The Art of the Pitch
The Art of the Pitch Persuasion and Presentation Skills That Win Business PETER COUGHTER An Advertising Age Publication
Top photo on page 144 and both photos on page 145 courtesy of Avery Oldfield; bottom photo page 144 courtesy Marc Andrew Stephens. the art of the pitch Copyright Peter Coughter, 2012. All rights reserved. First published in 2012 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN in the United States a division of St. Martin s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world, this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. Palgrave and Macmillan are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries. ISBN 978-0-230-12051-8 ISBN 978-1-137-51233-8 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-137-51233-8 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Coughter, Peter. The art of the pitch : persuasion and presentation skills that win business / by Peter Coughter. p. cm. An Advertising Age Publication. 1. Business presentations. 2. Persuasion (Psychology) I. Title. HF5718.22.C68 2012 658.4 52 dc23 2011023387 A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library. Design by Letra Libre Inc. First edition: January 2012 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Cynthia
Contents Foreword by Akira Kagami ix Introduction 1 Chapter One Everything Is a Presentation 7 Chapter Two It s Not about You 27 With contributions from Bill Westbrook and James P. Othmer Chapter Three How We Connect 51 With a contribution from Jeff Goodby Chapter Four The Power of Emotion 69 With a contribution from Mike Hughes Chapter Five How to Be 83 With contributions from Darren Moran, Chris Jacobs, and Lance Jensen Chapter Six Authenticity 111 With contributions from Gareth Kay, Alex Bogusky, and Hal Curtis
The Art of the Pitch Chapter Seven Death by Deck 131 With contributions from Bruce Bildsten and Mark Fenske Chapter Eight Organizing the Presentation 151 With a contribution from Anne Bologna Chapter Nine Rehearse, Rehearse, Rehearse 165 With contributions from Peter Krivkovich, Darren Moran, Pam Scott, John Butler, and Sally Hogshead Chapter Ten Punctuation 189 With contributions from Cindy Gallop and Don Just Chapter Eleven You Never Know 213 With contributions from Jeffrey Steinhour and Andy Grayson Afterword Standing Up 225 Acknowledgments 231 Notes 235 Index 237 viii
Foreword I ve never met another teacher like Peter-san. Presentation is a skill. To advance in the skill, we often resort to a formula of techniques. Because in one sense, to teach is to shape someone into a model, and that at a glance is most efficient. But Peter-san s method is different. What he demonstrated in our students was how to draw out their individual characteristics and let them discover their ability on their own. Peter-san does not teach. Presentation isn t only about words that is one of Petersan s points. But can an American teacher educate a Japanese, in a Japanese-language presentation? Impossible? The results were amazing. The presentation skills of the Japanese participants improved dramatically. ix
The Art of the Pitch Peter-san s method extends beyond country and language boundaries. Finally, the most important fact of all is that what we learned from Peter-san lasts. We easily forget what we are taught, but it s hard to forget what we discover on our own. Our students still retain in their hearts what Peter-san helped them to realize. So the way I see it, Peter-san is not a teacher, he is a guide to discoveries. Doshi is a Japanese word for a person who guides another, a guru. I think the word suits him. Thank you, Peter-Doshi. Akira Kagami, executive officer and global executive creative director, Dentsu Inc. x
The Art of the Pitch