From
http://www.prdaily.com/
Throughout my career, I’ve seen hundreds of speakers end their presentations in exactly the same way.
They click to their last slide, deliver the information on the screen, and limp to the finish line by mumbling something such as:
1. “So feel free to call me with any questions you might have.”
2. “That’s the end of my presentation.”
3. “Thank you for listening.”
4. “Do you have any questions?”
5. “Ummm … thanks.”
A speech’s close is one of its most important parts, but it may also be the most neglected. The close is your final opportunity to accomplish your goal, whether it’s to inspire the audience, drive an action, inform a community, break the status quo, or change an opinion.
Here are seven great ways to close a speech, each with an example.
(Note that you may want to also include a call-to-action in your close, which I’ve
written about here.)
Close No. 1: Deliver a summary
You may have heard the old public speaking adage that advises speakers to use a three-step approach: “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you’ve told them.”
You don’t need to follow that rigid rule for
every presentation. But you’ll probably use something similar to it the majority of the time, particularly in the “summary” close.
In the summary close, you’ll finish your talk with a synopsis that reminds the audience of your goal and your most important points. For example, let’s say you’re an advocate for children’s safety that is trying to increase the percentage of parents who use child safety seats for their kids. You might end your talk by saying something such as:
“In conclusion, we’ve made significant strides in protecting children. Our education campaign significantly helped increase the number of parents who use child safety seats for their children. And our work with the state legislature resulted in laws that now allow police to ticket and fine parents who don’t.
“As a result of our work, the biggest issue is no longer making sure that parents install safety seats. Rather, it’s making sure that they do so correctly. One recent study found that as many as 90 percent of all safety seats are installed improperly, which increases the odds that a child will be unnecessarily hurt or killed in an auto accident.
“Therefore, I’m recommending a new campaign that shifts our focus from installing safety seats to installing safety seats correctly. This new campaign would encourage parents to use a state- approved installer instead of trying to install the seat themselves. I believe this is the logical next step in our efforts to protect kids in our state, and that this strategy shift will yield tremendous results.”
READ THE REST