Anytime that you talk about your Venture you are doing messaging. Messaging happens in person, over the phone, and via email. It can be intimidating to talk about your work with strangers, so it is important that you are prepared to communicate your Venture’s message. Below are some basic steps and tips for successfully messaging.
- Know your Venture’s mission, purpose and goals.
- As a Venture team, develop a 60 second “elevator speech” that captures your message. If you can’t describe the main points of your Venture in 60 seconds, the listener may lose interest.
- Change your presentation depending on the audience, but always keep the key information the same. Make sure not to change anything about your Venture but, rather, highlight points that you feel will be the most interesting to your audience.
- Repeat your message as often as you can, to as many different audiences as possible.
- Show an interest in the audience by asking questions about their organizations and opinions.
- Communication is only about 10% verbal. Body language is just as important as the verbal aspects of messaging. Crossed arms and legs can symbolize disagreement or resistance, leaning away from your audience instead of toward them while you’re speaking can communicate disinterest or a lack of engagement in the conversation. However, maintaining eye contact and nodding can show your audience that you are actively engaged.
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