Communicate more effectively with powerful presentations and documents

peter garrett joins the team

I am delighted to report that as we go into our third year, we have a growing number of regular customers and an increasing range of services.

Our team has also grown. Peter Garrett has joined us, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience based on more than 200 platform talks a year, plus many media interviews - including Heart of the Matter, The Moral Maze and the Today programme.

Peter, who has already entertained and inspired Midlands-based customers at a Management Research Group event in Market Harborough, will share his experiences with all customers seeking to take their presentations and media interviews to new levels of excellence.

In this newsletter we have included a range of articles showing some of the work that we have undertaken in the past few months, including some of Peter’s work. As always, there are some of our Hints and Tips as timely reminders of all the things that we all know we should do – but sometimes forget!

If you have any feedback or comments, please do call me on 0845 456 7094 or email me at christine@beclear.co.uk.

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keynote for kensington group

When Alastair Pate was asked to give the keynote speech at this year’s Sub-prime Mortgage conference he called us. Alastair is Head of Marketing and Strategy for Kensington Group plc, one of the market leaders in the industry.

Keynote speeches are great PR opportunities for the company and great profile for the speaker, but Alastair was comparatively new to the sub-prime market and also new to conference speaking. He wanted to use this speech to gain the respect of his peers, all of whom were considerably more experienced in the industry.

We provided our complete conference package for Alastair, working with him from concept to delivery. The organisers needed him to set the scene for the two-day conference. So the content could not be particularly radical as it needed to include lots of industry facts and information whilst still being thought provoking and interesting. As well as helping with the content, we also gave support by designing some great graphics matching the new branding for Kensington Group plc.

Whilst Christine and Stuart were working on the content and visual aids, Alastair also spent time with Ingrid, our voice coach. Ingrid helps our customers to learn how to deliver their presentation with maximum impact. Alastair already had a good understanding of breathing, having spent many years playing the saxophone, so he and Ingrid were soon able to progress to more advanced tools and techniques to help with the delivery of his speech.

So what happened on the day - well Alastair said he was delighted when one of the delegates commented that all the other speakers had said a lot of what he said – but in a less interesting way!

www.kmc.co.uk

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leicester promotions invests in it's people

Our voice coach Ingrid St Clare spent many years working with actors both in the UK and the US. So she was in her element when we were asked to help the senior team from Leicester Promotions prepare to give a presentation at Leicester’s Haymarket Theatre.

Leicester Promotions are a marketing and tourism agency that believes very strongly in the need to continually invest in the development of its people. This year we were asked to provide a programme of training to help the senior team to enhance their presentation skills.

As the training followed a period of major growth and redefinition for the company, Managing Director, Martin Peters also wanted to take the opportunity for all his senior people to contribute to a new corporate presentation. So as well as providing training we then took things a stage further and looked at their specific presentation.

Having the whole team working together, off-site, with an external facilitator meant that everyone had the chance to see the company afresh and to think about how they needed to put their message across to potential clients and stakeholders. The end of the training coincided with the company’s AGM at the Haymarket Theatre, so the team had a great opportunity to practice their new skills and share their ideas for a corporate presentation with the board and their shareholders.

And in terms of investing in their people? Well Martin Peters said "The impact our work with Be Clear has had on our business goes way beyond the remarkable improvement in our presentation skills."

www.leicesterpromotions.org.uk

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peter spices up tiny's 'curryslim' messages

When ‘Curryslim’ boss Tiny Deol needed to ‘spice up’ her media interview techniques - and give extra ‘bite’ to her presentations - she added Be Clear’s Peter Garrett to her recipe for international success.

Peter’s expertise - he’s given literally hundreds of platform speeches, media interviews and after-dinner speeches during the last five years - helps executives improve both their presentation style and performances in front of the media.

Leicestershire-based Tiny, one of Peter’s first Be Clear customers, devised ‘Curryslim’, the world’s first diet for people who like eating Curry dishes but who also want to lose weight.

"Having launched my website, I was keen to gain maximum media publicity. But I knew that I had only a short time-span to make a great impression when breakfast TV shows and national newspapers started beating a path to my door," said Tiny.

Peter ‘rehearsed’ Tiny several times through various scenarios, including a ‘Paxman-style’ video interview. Equally vitally, he showed her how to handle all-important programme researchers - with whom it is crucial to have positive relationships.

"When Tiny arranged six interviews in a few weeks, I was able to give her specifically tailored coaching as I had, in fact, faced four of the interviewers," said Peter.

The global success of ‘Curryslim’ has resulted in Tiny giving worldwide interviews with all categories of the media.

"But, whether I’m being interviewed for TV, radio or a range of publications in Australia, India or the UK, I’m confident that I am always getting the right messages across clearly and concisely," added Tiny.

"Of course, I never stop learning - and I never stop wanting value-for-money. I still watch Peter on TV to see if he is practicing what he preaches - and to see if there is still something else I can learn and use."

www.curryslim.com

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meeting the needs of a mixed audience

Garment and footwear industry software specialist Prima Solutions has always prided itself on the quality of its graphics. But when Managing Director John Norman was invited to speak at London CorporateWear Week he turned to Be Clear to make doubly sure his words were presented as powerfully as possible.

"As John was speaking to a very mixed audience, just after lunch, the opening was particularly important," said Be Clear boss Christine Searancke.

"We, therefore, worked on how to involve all the audience - focusing on different ways of structuring information for a long presentation and the need to keep people involved. We strategically included a couple of questions right at the start - but also ensured that John had a humorous, yet memorable and relevant conclusion."

He had three sessions with Voice & Speech Coach Ingrid St Clare - the usual minimum for people working with her for the first time - enabling John to really integrate correct breathing and posture into his daily way of speaking.

"Professional speakers continually work with their voice coaches, but, with three sessions, businesspeople get a good insight and learn the foundations of always using their voices to maximum effect," said Ingrid.

John said: "We really met the needs of a very mixed audience, keeping the attention of both potential customers and competitors in terms of content and delivery. I’ve also learnt a different way of preparing presentations so that the content is much more focused on the needs of the audience."

www.primasolutions.co.uk

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communicating with clarity

Well-developed communication skills are a powerful business weapon. As Tony Jarvis, Senior Partner at Chartered Accountants, Rowley's, puts it: "We've been pitching to clients and presenting for years, that's how we've built our business. But there's no room for complacency; it's time to sharpen up our skills."

Tony approached the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce for advice. The Chamber put him in touch with Profile* member, Christine Searancke of Be Clear.

For Tony and his partner, David Allcock, Christine prepared a series of structured tutorials with a voice coach and a professional speaker. The four of them looked afresh at what Tony and David said, and how they said it.

By the end of the series, the pair were evaluating presentations like professionals. "It's not just that we feel so much more confident before our own audiences," says David Allcock, "we can now tell whether a speaker has properly prepared for a pitch aimed at us."

*Profile is run by the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce and helps to promote the smaller consultancies in the city and county.

Article reprinted by kind permission of the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce

www.rowleys.biz

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a common message across the business

Midlands-based recruitment specialist, the Work Partnership is passionate about Continuous Improvement. Part of their ongoing improvement programme includes Be Clear training and development, using both one-to-one coaching for new staff and specific support for presentations in all six of the company’s offices.

"Being a recruitment business our branch teams must be great with people," said Operations Director Beverley Stell. "But, as our business grows it is important that we are all giving the same message about the Work Partnership and the benefits that we bring to our customers".

When Be Clear’s Christine Searancke first met the directors, they wanted to develop a corporate presentation that could be used by everyone in the business. Christine said "Where a presentation is to be used by several people, it is important that it provides a structure that is firm enough to ensure all the key messages are included, but at the same time allows each individual to personalise the story."

Beverley said "Whenever someone new joins us they receive support from Be Clear, both in terms of delivering the presentation and also with letters and proposals; we really value the flexibility that a company like Be Clear brings."

www.workpartnership.co.uk

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