Summary of Jobs’ Presentations ‎

We're here to put a dent in the universe.—STEVE JOBS 27.

Most business professionals give presentations to deliver information. Not Jobs. A Steve Jobs presentation is intended to create an experience—“a reality distortion field"—that leaves his audience awed, inspired, and wildly excited. P. Xii

Jobs is not a natural. He works at it. Xiv

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs is structured like one of Jobs's favorite presentation metaphors: a three-act play. In fact, a Steve Jobs presentation is very much like a dramatic play Xiv-xv

» Act 1: Create the Story. The seven chapters—or scenes—in this section will give you practical tools to craft an exciting story behind your brand. A strong story will give you the confidence and ability to win over your audience.

» Act 2: Deliver the Experience. In these six scenes, you will learn practical tips to turn your presentations into visually appealing and "must-have" experiences.

» Act 3: Refine and Rehearse. The remaining five scenes will tackle topics such as body language, verbal delivery, and making "scripted" presentations sound natural and conversational. Even your choice of wardrobe will be addressed. You will learn why mock turtlenecks, jeans, and running shoes are suitable for Jobs but could mean the end of your career. xv

Jobs is "the master at taking something that might be considered boring—a hunk of electronic hardware—and enveloping it in a story that made it compellingly dramatic," writes Alan Deutschman in The Second Coming of Steve Jobs. Xvi

Only a handful of leaders whom I have had the pleasure of meeting have this skill, the ability to turn seemingly boring items into exciting brand stories. Cisco CEO John Chambers is one of them. Chambers does not sell routers and switches that make up the backbone of the Internet. What Chambers does sell is human connections that change the way we live, work, play, and learn. Xvi

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz does not sell coffee. He sells a "third place" between work and home. Financial guru Suze Orman does not sell trusts and mutual funds. She sells the dream of financial freedom. In the same way, Jobs does not sell computers. He sells tools to unleash human potential. Throughout this book, ask yourself, "What am I really selling?" Remember, your widget doesn't inspire. Show me how your widget improves my life, and you've won me over. Xvi

e Jobs is motivated by a messianic zeal to change the world, to put a "dent in the universe." In order for these techniques to work, you must cultivate a profound sense of mission. Xvi

From the age of twenty-one when Jobs cofounded Apple with his friend Steve Wozniak, Jobs fell in love with the vision of how personal computing would change society, education, and entertainment. His passion was contagious, infecting everyone in his presence. That passion comes across in every presentation. Xvi

Effective communicators plan effectively, develop compelling messages and headlines, make it easy for their listeners to follow the narrative, and introduce a common enemy to build the drama. P. 1.

The foundations for presentation success:

1.       "Plan in Analog."

2.       "Answer the One Question That Matters Most." Your listeners are asking themselves one question and one question only: "Why should I care?" Disregard this question, and your audience will dismiss you.

3.       "Develop a Messianic Sense of Purpose.”

4.       "Introduce the Antagonist." Every great Steve Jobs presentation introduces a common villain that the audience can turn against. Once he introduces an enemy, the stage is set for the next scene.

5.                 "Reveal the Conquering Hero." Every great Steve Jobs presentation introduces a hero the audience can rally around. The hero offers a better way of doing something, breaks from the status quo, and inspires people to embrace innovation [problem: Jobs presentations introduce a hero whom the audience needs and may identify with. This makes a passive audience. But, the better way is making the audience partners of the hero. Make the heroic journey interactive.] 1-2.

Steve Jobs presentations contain all of the elements of great plays or movies: conflict, resolution, villains, and heroes. And, in line with all great movie directors, Jobs storyboards the plot before picking up a “camera.” 3-4.

Remember, it's the story, not the slides, that will capture the imagination of your audience. 4-5.

ELEMENTS OF GREAT PRESENTATIONS

1.       HEADLINE

What is the one big idea you want to leave with your audience? It should be short (140 characters or less), memorable, and written in the subject-verb-object sequence. When Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone, he exclaimed, “Today Apple reinvents the phone!" Here are some examples from America's most popular daily newspaper:

» "Apple's Skinny MacBook is Fat with Features"

» "Apple Unleashes Leopard Operating System"                                                                                                    

» "Apple Shrinks iPod" 6.

2.       METAPHORS AND ANALOGIES

In one famous interview, Jobs said, “What a computer is to me is the most remarkable tool that we have ever come up with. It's the equivalent of a bicycle for our minds." 7

Sales professionals are fond of sports metaphors: “We're all playing for the same team"; “This isn't a scrimmage; it's for real"; or “We're batting a thousand; let's keep it up." 7.

Analogies are close cousins of metaphors and also are very effective. An analogy is a comparison between two different things in order to highlight some area of similarity. Analogies help us understand concepts that might be foreign to us. “The microprocessor is the brain of your computer" … During an interview with the Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg, Jobs pointed out that many people say iTunes is their favorite application for Windows. “It's like giving a glass of ice water to someone in hell!" 8.

3.                 CUSTOMER EVIDENCE AND THIRD-PARTY ENDORSEMENTS

Offering "customer evidence" or testimonials is an important part of the selling cycle. … Just as recruiters ask for references, your customers want to hear success stories. 9.

Slides don't tell stories; you do. Slides complement the story. This book is software agnostic; it avoids a direct comparison between PowerPoint and Keynote because the software is not the main character in an effective presentation—the speaker is. 11.

ARISTOTLE'S OUTLINE FOR PERSUASIVE ARGUMENTS

A Steve Jobs presentation follows Aristotle's classic five-point plan to create a persuasive argument:

1. Deliver a story or statement that arouses the audience's interest.

2. Pose a problem or question that has to be solved or answered.

3. Offer a solution to the problem you raised.

4. Describe specific benefits for adopting the course of action set forth in your solution.

5. State a call to action. For Steve, it's as simple as saying, "Now go out and buy one!" 12

TABLE 2.1 JOBS SELLING THE BENEFIT p. 20.

DATE/PRODUCT	BENEFIT
September 12, 2006 iPod nano	“The all-new iPod nano gives music fans more of what they love in their iPods—twice the storage capacity at the same price, an incredible twenty-four-hour battery life, and a gorgeous aluminum design in five brilliant colors."6
January 15, 2008 Time Capsule backup service for Macs running Leopard OS	“With Time Capsule, all your irreplaceable photos, movies, and documents are automatically protected and incredibly easy to retrieve if they are ever lost."7
June 9, 2008 iPhone 3G	“Just one year after launching the iPhone, we're launching the new iPhone 3G. It's twice as fast at half the price."8
September 9, 2008 Genius feature for iTunes	“Genius lets you automatically create playlists from songs in your music library that go great together, with just one click.

Nobody has time to listen to a pitch or presentation that holds no benefit. If you pay close attention to Jobs, you will see that he doesn't “sell" products; he sells the dream of a better future. 23.

Jobs offers the vision of a better experience: “I think the iPhone may change the whole phone industry and give us something that is vastly more powerful in terms of making phone calls and keeping your contacts. We have the best iPod we've ever made fully integrated into it. And it has the Internet in your pocket with a real browser, real e-mail, and the best implementation of Google Maps on the planet. iPhone brings all this stuff in your pocket, and it's ten times easier to use."¹⁰ Jobs explains the “why” before the “how.” 23.

Your audience doesn't care about your product. People care about themselves. According to former Apple employee and Mac evangelist Guy Kawasaki, “The essence of evangelism is to passionately show people how you can make history together. Evangelism has little to do with cash flow, the bottom line, or co-marketing. It is the purest and most passionate form of sales because you are selling a dream, not a tangible object."¹¹ Sell dreams, not products. 23.

» Ask yourself, "Why should my listener care about this idea/information/product/service?" If there is only one thing that you want your listener to take away from the conversation, what would it be? Focus on selling the benefit behind the product. 24.

» Make the one thing as clear as possible, repeating it at least twice in the conversation or presentation. Eliminate buzzwords and jargon to enhance the clarity of your message. 24.

individuals are inspired by “core values and a sense of purpose beyond just making money.” 31.

Donald Trump once remarked, “If you don't have passion, you have no energy, and if you don't have energy, you have nothing.” 33.

Jobs reminds me of another business leader whom I had the pleasure of meeting, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. Prior to our interview, I read his book, Pour Your Heart into It. Schultz is passionate about what he does; in fact, the word passion appears on nearly every page. But it soon became clear that he is not as passionate about coffee as he is about the people, the baristas who make the Starbucks experience what it is. You see, Schultz's core vision was not to make a great cup of coffee. It was much bigger. Schultz would create an experience; a third place between work and home where people would feel comfortable gathering. He would build a company that treats people with dignity and respect. Those happy employees would, in turn, provide a level of customer service that would be seen as a gold standard in the industry. When I reviewed the transcripts from my time with Schultz, I was struck by the fact that the word coffee rarely appeared. Schultz's vision had little to do with coffee and everything to do with the experience Starbucks offers. 36.