keep the focus where it belongs: on you.
by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals
have you ever attended a conference where the presenter plans to supplement his or her key topics by showing an illustration of what is being currently said?
do i look at the speaker or do i look at the slides? will the slides be available later or should i take notes now? should i move up 50 rows so the microscopic wording improves to barely readable? can i ask the speaker to back up a couple of slides?
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whenever i give presentations i try to put myself in the shoes of the listeners and create a presentation in a way that relies on them briefly glancing at the slide transition and then redirecting their full attention back on me. but what we see today is too many speakers just reading what appears on the slides. they should simply begin their session by saying, “i’ll read out loud and you’ll follow along silently.” thank goodness there was never a request made for responsive reading.
then there are times that technology just goes on the blink, as is technology’s wont. you’ve done a run-through while the attendees were having breakfast in another room. okay. it all seems good; even the embedded video comes up immediately. you’re all set. the powerpoint session title is projected on the front as the attendees lumber in and take their seats. you are introduced and you begin your this-is-what-i will-tell-you spiel and then you start to tell them. and lo and behold, the screen goes blank and your laptop is frozen. oops!
i hate when that happens.
if something can go wrong…
so what’s a speaker to do, especially if this presentation is before a group of bankers, trade groups, shareholders, a prospective client, or other key interest groups? the rule is to plan for all contingencies – to eliminate possible snafus.
but sometimes proper planning or rehearsal is not done. speakers, particularly those who frequently deliver the same presentation, rely less on internalizing the material when they can just show it to you and make a brief reference – or worse yet, read the information verbatim.
if you as a communication professional deliver presentations to businesspeople of all stripes, you need to wean them from the powerpoint drug, otherwise when the lights go down, so will the attendees’ eyelids.
powerpoint, and its predecessors, have been around for years and essentially replaced the overhead slide – as well as an even more intimate tool, the flipchart. but speeches became dull and presenters babbled if they were not prepared with anecdotal information or data they could easily see to jar their memories. so out came the safety net of technology-driven tools like powerpoint.
speeches are about engaging in verbal communications: there is a speaker and a listener. people remember more from the spoken word interwoven with anecdotes or personal stories than they will from a top 10 bullet-pointed list of tips, especially if the tips do not allow for elaboration. anecdotes based on personal experience tell the audience that you understand how to communicate thoughts that are relevant and memorable.
slides don’t necessarily help an audience remember unless of course they are archived online or they are part of the handout materials. slides can also be a distraction, especially if they are too fancy, colorful, or crowded. if you cannot understand a slide, then you cannot relate to the points being made that are supposed to be reflected by that slide. and if that slide is part of a series that explains a concept, you’ve just hit a road bump.
plan your presentation
there are some ways for the communication professional – let’s say the marketing director in a cpa firm or a corporate communications director in a company – can assist his or her boss to effectively use powerpoint. re-engineer the process. this means
- have the presenter mentally create an objective for the presentation; what the takeaways should be for the audience in terms of its thinking and planned actions.
- lay the groundwork with a clear, provocative opening and what will be covered.
- establish the criteria for whether a point or a section of the presentation needs further clarification by illustration.
if during this planning process it appears that there is not a compelling need for slides that contain elements and supporting verbiage, then limit the slide deck with just simple-to-explain graphics. perhaps use large-font bullet points (a few words and not paragraphs) that you can expound on because you can explain the points fully. in other words, only use images when appropriate to keep your presentation on track and your audience engaged…and awake.
also, only show the slide(s) when needed and darken your screen when you are done with them. let the conference room’s light shine only on you.
powerpoint rules to live by
much has been written on the pitfalls of powerpoint presentations. so here are some things to consider:
- less is more. use no more than 10-11 words on your screen.
- if you must use pictures, dispense with the cutesy, overused stock photos and if you need to use someone with graphic design expertise, do so. this will also allow an unbiased opinion or observation to permeate your effort in a positive way.
- avoid a flying this or a flying that, or disappearing and reappearing objects. it could seem that more effort was put into being fancy than being informative.
- embed a video that contains humor only to reinforce your point. this will keep the audience awake. just don’t do it too often as the importance of your presentation then becomes a standup routine.
- if you have a room of fewer than 25 people, do you really need a powerpoint presentation? rearrange the seating, use a flipchart and involve your audience.
you want your audience to be engaged and educated – and if possible without degrading your efforts, entertained. it is you who has the intellectual capital, not the slides.