What a Beer Commercial Can Teach You About Presentations

Published: 1/19/2026

Have you ever seen a commercial that stayed in your head far longer than it had any right to?

You probably remember three or four from childhood that had a tagline, character, or gimmick that just stuck with you forever. For me, one of those was Dos Equis beer (I watched a lot of beer commercials–uh baseball, growing up). The most interesting man in the world says: “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.” If you’ve ever seen it, you definitely just read that in his voice.

To be clear, I have never really liked Dos Equis. I’ve drunk it maybe twice in my life. But in my brain? It will remain forever on the strength of that catch phrase.

So how can we apply an iconic beer ad to high-level professional communication?

The Power of One

Every effective presentation has one key takeaway. One sentence or phrase that the audience will remember for the rest of their lives (you hope).

The best takeaways are short, catchy, and actionable.

An energy analyst doesn’t say: “Carbon capture is maybe not working out exactly as we hoped and we probably ought to explore something else in the future.”

They say: “Carbon capture is a false promise that we must abandon immediately.”

A web designer doesn’t say: “I made this page pop.”

They say: “I added the call to action at the end to increase your conversion rate.”

At the 2014 World Championship of Public Speaking, Dananjaya Hettiarachchi didn’t say: “You have a lot of potential, probably more than you realize, and I feel like you’re underestimating your capability to grow and achieve more.”

He said: “I see something in you.”

And then he made it his website: iseesomethinginyou.com

Clear. Actionable. Memorable.

That’s the standard.

Small Phrase, Big Impact.

Your key takeaway should be as tight as possible. If it takes multiple sentences to explain, it’s not a takeaway – it’s a summary.

Compare these two:

Bad:“Based on our analysis of market trends and regulatory frameworks, we believe organizations should consider positioning their portfolios to take advantage of emerging renewable opportunities.”

Good: “Invest in renewable energy now or pay triple later.”

The first is hard to read and re-read, let alone hear just once.

The second tells you what to do and when.

One Presentation. One Takeaway.

You get one.

Support it with data, examples, and stories. Provide multiple perspectives. Show various applications or scenarios to illustrate your point. But everything must link back to one key message.

As the old saying goes: chase two rabbits, catch neither.

Deliver two key messages, be forgotten twice.

There is a time and place for a second foundational idea, recommendation, or insight: a second presentation.

Don’t Bury the Lead

Your key takeaway should appear early – ideally in the first 30 seconds. No one writing a Dos Equis commercial ever waited 10 minutes to deliver their famous line. You shouldn’t either.

Then repeat your takeaway in the middle, in light of the additional details you’re sharing. And repeat it again at the end to tie everything together.

The rule of three feels complete. You’ll see when I call back to my Dos Equis opener again at the end of this article.

Impromptu Speaking

This isn’t just for slides and rehearsed talks. The same structure works in meetings, interviews, and Q&A.

Answer directly. Explain briefly. Tie back to your main point.

Use the P.E.E.L. structure from “How to Answer Questions Like a Pro” for a solid framework that helps your listeners retain your point. Then practice paring your ideas down to short, sticky sentences.

You can use ChatGPT or other AI to prompt you with questions about your work, goals, or life in general. Practice with fun topics to learn the structure before you worry about making everything relevant to your career.

Give a one sentence response with your main point. Don’t take extra time to think. Then review what you’ve just said and trim extra words or details. Revise if the message isn’t clear.

Repeat with new questions. Use the “Buying time gracefully” tips from the article to mentally arrange your point while you set it up verbally. Doing this exercise with AI or friends trains your brain to do it in real time when you have to answer right away and stay with it.

Make It Stick

Most information slips out of our brains forever.

Slides, data, stories – people don’t even remember things that felt important while you were saying them.

What they remember is the line.

The one sentence that shows up later in their head while they’re walking home, sitting in traffic, or explaining your idea to someone else.

That’s why the Dos Equis ad still lives rent-free in my brain. Not because the commercial was detailed or logical. And certainly not because it was the best beer. But because one catch phrase does all the work to this day.

Your presentations should do the same.

If your audience can repeat your key takeaway after you’re done – ideally in your voice – you’ve succeeded.

Not because you said everything.

But because you said the right thing, and made it stick.