How to ‘Sell’ Your Idea

Have you ever presented an idea or solutions to an audience and once it’s done, you swore that you would never do it again? Your thoughts jumbled up and you lost your way in the middle of your presentation.

Maybe the steps (remember the acronym ANSVA) proposed by Prof Alan H. Monroe from Purdue University below can help you ‘sell’ your ideas to your future audiences better; 

Get Attention – You can get the attention of your audience by using storytelling, a shocking statistic, humor, a powerful statement and others that will get your audience to sit up and take notice.

Establish the Need – The next step is to convince them that there is a problem. This will give them the idea that what is happening now is not good enough and that change is needed. You can use statistics, informing them of the effects of not making changes or showing your audience how the problem directly affects them.

Satisfy the Need – Propose your solution. Tell your audience how you will solve their problems. Discuss the facts in detail. Use examples, testimonials, and statistics to prove the effectiveness of your solution.

Visualize the Future – You can use three methods to visualize the future. Firstly, you can describe what the situation will look like if your proposals are adopted. Secondly, you can describe what the negative effects like if your proposals are rejected and lastly, you can describe the negative picture first, and then reveal what could happen if your proposals are accepted.

Call for Action – The final step is to let your audience have an idea of what they can do to solve the problem. List the actions immediately. Persuade them to take action now. Keep your call for action list simple, between five to nine items.

So, the next time you present an idea or solutions, remember to use the steps discussed above. It will help you to organize your thoughts better and make your presentations more impactful.