As a presenter, I’m always looking for some items that can make presentation more memorable. Here is an item I just found that could come in handy as a prop during your presentations: Bucky Balls.

Watch the video below to see the amazing magnetic toy you can’t put down:

Bucky Balls are available at Amazon.com.

Jonathan Altfeld is an internationally known trainer of communication skills. He recently released his latest creation, the 4-CD set “Creating the Automatic YES”. In this program, Jonathan teaches how to elicit and influence emotional states in elegant and natural ways. Although the program focuses on one-on-one communication, all of the skills and knowledge taught can be applied to product demonstrations and group presentations as well.

The program starts out with the two modules The Power of Context and People Only Take Action in Action States. The listener will quickly understand why emotional states in communication are key to getting a message across. The course then continues to educate the listener about the importance of emotional awareness in all of our communication — and especially in our persuasive communication.

Listen to this sample track from CD 1, Our Ability to Influence is Proportional to EQ. In it, you will hear Jonathan say: “Lead your audience to an Action State in a way that aligns with their values and beliefs.” With that sentence, Jonathan sums up what you will get from the program: the ability to elicit and influence emotional states in your audience.

“Creating the Automatic YES,” not surprisingly, is all about emotional states. You will learn how to lead someone from an Encounter State to an Action State — not in one big step, but through the chaining of smaller state changes in between. This is a skill that will set you apart from other presenters. Thinking about how your audience will feel when they watch your product demo will most certainly help you add great stories — and sequence them for maximum impact — when preparing your demo script.

Although I didn’t plan on it, I listened to the entire course in one sitting. It takes a little under four hours and the quality and logical order of information, bundled with Jonathan’s entertaining presentation style, makes this program seem shorter than it actually is.

For me, this program is a keeper! I recommend it to any product demonstrator as a secret weapon. Armed with it, you will be able to elicit and change the emotional states of your audience with elegance. I consider this the main ingredient that will lead to truly memorable demos. Here’s a link to Jonathan’s product page.

“Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.”
Alexander Graham Bell

A memorable product demonstration requires adequate planning and preparation. Preparing for a demo typically involves some creative writing. Writing down your key messages, relevant stories, and the main benefits your customers get from using your product is a cruicial step toward demo success.

Writing a demo script requires a focused mind and concentration. But with many windows open on your desktop, instant message and feed notifications, and social networking status updates, it’s easy to get distracted. If only there would be a text editor that lets users truly focus on the task at hand: writing a compelling demo script…

Meet Ommwriter, the text editor that helps you concentrate. Watch the video below and then head over to www.ommwriter.com to download this nifty freeware. It is only available for Macs, so if you need one of those as well, head over to the Apple Store.

Whenever I work with a client on their presentation or demo script, I first create a mind map. It helps me understand the different chunks of information and their relationship. And mind mapping software makes it easy to change the sequence and flow of a presentation or product demo.

To my delight, a new application has entered the mind mapping scene. MindMeister is a web-based mind mapping application that lets you work on a map collaboratively from any location. All you need is a web-browser. And the Offline Mode even lets you work on your maps when you’re not connected to the internet. Once you’re online again, the maps will automatically be synced with their online versions.

The user interface is well designed and the functionality is what you would expect from a full featured mind mapping software. The top menu bar includes buttons to add, delete, and connect branches, basic text editing functions, as well as an export feature, which converts your map to a document (rtf, pdf) or an image. MindMeister also supports the popular MindManager and FreeMind file types.

On the right side of the workspace, users find:

• Navigator
  Lets the user zoom in and out of a map, center the map, or switch to another map.
• Text Formatting
  MindMeister offers three different text sizes in regular, bold, and italics, as well as an option to change a font’s color.
• Icons and Images
  There are almost 300 built-in icons available, as well as the option to upload your own image files, to make your maps more memorable.
• Extras
  - Notes: Attach a note to any branch of your map.
  - Links: Add hyperlinks to your branches
  - Attachments: Upload a file as attachment to a specific branch.
  - Tasks: Set priority and schedule/assign tasks.
• Information
  Lets the user share and publish, set the title, description, tags, and notification options for a map.

MindMeister is so easy to use, no manual is required. There are a few easy to remember keyboard shortcuts:

• TAB – add new child idea
• ENTER – add new sibling idea
• DEL – delete an idea
• SPACE – open/close ideas
• cursor keys – move between ideas
• + / - – zoom in / out

Collaborating on a map is fun, as users see each other’s modification of a map as it happens in real time. And just in case you need to roll back time to see who added which topic in what order, MindMeister lets you step through a map in its History View.

MindMeister also developed two applications for the iPhone:

• MindMeister for iPhone
  This is essentially the same functionality of the web-based application in the palm of your hand. It lets users create, view, and edit maps, then share them right from the iPhone.
• Geistesblitz
  A very cool, free add-on. The application has one text field and a submit button. Entering a thought in Geistesblitz will send it straight to your default map and add it to a branch called “My Geistesblitzes”.
  Geistesblitz is also available as a browser plugin for Firefox and Internet Explorer, as well as an option to send your Geistesblitzes via SMS or Email.

The Basic Edition of MindMeister is free and naturally has some limitations. Users can only have 3 mind maps, can’t export in MindManager or FreeMind format, and have to endure a small advertisement in the upper right corner of the screen. To lift these limitations, users can upgrade to a choice of subscription-based plans, based on their needs. MindMeister also offers an Academic Edition.

Did you know, the book Giving Memorable Product Demos, written by Nathan Gold and yours truly, is now available on Amazon.com? Although local Amazon stores do not carry the title, people abroad can order it on Amazon.com for worldwide delivery.

I am especially proud of the feedback we have received from our early readers. Here are a few of the kind words we were sent:

If you have read the book already, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to comment below.