Creating a Presentation 制作简报

MP3-3,4

A presentation is your best chance to show your product in its best light, dazzle the audience, and fill your order book. Make sure you make the most of it, and take full advantage of the opportunity a presentation affords.This is not about what's easiest for you, it's all about maximizing the opportunities present, and selling as many people as possible on your product.

简报是让你展示产品优良特性的绝佳机会，更能让听众赞叹，愿意订货的不二法门。因此，你必须尽全力准备简报，尽力从简报中获取最大利益。这本书不是要告诉你做简报最简单的方式，而是要告诉你如何掌握做简报的良机，尽量把产品销售最多的人。

There are two types of presentations. Formal presentations are given to a large audience, and informal ones are given to a few people at a time.Either way, an effective presentation has to be interesting, entertaining, and informative.Getting your audience's attention is fairly easy, any attention grabbing stunt will do the trick：Holding on to them is the hard part.

简报可分成两种：正式简报的听众较多，非正式的简报面对的人较少。不管是哪种形式，有效的简报必须兼具趣味、娱乐以及提供资讯的功能。要引起听众的注意很容易，任何吸引人的噱头都能达到这个效果，但要如何维持他人的注意力则是困难所在。

The key to a successful presentation is to keep your audience entertained and eager to hear what you have to say next. Having their bodies there is not enough；you need them to listen to you.

要使简报成功的关键，在于如何让听众乐在其中，让他们渴望更多资讯。让听众坐在那里听你报告并不够，你必须让他们真正把你讲的话听进去。

To do this requires talent, and let's face it, even the best professional entertainer has his or her off days. If you're in it to succeed, you need good tools, such as a funny, fast paced, entertaining talk that will catch people's attention，hold it, and keep them listening.

要做到这点，需要一些天分。坦白说，即使是专业的表演者，有时也会力不从心。因此，如果你做简报是为了要成功，你就需要具备好的工具，像是笑话、轻快的语调及让人愉快的谈话方式，这些都可以吸引、并维持听众的注意力。

A professional stand up comic, like Eddy Murphy, can't do that time and time again；even he needs help. He uses well-written, polished talks, often called a canned pitch.

然而就算是专业的脱口秀喜剧演员，像是埃迪·墨菲，也不能老是用这些桥段。即使是他，也需要一些协助。艾迪墨非会使用预先准备的一些精彩演讲稿，而这种方式通常称为“脚本”。

A canned pitch is the best way to go. With a canned pitch, you don't have to worry about being entertaining；it's all written into the script.All you have to do is keep it sounding fresh and alive, and then you'll keep them listening, and everything else will fall into place.

脚本是做简报的最佳辅助工具。有了它，你便无须担心报告内容是否具娱乐性，因为那些成分都已经预先写进脚本中了。你所要做的只是让它听起来生动活泼，这样便可以吸引听众的注意力，那么其他细节也都会顺利进行。

With a prepared talk, you don't have to worry about forgetting something, leaving out an important feature, or explaining anything poorly. Everything you need to say is carefully written in, so it can't be forgotten.As long as you stick to the script, you'll be fne.

有了准备完善的脚本，你就不必担心自己会遗忘什么、漏讲重点或解释不清。所有要讲的内容，都已仔细写进脚本中，所以不太可能忘记。只要紧紧跟着脚本，你就不会有事。

Then, when you're comfortable with it, I mean really good at using it, you can stop running the program every now and then to adlib or interact with the audience. That gives it the human touch, and makes the audience that much more receptive.A canned speech is nothing more than a tool.Learn to use it and to make it work for you, and you can't miss.

接着，当你适应了脚本，也就是当你已经把脚本用得很顺手了，你就不必时刻照本宣科，而可以随性与听众互动。这会让简报更具亲和力，听众的接受度也会更高。脚本只是辅助工具，学会使用并善用它，你的简报一定会成功。

If we're in agreement that a canned pitch is best, the next step is where to get one. Major companies don't take any chances；they hire a pro to write it.However, not all bosses see how important this is, and they can't bring themselves to spend the money.That means it's up to you to write your own pitch.

假如我们都认为脚本是最佳选择，那么下一步便是要如何取得脚本。大公司通常不愿冒任何风险，会雇用专业人士来撰写脚本，但并不是所有老板都知道脚本的重要性，所以有人不愿在这上面花钱。如果是这样的话，这表示你必须自己写脚本。

While it's not the best way, you can make it work. It's not hard to write a successful pitch as long as you remember to have it at least the very least proofread, if not outright written, by a Native American English Speaker.

虽然自己写脚本并不是最好的方法，但你还是可以做得很好。要写好脚本其实不难，只要记得，在写完脚本后，至少让以美语为母语的人帮你校对一遍。

Find someone who can write a good dialog that runs the way American Business English is actually used. Many part time writers sound too preachy when they try to write a pitch and you need to avoid that.When you deliver your pitch, you need to sound like one of the boys.

再者，找一位熟悉美国商用英语的人，来协助你写出精彩的对话内容；此外，你应避免找一些业余作家来写脚本，因为他们常常会把脚本写得颇具说教意味；最后，当你在进行简报时，请尽量将自己融入脚本的内容。

Most of your presentations will be the informal type for just a few people at a time, and you'll be visiting the customer's office or meeting room. But it's amazing how a presentation written for a large audience with just a few minor adjustments works just as well for a small group.The size of the group doesn't matter.

大部分的简报都是非正式的，听众不会太多。有可能是你必须到顾客办公室或会议室做简报。你也许会感到不可思议，为大型场合所做的简报脚本，在经过些微修改后，居然可以适用于小型场合。所以，听众的多寡并不是重点。

The reason the customer is there is much more important than the size of the group, and even when you tell them pretty much the same thing；you just need to do it a little differently. For example, an audience of consumers looking for an easy way to use unit will want to know how your units are more used friendly, and so you show them.

听众为什么要听你做简报，远比听众人数的多寡来得重要。就算你报告的内容大同小异，他们来听你做简报的原因仍是最重要的。你仅需要做些小改变而已。例如，一群在寻找容易使用工具的消费者听众，会希望你的产品比较容易使用，你就是要让他们看到这种特色。

An audience of sales people looking for some strong selling points will want to know how to demonstrate the user friendliness. They want the same information, only in a slightly different package.

如果听众是一群销售员，在找寻更强的卖点，他们会想知道要如何把这个特色展示出来。这两种人都想获得同样的资讯，只需些微修改，便能符合两者的需求。

In the frst dialog, Lisa, a product representative for Taiwan Electronics Trading Company, is meeting with her boss, Nelson. The company has just put together a new product line, and now they need to promote it.Nelson and Lisa are discussing ways to do this in Nelson's offce.

在第一段对话中，丽莎是台湾电子贸易公司产品业务代表，她正和老板纳尔逊会谈。这公司刚刚发展出一条新的产品线，现在需要推广其产品。因此，丽莎和纳尔逊正在他的办公室，讨论要怎么做。

Nelson

What do you think of this new line?

你觉得这个新产品如何？

Lisa

It looks good. It should do well for us.

看起来不错，这对我们应该很不错。

Nelson

I think so. It's almost good enough to sell itself.

我也这么认为，这个产品好到几乎可以不用我们多加推销也卖得出去。

Lisa

Almost, but if it was, we wouldn't be talking about it, would we?

是的，但如果真是这样的话，我们就不需要讨论它了，对不对？

Nelson

Right again. We need a promotion to get the word out and start the ball rolling.

你又说对了，我们需要一个促销计划，来宣传这个产品。

Lisa

And I'm guessing you see a role for me in there?

我想你知道我在这件事中，应该扮演什么角色了吧？

Nelson

Correct, we want you to do the promotions.

说的没错，我们希望你可以负责促销计划。

Lisa

No problem, I'd love to. Is the script ready yet?

没问题，我很高兴帮忙。脚本出来了吗？

Nelson

Well, at this point, we don't have a script yet. We were hoping you'd take care of that for us.

这个嘛，现在我们还没有脚本。我们原本希望你也会负责这个部分。

Lisa

What do you mean?

这话怎么说？

Nelson

W e w e r e h o p i n g y o u'd w r i t e the presentation for us. You practically wrote last year's presentation.It was your suggestions that made it a winner.

我们原本希望你会帮我们撰写简报内容。去年的简报内容都是你准备的，因为你的建议，让一切非常成功。

Lisa

I just made a good thing better. That's a lot different than writing an entirely new presentation from scratch.

我只是让一件原来就很好的东西，变得更好一些。这跟从头开始写一份简报内容相比，可是完全不同的事。

The next dialog is a continuation of the frst.

下列对话延续前一个故事情节。

Nelson

Well, that's exactly what we were thinking as well.

这个也是我们原来的看法。

Lisa

I'm sorry?

这话怎么说？

Nelson

Well, this year's line is based on last year's, with a few items replaced by newer, better stuff. Am I right?

是这样的，今年的产品线是根据去年的产品线制定的，只是更换了几项更新、更好的东西而已，我说的对吧？

Lisa

So, you fgure we don't need a totally new presentation, but just need to fx up the old one. And you want me to do this, right?

所以你认为我们并不需要一个全新的简报，只要把内容稍稍变动一下就可以，而这你希望由我来做，是吧？

Nelson

Exactly. Can you do it?

说对了，你可以做吗？

Lisa

I should be able to after I work with the new stuff long enough to get a feel for it.

在我熟悉新的产品之后，我应该没问题。

Nelson

Great. Do you think you can have something for me in a week?

太棒了，你可以在一星期内把东西给我吗？

Lisa

Maybe. Right now, I need to ask you a few questions.

也许吧，我现在得先问你几个问题。

Nelson

Sure, ask.

当然，你问吧。

Lisa

Who is the presentation going to be given to, pros or the public?

听简报的人是谁？是专业人士，还是一般大众？

Nelson

Both. It's needed mostly for the pros, but there will be a few presentations given to the general public at shopping centers and places like that.

都有。但主要还是给专业人士听的，有几场简报是在购物中心等公众场合进行，听众是一般大众。

Lisa

And you want this in a week?

你希望我在一星期内把这些简报都准备好？

In the final dialog for this chapter, we complete the above dialog.

在这个章节中的最后一个对话里，我们把上面的对话做个终结。

Nelson

Not exactly, we want you to make a presentation in a week. So we really need it in fve days.

也不是，我们希望你在一星期内做个简报。所以我们五天内就要看到东西。

Lisa

Oh, great, so there's no rush, no pressure at all. Thanks a lot.

哦，这可好了，还说不赶呢？还说没压力呢？谢了。

Nelson

I hate to do this to you. We were going to have it professionally written, but the deal fell through.

我不喜欢这么对你。我们本来要请专业人士来写的，但案子没谈成。

Lisa

And you're only telling me now?

结果你到现在才告诉我？

Nelson

We just found out today. The script was due from the writer, but instead of giving us a fnished product, he just backed out of the deal.Said he can't do it.I know it's a short notice, but we need your help.Can you bail us out?

我们今天才知道这件事，本来那个写的人要交讲稿的，但他不但没给我们一份写好的稿子，反而告诉我们他不写了。他说他写不出来。我知道我们太晚通知你，但真的需要你的帮忙。帮帮忙吧！

Lisa

Well, I can put something together, but I don't know how good it'll be.

好吧，我可以准备讲稿给你，但我不确定品质会很高。

Nelson

We have a commitment to make a presentation in a week. We need you to do that.

我们答应了人家要在一星期内进行简报，需要你的帮忙。

Lisa

Who's the presentation for?I mean what kind of audience?

这个简报的听众是谁？是什么样的听众？

Nelson

All pros, it's for a large west coast retail outlet. I fgure you can write it for them, deliver it, and then fne tune it for other audiences.

都是专业人士，他们都是来自西岸的零售业者。我想你可以针对他们写一个简报稿，在进行简报后，可以再针对其他听众来修正内容。

Lisa

I agree. I'll need someone to cover my work while I do this full time.

我同意你的说法。在我把时间全部花在这个简报上时，需要有人做我的工作。

Nelson

No problem, we'll get Annie to help you out.

没问题，我们会叫安妮帮你。

Lisa

Alright. I'll pick up samples of the units to study and start looking for ways to make it sound easy.

好吧，我会把产品带回去研究，再开始思考如何让它听起来容易使用。

PRACTICE SENTENCES︱练习句型

1.We need a promotion to get the word out and start the ball rolling.

我们需要办个促销活动来宣传这个产品。

2.We were hoping you'd take care of that for us.

我们原本希望你会帮我们做这件事。

3.Right now, I need to ask you a few questions.

现在我需要请教你几个问题。

4.I know it's a short notice, but we need your help.

我知道这个通知很急促，但真的需要你的帮忙。

VOCABULARY︱词汇 4rLJefJoNG5VYG+aTpspxelB7slLTx8F7RHKHIPmgSU5uzAvqbl6sUY81Rv9YKrD