The perfect pitch - explaining your research in one minute
Summary
TLDRIn this video, science communicator and presentation coach Andres Alma guides researchers on how to effectively create a one-minute research pitch. The goal is to capture the audience's attention by focusing on the problem, solution, and potential benefits of the research rather than diving into technical details. Andres outlines a structure—problem, solution, benefit, and action—provides tips on crafting a pitch, and stresses the importance of practice and feedback. The video emphasizes clear communication, proper lighting, sound quality, and avoiding slides for a more engaging pitch.
Takeaways
- 🎤 A pitch's goal is to capture attention and spark curiosity, not to explain everything about your research.
- 🧠 The key to a successful pitch is focusing on the most interesting and effective parts of your research.
- 📋 The structure for a one-minute research pitch is: Problem, Solution, Benefit, and Action.
- ⏳ Use a timer and brainstorm multiple answers to specific questions about your research to help draft your pitch.
- 🎯 Start your pitch by explaining the broader problem your research addresses, not just the research question.
- 🔍 Focus on how your approach contributes to solving the problem and what makes it unique, without dwelling on detailed methods.
- 📊 Highlight any key results or expected outcomes, emphasizing the potential impact of your research.
- 🌟 The pitch should end with a call to action, inviting the audience to learn more or take specific steps.
- 🤝 Involve your colleagues in creating the pitch and ask non-researchers for feedback to ensure clarity.
- 🎥 When filming, prioritize good lighting, sound, and a neutral background to enhance the video's quality.
Q & A
What is the primary goal of a one-minute research pitch?
-The goal of a one-minute research pitch is to capture the listener's attention and engage them so they want to learn more about your research and start asking questions.
Why is it not necessary to explain all aspects of your research in a one-minute pitch?
-It’s impossible to cover all aspects in just one minute, and that’s not the point. The pitch should focus on the most effective and interesting parts of the research to engage the audience and spark curiosity.
What structure is recommended for a one-minute research pitch?
-The recommended structure for a one-minute research pitch includes four parts: Problem, Solution, Benefit, and Action.
Why is it important to start a pitch with the problem your research addresses?
-Starting with the problem sets the stage and immediately captures the listener's attention, placing the research in a broader context that the audience can relate to.
What are some common mistakes people make when pitching their research?
-A common mistake is starting with detailed descriptions of how the research was conducted, especially the methods, instead of first explaining why the research is important and the problem it addresses.
What is the role of a call-to-action in a research pitch?
-The call-to-action encourages the audience to take the next step, such as finding out more about the research, asking a question, or providing something needed to advance the project.
How can you ensure that your one-minute pitch fits the time limit?
-Write a script, practice with a timer, and aim for around 150 words, allowing time for pauses. Adjust based on feedback to ensure the pitch is concise and impactful.
Why is it recommended to gather feedback from people who are not researchers?
-Feedback from non-researchers helps gauge how well the pitch communicates the main points to a general audience, ensuring clarity and engagement beyond just the academic community.
What are some tips for improving the visual and audio quality of your recorded pitch?
-Use good lighting, preferably natural light from a window, and a neutral background. Ensure clear sound by recording in a quiet environment or using an external microphone.
Why should you avoid using slides in a one-minute pitch?
-Slides can be distracting and take away from the personal connection that comes from seeing and hearing the presenter. The focus should be on the speaker to make the pitch engaging.
Outlines
🎥 Introduction to Research Pitches
Andres Alma introduces himself as a science communicator and presentation coach. He explains that the video will help viewers understand how to create a research pitch in one minute or less. The goal of a pitch is not to cover all research details but to capture the audience's attention. Alma emphasizes the importance of engaging listeners by selecting the most interesting parts of the research and starting a conversation.
📊 Structuring Your One-Minute Pitch
Alma discusses how the typical research article structure (abstract, background, methods, results, discussion, conclusion) is effective for writing but not ideal for presentations. He proposes a more active structure for the one-minute pitch: problem, solution, benefit, and action. He promises to guide viewers through each of these steps and offers practical advice on how to create the pitch effectively.
📝 Tips for Crafting Each Pitch Section
Alma advises starting with the problem your research aims to solve, rather than diving into methods. This approach grabs attention by placing the research in a broader context. He suggests using a timer to brainstorm answers for the problem and other sections such as solution and expected results. By quickly generating multiple responses, researchers can create a solid first draft of their pitch.
🔍 Focusing on Results and Benefits
Alma emphasizes the importance of discussing results and their impact. He encourages researchers to explain the breakthroughs or expected outcomes of their work and how it can contribute to solving a problem. Alma advises setting a timer again to brainstorm who or what will benefit from the research and how the results could have a larger future impact.
📢 Finishing with a Call-to-Action
To conclude the pitch, Alma explains the importance of a call-to-action, which invites the audience to engage further. This could involve directing them to more information, asking questions, or outlining what is needed to advance the research. He suggests brainstorming what actions the audience can take after the pitch.
🤝 Collaborating and Refining the Pitch
Alma encourages involving colleagues in the pitch creation process since the pitch represents the entire project. He recommends writing a script, practicing with a timer, and seeking feedback from both colleagues and non-researchers to ensure clarity. He advises adjusting the pitch based on how well others understand and retell it.
🎬 Practical Filming Tips
Alma provides practical filming advice, such as using a neutral background, good lighting, and clear sound to ensure a professional presentation. He emphasizes the importance of using a close-up shot, as viewers want to see the speaker, not slides. Finally, he wishes viewers luck and reminds them that practice makes perfect.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Pitch
💡Problem
💡Solution
💡Benefit
💡Call-to-action
💡Structure
💡Audience engagement
💡Brainstorming
💡Timing
💡Feedback
Highlights
The goal of a pitch is to capture the listener's attention and engage them.
A pitch is the start of a conversation, not a complete explanation of your research.
The structure of a one-minute pitch should be problem, solution, benefit, and action.
Start by explaining the problem your research addresses to catch the listener's attention.
Avoid going into too much detail about research methods unless they are a key strength.
Emphasize the expected results and the potential impact of your research.
Think about who or what will benefit from your research and explain it clearly.
End the pitch with a call to action to start a conversation with the audience.
When writing a pitch, gather feedback from colleagues and non-researchers.
Rehearse your pitch with a timer to ensure it fits within one minute (around 150 words).
Ask others to retell your pitch to see how well they understood it.
When filming a pitch, ensure good lighting and sound quality, with a neutral background.
Don’t use slides in a one-minute pitch, as the focus should be on you.
A pitch is not just for yourself, but represents the entire research project.
Practice makes perfect: continually refine your pitch based on feedback.
Transcripts
hi my name is Andres Alma I'm a science
communicator and presentation coach and
I'm here to help you to explain your
research in one minute or less after
this film you will have an understanding
for the goal of a pitch you will have a
structure for your pitch and also the
necessary tools for creating your
research pitch so come along with me and
follow these steps
I understand you have devoted years and
years to your research and put a lot of
effort into it and now we only get one
minute to explain it all and you are
absolutely right there is no way you
could explain everything about your
research in just one minute but that's
not the point
the goal of a pitch is to capture the
listeners attention to engage them so
that they want to learn more about your
research and start to ask questions the
trick is to choose the most effective
and interesting parts about your
research to tell the audience think
about it this way a pitch is the start
of a conversation
[Music]
so let's talk about the structure of
your one-minute pitch a typical research
article has a familiar structure you
know about the abstract the background
materials and methods results discussion
and conclusion and that is a very
effective way to convey something in
written form but a presentation is all
about being here and now and conveying
things in a more active manner so for
the one-minute pitch we want the
structure to look like this problem
solution benefit and action and don't
worry I will tell you all about each and
every one of these steps so now that you
know the different parts of the pitch
let me give you some tips and advice on
how to create your pitch for each and
every one of these steps I will ask you
one or two questions
grab a timer and set that timer to one
minute and for every question write down
as many answers as possible to that
question during one minute and it's not
about creating the perfect answer to
every question I just want you to write
down as many answers as possible because
this will help you to create the first
draft of your pitch
[Music]
many people make the mistake of starting
with how you conduct your research and
going through all the methods in detail
but before that we want to know why you
are conducting your research so start by
explaining the problem that your
research will contribute to solve not
the research question itself put your
research in a broader context so set the
stage and explain what part of the
problem your research is focusing on if
you start with explaining the problem
you will immediately catch the listeners
attention set your timer to one minute
and write down as many answers as
possible to the question what problem is
my research contributing to solve next
we want to know how you aim to solve the
problem tell us about your approach and
what makes it so special
don't well too much on explaining the
exact methods here if the methods aren't
part of the strength and uniqueness of
your project you might as well leave
them out then you tell us about the
results you have gotten or expect to get
from your research are there any
breakthroughs already that you can tell
us about we want to know what this
research will lead to so set your timer
to one minute and answer each of these
questions for one minute how is my
research contributing to the solution
what are my expected results who or what
will benefit from the results how can
these results be utilized to create a
larger impact in the future so it's time
to start the timer again and write down
as many answers as possible to this
question who or what will my results
benefit
finish your pitch with a call-to-action
remember when I said that the pitch is
the start of a conversation well the
call to action is all about starting
that conversation with the audience what
would you like the audience to do now
often it's just to tell them where they
can find out more about your research or
maybe you want to ask them a question or
perhaps you need a certain thing to get
your research going so write down as
many answers as possible to the question
what can the audience do now
[Music]
it's time to put the pitch together and
here are some advice for that first of
all don't do it all by yourself because
think of it this way you're not pitching
for yourself you're pitching on behalf
of the whole of the project gather your
colleagues to a brainstorming session
about the pitch and let them also answer
the questions I have given you write a
script because when you have a script
it's much easier to time your talk and
also to make changes based on the
feedback you get practice your pitch for
the timer so you know how long it will
take a typical 1 minute pitch is about
150 words depending on how fast you
speak but do take time to allow for
pauses as well and the most important
thing ask for feedback
not just from colleagues but from people
who are not researchers and when you ask
for feedback ask the person to retell
your pitch because then you will know
how much they have understood and what
changes you have to make to your pitch
when you film your pitch remember that
we want to see you so closer is always
better also think about the lighting the
lighting from a window is very good but
make sure it's on the right side this is
much better now the light comes in
through the window on your face and also
think about the background use a neutral
background because you don't want things
that looks like they're grown out of
your head right make sure you have good
sound either record in a quiet
environment or make use of an external
microphone that takes up the sound much
better because we want to hear what you
are saying don't use slides you only
have one minute to present your research
and we want to see you not the slides
good luck with your pitch and remember
practice makes perfect
[Music]
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