Ten tips for being “Good in a Room”
If you’re in the entertainment industry, sooner or later you’ll find yourself to be a door-to-door salesman, albeit in various forms. And unlike most 9-to-5ers you may not have the technical qualifications on a resume to back you up, which is when it becomes even more necessary to realize the power of words. The power of conversation can hold the power to intrigue, to sell your talent and your ideas to an audience whom you may be meeting for the very first time.
An actor may try to convince a producer or director to use their talent. A writer/director may try to convince a producer that their screenplay is the best thing since sliced bread. A producer may try to do the same with his film to a distributor. Straddling the line between creativity and business is one of the major reasons this industry can be so tough to get into. You could be an amazing actor, writer, or filmmaker, but such is the injustice of this industry that you, your script, or your directorial prowess may not be considered “saleable”. So even if you’re not the greatest at having a conversation, it’s always helpful to know a few key points the next time you’re trying to sell your ideas and talent. You don’t necessarily have to be a smooth talker. You just need to be efficient. And you have to realize that silence can sometimes be just as powerful as words, if not more.
Though I’m sure seminars and courses in public speech and marketing would really help, I’m sure not all of us have the luxury to do that. Thankfully, Stephanie Palmer gives us her Ten Tips for Being Good in a Room:
1. Silence is the strongest start of all. Don’t start talking until the decision-maker is ready. If there have been a lot of people popping in, urgent phone calls or other interruptions, ask the executive if he is ready for you to begin. Make eye contact. Then, start slow and deliver your first line. Make sure it is dynamite. Pause. Gauge the executive’s response. Then proceed with your presentation at a relaxed pace. Remember, even though you’re intimately familiar with your project, the buyer will be hearing it for the very first time.
2. Understand the buyer’s secret dream. Even though top-level buyers can seem cold and recalcitrant, this is the result of seeing a seemingly endless stream of poorly-prepared and emotionally needy sellers deliver mediocre pitches. Decision-makers don’t wake up thinking, “I can’t wait to disappoint people and pass on thirty projects today.” Instead, they hope today will be the day they discover their career-making project. Thus, you must position yourself and your project in a way that differentiates you from the masses and speaks directly to the buyer’s highest priority needs.
3. Build rapport. Then, build some more. People want to work with people they like. Think about what you have in common with the decision-maker you’re meeting. Be ready to share a few brief, personal stories which demonstrate the attributes you believe will be most attractive to the buyer. Be prepared to ask a few open-ended questions which will encourage the buyer to speak about a non-business interest in a positive light. All else being equal, you will have the edge if you can establish a personal connection.
4. Make your pitch repeatable. Though you are selling your project to a decision-maker in the room, after the meeting the buyer, if interested, becomes the seller and must pitch your idea to their colleagues or superiors. In Hollywood, this is known as the “logline.” If you can’t summarize your project in a brief, compelling statement, you haven’t thought about it enough. Remember, the more you say, the less people hear. Choose your words carefully.
5. Acknowledge the competition. Be prepared to answer questions such as, “What does my project have in common with other successful projects in the same industry?” “What were the last projects that the company purchased and were they successful?” “Which of their projects is most similar to my own?” “What makes me the best person for this project?” Answering these key questions early in your presentation demonstrates that you have done your homework. This will encourage them to listen to what follows more closely.
6. The best meetings are conversational and interactive. Many professionals make the mistake of performing an over-rehearsed spiel that sounds like an infomercial for their idea. Instead, pause frequently, especially when there is an opportunity for the buyer to give you a reaction or ask a question. In an ideal world, you’d spend more time in a dialogue with the buyer than performing a monologue.
7. Start from the beginning – always. Even if you had a long and productive conversation the day before, you’d be surprised how much can change in the buyer’s mind. After all, you’ve been thinking about the meeting and they have, too. Assume that they’ve done more research, talked to some people and something has changed since the time you last spoke. It’s your job to figure out what that is. After some initial rapport building, do another information gathering session. If appropriate, ask for a recap from their perspective.
8. Watch for hidden opportunities. The buyer’s goal for the meeting may not be the same as yours. In addition to hearing your idea, the executive may be evaluating you to see if you would be a good fit for another project. Remember, when you are in the room, you are selling minimally two things: your project and yourself. Even if the meeting doesn’t result in a “Yes,” making a favorable impression can be the beginning of a long-term professional relationship.
9. Don’t claim your expertise – demonstrate it. Don’t just talk about your experience, show your expertise by positioning your project as it relates to the competition. Don’t brag or boast about past wins. If you must mention a past success, do it off-handedly and with humility. This is similar to the common rule about storytelling, “Show, don’t tell.” Remember a lot of people talk the talk. Those who are “good in a room” are focused on meeting the needs of the buyer and not on boosting their own ego.
10. Save a surprise for the end. Plan multiple strategies to exit gracefully. Some techniques are to have a callback to a personal topic that you discussed at the beginning of the meeting, thank them for a specific, useful contribution they made during the meeting, or leave them a polished piece of material that they haven’t seen previously. Use a summary statement that you design specifically to be remembered and repeated. Remember, last impressions last.
Surprise! Bonus tip.
11. You are always in the room. Develop your skills so you can handle meetings that occur unexpectedly, like on a plane, at a party, or in a waiting room. More business starts from casual interactions than formal meetings across a conference room table. The polished professional who is “good in a room” is ready for anything. But don’t feel the need to talk business in all situations. Often the best move is to say, “Why don’t we just enjoy the party, and I’ll follow up with you on Monday.”
For those who are interested in the hard copy, she has also expanded more about the above in her book with the same title. Here’s hoping some of these tips help out PFC’s own crop of filmmakers the next time they try to sell their ideas. Good luck!
Tags: Acting, Direction, Production
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striker // Thanks for sharing. Most of these tips hold good not only for the auditions, but they are also applicable at any sort of scenarios where scaling up is the expected outcome, such as interviews, meetings, presentations (@ boardrooms), etc. Commonsense. Good stuff.
This is good stuff. Nice concise set of points.
Thanks for putting it down.
thx guys.. will credit this post to onir, since he had brought up talks of “the pitch” some time back and made me look into an article i had read sometime back. hope he reads this too..
Thats a very good informative & helpful contribution striker. THANKS!
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Last Film – JSA (8/10) Chan woon Park rocks!
Music – Goldspot
Book – Confessions of a Economic Hitman
@Mainak – JSA Rocks! Love that movie! Ending shot..brilliant!
Yeah Vijay. The ending shot was like a fuckin orgasm. Chanwoon Park has 1 condition if he will ever make a film in Hollywood. Guess what?
He wants Samuel Jackson in it.
I can;t wait for them to get together man.
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Last Film – SUNSHINE (7/10)
Music – www.pandora.com
Book- Confessions of a Economic Hitman
great! write up Man.