Aristotle’s Outline for Persuasive Arguments

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 Jobs, it’s as simple as saying, “Now go out and buy one!”
   

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs

This list of "7 Lessons from a Marketing Genius" was created by Carmine Gallo, author of The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience.



Plan in analog

1. Jobs prepares presentations in the world of pen and paper. He brainstorms, sketches and draws on whiteboards.
2. Exact messages are decided on for new products, and used consistently across all platforms: presentations, Web sites, advertisements, press releases, and even the banners than are unfurled after Jobs' keynote.

Create Twitter-friendly Headlines

1. Can you describe your product or service in 140 characters? Jobs offers a headline, or description, for every product; each fits in a Twitter post.
2. Introducing the MacBook Air in January, 2008, he said, "The world's thinnest notebook." More information was available, but you already knew a lot.

Introduce the Antagonist

1. In every classic story, the hero fights the villain. The same holds true for a Steve Jobs presentation.
2. Before he introduced the famous "1984" ad, Jobs said, "IBM wants it all." Apple would be the only company to stand in its way. A villain allows the audience to rally around the hero -- you, your ideas and your product.

Stick to the Rule of Three

1. The human brain can absorb three or four chunks of information at any one time. Too much information, people won't remember a thing. Every Steve Jobs presentation is divided into three parts.
2. On September 9, 2009, Jobs returned after a medical leave. He had three things to discuss: iPhone, iTunes and iPods.

Strive for Simplicity

1. Apple chief design architect Jonathan Ive said Apple's products eliminate clutter. The same philosophy applies to Apple's marketing and sales material.
2. Most of Steve Jobs' slides are visuals -- photographs or images. When are there words, they are astonishingly sparse. Steve Jobs tells the Apple story. The slides compliment the story.

Reveal a "Holy Smokes" Moment

1. People forget words and actions, but not how you made them feel. Jobs creates water-cooler moments that everyone talks about later. These show stoppers are completely scripted
2. Jobs unveiled the MacBook Air at Macworld 2008 by removing the computer from an inter-office envelope. Everyone who saw it, or read about it, remembered it.

Sell Dreams, Not Products

1. Great leaders cultivate a sense of mission among their employees and customers. Jobs says he wants to put a "dent in the universe." True evangelists are driven by a zeal to create new experiences.
2. Jobs, launching the iPod: "In our own small way we're going to make the world a better place." Most people saw a music player, Jobs saw a tool to enrich lives. Great products matter, but passion, enthusiasm and emotion will set you apart.

From: CIO Insight