Your audience has three main styles of learning.
• Visual – Seeing something.
• Auditory – Hearing something.
• Kinesthetic – Doing something.
We use all three to different degrees. Nothing is good or bad. It is what it is.
For speakers, if more than one of these styles can be addressed to convey your message, the odds they’ll GET IT! are dramatically increased.
The other thing about Elevator that jumped out at me as I was thinking this through, was that an Elevator goes up, floor by floor! It became apparent that an Elevator Speech should be crafted, one floor at a time! Furthermore:
Each floor should convey specific information.
Start simple. As interest grows (in the Face-To-Face), and time permits (in Both), move to the “next floor” and give more specific information.
For the Group setting, we want to take everyone in the room to the top floor, and give them all the information we’ve crafted for our “ultimate” Elevator Speech.
Where there are time constraints, some floors can be skipped.
For the Individual, Face-To-Face setting, we start on the ground floor, and want to take them up, one floor at a time, only if interest is shown after we speak.
In the Group Scenario, without infringing on the time other presenters are allocated, we want to give an Elevator Speech that clearly tells attendees:
Who we are.
What we do.
Who is a prospect.
Something that gives us credibility and distinguishes us from others in our field.
The Individual, Face-To-Face situation and Goal is different.
What they see, they believe! If there is inconsistency in a presentation, the NonVerbal messages the audience see, is what they will give credence to over the words they hear. This is why it is imperative to be aware of what the audience is receiving visually from your presentation, whether it is deliberate or unintentional. Possibly, it’s not the message you think you’re delivering!
