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As presenters, we all want to be memorable. Memorable for being outstanding, not for doing a far-from-excellent job. In this article, highlight notes and observations I have made about the qualities of the memorable presenters I have heard over the years.

Memorable presenters have their own, unique style. They never try to be someone they aren’t. They are comfortable with themselves and within themselves.

Memorable presenters have sincere passion and enthusiasm for their topic(s). It is obvious when a speaker, even a competent one with all of the skills, is presenting a topic that he or she doesn’t care that much about.

Memorable presenters open and close with panache. Their openings grab your attention and ears immediately and their closings make you want to change your life or habits or take a risk the minute you leave the room.

Memorable presenters tell stories that embrace, enthrall, enchant and stay with you for days and weeks after the presentation. They have studied this art form and have well rehearsed stories that they have told hundreds of times to friends and family.

Memorable presenters share “knock your socks off” content. It is cutting edge, innovative, new, different and moving. Yes, it moves us to action!

Memorable presenters have a superb sense of time and timing. They are always on time. They don’t use up more time than they have been given. They also know how to pace and to pause at just the right moment.

Memorable presenters are in control. They control what is going on during the presentation. If there is a heckler or someone who is asking so many questions the presentation could get off track, they know how to handle the situation in a kind, yet firm, way.

Memorable presenters can also cope with the unexpected. I have witnessed the best when all the lights go out, when someone in the audience becomes ill, or when there is an overabundance of noise and activity. Many have humorous lines for these interruptions.

Memorable presenters do not give book reports. They know their subjects inside and out. Most of them have already lived through the risks, failures and successes, so are speaking first hand from true experience.

Memorable presenters don’t depend upon PowerPoint for their presentations. I am not suggesting that we never use this fine tool. I am just against becoming so enamored by all the bells and whistles that we let it take over our presentation.

Memorable presenters “walk their talk.” They are the same sincere person when you meet them off-stage as when they were on the platform.

Memorable presenters handle the Question & Answer portion of the presentation with knowledge, fairness, honesty and clarity. They will admit when they don’t know the answer to a question. They promise to find it and get back to you — and they do!

Memorable presenters have confidence and self-esteem, but are not arrogant, egotistical, or focused on themselves. They are there for us.

Memorable presenters bond with the listeners. They look us in the eye, they involve us, they answer our questions and they establish rapport with all of us.

They are our friends! If you can present so that your audience feels you are their friend, then I guarantee that you will be a memorable presenter!

It may be hard to imagine how something as simple as a presentation binder can make the difference between landing the job of your dreams and getting a “thanks, but no thanks” letter from a potential employer. However, in this competitive job market, you may be surprised at what a difference little details like this can make during the interview process.

Imagine the following scenario: You get invited to interview for the perfect job for you – the right company, the right location and the right level of compensation. The problem is that there are several other qualified candidates vying for the same position. Without question, you will need to distinguish yourself from your competition and the creative use of a presentation binder is a great way to accomplish this.

Here are a Couple of Unique Ways to Use a Presentation Binder During a Job Interview

Customized Brag Books. Often, you will need to demonstrate your achievements in prior positions during the interview process. Therefore, it is a good idea to keep records of any sales awards, performance reports or any other job-related accomplishments. Further, you will want to store, organize and present these materials in a clear, easy-to-read format. A sleek, high-quality presentation binder is a very professional way to share this information with the hiring manager. Not only will this show that you are a top performer in your chosen field, but it also shows that you are organized, prepared and respectful of their time. Further, the presentation binder will protect these valuable (and often irreplaceable) documents from getting lost or damaged.

Interview Projects. For many job openings, the interview process spans over a series of face-to-face meetings. In some cases, the interviewer will ask the job candidate to gather additional information related to the job or company in question. They do this to ascertain whether the candidate is serious about pursuing the position and to see the quality of work he or she will submit. Some candidates will remove themselves from the interview process by not completing the task at all, while others will take advantage of this opportunity to shine. If a hiring manager asks you to complete a task, think of ways to go above and beyond his request to really create an outstanding first impression. Organizing and presenting your findings in a spiral-bound presentation binder will show that you took the time to do a complete and thorough job.

This, in turn, is a great indicator of what kind of employee you will be should you accept the position.
In this tough economic climate, there are a lot of qualified people looking for work. Therefore, you’ll need to come up with creative ways to show potential employers that you are the ideal job candidate for the position you want. The effective use of a quality presentation binder is a great way to stand out from the crowd and show that you are professional, organized and ready to get down to business.

Many inventors come up with ideas for babies and young children-either toys, clothes or other products. While selling to Toy-R-Us or other major retailers can be difficult, the baby/young children market has many small retailers and the industry is fairly friendly to inventors, with a well attended trade show, several key trade magazines, and a well established network of manufacturers representatives. Inventors with strong products can typically set up a rep network to launch their products without too much trouble.

ABC Kids Expo

The starting point for every inventor should be the ABC Kids Expo. This show has sections for toys and games, clothes, furniture and, of most interest to inventors, a special section for Mompreneurs (mother-entrepreneurs). I typically recommend inventors attend this show before they actually introduce their own products. At the show inventors can:

1. See how products are displayed and priced.

2. Meet other inventors that have recently introduced products and get tips from them on finding reps and introducing products.

3. Possibly find another inventor who would be willing to partner in a joint marketing effort to cut costs.

4. Meet representatives that might be willing to sell the product. You can meet the reps just by going up to different booths and taking sales people’s cards, many will be reps, by just talking to people at lunch and break tables, by going to a hotel bar at night and networking with people.

Use Trade Magazines

The industry has two main trade magazines, Baby Shop Magazine, which includes maternity products, and Playthings, which focuses on toys. The trade magazines will often have information on representatives-but its most important aspect are the new product sections. Those sections allow you to send away for literature from a wide variety of companies with complementary products. Often the literature will come with the names of representatives that are in your local area. You can meet with those representatives and if they like your product they will often give you tips on how to move forward.

Selling Locally

One of the great benefits of the young children’s market is that almost every major city has several small shops where inventors can get their product started. Inventors will have an easier time putting together a rep network to sell their product nationally if they can first prove the product will sell at their local stores. You must be fairly aggressive in marketing to local stores and keep your momentum going if you are to interest sales reps. You can offer products on consignment, where stores only pay for product if they sell, offer product on a guaranteed basis, where you agree to take back any unsold products and give a full refund. You can also pass out coupons, do demonstrations and arrange to have stories in local papers to generate sales momentum.

Develop a List of Manufacturing Sales Agents

Most of the activities I have listed to date are to help you build up a list of representatives that you can approach to sell your product. You may only get one out of 20 reps to sign up to sell your product so you need a big list to start with. The trade shows and trade magazines will help, in some cases you can also check out local gift markets, see http://www.giftmarts.com. Often some of the reps within the marts will also carry children’s gifts and other children’s products. You can also purchase a list of reps here.

Offering Ownership to Well Established Representatives

One of the reasons you want to meet local representatives is that you might want to offer a share of you product to a representative that will take over sales of your product. This is highly recommended for inventors without sales and marketing experience. The rep will know promotional and advertising strategy, what trade shows to attend, plus he or she will have strong contacts with certain retailers and also with reps throughout the country that he has worked with on other products. A 10 to 25% ownership position will attract a good representative if they like the product.

JPMA Safety Products Certification

In some cases, where your product has moving parts, you might want to consider getting a safety certificate from the Juvenile Products Manufactures Association. The safety certificate will help you at many retailers and it will be asset if retailers ask that you have product liability insurance.

Attracting and Signing up Sales Representatives

From the time you first start thinking of introducing your product you should start thinking of the package of materials you will send out to reps. Get lots of pictures of your product being used, testimonials and evidence of the product being sold in local stores. Work with a local representative to explain promotional programs, sales discounts and shipping terms that you will include. Once you have your rep list start sending out mailing packages to 10 to 20 reps at a time. Follow up with some of the reps you don’t hear from to learn what they didn’t like about your offer to see if it can be improved.

You can get local help for develop a manufacturers rep agreement and to ensure you have all of your starting a business paperwork in order from your local SBDC or from SCORE.