"Working to Help You Communicate Effectively"

About Berry Communications

Berry Communications Consulting Services is an Atlanta-based consulting firm that helps individuals conquer fears of public speaking and become confident speakers.  A dynamic speaking presence can greatly enhance your status and effectiveness as a leader, giving you a valuable edge most business leaders lack. This business works with individuals and/or groups.  Each workshop is tailored to suit the clients’ needs.  BCCS reaches for long-term, measurable results. Our approach is to use interactive exercises and role-playing situations that are specific to your environment.

Public speaking skills were ranked the number one skills employers are looking for in candidates entering the workforce today.  There is a definite need for public speaking skills in the workplace today, but many feel that they do not have time or simply don’t need the training.  The purpose of BCCS is to serve anyone who desires to learn the proper aspects of public speaking such as business leaders, real estate agents, athletes, principals, and the like. We teach how to discover the purpose of your speech, research demographics of your audience, develop eye contact, enhance credibility, and control fears.  This consulting firm does not teach broadcasting techniques to on-air talent such as news broadcasters, meteorologists, sportscasters, and does no telephone consulting.  Coaching is done best when teacher and student are in a face-to face environment.

Berry Communications Consulting Services, BCCS, offer comprehensive training in public speaking, workplace communication, and listening skills.  The business was formed in 2005 after President/CEO, Kristen Berry, discovered her love and passion to help others communicate effectively.  Berry Communications solves that problem by offering one or two day classes in your workplace setting.

Meet the President/CEO

Kristen Berry has worked in the communications industry for over 10 years while serving in such positions as Continuity Director at Maryland Public Television and as a Radio Announcer at WJCS Radio Station in Charlotte, NC.  Kristen Berry graduated with honors from Johnson C. Smith University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications.  

Berry also holds an M.A. in Human Communications Studies from Howard University in Washington, D.C. where she studied language & culture and communication theories in humans.  She is also a speech instructor at Atlanta Metropolitan College, Atlanta Technical College, and Atlanta Christian College in Atlanta, Georgia.  

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Services

BCCS offers the following services:

- Public Speaking Training
- Interpersonal and Workplace Communication Skills
- Listening Skills Training for Parents, Teens, Couples, Workplace 
- Motivational Speaking
- Voice-Overs
- Master of Ceremony/Hostess

What to Expect

- Customized training
- Relevant seminar materials                       
- Professional staff
- Training conducted in the comfort of your office

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Clients

BCCS was pleased to serve the following: 

- Maryland Public Television
- Atlanta Technical College-Culinary Arts Department
- Georgia Perimeter College
- U.S. Army, Ft. McPherson, GA
- Atlanta-Fulton County Library
- REL Marketing and Media
- Shaw Temple Business Alliance  
- Georgia Tech  
- Shaw Temple Biblical & Leadership Institute

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Partners

We support the following organizations/businesses:

- HR Anew
- Hiyaah Power
- Women's Business Directory
- Vision Manifest

-Women's Employment Opportunity Project, Inc.

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Testimonials

“BCCS presented a well-planned and informative workshop for our students. They were pleased with the presentation and we were able to quickly apply the information to our classroom setting. Now that they have this training in public speaking, I am encouraged that my students will be able to put their best foot forward when they enter the workplace.” – Shirley Wray, Culinary Arts Instructor, Atlanta Technical College

“Berry Communications created a specialized training to help us communicate with our clients’ needs.  We are listening to our clients much better! It has made a difference.”  – Bobbi Burke, Manager, Employee Readiness Program, Ft. McPherson, GA  


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Ten Tips for Public Speaking

REMEMBER:  You have a voice and you deserve to be heard!

1. Know the Room. Be familiar with the place in which you will speak. Arrive early, walk around the speaking area and practice using the microphone and any visual aids.
2. Know the Audience. Find out who the speech will be designed for, it is important that you are audience-centered and do not present a speech that goes over your audience’s head.
3. Know Your Material. There is nothing worse than seeing someone who stumbles through his/her speech. Practice your speech well.
4. Relax.  Ease the tension by taking deep breaths.
5. Visualize yourself giving your speech.  Imagine yourself delivering the speech in a clear, loud voice with an assured attitude.
6. Realize that people want you to succeed. People want you to be helpful, interesting, and stimulating. Despite what you may think, they do not want to see you fail.
7. Don’t apologize.  If you mention your nervousness or apologize for any problems that you may have, you may be calling attention to something the audience has not seen.
8. Concentrate on the message- not the medium. Focus your attention away from your own anxieties and outwardly toward your message and you’re audience.
9. Turn nervousness into positive energy.  Harness your nervous energy and transform it into vitality and enthusiasm.
10. Gain experience. Experience builds confidence. Take advantage of public speaking opportunities at your club, church, school, or workplace.

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How to Deal with a Hostile Audience
 By Kristen J.R. Berry

1. Listen carefully to the question & repeat it aloud. Make sure you understood the question correctly & that your audience knows the question to which you are responding.

2. Answer directly. Look directly at the person asking the question - Give simple answers to simple questions. If the question demands a lengthy reply, agree to discuss it later with anyone interested.

3. Refer to your Speech. Whenever possible, tie your answer to a point in your speech. Look upon these questions as a way to reinforce & clarify your presentation.

4. Anticipate areas of questioning. Prepare factual support material in three or four areas in which you anticipate questions.

5. Be friendly, always keep your temper. - A cool presentation creates an aura of confidence. When the questioner is hostile respond as if he or she were a friend. Any attempt to "put down" your questioner with sarcasm will immediately draw the audience's sympathy to the questioner.

6. Always tell the truth. If you try to bend the truth, you almost always will be caught. Play it straight, even if your position is momentarily weakened.

7. Treat two questions from the same person as two separate questions.

8. Don't place your hands on your hips or point at the audience. These are scolding poses and give you the appearance of preaching.

9. Keep things moving. There is a rhythm to a good question-and-answer exchange. They volley back & forth in a brisk manner. Keep your answers brief and to the point with many members of the audience participating.

10. Conclude smartly. Be prepared with some appropriate closing remarks. End with a summary statement that wraps up the essential message you want them to remember. 
    

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Contact Information

Email: info@berrycommunications.org
Phone: (770) 241-9508
fax:     (770) 969-9351
Our office is located in South Fulton County, Georgia 

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