Surprises are fun, except when they’re not (hurricane Sandy and a computer crash come to mind). So, what do you do when you have been asked to present your ideas at a follow-up meeting and you find (surprise!) a new person, or (bigger surprise!) several new people, in the room?
Timing is Everything
1. Avoid a deer in the headlights reaction.
- Smile.
- Greet them warmly. Their presence may actually be a good sign. They may be additional influencers, decision-makers, and potential allies.
2. Take control.
- Re-cap the assumed objective of the meeting. “Our goal today is to look at ideas to help you increase… /reduce…/improve… X
- Re-cap the previously discussed situation. “Last time we met, you said…the situation is…, the challenges identified were… you were interested in… and your concerns were…Is that correct? (Or, Has anything changed?)
3. Then, STOP the presentation/discussion.
- Find out the roles and agendas for the strangers in the room. Ask as many questions as necessary to find out why they are there. “Sarah, Harry, you were not at our earlier meetings. Please tell me your role or interest in this situation…What would you add or modify to the situation as I described it? Tell me more about that…
- Based on their responses and knowing your recommendations, you can then weave their input into your remarks or, depending on their responses, you can decide to return with a different recommendation
You Can’t Make These Things Up
I had a surprise guest in a presentation once. I followed the tips above and learned that the other person was a competitor (talk about a BIG surprise!). He was the buyer’s current consultant and was in the room to evaluate me for another project. The ethics of that aside, once I found that out, you know that I altered my entire presentation to reveal just enough about my services, but certainly not the secret sauce.
Surprises belong in Crackerjack boxes, not in new business meetings.
Random recommendation: If you are not familiar with www.Prezi.com, check it out for more interesting presentations.
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