Friday, April 18, 2008

Presenting Tips

London, UK


Presenting yourself or your company at exhibition stands can be invigorating and successful as long as you get things right.

In broad terms, many of the stands at HRD 2008 show this week, seemed to be manned by knowledgeable and committed staff. Long gone are the days when salespeople or presenters would try to "grab" potential customers, then explode into their sales patter. A little like networking, selling your company's services or products requires the salesperson or presenter to listen and ask sensible "open" questions. "What brings you here then" or similar, doesn't go down well.

One's dress code is equally important. If you look and act the part, you are more likely to get business. At the show this week, there were one or two gentlemen who decided to wear an open neck rather than a tie. In my view, I think a man loses authority if he isn't wearing a tie. You may disagree.

Correct posture is important. Standing in way which shows you as lackadazical, aggressive or slovenly will cost you business as does a lack of a genuine smile. Try to stand tall with your shoulders apart and with your hands in front, something similar to the tv presenter here:

6 comments:

James Higham said...

I like the tie in your pic in the sidebar, Jeremy. :)

A blog's a place for relaxation though.

Michael Child said...

Sometimes Jeremy I am very glad I am a secondhand bookseller and discouraging my customers is both traditional and expected

Ellee Seymour said...

I'm not so worried about ties, I think customers would rather be sure they are dealing with a genuine professional and strike a good deal.
Funnily enough, my son is going for a Saturday job in a shoe shop and wants to wear his Gucci shirt - seriously - which I have just ironed. I thought it was too formal, but my husband said he should wear it and stand out. I advised him to check out the dress code of the staff and dress accordingly, there's nothing worse than feeling overdressed.

Jeremy Jacobs said...

Can't he do his own ironing?

lol

CityUnslicker said...

good tips - being overly causal some people think as a sign of confidence; but the trick is beyond most people.

It works for the likes of Richard Branson though...

Jeremy Jacobs said...

I agree. Branson can get away with it.