PowerPoint Presentation Tips – Avoid Last Minute Surprises
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The PowerPoint tips featured here are not about creating better or more effective presentations, instead they help you avoid any last minute surprises that may crop up when an eager audience is waiting to see your slide show.
*They are all based on my personal experiences at a recent BarCamp.
Tip 1: Put the PPT files on a USB Drive
Yes, there’s box.net, slideshare.net and tons of other PowerPoint hosting services where you can upload your PPT files but I still recommend carrying files on a USB drive because there are chances that Internet may be very slow (or unavailable) in the presentation room. With files on the USB stick, you are always in control.
Related: How to Reduce Size of PowerPoint Files
Tip 2: Use Arial or Times New Roman Font
The default fonts in Office 2007 programs are Calibri, Corbel, Cambria, etc but unfortunately these fonts are not available on computers running older version of Microsoft Office. If you want the presentations to look the same in the conference room as on your laptop, use fonts like Arial or Times New Roman which are universally available.
Related: Best Fonts for PowerPoint Presentations
Tip 3: Always Carry the Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer
You have designed a great presentation using the latest PowerPoint 2007 but it possible that the computer, where you will run the presentation, is running an ancient copy of PowerPoint 2000. In that case, your presentation will fail to run. not run at all.
Download the free Powerpoint 2007 Viewer, transfer it your USB drive and be rest assured that your slide show will be play just perfect on any Windows computer.
Tip 4: Print a PDF of your PowerPoint Presentation
You can use Acrobat or the Save as PDF plugin of Microsoft Office 2007 to convert your PPT into a read only PDF file. Some members in the audience will always ask you for a copy of the Presentation slides and if you are not too happy in giving away the source file, PDF is a great alternative – it also maintains the layout, transitions and even the fonts.
Tip 5: Take Care of Margins
If the display properties of your computer do not match that of the projector, chances are that the presentation slides will be cut off at the edges – to avoid this, designate a margin safe area when designing presentations and limit your text or graphics to that area.
Tip 6: Some Presentation Rooms Can Be Very Big
Do not use small fonts as that will make your slides unreadable especially for back-benchers when the room size is large. The minimum recommended font size in PPT slides is around 24-points (more for headings).
Tip 7: Screensavers, IMs, New Email Notifications
Turn Off all these distractions before running the slideshow – they can sometimes be very embarrassing.
Tip 8: Power Management
Some computers (especially laptops) turn off the screen after 5-10 minutes of inactivity. Always turn off this feature using the Power management console.
MY THOUGHTS
i've learned it pays to test the slides - are the font's large enough, can peoplefrom the back read the text, are the pics and graphics clear, are colors okay. whenever possible and convenient, i bring the LCD myself.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
PowerPoint Presentation Tips: 10 Tips on Becoming a Better Presenter
10 Tips on Becoming a Better Presenter
Improve Your Presentation Skills and Be a Better Presenter
By Wendy Russell, About.com Guide
Make this year the one that defines you as a wonderful presenter. These ten tips will help you to make a lasting impression as a skilled presenter using PowerPoint or other presentation software.
1. Know Your Stuff
Your comfort level with presenting will be high if you know everything about your topic. After all, the audience is looking to you to be the expert. However, don't overload the audience with your complete toolkit of knowledge about your topic. Three key points is just about right to keep them interested, allowing them to ask questions if they want more.
2. Make it Clear What You are There to Share With Them
Use the tried and true method that skilled presenters have used for eons.
- Tell them what you are going to tell them. Outline briefly the key points you will talk about.
- Tell them. Cover the topic in depth.
- Tell them what you told them. Summarize your presentation in a few short sentences.
3. A Picture Tells the Story
Keep the audience's attention with pictures rather than endless bulleted slides. Often one effective picture says it all. There is a reason for that old cliché - "a picture is worth a thousand words".
4. You Can't Have Too Many Rehearsals
If you were an actor, you would not be performing without first rehearsing your part. Your presentation should be no different. It is a show too, so take time to rehearse -- and preferably in front of people -- so that you can see what works and what doesn't. An added bonus of rehearsing is that you will become more comfortable with your material and the live show will not come off as a recitation of facts.
5. Practice in the Room
What works while rehearsing at home or the office, may not come off the same in the actual room where you will present. If at all possible, arrive early enough so that you can become familiar with the room setup. Sit in the seats as if you were an audience member. This will make it easier for you to judge where to walk about and stand during your time in the spotlight. And -- don't forget to test out your equipment in this room long before it's show time. Electrical outlets may be scarce, so you may need to bring extra extension cords. And -- you brought an extra projector light bulb, right?
6. Podiums are Not for Professionals
Podiums are "crutches" for novice presenters. To be engaging with your audience you have to be free to walk among them if you can, or at least vary your position on stage, so that you will appear to be approachable to everyone in the room. Use a remote device so that you can change slides easily on the screen without having to be stuck behind a computer.
7. Speak to the Audience
How many presentations have you witnessed where the presenter either read from his notes or worse -- read the slides to you? The audience doesn't need you to read to them. They came to see and hear you speak to them. Your slide show is just a visual aid.
8. Pace the Presentation
A good presenter will know how to pace his presentation, so that it flows smoothly, while at the same time he is prepared for questions at any time -- and -- going back to Item 1, of course, he knows all the answers. Make sure to allow for audience participation at the end. If no one asks a questions, have a few quick questions of your own ready to ask them. This is another way to engage the audience.
9. Learn to Navigate
If you are using PowerPoint as a visual aid to your presentation, get to know the many keyboard shortcuts that allow you to quickly navigate to different slides in your presentation if the audience asks for clarity. For example, you may wish to revisit slide 6, which contains a wonderful picture illustrating your point.
10. Always Have a Plan B
Unexpected things happen. Be prepared for any disaster. What if your projector blew a light bulb (and you forgot to bring a spare) or your briefcase was lost at the airport? Your Plan B should be that the show must go on, no matter what. Going back to Item 1 once again -- you should know your topic so well that you can make your presentation "off the cuff" if need be, and the audience will leave feeling that they got what they came for.
MY THOUGHTS
No. 1 tip is the best. Know what you're talking about. No matter what happens, you'll know how to adjust. Your presentation will be free flowing,each slide presented to tell an interesting story.
Improve Your Presentation Skills and Be a Better Presenter
By Wendy Russell, About.com Guide
Make this year the one that defines you as a wonderful presenter. These ten tips will help you to make a lasting impression as a skilled presenter using PowerPoint or other presentation software.
1. Know Your Stuff
Your comfort level with presenting will be high if you know everything about your topic. After all, the audience is looking to you to be the expert. However, don't overload the audience with your complete toolkit of knowledge about your topic. Three key points is just about right to keep them interested, allowing them to ask questions if they want more.
2. Make it Clear What You are There to Share With Them
Use the tried and true method that skilled presenters have used for eons.
- Tell them what you are going to tell them. Outline briefly the key points you will talk about.
- Tell them. Cover the topic in depth.
- Tell them what you told them. Summarize your presentation in a few short sentences.
3. A Picture Tells the Story
Keep the audience's attention with pictures rather than endless bulleted slides. Often one effective picture says it all. There is a reason for that old cliché - "a picture is worth a thousand words".
4. You Can't Have Too Many Rehearsals
If you were an actor, you would not be performing without first rehearsing your part. Your presentation should be no different. It is a show too, so take time to rehearse -- and preferably in front of people -- so that you can see what works and what doesn't. An added bonus of rehearsing is that you will become more comfortable with your material and the live show will not come off as a recitation of facts.
5. Practice in the Room
What works while rehearsing at home or the office, may not come off the same in the actual room where you will present. If at all possible, arrive early enough so that you can become familiar with the room setup. Sit in the seats as if you were an audience member. This will make it easier for you to judge where to walk about and stand during your time in the spotlight. And -- don't forget to test out your equipment in this room long before it's show time. Electrical outlets may be scarce, so you may need to bring extra extension cords. And -- you brought an extra projector light bulb, right?
6. Podiums are Not for Professionals
Podiums are "crutches" for novice presenters. To be engaging with your audience you have to be free to walk among them if you can, or at least vary your position on stage, so that you will appear to be approachable to everyone in the room. Use a remote device so that you can change slides easily on the screen without having to be stuck behind a computer.
7. Speak to the Audience
How many presentations have you witnessed where the presenter either read from his notes or worse -- read the slides to you? The audience doesn't need you to read to them. They came to see and hear you speak to them. Your slide show is just a visual aid.
8. Pace the Presentation
A good presenter will know how to pace his presentation, so that it flows smoothly, while at the same time he is prepared for questions at any time -- and -- going back to Item 1, of course, he knows all the answers. Make sure to allow for audience participation at the end. If no one asks a questions, have a few quick questions of your own ready to ask them. This is another way to engage the audience.
9. Learn to Navigate
If you are using PowerPoint as a visual aid to your presentation, get to know the many keyboard shortcuts that allow you to quickly navigate to different slides in your presentation if the audience asks for clarity. For example, you may wish to revisit slide 6, which contains a wonderful picture illustrating your point.
10. Always Have a Plan B
Unexpected things happen. Be prepared for any disaster. What if your projector blew a light bulb (and you forgot to bring a spare) or your briefcase was lost at the airport? Your Plan B should be that the show must go on, no matter what. Going back to Item 1 once again -- you should know your topic so well that you can make your presentation "off the cuff" if need be, and the audience will leave feeling that they got what they came for.
MY THOUGHTS
No. 1 tip is the best. Know what you're talking about. No matter what happens, you'll know how to adjust. Your presentation will be free flowing,each slide presented to tell an interesting story.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
8 Secrets to a Knockout Business Presentation
8 Secrets to a Knockout Business Presentation
From Darrell Zahorsky, former About.com Guide
The presentation is starting. Dim the lights. Time for a nap. These are the thoughts of many audiences subject to yet another boring business presentation. How can you awaken the cognitive powers of your audience? Start by learning the 8 secrets of a knockout business presentation.
Dig Deep: Having an effective business presentation that will have the audience on their feet requires more than the usual factoid dropped into your PowerPoint. Find a relevant fact beyond your topic norm. Give them the unexpected. The one obscure and contradictory piece of information that will raise heads and stimulate discussion. Where do you find such information? Go past the typical quick search engine scan. Check out educational websites for new research, interview industry mavericks, or scour the business press.
Avoid Info Overload: PowerPoint expert Cliff Atkinson, author of Beyond Bullet Points says, "When you overload your audience, you shut down the dialogue that's an important part of decision-making." He points to some important research by educational psychologists. "When you remove interesting but irrelevant words and pictures from a screen, you can increase the audience's ability to remember the information by 189% and the ability to apply the information by 109%," recommends Atkinson.
Practice Delivery: A knockout business presentation is so captivating it makes you forget about the speaker and become absorbed in the talk. Practice your delivery over and over until you remove the distractions including nervous tics and uncomfortable pauses. Pay particular attention to your body language. Is it non-existent or overly excessive? Good presenters work the stage in a natural manner.
Forget Comedy: Business presenters will flirt with the temptation to deliver the stand up humor of Chris Rock. Remember your audience didn't come to laugh; this is a business presentation. Leave your jokes at home. It's ok to throw in a few natural off the cuff laughs but don't overdo it.
Pick Powerful Props: You don't need a box full of props like the watermelon-smashing comic, Gallagher. A few simple props to demonstrate a point can be memorable in the minds of your target audience. Management guru, Tom Peters, uses a cooking timer to show how quickly factory expansion is occurring in China.
Minimize You: "Frankly, your audience doesn't care as much about your company history, as they do about whether you can help them solve the specific problems they face. Write a script for your presentation that makes the audience the protagonist, or the main character, who faces a problem that you will help them to solve," says Atkinson.
Speak the Language: A knockout business presentation doesn't leave people wondering what you said. It might be tempting to throw in a few big words but are you alienating your audience? Always explain terms and acronyms. The number of smart executives who aren't up on the latest terminology would surprise you.
Simple Slides: Beware of the PowerPoint presentation. Many corporate brains will turn off at the sight of yet another PowerPoint presentation. Over 400 million desktops currently have the PowerPoint application. If you want your business to stand out, don't be like everyone else. Use slides in your knockout presentation to highlight and emphasize key points. Don't rely on your slide projector to run the show.
It all comes down to what your audience walks away with in the end. Did you deliver another boring business presentation? Or did you persuade or motivate everyone to action? Apply the 8 secrets to a knockout presentation and watch your ratings soar.
MY THOUGHTS
useful. very useful. i'm interested in what the audience say during the presentation. but it's what they say afterwards that i'm more interested in - "what they take away".
From Darrell Zahorsky, former About.com Guide
The presentation is starting. Dim the lights. Time for a nap. These are the thoughts of many audiences subject to yet another boring business presentation. How can you awaken the cognitive powers of your audience? Start by learning the 8 secrets of a knockout business presentation.
Dig Deep: Having an effective business presentation that will have the audience on their feet requires more than the usual factoid dropped into your PowerPoint. Find a relevant fact beyond your topic norm. Give them the unexpected. The one obscure and contradictory piece of information that will raise heads and stimulate discussion. Where do you find such information? Go past the typical quick search engine scan. Check out educational websites for new research, interview industry mavericks, or scour the business press.
Avoid Info Overload: PowerPoint expert Cliff Atkinson, author of Beyond Bullet Points says, "When you overload your audience, you shut down the dialogue that's an important part of decision-making." He points to some important research by educational psychologists. "When you remove interesting but irrelevant words and pictures from a screen, you can increase the audience's ability to remember the information by 189% and the ability to apply the information by 109%," recommends Atkinson.
Practice Delivery: A knockout business presentation is so captivating it makes you forget about the speaker and become absorbed in the talk. Practice your delivery over and over until you remove the distractions including nervous tics and uncomfortable pauses. Pay particular attention to your body language. Is it non-existent or overly excessive? Good presenters work the stage in a natural manner.
Forget Comedy: Business presenters will flirt with the temptation to deliver the stand up humor of Chris Rock. Remember your audience didn't come to laugh; this is a business presentation. Leave your jokes at home. It's ok to throw in a few natural off the cuff laughs but don't overdo it.
Pick Powerful Props: You don't need a box full of props like the watermelon-smashing comic, Gallagher. A few simple props to demonstrate a point can be memorable in the minds of your target audience. Management guru, Tom Peters, uses a cooking timer to show how quickly factory expansion is occurring in China.
Minimize You: "Frankly, your audience doesn't care as much about your company history, as they do about whether you can help them solve the specific problems they face. Write a script for your presentation that makes the audience the protagonist, or the main character, who faces a problem that you will help them to solve," says Atkinson.
Speak the Language: A knockout business presentation doesn't leave people wondering what you said. It might be tempting to throw in a few big words but are you alienating your audience? Always explain terms and acronyms. The number of smart executives who aren't up on the latest terminology would surprise you.
Simple Slides: Beware of the PowerPoint presentation. Many corporate brains will turn off at the sight of yet another PowerPoint presentation. Over 400 million desktops currently have the PowerPoint application. If you want your business to stand out, don't be like everyone else. Use slides in your knockout presentation to highlight and emphasize key points. Don't rely on your slide projector to run the show.
It all comes down to what your audience walks away with in the end. Did you deliver another boring business presentation? Or did you persuade or motivate everyone to action? Apply the 8 secrets to a knockout presentation and watch your ratings soar.
MY THOUGHTS
useful. very useful. i'm interested in what the audience say during the presentation. but it's what they say afterwards that i'm more interested in - "what they take away".
Powerpoint presentation tip: make sure you are the center of attention
Make sure you are the centre of attention when presenting
Wednesday, 20th October 2010
Don’t let PowerPoint seduce you with its bulletpoints
Jeremy Hazlehurst
HERE’S a statistic for you: according to Microsoft, 30m PowerPoint presentations are made every day. You are probably thinking one of two things now. Either that this is a wonderful thing, and it means that clear, concise information is being conveyed all over the planet as we speak. Or you imagine a horrible hell of confusing and meaningless slides flashing before your eyes, signifying absolutely nothing.
PowerPoint divides people. A Yale professor and expert in the visual presentation of data called Edward Tufte says that it “routinely disrupts, dominates, and trivializes content”, making us less efficient. Nasa uses PowerPoint for its communication and Tufte claims that this contributed to the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003, which led to the deaths of seven astronauts. But then again, if Nasa uses it, can it really be so useless?
“PowerPoint is a technology, just like the wheel is. We wouldn’t say that the wheel was good or bad, we’d ask how humans use it,” says Clive Holtham, professor of information management at Cass Business School. “The problem is much less to do with PowerPoint than humans.”
The use of bulletpoints is one of the major flaws of computerised presentations. In the old days before audio-visual presentation, people wrote out reports – risks were spelled out in full sentences and people saw, read and digested the report before the meeting, whose main purpose was discussion. Bulletpoints make it far easier to hide problems – whether deliberately or not, says Holtham.
Technology is seductive, but if it is used badly it can make presentations less clear and more complicated. Don’t underestimate the power of the human voice to persuade, says Holtham. “It worked well for many millennia. Even in the modern era, Churchill or Kennedy or Martin Luther King could inform and persuade in a few minutes purely by voice. Of course they had trained and honed their skills.” Remember that you are the persuader, and the computer is just a tool.
The key to a good presentation is to have a narrative, and use technology to clarify or stress points in that narrative. To aid this, Holtham says that he has started experimenting with a system called Pecha Kucha, which uses 20 slides timed to change every 20 seconds. This limits presentations to six minutes 40 seconds, and also means you need to think of a presentation as a story. “It requires vastly more preparation and planning, indeed choreography, so that it becomes virtually a performance rather than a boring lecture. There is very little need for words on the screen. There needs to be a very strong storyline,” says Holtham.
Dave Paradi, author of 102 Tips to Communicate More Effectively Using PowerPoint, agrees that it is all about the story. “By first deciding how you will move the audience from where they are now to where you want them to be at the end of the presentation, you dramatically cut the time spent creating slides,” he says. “A good structure to your message makes it clear what supporting visuals you need.”
He says that you should never read out your slides: “Make your presentation a conversation instead of a reading a report.” Using a black slide focuses attention away from the screen and on to you. “There is no rule that says you must always have a slide showing when you are speaking. When you want to focus the audience on a key point or example you are sharing, use a black slide so there is nothing to distract the audience. They will listen more intently to what you are saying,” he says.
The unloved bulletpoint should also be avoided, and replaced by visuals such as graphs that have more visual impact. A good slide has three things: 1) a headline that summarises the key message of the slide; 2) a visual that summarizes the key message of the slide; and 3) a visual that illustrates the point.
You should select colours that have enough contrast. Paradi suggests using www.ColourContrastCalculator.com to test them. Also use a sans-serif font that is seen easily, such as Arial or Calibri in 24 point or larger. Most importantly, though, remember two things. Firstly, that you are telling a story. And secondly, that what you have to say is more important than your slides, no matter how pretty.
MY THOUGHTS
i love telling stories. that's why i love designing my presentations from scratch. even my reports would have some sortof a story line. depends,of course,on the audience. i've encountered 1 or 2 groups who still prefers the bullets. i need to improve on my visuals though. i'm not much of a techy so i guess i need to brush up on this.
Wednesday, 20th October 2010
Don’t let PowerPoint seduce you with its bulletpoints
Jeremy Hazlehurst
HERE’S a statistic for you: according to Microsoft, 30m PowerPoint presentations are made every day. You are probably thinking one of two things now. Either that this is a wonderful thing, and it means that clear, concise information is being conveyed all over the planet as we speak. Or you imagine a horrible hell of confusing and meaningless slides flashing before your eyes, signifying absolutely nothing.
PowerPoint divides people. A Yale professor and expert in the visual presentation of data called Edward Tufte says that it “routinely disrupts, dominates, and trivializes content”, making us less efficient. Nasa uses PowerPoint for its communication and Tufte claims that this contributed to the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003, which led to the deaths of seven astronauts. But then again, if Nasa uses it, can it really be so useless?
“PowerPoint is a technology, just like the wheel is. We wouldn’t say that the wheel was good or bad, we’d ask how humans use it,” says Clive Holtham, professor of information management at Cass Business School. “The problem is much less to do with PowerPoint than humans.”
The use of bulletpoints is one of the major flaws of computerised presentations. In the old days before audio-visual presentation, people wrote out reports – risks were spelled out in full sentences and people saw, read and digested the report before the meeting, whose main purpose was discussion. Bulletpoints make it far easier to hide problems – whether deliberately or not, says Holtham.
Technology is seductive, but if it is used badly it can make presentations less clear and more complicated. Don’t underestimate the power of the human voice to persuade, says Holtham. “It worked well for many millennia. Even in the modern era, Churchill or Kennedy or Martin Luther King could inform and persuade in a few minutes purely by voice. Of course they had trained and honed their skills.” Remember that you are the persuader, and the computer is just a tool.
The key to a good presentation is to have a narrative, and use technology to clarify or stress points in that narrative. To aid this, Holtham says that he has started experimenting with a system called Pecha Kucha, which uses 20 slides timed to change every 20 seconds. This limits presentations to six minutes 40 seconds, and also means you need to think of a presentation as a story. “It requires vastly more preparation and planning, indeed choreography, so that it becomes virtually a performance rather than a boring lecture. There is very little need for words on the screen. There needs to be a very strong storyline,” says Holtham.
Dave Paradi, author of 102 Tips to Communicate More Effectively Using PowerPoint, agrees that it is all about the story. “By first deciding how you will move the audience from where they are now to where you want them to be at the end of the presentation, you dramatically cut the time spent creating slides,” he says. “A good structure to your message makes it clear what supporting visuals you need.”
He says that you should never read out your slides: “Make your presentation a conversation instead of a reading a report.” Using a black slide focuses attention away from the screen and on to you. “There is no rule that says you must always have a slide showing when you are speaking. When you want to focus the audience on a key point or example you are sharing, use a black slide so there is nothing to distract the audience. They will listen more intently to what you are saying,” he says.
The unloved bulletpoint should also be avoided, and replaced by visuals such as graphs that have more visual impact. A good slide has three things: 1) a headline that summarises the key message of the slide; 2) a visual that summarizes the key message of the slide; and 3) a visual that illustrates the point.
You should select colours that have enough contrast. Paradi suggests using www.ColourContrastCalculator.com to test them. Also use a sans-serif font that is seen easily, such as Arial or Calibri in 24 point or larger. Most importantly, though, remember two things. Firstly, that you are telling a story. And secondly, that what you have to say is more important than your slides, no matter how pretty.
MY THOUGHTS
i love telling stories. that's why i love designing my presentations from scratch. even my reports would have some sortof a story line. depends,of course,on the audience. i've encountered 1 or 2 groups who still prefers the bullets. i need to improve on my visuals though. i'm not much of a techy so i guess i need to brush up on this.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
SmartDraw Reinvents PowerPoint at The Presentation Summit
Posted by marin2008
Saturday, 23 October 2010
SmartDraw has debuted key enhancements that make it possible for anyone to create more effective and engaging presentations to over 150 presentation industry experts, speakers and consultants during The Presentation Summit 2010 in San Diego, CA.
During a special participant reception, SmartDraw demonstrated how SmartDraw VP, the world's first visual processor™, enables the 95% of PC users who currently create only text-filled presentations to reap the benefits of communicating visually. The visual processor empowers them in three ways: 1) by making it possible to create and manage presentations visually, 2) by making it easy to replace bullets with powerful visuals, and 3) by ensuring visuals are presented in the most impactful way possible in presentations.
"Creating a truly visual presentation means more than taking an existing text-based presentation and replacing some of the bullets with visuals," said Paul Stannard, CEO of SmartDraw. "You need to think visually, plan and compose your presentation visually, and present it in a manner that engages your audience. Only SmartDraw makes this possible."
Numerous studies have shown that visual communication is up to six times more effective than words alone, but until now, less than 3% of business communication has included visuals like flowcharts, mind maps and other diagrams. This is because using traditional graphics software to create them is just too difficult and time consuming for the typical business person. The visual processor solves this problem by automating the creation of visuals to such a degree that anyone can do it. With today's announcement, SmartDraw showed how the program not only makes easy visuals possible, but also makes the creation of entirely visual presentations a reality for the everyday user.
"Since its introduction in 1987, PowerPoint has been optimized to make creating a slide of bullets the easiest thing to do," explained Stannard. "Even after two decades, creating a list of bullets is still the default action. That's why so many presentations consist of slide after slide of bullets. With SmartDraw's PowerPoint builder feature, you compose your presentation visually in a storyboard format. You can easily add visuals of all kinds to any slide. Once your presentation is ready, SmartDraw builds your PowerPoint deck with a single click. You never even have to open PowerPoint."
SmartDraw also ensures that the visuals in your presentation are displayed in the most effective way possible by revealing the information sequentially.
"Showing a visual, like a data chart, to your audience all at once can be overwhelming," said Rick Altman, speaker and organizer of The Presentation Summit 2010, and author of the book, Why Most PowerPoint® Presentations Suck and How to Make them Better. "They will be too busy trying to absorb all the information to focus on the specific point you are trying to make. A much more effective way is to reveal the visual step-by-step with sequencing. SmartDraw does this for you automatically."
SmartDraw's PowerPoint builder also makes presentations easier to manage because, no matter how many visuals are added, the entire presentation is always contained in a single SmartDraw file. This eliminates the problem of trying to find the original source files for charts, for example, when last minute changes need to be made.
By enabling everyone in the organization to create visual presentations quickly and easily, SmartDraw VP allows an enterprise to cut through today's information overload and communicate more effectively by distilling complex information into an easy-to-digest visual form.
SmartDraw VP automates the creation of 70 different types of business visuals including flowcharts, data charts and graphs, mind maps, Gantt charts, timelines, floor plans, and more. Built-in integration with Microsoft Office® and Adobe PDF allows users to create and then share SmartDraw visuals with a single click.
For an overview video and white paper by Stannard and Altman describing in detail how SmartDraw reinvents PowerPoint, and to download a free trial, visit www.SmartDraw.com/ppt.
About SmartDraw
SmartDraw helps businesses increase their bottom line by improving communication, refining operations, completing projects on time, and successfully implementing their plans through the everyday use of visual communication. Creators of SmartDraw VP, the world's first visual processor™, SmartDraw enables business professionals to easily and automatically create more than 70 types of common business visuals, including flowcharts, project charts, mind maps, org charts, timelines and more. SmartDraw lets anyone achieve professional-quality results in just minutes. SmartDraw is used by more than half of the Fortune 500, as well as thousands of law firms, police departments, health systems, government entities, educational institutions and private enterprises of all sizes. Founded in 1994, SmartDraw is privately-held, with headquarters in San Diego, California. For more information or to download a free trial of SmartDraw, please visit www.SmartDraw.com.
About The Presentation Summit
The Presentation Summit is organized and hosted by Rick Altman, prominent presentations consultant and author. Altman services an international client base and has authored 15 books on presentations and graphics, including his current one with the inflammatory title, "Why Most PowerPoint Presentations Suck." www.BetterPresenting.com
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MY THOUGHTS
heaven! need to check this out
Posted by marin2008
Saturday, 23 October 2010
SmartDraw has debuted key enhancements that make it possible for anyone to create more effective and engaging presentations to over 150 presentation industry experts, speakers and consultants during The Presentation Summit 2010 in San Diego, CA.
During a special participant reception, SmartDraw demonstrated how SmartDraw VP, the world's first visual processor™, enables the 95% of PC users who currently create only text-filled presentations to reap the benefits of communicating visually. The visual processor empowers them in three ways: 1) by making it possible to create and manage presentations visually, 2) by making it easy to replace bullets with powerful visuals, and 3) by ensuring visuals are presented in the most impactful way possible in presentations.
"Creating a truly visual presentation means more than taking an existing text-based presentation and replacing some of the bullets with visuals," said Paul Stannard, CEO of SmartDraw. "You need to think visually, plan and compose your presentation visually, and present it in a manner that engages your audience. Only SmartDraw makes this possible."
Numerous studies have shown that visual communication is up to six times more effective than words alone, but until now, less than 3% of business communication has included visuals like flowcharts, mind maps and other diagrams. This is because using traditional graphics software to create them is just too difficult and time consuming for the typical business person. The visual processor solves this problem by automating the creation of visuals to such a degree that anyone can do it. With today's announcement, SmartDraw showed how the program not only makes easy visuals possible, but also makes the creation of entirely visual presentations a reality for the everyday user.
"Since its introduction in 1987, PowerPoint has been optimized to make creating a slide of bullets the easiest thing to do," explained Stannard. "Even after two decades, creating a list of bullets is still the default action. That's why so many presentations consist of slide after slide of bullets. With SmartDraw's PowerPoint builder feature, you compose your presentation visually in a storyboard format. You can easily add visuals of all kinds to any slide. Once your presentation is ready, SmartDraw builds your PowerPoint deck with a single click. You never even have to open PowerPoint."
SmartDraw also ensures that the visuals in your presentation are displayed in the most effective way possible by revealing the information sequentially.
"Showing a visual, like a data chart, to your audience all at once can be overwhelming," said Rick Altman, speaker and organizer of The Presentation Summit 2010, and author of the book, Why Most PowerPoint® Presentations Suck and How to Make them Better. "They will be too busy trying to absorb all the information to focus on the specific point you are trying to make. A much more effective way is to reveal the visual step-by-step with sequencing. SmartDraw does this for you automatically."
SmartDraw's PowerPoint builder also makes presentations easier to manage because, no matter how many visuals are added, the entire presentation is always contained in a single SmartDraw file. This eliminates the problem of trying to find the original source files for charts, for example, when last minute changes need to be made.
By enabling everyone in the organization to create visual presentations quickly and easily, SmartDraw VP allows an enterprise to cut through today's information overload and communicate more effectively by distilling complex information into an easy-to-digest visual form.
SmartDraw VP automates the creation of 70 different types of business visuals including flowcharts, data charts and graphs, mind maps, Gantt charts, timelines, floor plans, and more. Built-in integration with Microsoft Office® and Adobe PDF allows users to create and then share SmartDraw visuals with a single click.
For an overview video and white paper by Stannard and Altman describing in detail how SmartDraw reinvents PowerPoint, and to download a free trial, visit www.SmartDraw.com/ppt.
About SmartDraw
SmartDraw helps businesses increase their bottom line by improving communication, refining operations, completing projects on time, and successfully implementing their plans through the everyday use of visual communication. Creators of SmartDraw VP, the world's first visual processor™, SmartDraw enables business professionals to easily and automatically create more than 70 types of common business visuals, including flowcharts, project charts, mind maps, org charts, timelines and more. SmartDraw lets anyone achieve professional-quality results in just minutes. SmartDraw is used by more than half of the Fortune 500, as well as thousands of law firms, police departments, health systems, government entities, educational institutions and private enterprises of all sizes. Founded in 1994, SmartDraw is privately-held, with headquarters in San Diego, California. For more information or to download a free trial of SmartDraw, please visit www.SmartDraw.com.
About The Presentation Summit
The Presentation Summit is organized and hosted by Rick Altman, prominent presentations consultant and author. Altman services an international client base and has authored 15 books on presentations and graphics, including his current one with the inflammatory title, "Why Most PowerPoint Presentations Suck." www.BetterPresenting.com
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MY THOUGHTS
heaven! need to check this out
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