There are limits to the human attention span, which is why a pitch must be brief, concise, and interesting.
The presenter’s problem
You can have all the knowledge about your subject, clearly state your most important points with passion, be well organized, and still not be convincing.
This is because a great pitch is not about procedure. It’s about getting and keeping attention.
To do that:
- You have to own the room with frame control.
- Drive emotions with intrigue pings
- Get to a hook point quickly. A hook point is where your listeners become emotionally engaged and involved.
Use multiple frames to get people to favour you
Frames are like lenses through which we view a situation. When people come together, the stronger frames will overpower the weaker frames. The winning frame governs the social interaction.
- The power frame: defiance and light humor at the same time are the keys to seizing power.
- The time frame: Establish that your time is important and that you will not intrude on your target’s time.
- The intrigue frame: As soon as your target thinks they know and understand your idea, they stop paying attention. Tell a short story about you overcoming an obstacle.
- The prize frame: “I’m choosy about who I work with.”
The STRONG method
- Set the frame. Every meeting is governed by a frame or point of view. The strongest frame always wins.
- Tell the story. People often fall back into an analytical mindset. Grab attention with a provocative story that breaks the analytical mindset.
- Reveal the intrigue. Use risk, danger, uncertainty, and time constraints to keep your audience’s attention.
- Offer the prize. Know how to turn the tables so that your target chases you.
- Nail the hook point. Most final decisions are made based on emotion, not logic. Get your audience emotionally engaged in your idea.
- Get the decision without acting needy.
Why pitching is difficult
We must know how the brain works if we want to pitch successfully.
The brain consists of three basic parts.
- The inner part is referred to as the “crocodile brain” and is concerned with survival. It filters all messages for fight or flight responses.
- The midbrain tries to make meaning of things and social situations.
- Finally, the neocortex uses reason to think through complex issues.
When we pitch, the message is first processed by your target’s crocodile brain, which is why you must bring something new, exciting, and positive to enable the “croc brain” to pass on to the next part.
Turn yourself into the prize instead of chasing your target
Once you gain attention, you have to convince. You should become the prize and the object of desire. Show your audience that you are not desperate to sell and don’t depend on anyone. Successful ‘prizing’ means your target will chase you and ask to be involved in your deal.
Ask your target to qualify themselves for you. Set a time frame for when the offer expires.
