In order to move someone, you have to know what motivates him. You’ve probably heard of Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, right? It looks like this.
Since 1943, Maslow has provided us with a foundational theory to help us understand human motivation. But there’s a new sheriff in town. And his name is James L. McQuivey. He’s the VP and Principal Analyst at Forrester, but you might know him for his book, Digital Disruption: Unleashing the Next Wave of Innovation.
In a keynote address in 2008 at the Forrester Research Conference, McQuivey outlined 4 universal human needs: connection, uniqueness, comfort, and variety. He says, “people share a set of universal needs—satisfy those needs with convenience and you will win.” In other words, if our presentations offer easy ways for our audience members to achieve connection, uniqueness, comfort, and variety, they’ll be more effective. Let’s explore McQuivey’s ideas a bit further.
The Needs
As helpful as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has been over the years, it might be a bit outdated. Or at least in need of some modern friends. McQuivey’s 4 needs put us closer to the way we now think and more clearly explain our behaviors.
- Connection: We are looking for ways to connect, not just with others, but with great ideas and great products and great content. This is one of the reasons the TED organization has been so impactful. They found an easy way to connect people with innovative research and ideas. In your presentation, outline the ways your content leads to greater connection.
- Uniqueness: We also have this instinct to treasure what is unique. Rarity equals worth. One of the things I tell my students when they promote themselves in job interviews or job performance reviews is to focus on what makes them unique. If they are unique in the job market, they become indispensable because they are irreplaceable. Build the worth of your presentation by highlighting what makes it unique.
- Comfort: This is one of the great human searches, right? We are on the quest to rid ourselves of discomfort or difficulty. We always have been and always will be interested in people and products that make our lives more bearable, more comfortable. If your presentation taps into this need of comfort, you’ll have your audience hooked.
- Variety: Finally, we want variety in our lives. We want choices. When we have things to choose between, it gives us a sense of control. Use this human need in your presentation by showing the audience that you have new choices to offer them, and that they have the power to choose.
When we understand how these 4 needs move nearly all the members of our audience, we can tailor our content to meet these important and universal needs.
The Importance of Convenience
Dr. Scott Brave says that needs “drive all of our behaviors, including the relationships we cultivate and the objects we consume. Every emotion we have is a result of the degree to which our needs are satisfied or inhibited.” So the emotions your audience will have following your presentation are directly tied to how well or how poorly you identified and met their needs.
But we can’t just meet these needs, we have to meet them with convenience. Patty Seybold summarizes some of McQuivey’s presentation. She says that convenience is not a need like the other four. It’s actually a means to get to those four needs. Often in our presentations we talk about the destination, as we should. We even help our audience picture what it would look like have those needs met. But we forget that we have to provide them with an easy and accessible path to get there. Telling your audience to “contact me” or “write your senator” or “live this out” at the end of presentation simply doesn’t cut it. Be specific about telling your audience how your content leads to greater connection, uniqueness, comfort, and variety. And then, give them the tools and knock down the barriers to get there.
When we present, we have to make sure the content we provide intersects with these 4 needs of our audience. Let this question haunt you and drive you to be better.
If my presentation isn’t providing connection, uniqueness, comfort, or variety, what is it worth to anyone?
At Ethos3, we specialize in presentations with stunning design and compelling narratives. Ready to design and deliver your best presentation yet?
