Sell Them On Your Idea

BursaSnipers

Publish date: Mon, 03 Sep 2018, 11:18 PM

8 Innovators may be brilliant. But that doesn’t mean they’re adept at communicating their breakthroughs to others.

It’s not enough to come up with great ideas. To make a lasting impact, you need to induce others to buy into your grand vision.

The challenge gets harder when you face off against skeptics who resist change or favor a different option. They may reject your innovation unless you pry open their minds to consider your case.

To persuade others to embrace your inventive solution, tailor your argument to appeal to your audience. Highlight what they will gain and make it easy for them to hop on the bandwagon. To win them over:

Forge a connection. Regaling people about the beauty and benefits of your innovation has its limits. Regardless of how well you deliver your pitch, the real test is whether you engage others and make them feel like participants in the creative process.

“People who invent something aren’t necessarily good communicators,” said Alex Goryachev, managing director of innovation strategy at Cisco SystemsCSCO . “Communication requires listening.”

Soliciting feedback from others, especially potential resistors, helps you build trust and connect with them. When you’re ready to release your prototype, they’re more apt to feel like a part of your success if they were involved along the way.

Balance passion with humility. Driven by passion, innovators might assume that their enthusiasm will prove contagious. It might, but you still need to admit what you don’t know and show a willingness to bend and accommodate others’ preferences.

“If you have passion, you have to channel it in the right areas,” Goryachev said. “You need a certain discipline so that as you listen to others, you’re able to pivot” to integrate their input, refine your thinking and meet their needs.

Enlist colleagues. If you’ve invented something that’s revolutionary, you may figure you’re the only person qualified to talk about it. But you may attract more fans by joining forces with others who can reach out to key constituencies.

“Build a diverse team and play to your strengths,” Goryachev said. “I often see founders who insist on communicating themselves (about their innovation). Sometimes it’s better to step aside and bring in an expert to communicate” on your behalf, especially if you’re not accustomed to interacting with certain groups such as the media or institutional investors.

Keep it human. Innovators can get so enamored of algorithms, systems and technology that they overlook the human factor. If you keep emphasizing how your breakthrough harnesses the latest tech advances, you can lose potential allies.

“Often, I see (innovators) focus on features and technology,” Goryachev said. “Rarely do I see them focus on what problem they’re solving and why. So start with a business need rather than making a business case for your technology.”

Tell a story. Help others understand how you developed your idea. Trace your thought process in an engaging manner and create a narrative arc to let them know what led to your brainstorm.

“Tell a very simple and convincing story about your innovation,” said Jessica Baxmann, who leads communication for the chief innovation officer at SAPSAP , a Germanybased software firm. “Ideally, create pictures in people’s mind.”

To craft your story, she suggests asking a colleague to interview you about how your innovation came about. What was the genesis of your idea? What barriers arose in pursuing it? How did you overcome them?

“(Strive for) open, honest communication where you explain why you proceeded in a certain way,” Baxmann said. “Make the process transparent” and you’ll captivate a wider audience.

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