Social Media Insights Blog

Revisiting the speaking styles of Seth Godin, Guy Kawasaki and Tom Peters

From the blast from the past department, here is a re-post of something I wrote exactly 5 years ago about the presentation styles of three great speakers. Still as true as ever.

Great post over on Presentation Zen that includes links to comparison video clips of biz author/gurus Seth Godin, Guy Kawasaki* and Tom Peters.

Good writing is important. But good platform skills are equally important. And they’re hard to hone. These guys are tops.

I’m a huge fan of Seth and Guy and have heard them both in person. Have never met Tom or heard him speak. [UPDATE: Have gotten to know Tom Peters. He is wonderful. He spoke at a Sweets and Tweets in DC in 2010.]

Writes Garr Reynolds:

"If you watch the clips… you’ll notice that there is nothing traditional or conventional in their approaches to public speaking… All three use slides in their talks; Guy no more than ten, Tom more than one hundred, Seth somewhere in between. The number of slides doesn’t matter. What matters is that the visuals have an important role, but a supportive role. A complementary role."

Garr also notes: "All three have great stories to tell and useful content to share."

*I sent Guy the manuscript galley of The Corporate Blogging Book. The only thing he really liked was my chapter on "Top 10 Tips to Write an Effective Business Blog." Guy ONLY speaks, write, thinks in Top Tens. But ya know what? It works.

P.S. Guy does something that I’ve been working on recently: he smiles the whole time he talks. It’s disarming and very engaging.

Useful Link (thanks to Garr)

Tom Peters on his presentation tips

The Corporate Blogging Book was published five years ago… !

The official publication date of the original hardcover edition of THE CORPORATE BLOGGING BOOK was August 3, 2006.

What I wrote back then: Pre-order The Corporate Blogging Book and I’ll send you a BONUS - a handy PDF of the best charts in the book. Just forward your Amazon receipt to me at wordbiz(at)gmail.com. UPDATE: of course, this offer is no longer valid. But I’ve got a better proposition. Download the updated Kindle edition in seconds. It gets very good reviews… Great read, super practical advice…