iPavements Guide to Presentations
35.5 ways to make a point
Formal presentations are needed constantly, not just as marketing tools, but for training employees and clients, and any number of reasons. There is always presentation work to be done. Always another topic to address. Always an old presentation to improve. Communication is vital to every business. Professionally done presentations are one of our most effective communications tools.
Presentations should enhance the message experience. They should be clear and professional looking so that they do not detract from your message. Though we will be discussing projected presentations, these tips will translate to other media as well. We hope that even experienced presenters will find something helpful.
Focus
Your presentation should focus on one topic. If you must cover a variety of subjects as in a day long workshop, break it into separate presentations. You must focus your presentation if you want your audience to focus.
Write first.
There are really two parts to a formal presentation. The paper. And the presentation. They are not the same. They should each be written with their own point of view.
The Paper.
The Paper can be any type of document that is appropriate to your needs. Any format or size. We will refer to these documents, reports, etc. as "the Paper". Write the Paper as if it had to stand on its own and that no presentation will be offered. Put in all of the numbers and critical data, references, etc. This can be written as formally or as informally as the topic dictates. Your Employee Handbook may run several hundred pages. A research report may be less than ten.
The Presentation.
The presentation acts as your Executive Summary. Make the Big Point. Show the trends. Support your conclusions. The presentation should draw your audience to the same conclusion as the Paper, assuming they will have the time to study the details. Slides will be on screen for only a few seconds. Reformat your data so that it can be absorbed in that amount of time.