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ATA Client Outreach Kit

Client Outreach Skills Modules

Handling Questions and Answers


As you prepare your presentation, try to anticipate the questions your audience may have. Remember, questions are good—they confirm that your listeners have tuned in. Think of a few general recommendations you can make to the audience on:

Some professional speakers keep a few “backup” slides at the end of their PowerPoint presentations to answer frequently asked questions. (A humorous slide of a computer-translated text — into the audience’s native language — or a flawed text that was not proofread can be terrifically effective). If you tend to be a nervous presenter, this additional preparation will be worth its weight in gold. Remember: your responses should position you as an expert and seasoned professional rather than a salesperson.

It is also important to plan for what you will do if you can’t answer a question. The best response in this case is to comment, “Good question! I’ll have to get back to you on that.” Ask for the person’s name and contact information (which they might provide after your presentation), look up an answer, and get back to him or her promptly. Not only will you come across as a professional, you also have established a true dialog with a potential client.

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