plus I felt that finishing with a call to action after a strong summary really gave my presentation ‘impact’.
- After the national conference, my presentation was recognised and acknowledged by the Kubota General Manager group (which can only be an advantage for any future promotions!)
- I have also enjoyed using pacing and leading to help with building rapport with my audience in the opening of my various presentations.
- And in more formal presentations I love the Ice Breaker technique for ‘hooking’ their attention.
- I’ve also used Michelle’s framing technique for managing the behaviour of the audiences I present to, so my meetings run more smoothly and as a result we tend to achieve our outcomes more quickly. It’s been very positive in general.
In what specific ways have your presentation skills improved since learning with Michelle?
- One of the main lessons l learnt and took away from the class was that no matter your audience you need to properly prepare and rehearse as much as possible to deliver memorable presentations that the audience will find engaging.
- Learning about “clicking” with the whites of the eyes eye contact – consciously focusing on people – has made me much more engaging as a business presenter.
What were your top three take aways from Michelle’s teachings?
- Michelle’s 13 Step Process is definitely my Number 1 take away. Having an easy and clear structure to follow is priceless. I have been presenting in business for nearly 15 years and this knowledge was a God-send!
- The 4Mat technique for structuring the content of the presentation.
- Slide Delivery. I enjoyed learning a variety of tips for delivering with my PowerPoint slides from Michelle. I aim to control where the audience is looking these days. I hold the furniture so I don’t distract with my movement when the slide is up. I’m conscious of giving really good eye contact when I’m standing in the middle of the room and the slides have been blanked behind me and finally I aim to follow the rule of 3 with less text and more images so the slides actually help to reinforce the message.