Perfect pitch fb2. “Perfect pitch. A revolutionary way to make big deals." Oren Cluff. Avocado farmer's money

01.11.2019

Key Insights Service from best-selling business and self-development literature, reviewed The Perfect Pitch by Oren Cluff on how to properly present your ideas to an audience, negotiate and achieve favorable conditions in transactions.

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Imagine that you are speaking to a potential investor about your new project. You are convinced of its potential, a fire burns in your eyes, you have a positive Feedback from the first customers, you have carefully prepared and have a good command of all the numbers.

You start your presentation and follow the plan, going to paint what a huge benefit will be received by someone who wants to cooperate with you. But then the investor cuts you off and disrupts all your plans with just one sentence: "Listen, I have to leave in five minutes - let's get down to business."

And here you are, stammering, talking about forecasts, and the investor calls them far-fetched, you try to object, but every time the investor cuts you off with a counterargument. You get lost and feel how the ground is slipping from under your feet - now your idea is not at all innovative, but unrealizable; your predictions are not confirmed by anything; your know-how is ridiculous.

What to do in such a situation? How to keep your mind and a sober head at a time when it seems to you that a flock of predators is ready to attack you? It doesn't matter how brilliant your idea is if you can't present it and prove its viability.

Oren Cluff, a fundraiser who has closed multi-million dollar deals with Boeing, Google, Yahoo, Qualcomm and others, has developed a method of presenting ideas based on scientific discoveries about how our brains work based on his experience. The author came to the conclusion that the success of the presentation depends primarily on the use of this method, and not just on preparation and effort.

So, in the example, the investor used the so-called power frame, intercepting the initiative from the speaker. But there is a counter-technique against this technique - the speaker's task was not to respond to the investor's counterarguments, thereby confirming his power, but to break his frame and establish his own.

How to do it and make successful presentations? Oren Cluff has some important ideas.

Idea 1: Presentations often fail because speakers don't consider how the human brain works

There is a common presenter problem. Your project can be very interesting and innovative, you can have great knowledge of the subject you are talking about, be passionate, have good public speaking skills, and the structure of your speech can be impeccable, but despite all this, you will not impress the audience. And if you can't present your idea, then you can't make a deal.

The reason for the error is that you do not take into account how the human brain works.

Over the course of evolution, our brain has evolved from an extremely primitive to a remarkably complex organ. However, the primitive brain did not disappear without a trace. It is still responsible for many physiological reactions: breathing, fear, pleasure. And any information that enters our consciousness passes through its filter. Our brain is essentially made up of three parts:

The reptile brain is the oldest, responsible for the most primitive physiological reactions like "fight or flight";
The mammalian brain - responsible for emotions and feelings;
The neocortex is responsible for what makes us human: the ability to think abstractly, rationally and logically and to be aware of our thoughts and feelings.

When you give a presentation, you send a message formulated by your neocortex to the audience, assuming that your listeners will also perceive it with the neocortex - the logical and rational part of the brain.

This is the mistake, because a person first of all perceives any message with the brain of a reptile. And after it passes this filter, the message enters other layers of the brain.

Why is this filter a problem for the speaker?

Because everything that the reptile brain does not perceive as a critical problem, it perceives as “spam”. He ignores what doesn't seem dangerous or new. And if he sees something new, he tries to understand it as quickly as possible, without going into details. And he will not allow information to reach the neocortex if it does not seem to him really important, unexpected, surprising.

Therefore, if at the presentation you do not present something truly exciting and amazing, then your presentation will be ignored. In addition, if your speech is too abstract and confusing, then the brain of the listeners will perceive it as a threat, because such information requires mental effort, which means spending precious energy, which the body strongly resists.

And this is the main problem of the speaker. Its task is to overcome the resistance of the lower layers of the brain, pass through its filters and deliver important information to the listener's neocortex. The speaker must understand that the only way achieve pitch success - take into account the peculiarities of the listener's reptilian brain, which seeks to receive the most simple information and reacts only to danger, novelty and intrigue.

To make successful presentations, you need the right method. You need to learn how to transform the complex ideas that your neocortex generates and communicate them in a way that the listener's reptilian brain understands.

Idea 2. Your first task is to choose the right frame

A frame can be defined as the point of view from which you look at what is happening and evaluate the situation. It is a kind of mental structure that you use depending on the situation. Naturally, in the same situation, frames different people will be different, and sometimes even contradictory.

We all use frames. In the doctor's office, we do everything he says and perform all the humiliating procedures, regardless of our financial situation and social status. In this situation, his frame is much stronger than ours.

A clash of frames involves a struggle, as a result of which a strong frame absorbs a weak one. As in the wild world, the strong subdue the weak, so in our human world there is a struggle where the frame of the weak is subdued by the strong.

If you manage to get the upper hand in the struggle of frames, then you will attract attention and your ideas will be heard.

How to learn to set the right frame? To do this, you do not need any secret techniques or impeccable command of public speaking. Sometimes even your silence is much more effective than eloquence.

According to the author, using sales techniques that are taught in many trainings forces you to take an initially losing position and thereby lose the battle of frames. You keep fighting, but it is already becoming a fight for survival.

Your importunity causes irritation, and the client understands that your tactics indicate that you are in a desperate situation. An alternative to cold sales techniques and tedious presentations is to keep control of the frame. If you own the frame, you win the game.

Frame collision occurs at any social contact. Frame collision involves our primitive brain, which determines our behavior and blocks the neocortex. In any important situation social interaction ask yourself what frame you are facing.

Idea 3. There are four main types of frames

Business contacts involve the clash of several competing types of frames. The author identifies the following types:

The frame of power and the one that opposes it is a frame that undermines power;
The time frame and its opponent is the time constraint frame;
The frame of analytics and the one that opposes it is the frame of intrigue;
A reward frame that you can use against all other frames.

To determine who owns a frame, you need to see who is responding to whom. If you react to the words and actions of another, then he owns the frame, and vice versa.

The most commonly used frame in business life is the power frame. Usually it is determined by the high social status of a person. Arrogance, a lack of interest in the opinions of others, speaks of the power frame.

The carriers of this frame also have disadvantages - they do not assess the risks, motives and reactions of other people badly. In addition, because people with high status expect unquestioning obedience to their frames, they are vulnerable to frames that undermine power.

Already at the initial stages it is very important to resist the power frame. You should not allow the interlocutor to involve you in empty conversations, distract you, you should not be just an observer waiting for his reaction. This only accentuates his alpha status and leaves you in the position of a subordinate - a very disadvantageous position for a presentation. If you put up with the manifestations of the power of another person, then only strengthen his position.

What is the right thing to do when someone imposes their power frame on you?

The author talks about how he once got the opportunity to make a presentation in front of a representative of a large bank, cooperation with which promised great benefits for the author's company. But during the pitch, the representative of the bank, trader Steve, showed in every possible way that he was bored - so, he took the booklet of the author's company and on his reverse side started circling his hand.

The author was overcome with anger and he felt that he was trapped in someone else's power frame. But he soon regained his composure and said, "Steve, give me the booklet back." After an awkward pause, the author said that he liked the drawing and was ready to buy it, and asked Steve to name the price.

The surprise effect undermines the dominant frame, it helps the listener to focus back on your presentation.

The bottom line is to seize power in some slightly outrageous, but not beyond the bounds of decency act. A little resistance and light humor are your best weapons. Your task is to refuse and demonstrate disobedience, albeit in small things.

Oftentimes, those using the power frame will resort to time-limiting techniques such as, "I only have 20 minutes." You, in turn, can also show disobedience here, saying: “Thank you, I only have 15.”

In general, if you manage to intercept the power frame, then you should not abuse it. Make sure the game is enjoyable for both of you, because no one likes to be submissive.

Speakers are often perceived as those who have to win someone else's attention. However, this is obviously a losing position. It can be deployed on yourself by establishing a reward frame - then you do not win attention, but the other side suddenly finds out that it must win yours. The reward is you.

For example, you came to a client to make a presentation, but the main person you need is not there, and you are invited to make a presentation in front of his deputies. Basically, you've lost your frame. The author advises in such cases to say that you will wait 15 minutes, but then you will need to leave.

Usually the other side starts to fuss and try to make sure that you do not take offense and leave. If the situation is not resolved at the time you indicated, then you will really need to leave without making a presentation and leaving nothing of your materials. If it is appropriate, then tell the chief of those present that you want to appoint new meeting on its territory.

The reward frame assumes that the reward is you. You can force the buyer to prove that he is worthy of you by asking him to tell about himself or to clarify something. You might add that you are very picky about the people you work with.

Human attention has a certain limit (about 20 minutes), and you need to meet this time with your pitch. But you can't wait for someone to tell you to wrap up - that way you'll hand over your frame to them and be forced to react.

You have to control the time and take stock yourself. When a sales person comes to a meeting and the client says something like: “I only have 10 minutes”, big, but typical mistake- talk about how you value the client's time and thank him for finding time for you in his overloaded schedule.

And although such rules of conduct dictate business customs, you only strengthen the power of your opponent, and put yourself at a huge disadvantage. To break someone else's power frame, in this case, you need to use the reward frame.

The author offers to answer: “Sorry, but I don’t work like that. Why would you change your routine if there's no trust between us? It is only important for me to know whether we can work together, whether you will comply with the agreements. This is how you overcome the client's time frame by declaring the value of your time, which will make him listen to you carefully, and not brush off like a bothersome fly.

The reward frame is based on the premise that if you present yourself correctly, then the opponent will perceive you as a value that needs to be acquired. The author believes that sales techniques aimed at "squeezing" and pressure on the client, if they work, then only in the short term, in the long term, a subordinate position will harm you.

Those who are tasked with speaking to an investor or potential buyer, usually believe that it is they who need to gain trust and earn approval. But the trick is to do the opposite - it's your clients and investors who should consider you the prize.

The reward frame works because it affects the reptilian brain of the other party. You can only pass through the filter of the reptilian brain if your message is new and unexpected. The reptilian brain can react in two ways: rejection out of fear or curiosity.

When you arouse curiosity, you yourself become a reward, since it is in the nature of people to strive for what escapes, what we cannot have, and we call valuable only what is difficult to obtain. If people get you without difficulty, then you will not be appreciated.

The fact is that buyers and investors listen to you because they want their money to work - they want to invest, spend money on acquiring the right goods. But their money can't do anything without you, their money needs you.

Money is a consumable. There are many places where you can find money, but you are alone and unique, just like your deal. This attitude and understanding of your value will help you build the right frames, which will accordingly affect your relationships with clients and investors.

Another type of frame is the analytics frame. The analyst focuses solely on facts, he needs numbers and statistics, human relationships are of no value to him. For example, when during your presentation someone starts to go into detail, throwing you off the plan and lulling the audience with technical details, he turns on the analyst frame.

In such a situation, you do not need to be distracted - provide only generalized data (revenue, profit), but say that the audience will be able to check these and other figures and calculations later from special materials, and now everyone needs to focus on whether you are suitable for each other.

Since the analyst does not recognize the value of human relationships, you need to keep the audience's attention on the relationships you are building. The frame of the analyst is opposed by the frame of intrigue.

The analyst frame has a weak point - analytical information cannot be perceived along with narrative information. Therefore, in order to overcome the analytical mood of the audience and break the analyst's frame, you need to tell an intriguing story (stored in advance), in which you must be the main character. The story should be short, related to the topic of the speech, it should contain intrigue - risk, danger, uncertainty, urgency, threat.

In history, something must prevent you, your adventures must have consequences, a conclusion. The story needs to be told when you see someone in the audience going to use the analyst frame. When, thanks to the story, attention will be riveted to you, you should stop your story at the most interesting place and continue speaking. The conclusion of the story should be known to the audience only after you have completed your presentation.

Idea 4. Avoid beta traps and use situational status

It is unlikely that you will assert your status by observing typical business rituals - in this way you will only pass for a pleasant person, but this will only lower your status. When you start new business, your social status is very low. But for interaction business world you need high status.

People instantly assess your status when you step on stage, they determine who is alpha and who is beta. If you start from a low status, then it will be extremely difficult for you to convince others of something. If you don't have a high status, you won't have a good pitch. A person with a high status wins attention instantly, and others do not question his words.

To show your high status, first of all you need to avoid beta traps. Beta traps are special social rituals whose implicit purpose is to put you in a lower position than your opponent. For example, this is a lobby, reception, meeting room, office space, even furniture.

Coming to a meeting, you are forced to go through humiliating procedures - to wait for a badge, to go through security, to wait in line. When you obey the office rituals, you are signaling to the person you came to that you are trapped, that your status is beta, you are waiting, but you are not noticed. When you are in beta position, your main weapon is emotional manipulation. But even if the client succumbs to it to please you, he will later regret it.

But is there an alternative at all, if your social status is really lower than that of the client or investor?

Coming to the doctor's office, you implicitly fulfill all his requirements. A doctor can earn much less than you, you can be a leader big company, you can have many awards. But in the doctor's office none of that matters. His situational status is higher than yours.

The same thing happens when you are stopped on the road by an inspector or when you are learning something new - your teacher has alpha status in the class, he is in charge. Accordingly, in order to increase social significance and not fall into beta traps, you need to redirect people to the territory where the main one is you. The main status remains the same, but you become the owner of a situational alpha status.

The author gives an example of how one day he came to negotiate with a client and realized that the client was not listening to him - he even began defiantly chewing an apple. The author realized that the only chance to turn the tide in his favor and take over the frame is to do something unusual.

The author said that he needed to go to the kitchen for a glass of water, where he also took a plastic knife. Returning and nodding at the apple, he said that he hoped that his client did not do business like that - after all, everyone needs their piece. The author said that he would now show how he usually conducts business. Oren took an apple, cut it into halves and took one for himself and placed the other in front of the client. There was silence.

The author praised the taste of the apple and continued his speech by mentioning that in his transactions the money is fairly divided among investors. The client's attention was focused on Oren. Then the author used his informational dominance and created a situational status. The result of the performance was a deal.

Avoid social rituals that will only reinforce your opponents' alpha status. Look for opportunities to disobey, resist even in small things, this will help you take over the frame. Once you've got the frame, quickly direct the audience's attention to the area where you're the expert, as opposed to the audience.

Use a reward frame to make the client consider you a prize. Finally, force the client to pin your alpha status. So, the author often ends the deal with the phrase: “Please remind me why I want to do business with you?”. Usually this phrase causes laughter, and then the client answers something like: "Because we are the best in such and such." To which the author replies: “Yes, exactly, I will remember it.”

Idea #5: Stick to the Four Stages of a Presentation

Oren Cluff knows from experience that performances usually take too long - at least 45 minutes. The author tells that in 1953, molecular biologists James Watson and Francis Crick presented the structure of the DNA double helix to the world, which became one of the world's most important discoveries, but their presentation took only 5 minutes.

Human attention has very tight limits, so the author recommends not making speeches longer than 20 minutes. Break your pitch into four stages, Cluff recommends.

First stage.

Introduce yourself and present your project within 5 minutes. At this stage, tell us about your achievements, about what you have created. But do not think that the more achievements you list, the better. A person averages the information received. If you name one outstanding achievement and one average, then it will be worse than if you just report one outstanding fact.

When you present your idea, you will need to introduce the “Why now?” frame so that the listener understands that your idea is new, important and corresponds to the realities of the modern market.

To do this, show your idea in the context of three market factors and trends:

economic (what financial market changes served as the starting point for your idea);
social (what changes in people's behavior contribute to your idea);
technological (which technological change contribute to the realization of your idea).

Describe how your idea was born and developed, what prospects open up when it is implemented. Then make it clear to the client what forces are driving the spread of your idea, indicating that your success will be inevitable as a consequence of these forces.

It is important for you to focus on exactly how your idea will spread, move, and not paint a static picture of the future. This is necessary, since our reptilian brain reacts primarily to movement and is blind to what remains motionless.

Second phase.

Take 10 minutes to talk about the budget and the "chip" of the project. At this stage, it becomes more difficult to keep the attention of the audience. Here you should explain what problems your project solves, how it works. Contrary to popular belief, the main thing here is not simplicity, which, on the contrary, can do harm, since you will seem naive or inexperienced.

Your main task is to tune your message to the reptilian brain of the listener. The reptilian brain perceives well even confusing information about human relations but doesn't like to think about numbers and statistics. He is attracted to novelty.

Attention largely depends on the joint work of two neurotransmitters: dopamine (the hormone of desire and expectation of pleasure) and norepinephrine (the hormone of tension). When you offer a listener a reward, resort to novelty, you affect the production of dopamine. If the listener can pick up the signal that your pitch promises him something new, then dopamine will enter his brain. The level of dopamine must be adjusted, because if it is too much, the listener may be seized by fear and excitement.

But dopamine alone is not enough for attention. It is also necessary that the author calls the "substance of vigilance" - norepinephrine. In order to trigger the release of noradrenaline, you, on the contrary, need to create something like a non-aggressive conflict.

To do this, use the tactics of pushing and pulling. For example, you talk about a deal and then say, “It’s quite possible that we won’t be a good match for each other as partners” (push). And then, pulling back: "On the other hand, if everything goes well, we can accomplish something significant."

When you talk about the essence of the transaction, do not devote much time to this part, provide the minimum necessary and relevant information. Be careful with numbers and forecasts. Any experienced investor knows that your forecasts are likely to be too optimistic and unrealistic, but you will underestimate the costs. Therefore, in order not to cause skepticism of the audience at the initial stage, you need to demonstrate that you are good at developing a budget.

When talking about competition, pay attention to two main questions:

how easy it is for new competitors to enter the market;
how easily customers will switch from your product to another.

Be sure to talk about your unique advantage (the author calls it "secret seasoning") - what distinguishes you from competitors.

Third stage.

Deal offer - 2 minutes. At this stage, you should describe to your audience what they will get from working with you. Be specific, but don't go into details.

Fourth stage.

Build hot cognition frames - 3 minutes. More on this later.

Idea 6. Capture frames with hot cognitions

At the last stage of the pitch, you have very little time left, but your task is difficult - you must offer something specific, attractive to the client and providing for response.

How do people make important decisions? The obvious answer is by thinking, considering and analyzing various arguments and facts. In fact, as recent scientific studies show, people make decisions intuitively, even before their rational thinking turns on. This is how we make the most important decisions - about where and with whom to live, where to work, what to do, what car to buy.

We make most decisions not as a result of "cold" analysis, but as a result of a "hot" cognitive process - gut, intuitively. Even when we make a list of pros and cons when making a decision, we already know inside ourselves what we want. Interestingly, one of the most famous investors in the world, George Soros, makes decisions by listening to back pain.

During the pitch, you need to push your listeners to make a “hot” decision inside. It is not beneficial for you to have their brain occupied with cold analysis. You need them to want your deal. To do this, you need to create hot cognitions through the establishment of the right frames.

You need to install four "hot" cognition frames one by one:

Frame of intrigue;
Reward frame;
time frame;
Frame of moral superiority.

By setting the frame of intrigue, you must influence the desire of the client - to show what he wants, but cannot get right now. The best way to lead the listener away from a rational mind - to tell a pre-prepared story in which the hero overcomes obstacles, experiences strong emotions and comes to despair.

Without wrapping up the story, move on to the next hot cognition, the reward frame that makes your client's reptilian brain think you're a strong opponent with no intention of begging for a deal.

At the end of the speech, the author says that he needs to determine which investors are allowed to make a deal, and who are denied. So he shows that he cares about who he will work with. He asks the question: “Can you tell us why we would like to work with you?”.

When you are convinced that the reward is you, it becomes your strength.

Lack of time always affects decision making. Sellers use this to force the buyer to make a buying decision faster by acting on the fear of missing out: "Hurry up, the promotion ends today", "Only a few models left."

However, these techniques are well known to professionals, and over-pressuring the customer with the sales techniques of the past decades can only damage your deal and your image. You need to find the right balance between pressure and decision-making freedom.

So, the author begins his appeal to potential investors with the words: "No one likes time pressure." He then goes on to say that good deals are like an express train running right on schedule. Such transactions have their own schedule, which has to be reckoned with, like the schedule of a high-speed train that arrives at the station at a strictly allotted time and does not wait for latecomers. The author then says what date potential investors need to make a decision in order to "catch the train."

Even the most powerful people lose their power frame on the surgeon's table. But even such a strong frame can be overwhelmed by a moral superiority frame. The author talks about how one day Mother Teresa, having ended up in a clinic with pneumonia and heart problems, essentially won the battle of frames with the doctors of the clinic.

The doctor's frame is built on several points that few people can question: if you want to live and be healthy, follow all the instructions, trust in experience and knowledge. But Mother Teresa was not an ordinary person, she was not affected by the frame of the doctor and his authority - she opposed him with her own frame: everything material, even life or death is not so important; need to help those in need. That is, she countered the professional authority of the doctor with her own moral authority.

As a result, doctors fell under the influence of her frame. Mother Teresa persuaded American doctors from a well-to-do hospital to donate or provide other assistance to nearby Mexican mobile clinics, which were short of funds. By the time Mother Teresa left the clinic, a volunteer network had already been established between the prosperous American clinic and Mexican clinics for the poor.

Ignoring the attempts of the other side to give some rational arguments why the return of money is impossible (analyst frame), the author got his way, stating that he was not going to listen to explanations, but came in order to return the illegally withheld money, and in case of resistance - call the FBI. Despite the fact that the collection of money took a decent time, the author intercepted the frame, and ensured that his client was returned the money.

Idea 7. The need for approval is your enemy

Seeking approval comes naturally to humans, as we are social beings. We are all subconsciously afraid that the "flock" will not accept us, because for ancient man it was tantamount to death. Nothing is more damaging to a pitch, however, than flaunting your insecurities. The author notes that the number one killer of transactions is the behavior dictated by the need for approval.

When you seek support in the eyes of your audience, you are essentially sending out distress signals. But if you were an investor yourself, would you want to work with a company whose leader's behavior is one of desperation? Hardly. Naturally, your listener's reptilian brain will try to keep him safe - and get him to run away as soon as possible.

Your need for approval means you are weak, and this is detrimental to your image and business.

How is the need for approval manifested?

For example, when you are worried that you will miss a deal because you have very high hopes for it. When you are convinced that only the acceptance of your transaction by the client will raise your self-esteem. When you get worried if you see that the listeners are not very interested in you.

To get rid of the dependency on approval, you can use a rigid time frame that will show your audience that you are needed elsewhere. But the main thing is to be cold-blooded, and for this:

Overcome dependence on your desires;
Show your best qualities in the presence of others;
When people are waiting for you to follow them, retreat - leave;

People want what they can't have. Remember that you should be their reward, not they yours.

Finally

In his book, Oren Cluff shares his rich practical experience in speaking and closing deals, including his failures and what they taught him. The author came to the conclusion that in the business world main mistake one thing you can do is fall into a beta trap that locks in your opponent's alpha status.

Therefore, from the very beginning, you need to make sure that you are considered a strong player. And best tool for this - mastering the art of setting frames.

Oren Klaff's book "Pitch Anything" was featured in MakeRight.ru, a service of key ideas from bestsellers on business, personal effectiveness, and self-development.

What is this book about
After raising over $400 million for his company and doing close to 10,000 hours of research, Oren Cluff came to a startling conclusion: at that crucial moment when we need to be persuasive, nine times out of ten, we fail. with this task. Our important ideas have a surprisingly low probability of getting through to the addressee.

If you are trying to sell your idea to an investor, offer the client new service or even negotiating a pay raise, the techniques in this book will change the way you think about how you present your ideas.

The author argues that the ideal pitch (the presentation of an idea, usually in order to obtain funding) is not an art at all, but rather a science. Using the latest research in the field of neuropsychology and citing non-trivial examples from his own practice, Cluff explains how our brain actually makes decisions and reacts to attempts to “sell” something to it. Armed with this knowledge, you will have complete control over the process of conducting your presentation.

The author's method of pitching called STRONG takes into account how our brain works and allows you to gain framing control in any situation, i.e. make your point of view dominant when communicating with other people.

By reading this book, you will know
How to gain credibility and attract the attention of the audience from the first minutes of the presentation.
How to package your idea so that it breaks through the wall of indifference and interests your interlocutors.
How to fully control the presentation process, even if you are asked uncomfortable questions and try to seize the initiative.
Who is this book for?
For anyone who wants to become more persuasive.

Book chip
The unique STRONG technique, based on research and confirmed by the results that the author was able to achieve.

But what is this advice, really? Telling someone, "Keep the audience's attention," is like teaching tennis and saying, "Now let's get tough." The man knows everything! But he doesn't know how to do it right.

And this can be learned. If your job is to sell something - a product, a service, an idea, then you know how a good presentation can help a project grow, and a bad one can ruin it. Also, you probably know very well how difficult it can be to pitch to a skeptical audience when you are paid attention one minute, and the next they are talking on the phone. But we all have to face this situation. And although most of us spend less than one percent of our time on it, the presentation can be our most important activity. When it comes to raising money, selling an idea, or getting a promotion, we have to do it. And it doesn't matter.

Key Insights Service from best-selling business and self-development literature, prepared a review of the book "The Perfect Pitch" by Oren Kluff on how to properly present your ideas to the audience, negotiate and achieve favorable conditions in transactions.

To bookmarks

Imagine that you are speaking to a potential investor about your new project. You are convinced of its potential, you have a fire in your eyes, you have positive feedback from the first customers, you are carefully prepared and have a good command of all the numbers.

How to do it and make successful presentations? Oren Cluff has some important ideas.

Idea 1: Presentations often fail because speakers don't consider how the human brain works

The reason for the error is that you do not take into account how the human brain works.

The reptile brain is the oldest, responsible for the most primitive physiological reactions like "fight or flight";
The mammalian brain - responsible for emotions and feelings;
The neocortex is responsible for what makes us human: the ability to think abstractly, rationally and logically and to be aware of our thoughts and feelings.

This is the mistake, because a person first of all perceives any message with the brain of a reptile. And after it passes this filter, the message enters other layers of the brain.

Why is this filter a problem for the speaker?

And this is the main problem of the speaker. Its task is to overcome the resistance of the lower layers of the brain, pass through its filters and deliver important information to the listener's neocortex. The speaker must understand that the only way to succeed in a pitch is to take into account the peculiarities of the work of the listener's reptilian brain, which seeks to receive the simplest information and reacts only to danger, novelty and intrigue.

Idea 2. Your first task is to choose the right frame

A frame can be defined as the point of view from which you look at what is happening and evaluate the situation. It is a kind of mental structure that you use depending on the situation. Naturally, in the same situation, the frames of different people will be different, and sometimes even contradictory.

If you manage to get the upper hand in the struggle of frames, then you will attract attention and your ideas will be heard.

How to learn to set the right frame? To do this, you do not need any secret techniques or impeccable command of public speaking. Sometimes even your silence is much more effective than eloquence.

Frame clashes occur with any social contact. Frame collision involves our primitive brain, which determines our behavior and blocks the neocortex. In any important situation of social interaction, ask yourself what frame you are facing.

Idea 3. There are four main types of frames

Business contacts involve the clash of several competing types of frames. The author identifies the following types:

The frame of power and the one that opposes it is a frame that undermines power;
The time frame and its opponent is the time constraint frame;
The frame of analytics and the one that opposes it is the frame of intrigue;
A reward frame that you can use against all other frames.

To determine who owns a frame, you need to see who is responding to whom. If you react to the words and actions of another, then he owns the frame, and vice versa.

What is the right thing to do when someone imposes their power frame on you?

The author talks about how he once got the opportunity to make a presentation in front of a representative of a large bank, cooperation with which promised great benefits for the author's company. But during the pitch, the representative of the bank, trader Steve, showed in every possible way that he was bored - for example, he took the booklet of the author's company and began to trace his palm on its reverse side.

The surprise effect undermines the dominant frame, it helps the listener to focus back on your presentation.

In general, if you manage to intercept the power frame, then you should not abuse it. Make sure the game is enjoyable for both of you, because no one likes to be submissive.

You have to control the time and take stock yourself. When a sales person comes to a meeting and the client says something like “I only have 10 minutes”, a big but typical mistake is to talk about how you value the client’s time and thank him for what he found for you time in your busy schedule.

Those who are tasked with speaking to an investor or potential buyer usually feel that they need to gain credibility and win approval. But the trick is to do the opposite - it's your clients and investors who should consider you the prize.

In such a situation, you do not need to be distracted - give only generalized data (revenue, profit), but say that the audience will be able to check these and other figures and calculations later from special materials, and now everyone needs to focus on whether you are suitable for each other.

Idea 4. Avoid beta traps and use situational status

It is unlikely that you will assert your status by observing typical business rituals - in this way you will only pass for a pleasant person, but this will only lower your status. When you start a new business, your social status is very low. But to interact in the business world, you need a high status.

But is there an alternative at all, if your social status is really lower than that of the client or investor?

Coming to the doctor's office, you implicitly fulfill all his requirements. A doctor can earn much less than you, you can be the head of a large company, you can have many awards. But in the doctor's office none of that matters. His situational status is higher than yours.

The same thing happens when you are stopped on the road by an inspector or when you are learning something new - your teacher has alpha status in the class, he is in charge. Accordingly, in order to increase your social significance and not fall into beta traps, you need to redirect people to the territory where you are the main one. The main status remains the same, but you become the owner of a situational alpha status.

Idea #5: Stick to the Four Stages of a Presentation

Human attention has very tight limits, so the author recommends not making speeches longer than 20 minutes. Break your pitch into four stages, Cluff recommends.

First stage.

To do this, show your idea in the context of three market factors and trends:

economic (what financial market changes served as the starting point for your idea);
social (what changes in people's behavior contribute to your idea);
technological (what technological changes contribute to the implementation of your idea).

Second phase.

Your main task is to tune your message to the reptilian brain of the listener. The reptilian brain is good at processing even confusing information about human relationships, but doesn't like to think about numbers and statistics. He is attracted to novelty.

When talking about competition, pay attention to two main questions:

how easy it is for new competitors to enter the market;
how easily customers will switch from your product to another.

Be sure to talk about your unique advantage (the author calls it "secret seasoning") - what distinguishes you from competitors.

Third stage.

Deal offer - 2 minutes. At this stage, you should describe to your audience what they will get from working with you. Be specific, but don't go into details.

Fourth stage.

Build hot cognition frames - 3 minutes. More on this later.

Idea 6. Capture frames with hot cognitions

At the last stage of the pitch, you have very little time left, but your task is difficult - you must offer something specific, attractive to the client and providing for response.

You need to install four "hot" cognition frames one by one:

Frame of intrigue;
Reward frame;
time frame;
Frame of moral superiority.

By setting the frame of intrigue, you must influence the desire of the client - to show what he wants, but cannot get right now. The best way to take the listener away from rationality is to tell a pre-made story in which the hero overcomes obstacles, experiences strong emotions, and comes to despair.

Without wrapping up the story, move on to the next hot cognition, the reward frame that makes your client's reptilian brain think you're a strong opponent with no intention of begging for a deal.

When you are convinced that the reward is you, it becomes your strength.

Idea 7. The need for approval is your enemy

Seeking approval comes naturally to humans, as we are social beings. We are all subconsciously afraid that the “flock” will not accept us, because for an ancient person it was tantamount to death. Nothing is more damaging to a pitch, however, than flaunting your insecurities. The author notes that the number one killer of transactions is the behavior dictated by the need for approval.

Your need for approval means you are weak, and this is detrimental to your image and business.

How is the need for approval manifested?

To get rid of the dependency on approval, you can use a rigid time frame that will show your audience that you are needed elsewhere. But the main thing is to be cold-blooded, and for this:

Overcome dependence on your desires;
Show your best qualities in the presence of others;
When people are waiting for you to follow them, retreat - leave;

People want what they can't have. Remember that you should be their reward, not they yours.

Finally

In his book, Oren Cluff shares his rich practical experience in speaking and closing deals, including his failures and what they taught him. The author came to the conclusion that in the business world, the main mistake you can make is to fall into the beta trap that reinforces the alpha status of your opponent.

Therefore, from the very beginning, you need to make sure that you are considered a strong player. And the best tool for this is mastering the art of framing.

Oren Klaff's book "Pitch Anything" was featured in MakeRight.ru, a service of key ideas from bestsellers on business, personal effectiveness, and self-development.

This book is well complemented by:

Presentation Mastery

Alexey Kapterev

The psychology of persuasion

Robert Cialdini, Steve Martin

Noah Goldstein

Blah blah blah

Pitch Anything

An Innovative Method

for Presenting, Persuading

and Winning the Deal

Oren Cluff

Perfect pitch

revolutionary method

conclusion of large transactions

Translation from English by Olga Terentyeva

Publishing house "Mann, Ivanov and Ferber"

Moscow 2013

Information from the publisher

Published with permission from McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Cluff O.

The perfect pitch. A revolutionary method for concluding large deals / Oren Klaff; per. from English. O. Terentyeva. - M.: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber, 2013.

ISBN 978-5-91657-726-6

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright holders.

Legal support of the publishing house is provided by the law firm "Vegas-Lex"

To be

damn convincing

If you haven't watched the Hollywood movie "Pirates of Silicon Valley" yet, be sure to do so. It tells about how the most charismatic and famous leaders of the global IT business started their business.

Here, for example, actors surprisingly similar to Bill Gates and Paul Allen in their student years fly to meet managers from IBM. After getting off the plane, they hurriedly change into suits and ties in the airport bathroom and drive to the computer giant's office, exactly according to the dress code adopted there. At the meeting, Bill Gates tells the guys from IBM that their wonderful personal computers need air like air operating system that would make them truly personal. And they, Bill and Paul, just have what IBM lacks so much. Both parties parted ways deeply inspired: IBM managers returned to their revolutionary product, and Bill Gates and Paul Allen set off ... to write the promised operating system.

What this conversation led to is known: a multi-billion dollar business, new industry… And it all started with a pitch.

Much is said about how to make selling pitches (presenting an idea, usually in order to obtain funding). Ten slides from Guy Kawasaki. Nine slides of a breakthrough presentation in nine minutes according to the canons of Hollywood from Luke Williams.

And here is the exclusive STRONG method from Oren Cluff, who wrote this book, "The Perfect Pitch," with the meaningful subtitle "A Revolutionary Method for Making Big Deals."

The author argues that the perfect pitch is not an art at all, but rather a science. Referring to the latest research in neuropsychology and citing instructive case studies from his own practice, Cluff explains how our brain actually makes decisions and responds to attempts to “sell” something to it.

Cluff's method - in fact step-by-step instruction, by following which you will make a convincing presentation, deliver it convincingly and achieve your goals, whether it is to attract investors, clients or a new step in your career. In general, you will be damn convincing!

Editorial Board of RVC Library

Father - the true guide in my life

Chapter 1

Here's the crux of the matter summary: There is a fundamental discrepancy between how we build pitch1 and how our audience perceives it. At the crucial moment when we need to be as convincing as possible, nine times out of ten we fail to do so. The likelihood that our main message will reach the client is surprisingly small.

It is very important to understand where this discrepancy comes from in order to overcome it, succeed and profit. This is where this book will help you.

I am by no means a natural

I make my living giving presentations to investors. My job is to raise capital for companies that want rapid growth or fame. And I'm good at it. I've raised millions in deals with Marriott, Hershey's, Citigroup and many other giants - and continue to do so, with a weekly figure of about $2 million. From the outside, the reasons for my success seem obvious: I offer lucrative deals to wealthy investors that involve Wall Street banks. But others are doing the same. However, it is I who get more money than anyone else. Everyone competes in the same market.

Make the same transactions. Present similar facts and figures for consideration. And the difference between us is not luck. And not in any special gift. I don't even have sales experience. The bottom line is that I rely on a good method.

The success of a pitch is directly related to the method you use, not the amount of effort you put in. Better method - more money. More better method- even more money. This is true for you too. The better you defend your position, the more success you will achieve. Want to sell an idea to investors, convince a client to give you the edge, or explain to your boss why you deserve more high salary? I can help you by teaching you the five methods in this book.

Presentation for the Ruler of the Universe

Over the years, I've pitched (and closed deals) with some of the biggest business leaders of our time, including the founders of Yahoo!, Google, and Qualcomm. But in recounting my experience, I can't help but think of the day I went to a meeting arranged for one of what Tom Wolfe would call the "Master of the Universe"2.

Jonathan (let's call him that) - no Johnnies or even Johns - is an investment banker who moves a lot of money. He has between six hundred and eight hundred pitches a year, which is about three or four a day. He often makes decisions at the cost of millions, having only the information that is contained in emails on his BlackBerry.

As a businessman, this guy (I have no intention of giving out his name, he will instantly drag anyone through the courts) is a real ace.

There are three things you should know about Jonathan. First, he is a mathematical genius, able to calculate the income curve in his head. He doesn't need spreadsheets. He'll know in the blink of an eye what your pitch is all about. Secondly, over ten thousand transactions have been made in his lifetime, and he can figure out any mistake or notice the slightest inconsistency, no matter how well they are disguised. Thirdly, he can be tough in communication, but at the same time he can not be denied wit and charisma. As a result, when he pitches for you, him every chance to catch you on the hook. Making a pitch for him you you are at a loss. Still wanting to be taken seriously in the world venture capital, you just have to make a deal with this guy at least once. A few years ago, while working on raising capital for a company engaged in software, I made an appointment with Jonathan and his team. Knowing his reputation, I knew that once I got him, other, less determined investors would be much easier to attract. They reasoned like this: "Well, if Jonathan signed up for this, then I'm in too." And Jonathan knew the power of his authority - and was not going to let me win easily.

When my speech was in full swing, he suddenly began to put spokes in my wheels. Maybe out of sport. Maybe he just didn't have a good day. But it was clear that he wanted to take - and maintain - control over the entire presentation. I did not realize this immediately, and began, as always, with framing(Frames create context and highlight the essence. As we will see, the person who owns the frame owns the conversation). I explained what I would - and wouldn't - talk about and was immediately rebuffed by Jonathan, that was exactly what they call deframing.

This book is well complemented by:

Presentation Mastery

Alexey Kapterev

The psychology of persuasion

Robert Cialdini, Steve Martin

Noah Goldstein

Blah blah blah

Pitch Anything

An Innovative Method

for Presenting, Persuading

and Winning the Deal

Oren Cluff

Perfect pitch

revolutionary method

conclusion of large transactions

Translation from English by Olga Terentyeva

Publishing house "Mann, Ivanov and Ferber"

Moscow 2013

Information from the publisher

Published with permission from McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Cluff O.

The perfect pitch. A revolutionary method for concluding large deals / Oren Klaff; per. from English. O. Terentyeva. - M.: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber, 2013.

ISBN 978-5-91657-726-6

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the copyright holders.

Legal support of the publishing house is provided by the law firm "Vegas-Lex"

To be

damn convincing

Here, for example, actors surprisingly similar to Bill Gates and Paul Allen in their student years fly to meet managers from IBM. After getting off the plane, they hurriedly change into suits and ties in the airport bathroom and drive to the computer giant's office, exactly according to the dress code adopted there. At the meeting, Bill Gates tells the guys from IBM that their wonderful personal computers need an operating system like air to make them truly personal. And they, Bill and Paul, just have what IBM lacks so much. Both parties parted ways deeply inspired: IBM managers returned to their revolutionary product, and Bill Gates and Paul Allen set off ... to write the promised operating system.

What this conversation led to is known: a multi-billion dollar business, a new industry ... And it all started with a pitch.

And here is the exclusive STRONG method from Oren Cluff, who wrote this book, "The Perfect Pitch," with the meaningful subtitle "A Revolutionary Method for Making Big Deals."

The Cluff Method is actually a step-by-step guide that will help you create a compelling presentation, deliver a compelling presentation, and achieve your goals, whether it's attracting investors, clients, or a new step in your career. In general, you will be damn convincing!

Editorial Board of RVC Library

Father - the true guide in my life

Chapter 1

Here's the crux of the matter in a nutshell: There's a fundamental mismatch between how we build a pitch1 and how our audience perceives it. At the crucial moment when we need to be as convincing as possible, nine times out of ten we fail to do so. The likelihood that our main message will reach the client is surprisingly small.