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20:20
Eyeful's
monthly PowerPoint & presentation newsletter
 Dear
Presenter,
Over the last few
weeks, the excitement has been reaching fever pitch...and (for once) we're
not talking about the World Cup! This month’s edition of 20:20 brings
you the concluding part of our eagerly anticipated Ten Commandments on how
to create a successful presentation.
By using these rules, we hope to guide
people away from the perils of bullet points, clip art and Death by
PowerPoint!
As always, your thoughts, ideas and
presentation experiences are welcome so please get in touch. We'd love to
hear from you.
Best wishes,
The
Ten Commandments of a successful presentation
Part
Two
 Firstly here’s a quick reminder of 1 to 5 (and
remember they’re in no particular order):
· No. 1 -The Key Message
· No. 2 -Write the presentation, with a pen
· No. 3 -Beginning, middle and end
· No. 4 -Visual impact
· No. 5 -Know your topic
So, without further ado let’s get
into numbers 6 to 10.
Number 6 - Know your audience
It’s common sense - if you’re
presenting to a Company Director you wouldn’t go into minute detail,
similarly if you’re presenting to an IT team you’re unlikely to
go for the high level, big picture pitch.
Each audience you present to will be
different. As such, tailor your presentation to each one to be most
effective. It’s vital that you bear this in mind when writing a new
presentation – make sure it can be easily adjusted in the future.
Number 7 – The storyboard
technique
Whilst sounding a bit
“Hollywood”, this is an excellent way of bridging the gap
between your ideas and a presentation. By writing out the presentation as a
storyboard you’ll see how the presentation flows, allowing you to
ensure that your “story” is being told effectively.
This is a technique used by all Eyeful
consultants when working with clients - it's a brilliant way to get your
ideas onto paper before arranging them into the basis of your presentation.
Number 8 - The PowerPoint isn't
the presentation
Let us show you what we mean... Can you
imagine a presentation where the presenter says nothing and just keeps
clicking from slide to slide in silence? It just doesn’t work..
Remember a PowerPoint is only there to
help you to deliver your presentation message – you’re the
vital element in the whole equation!
Number 9 – Less is more
One of the biggest curses inflicted upon
unwitting PowerPoint audiences is the text heavy slide, more often than not
accompanied by someone reading the text word for word (yes, we’ve all
been forced to sit through this type of presentation!).
Not very effective, is it? Any text in a
presentation should be used to reemphasise the message...and that’s
it! Long sentences are guaranteed to lose your audiences so if you're going
to use text, make them short bullet points instead.
Number 10 – Practice & prepare
Finally, two tried and tested adages
“Practice makes
perfect”
You must know the
aim and content of each slide of you presentation without looking. This
shows your audience a high level of knowledge and understanding. Always
practice giving your presentation in front of the toughest audience -
colleagues, family or friends.
“Fail to prepare,
prepare to fail.”
This goes beyond knowing your
presentation. If you’re not sure how to get to the venue, don’t
know what time you’re on or have not checked to see if you can
connect your PC to a projector, how successful do you think your
presentation will be?
Well there they all are! Remember all of
these and you are well on the way to a highly successful presentation.
One way to keep these firmly in mind is to
download our free Ten Commandments screensaver, just click below to get
them.
Improve
your presentation
 Earlier we mentioned the important and effective
storyboard technique - well, here’s a quick way to start using this
technique in earnest.
On a cue card write the headline you want
to open your presentation with, on another write the headline you want to
finish on. Once you have these write as many cue cards as you need to get
from the start to the finish. Then on each card you can write more detail
as to how you would convey the headline from each card.
You’ve just done a basic storyboard!
These cue cards can now form the basis of
a PowerPoint presentation as each card represents a slide.
PowerPoint
panic & how avoid it.
 Let’s hide and jump!
When you are waiting to present why not
blank the first screen so that the audience are all ready and full of
anticipation when that first slide finally hits them. This can be done very
easily – once the presentation is open simply hit “B” to
blackout the screen or “W” to white it out. To return to the
first screen simply press B or W again. Simple but effective!
More tips to follow next month. If you
can’t wait that long then call us on 0845 056 8528 or send an e-mail to info@eyefulpresentations.co.uk
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