Presentations that Rock Presentation Skills in the Age of Complexity, Chaos & Light-speed Business
“A person can have the greatest idea in the world. But if that person can’t convince enough other people , it doesn’t matter.”
— Gregory Berns
Presentation Crash & Burn In just about any organization we are called upon to present. It can be a team meeting, an update to senior management, a pitch to investors or a impassioned presentation to people who you need to have care about something and help you advocate for change. But what happens when what you have to say, your evidence, facts, appeals falls on deft ears, people don’t get it or they can’t see what you see? This is called “Presentation Crash & Burn.” But it doesn’t have to be that way. We’ll show you how to discover, develop, design and deliver your story (yes, “story”) so it’s clear, concise and memorable. And so it moves people to action. So, let’s fly!
DISCOVER
How to start & Craft a Story
01
03 DEVELOP
Secrets of 02
Storytelling
DESIGN
Rules of
slide design
DELIVER
Important
things when standing 04 there
Start with WHO.
DISCOVER
How to start & Craft a Story 01
1
•Who are you presenting to? •What do they want to know? •What do they already know •Why are they here? (volunteer or hostage?)
Remember, this is about them.
Executive • Big Vision/Results • Convince their brain + Gut and Hunger • 1 Minute to get to the point • Sell against goals • Battle ADD and distractions • Do your homework (find out about them)
Team • Get technical • Convince their heart • 1.5 Minutes to get to the point • Sell against goals • Find out their likes/style
2
What’s your WHY. You need to have a game plan going into your presentation. Think about why you are presenting. What is the goal of your presentation? What is the one thing you want your audience to know, feel or think when they leave? To this you need to add the 3 - 5 top points that will most impact your audience - what is the evidence or compelling things that will convince them the most. Finally, ask yourself “what do I want them to DO at the end of the presentation?” Maybe you want them to give feedback, give you funding, approve something, debate the issue or make a change. If you have this outline you’ll have a better idea of where you’re going.
My Personal GPS
Today, I will share with you do what
practical tips and techniques about what
to help significantly improve your next presentation. to accomplish what
Start with PAPER. We know. You want to jump on to your laptop and bang it out, right? But don’t! Start on paper by writing out the major points of your presentation (you kind of have them from your WHY). Once you have them then then start adding details - what evidence, what compelling examples and what data helps you make that point in an effective way. These are the things you are going to say. Once you have this then shuffles your cards around, separate them into groups and experiment with the possible sequences you might use. Could you start with the problem, with the solution? Do you start with an example of the situation or go chronologically. You’ll find out in the shuffle. First think of everything! Get it all out of your head: Use a Mind Map Then, go back to your Audience and GPS and choose where to focus.
Then use post its or index cards as slides to work on your story and sequence.
If you try to tell them everything, they will remember nothing.
3
24 hour average retention rates 5% 10% 20% 30% 50% 75% 90%
talk lecture audiovisual demonstration group discussion learn by doing teach someone else
source: National Training Laboratories, Maine
You know what you are talking about, but does your audience understand it and do they even care? You have to develop a compelling story that is memorable. It’s sales ship and your selling ideas.
DEVELOP
Secrets of 02
Keep it Simple
Concrete
Don’t use big words just to show how smart you are. The simpler the better. And connect your ideas to things people know through analogies like “Speed is like Die Hard on a bus.”
People understand things that are physical and that they can picture in their mind’s eye. Find ways to translate ideas into physical representations. Like 5GB equals 1,000 songs in your pocket.
Storytelling Be Unexpected
If people think they know what you are going to say next they tune out. Keep them guessing by creating gaps. You can ask a question that surprises them and makes them hungry for the answer or present a future you want.
Build Credibility People need to know that you know what you’re talking about. Use intimate details that showcase your understanding of the issue and use powerful statistics that show you’re made the connections between the data and the real problem at hand.
Make it Personal Business is in love with demographics as a way to neatly package people together. But, to get people to really understand you need to make issues more human. Describe your problem, challenge or opportunity by talking about individual people.
Close it Up Wrap up your talk by either summarizing what you just told them, telling them what you want them to do next or by reminding them of how you started the story. Every story has a “and they lived happily every after.� You need to end with authority. Don’t be shy make your ask! Go back to your GPS and make sure you get what you came for.
eg. Make it Concrete
Movie popcorn vs contains 20 g fat
Movie popcorn contains more fat than a bacon-andeggs breakfast, a Big Mac, and fries for lunch and a steak dinner with all the trimmings - combined.
DESIGN
Rules of
03
slide design
Your slides are not your presentation. But they do matter. Crowded, ugly and badly designed slides can distract people from your message. Well done slides support you and focus attention on what you are saying. So channel your inner Salvador DalĂ and start designing.
Do not vomit information
Do not overload your slides with images and words. Your slide is supposed to be a support to your overall theme not a documentation of everything you are going to say.
6 Words to a Tweet
Just in case you didn’t get what we said above then let’s make it clearer: use 6 words and up to a tweet - 140 characters. No more! Brevity is bliss. And try to avoid bullet points. Bullets kill. You can do without them.
Use Powerful Visuals
Find images that stand out and capture attention without being distracting. Avoid the obvious image for what you are saying (shaking hands photo for “partnership”, very weak). One nice way to use an image is to cover the whole slide with it. You can find Creative Commons images on sites like Flickr and low cost ones on Compfight. You could also take your own photos. Like how we put a grey opaque box behind the text so it stands out? Genius, right? Remember to throw away: Clip Art and Comic Sans folders… ;-)
Love the White Space
Another way to go is to put a very small image on the slide and leave over 70% of it white. This draws people’s attention to find what is important on the slide. Check out this Volkswagen ad that makes you find the car by leaving the page mostly white.
Digest the Data
Don’t make your audience suffer through a spreadsheet with 8 point type and 200 pieces of information. You need to find what data is relevant and turn it into a graphic that helps people understand it’s significance. A great way to do this is to look at info graphics and see how they do it.
Use Color Wisely
Color isn’t bad. But too much color can make people feel sick. Don’t over do it. You can go to ColourLovers to find examples of colors that go well together. Or look at websites of brands you like and see how they bring it all together.
Use Fonts Wisely
Keep your fonts simple and try to keep them in the same family. Helvetica and Arial are good fonts. But Comic Sans is for second grade teachers. Don’t use it. Ever.
Last but not least... Use Visual Cues
DELIVER
Important
things when standing 04 there
You’ve discovered your story, developed it and designed your slides. Not the part where many of us start to sweat - time to deliver it. But don’t worry, you can do it. You just have to remember a few things.
1
Avoid the “umm” “err” “you know” “ok”
2
Be definite. Avoid maybe. If you are giving bad news, be assertive and explain WHY.
3
“OK” means so many things…
Don’t bulls#$t, if you don’t know say so.
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5 6
Engage people by asking questions and for get feed back.
Do not trust technology.
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Be aware of your body language. Avoid podiums.
Focus on Everyone.
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Use presentations to work on your personal branding.
10
If you are nervous, say so.
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Think of interactions before, during and after your presentation.
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Consider alternate formats: Ignite Guy Rule Pecha Kucha
Things to Consider
DEVELOP YOUR STORY
•Less slides (shorter presentation) •More slides (but pass them quickly) •Shorter presentations: Gives room for conversation. •Auto timing: Keeps your blood pumping and keeps you on a time target.
1.Problem 2.Your solution 3.Business model 4.Underlying magic/technology 5.Marketing and sales 6.Competition 7.Team 8.Projections and milestones 9.Status and timeline 10.Summary and call to action
IGNITE 20 slides x 15 mins. GUY RULE: 10 slides / 20 minutes / 30 pt font Pecha Kucha: 20 slides / 20 secs per slide (auto timing) / 6:40 mins presentation
Practice, Practice, PRACTICE. It doesn’t matter how good you feel you are at presenting you have to practice. Practicing you story gets it stuck in your mind, helps you see where things may not work out the way you first thought and let’s you know if you can do it in the amount of time you have. It also makes sure that if something goes wrong in your presentation (the lights go out) you’ll be comfortable enough to recover. Steve Jobs, one of the greatest presenters of all time, would practice on stage for two full days before presenting at MacWorld. If he got to do it… so do you.
life begins at the end of your comfort zone 21
Our Why We believe in the power & willingness of people to work together, think beyond and create products and services that drive sustainable growth bringing value to the world.
Tel. 787-283-6077 hello@seriouslycreative.com seriouslycreative.com