For those of us making persuasive presentations, there is nothing funny about the cliché that says you should start every presentation with a joke.
Stories, both funny and serious, are the way to begin a persuasive presentation because they engage an audience and invite an empathetic response. When you tell a story about the most embarrassing moment in your life, audience members either start thinking about a similar event in their lives or imagine being put into your story’s situation.
I'm not telling you to avoid jokes, humor is one of the most powerful persuasive tools a presenter has. It's a matter of choosing the right tool for the time and task. Humor has the power to invite an audience to like you, and lighten an audience’s critical thinking and thus resistance to change. Powerful things.
But as you start a persuasive presentation your priorities should be different. You MUST get your audience INVOLVED right from the start. This is where stories are just more powerful.
I did a survey about this for my book, "Presentations That Change Minds."
In the survey, 41.8% of presenters said they begin their business presentations with a humorous story, and 37.8% with a serious story. Only 19.3% begin presentations with a joke and only 14 % of presenters jump right into their content without any opening.
A you plan your next presentation, look for a story that get your audience involved with your subject matter.
Click on the chart to see the survey results.
I feel sorry for that 19% that start a sales presentation with a joke. It sure is hard to recover if that joke bombs.
Great advice.
Posted by: Nick Moreno | August 05, 2009 at 01:02 PM
As a sales trainer and profesional speaker for 21.5 years I didn't always start my presentations with a story.
But I do now.
Good advice . . .
Posted by: Jim Meisenheimer | September 25, 2009 at 12:39 PM
Thank you Jim. I guess it's a no brainer!
Posted by: Josh Gordon | September 25, 2009 at 01:55 PM
Finding this post as a good input.
Posted by: Nursing tops | April 21, 2010 at 09:17 PM
Nice Post!Well for me,in any presentation, it would be nice to start with a story and combine it with a joke!and let your audience get involve, so they can relate on what your are talking or presenting.Thanks for this post.
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Posted by: KAP Content Presentation | February 25, 2011 at 01:52 AM
I agree, people react better to a story rather than a joke. Especially if the story is personal.
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Posted by: Best Tooth Whitener | February 27, 2011 at 06:24 AM
Good idea. I think the better way is to point out a memorable sales in your presentation and go forward with that throughout the presentation
Posted by: Presentation Software | March 27, 2011 at 02:45 PM
Hi Josh,
I agree with you that telling a humorous story is much better than a joke. A storyline is in a better position to align and engage your audience.
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