Creating Presentations that Matter25 Mar
Are you weary of poor, content-heavy, boring PowerPoints? Have you been subjected to “death by PowerPoint”? Have you had nightmares of bullet points and clumsy animations? When is the last time you remember a slide show a day after seeing it?
This is an issue for almost anyone who has to give presentations. Imagine how it would help your organisation, your NGO or team, your relationship with donors or other audiences, if you could do this more effectively.
I am pleased to announce that Matt Brandon has created the first in what I hope will be a series about ”Creating Presentations that Matter.“ This 25 minute show describes the mindset and approach you need to create presentations that will enage and move people. What is unique about this approach is that the “slide deck” (the collection of slides) is put in its proper place – helping the audience to engage with the speaker and the content.
Presentations that matter are composed of three elements:
- The speaker. The person who is giving the talk (and who should be the main deliverer of content)
- The slide deck. Well designed slides that provide what I call the “emotional wallpaper” that reinforces what the speaker is trying to communicate
- The handouts. The documents, workbooks, and other physical items that the participants use during the presentation and/or take away with them. Written in a readable way, you no longer need to (indeed should not) give out copies of your slide deck.
Here are the resources Matt has created:
- Presentations that Matter
- Support materials
This is based on two excellent resources:
- Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds
- Made to Stick by Chris and Dan Heath
In my experience, not only is the a benefit for the audience – helping them to engage more powerfully with the material – it is also a help to the presenter and the organisation. I can print the handouts well ahead of time which lets me get a lower price on printing and shipping all the while continuing to refine my talk and the slides I will be using.
Would you be interested in being coached in a process like this? Would you find it helpful to your NGO? I’d like to know.
5 Responses to “Creating Presentations that Matter”
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jim Trott. Jim Trott said: Matt Brandon has a nice 25 min preso on "Creating Presentations that Matter" that will engage and move people: http://tinyurl.com/yk56ne2 [...]
I’ve significantly modified a training seminar I give a few times a year to incorporate the principles you describe here. It really has moved attention away from the “slide deck” and back onto me as the presenter/trainer, and the slides, rather than being the content of my presentation, now reinforce what I am presenting. Participants seem to be more engaged now than when I was throwing up slides with lots of information splattered across them. I believe I present more naturally, too, with far less tendency to read what is on the screen. What Matt has shared here is great stuff, and I look forward to bringing my presentations more into alignment with this approach. I’d enjoy more practical helps like this.
Suggest you take a look at the Beyond Bullet Points (BBP) approach as well. I have used this approach to build an entertaining and educational “filmstrip at the speed of conversation.” You may view a presentation I made built using the Beyond Bullet Points approach at:
http://www.leanssc.org/files/201004/powerpoint/4.22%202.30pm%20Sivertsen%20CognitiveKanban.pdf
Distributing a Notes view in PDF format allows your audience to read your spoken comments in a portable, easily printed, format.
The BBP story template used to plan and outline your preso before you ever open PowerPoint is highly useful.
Beyond Bullet Points:
http://www.beyondbulletpoints.com/
One thing that’s really useful with PowerPoint presentations — when you’re presenting, use the PowerPoint Reader (downloadable from Microsoft), and don’t use the copy of PowerPoint that you use to develop your presentation.
When you use the reader, it ensures that your audience will see *only* your presentation, and that you won’t show them all the user interface for PowerPoint development.
That’s a great suggestion, mongo. Even those who present weekly stumble over what get’s projected from time to time. This is a great suggestion for preventing that from happening.