September 24th, 2008
I’ll confess that I’m not normally fan of podcasts. I find most are just too long-winded and lack focus. But there are exceptions, and Grammar girl is one of them. She does a great job of shining a light on common mistakes in grammar and punctuation. But just as important, she makes it entertaining. All in a five-minute podcast.
July 20th, 2008
Ever been invited to give a speech at a sales meeting or even at a friend’s wedding and have found yourself wondering what possessed you to say “yes” in the first place? Lots of people have been in that spot. In fact, as a speechwriter, I get panicked calls and emails from people all the time from folks who are looking for advice and tips…and most of those conversations share this common refrain: <i>”but I don’t know what to say up there!”</i>
Granted being a great speaker is a skill that takes time to master. But it really is a skill that anyone can learn. And with the right advice to get you started, your next speaking engagement can be something that you’ll actually look forward to.
Earlier, I posted five tips to help you get started.
Here are five more (with more to come)…
6. Don’t worry about whether you’re funny.
Some people think that they absolutely must have funny-one liners in a speech to help break the ice. But most people just aren’t gifted with coming up with good material and delivering it in a way that makes people laugh…genuinely. So for most of us out there with a tin ear for comedy, we make do just by concentrating on putting together a great speech that people can relate to. And that takes me to my next point…
7. Don’t just be yourself. Share an experience.
When you’re speaking to an audience, it’s like making an acquaintance for the first time. And things tend to go well when people feel comfortable and can identify with their speaker. That’s the real key to breaking the ice. Early on in your presentation, try to share an experience with your audience…one that tells them a little bit about you. By doing this, you became less of a stranger
to the umpteenth degree. You’re on the road to being a friendly, familiar face.
8. Help the audience with cues.
For most, listening is a difficult skill. Many people get lost easily in a presentation unless you help them along with some simple cues. First, get right to the point explaining what your presentation is about. And be specific. If you can’t sum it up in a sentence, there’s a good chance your message risks getting lost. Next, give your audience a list of the things you are going to cover. In less than a minute, those folks sitting in front of you will know exactly what to expect, and they’ll appreciate you for it.
9. It don’t mean a thing if it ‘aint got that swing.
That’s what the songwriting powerhouse of Duke Ellington and Irving Mills once said. And there’s a truth in there that applies to public speaking. A great speech is about more than ideas. It’s about conveying emotion. When people can identify with the emotional space where you’re coming from, they become a lot more receptive to the ideas you put forward, including your call-to-action.
10. Practice, practice, practice.
Ideally, you should do a dry-run of your speech in the room where it’s going to be delivered. But that’s not always possible. Even if your practice area is your living room and your makeshift audience is the family dog and a photo of Aunt May, the more you rehearse the more comfortable you’ll be at the podium.
July 3rd, 2008
The marketing and webcopy skills of thinkit creative have been engaged by the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada and Inter-vision Inc. in connection with developing engaging online content.
June 30th, 2008
Artemis Consultants Inc. has chosen thinkit creative to develop engaging advertising copy in connection with a promotional campaign.
May 30th, 2008
Côté Financial Services has engaged thinkit creative to provide copywriting services in support of the company’s print advertising activities.
May 5th, 2008
What does creativity mean to you? To me, it’s all about the art of taking chances.
Forget the labels on things, pull together ideas that you might otherwise assume would be an impossible match — the results can sometimes be really surprising.
Case in point: could you ever imagine Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis jamming on the same stage? Neither could I, until I saw this…
April 30th, 2008
Looking to make your next public speaking engagement a resounding success? Here are five tips to help you get started…
1. People want to see you succeed.
Call it human nature or a function of self-preservation, but when people come to hear someone talk, they generally want to enjoy the experience. That’s not to say that the bar of expectations is lowered. But as a speaker, you can generally count on there being a lot of goodwill in a room…even before you start talking! Use that to your advantage…especially of you’re feeling a little nervous. Because it means that people are generally going to be more receptive to what you have to say compared to, say, doing an elevator-style pitch to a small group at a social gathering.
2. It’s your audience.
Whether you’re doing a keynote at lunch or are simply tasked with doing one-minute introductory remarks, when you take to that podium, you are the speaker. The audience belongs entirely to you while you’re up there. You command their attention. Wow. That’s pretty impressive when you stop and think about it. People stop what they’re doing so they can listen to what it is you have to say. And it’s up to you how you use that power, right down to setting the tone of the room and the pace of the presentation. That can be pretty empowering.
3. Share and be remembered.
It’s always a nice touch to have copies on-hand of your presentation. Even if it’s just a one-page summary of key points along with your contact information, it can be really useful…and a powerful networking tool. Not everyone is going to want a copy, but for those who do take one, they’re much more likely to remember who you are and what you had to say.
4. But don’t hand out anything before!
If you chose to share copies of your speech, hand it out after your presentation, otherwise your audience members will spend their time with their heads down reading it instead of listening to you.
5. Write for the ear, not the eye.
One of the most common mistakes made by novice speakers is that they prepare their text much the way they might prepare a news article or even a research paper. In other words, they write for the eye, using long sentences and maybe even a lot of fancy words. But public speaking is about getting people to listen and to feel something about the experience. Write for the ear. That’s where your audience really is. Break up those sentences. Be punchy. Forget the rules about typical sentence structure. Really. Because they don’t apply when we’re talking or listening to someone.
April 10th, 2008
Executive staff of the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) have engaged the services of thinkit creative to provide editing, communications and writing services in connection with preparing the 2007-2008 edition of their annual report.
April 10th, 2008
Executive staff of the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) have engaged the services of thinkit creative to provide editing, communications and writing services in connection with preparing the 2007-2008 edition of their annual report.
February 9th, 2008
The research and copywriting skills of thinkit creative has been engaged by the House of Commons and Adams-Jette Marketing & Communications to prepare the 2008 edition of the Report to Canadians.
October 15th, 2007
Ottawa, ON—
The team at thinkit creative congratulates their client, the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) on the release of their 2006-2007 annual report. This report was prepared for the third year in a row with the assistance of the skilled writers and editors at thinkit creative.
September 15th, 2007
Ottawa, ON—September 2007
The Public Health Agency of Canada has engaged the writing services of thinkit creative to develop engaging online copy in support of a social marketing campaign.
March 16th, 2007
Sending my Wordpress-powered site into the garage for a much needed tune-up gave me an opportunity to think a bit more about where I could tweak the look-and-feel of the site.
So welcome to the revamped look for thinkit creative.
Navigation-wise our aim is make the site flat as possible—no needless clicking for things. Everything you need to know about what we do and what’s in it for you to choose us is all right where it should be. Consider what some of the leader in the field of usable design have to say about building websites and blogs that people want to read:
My thanks go to the pros at dawnstudios for doing a fantastic job of taking my concept sketches and turning it around quickly into a smooth running hybrid website/blog. I highly recommend their services.
March 9th, 2007
The strategic counsel and marketing skills of the professionals at thinkit creative has been engaged by Adams-Jette Marketing & Communications plus the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada, to research and develop a key strategic communications product.
March 8th, 2007
Whew! After an agonizingly long wait to set things right, our blog is slowly coming back online. Without boring anyone with the details, let’s just say that over the past few months, I’ve learned more about MySQL databases than a copywriter ever should. Expect to see a few hiccups over the next few weeks as we fine-tune a few things. Okay more than a few things.
March 7th, 2007
Of the most effective marketing tools out there, nothing beats the power of word of mouth. Testimonials—ranging from client write-ups to simply a good word on the street—wields a kind of influence that no amount of advertising can buy. As Tom Fishburne’s cartoon sums up rather nicely, it’s all about getting your name associated with the good choices made by others.
March 1st, 2007
Ottawa ON—March 2007
Executives with Boaterexam.com—the leader in online boater education and certification—have chosen the skilled team at thinkit creative and its trademark network of associates to develop and refine print-ready copy for one of their key publications.
February 15th, 2007
Ottawa, ON—February 2007
The savvy marketing insight offered by thinkit creative has been engaged by the Library of Parliament and Adams Jette Communications Inc. to research, develop and advise on an all-new marketing plan for a key merchandising initiative.
January 23rd, 2007
Ha! This is one of the more clever tactics I’ve seen to catch the attention of online readers and pull them to your site…create a special day and offer free postcards to celebrate it.
I’m all for this.
December 14th, 2006
Q. Hey you guys at thinkit have tweaked your company name recently. What’s up with that?
A. Indeed we did! And thanks for noticing. For many years, we’ve been marketing ourselves as thinkit communications, but using thinkitpr.com as the domain name. While this made for a shorter URL (thinkitcommunications.com was just way too long), we feel it’s best to consolidate our name into a single brand that describes the creative work we do.
Q. Apart from having consolidated your company name, has anything else changed?
A. We’re the same company of writers skilled at unlocking the power of writing that sells. And as always, we’re determined to be the best creative shop you’ve ever done business with.
Q. Anything else?
A. Well do have a swanky new logo that we’re quite jazzed about.
Q. So you guys are strictly focused on writing?
A. Our focus is on copywriting and copyediting of all kinds. But we always impress on our clients to treat us as a resource, even for services that we don’t provide in-house. Through our trademark network of associates, leave it to us to match you up with great talent in areas other than writing that sells.
Q. Love the new free book of quotes on creativity. How did that come about?
A. Thanks! That actually started as a collection of quotable quotes featured in place of a typical signature footer in the emails we send out. Mainly quotes about creativity—and with a generous helping of quotes from jazz greats (Patrick’s a big jazz fan). It was a big hit with clients. Over the years, as the list grew quite long, many of those clients started asking where they could get a copy of this collection. Since we’re a company that aims to please (plus we love to share the good word about jazz), the free book was born.
More free books on other topics are coming soon.