The Visual Slide Revolution

Paradi, Dave

Communications Skills Press

Presenters can use these practical tips to improve the effectiveness of their communication when presenting. The tips cover Presentation Structure and Sequence, Slide Design, Slide Content, Presentation Delivery, and Handouts. These are not technical tips on how to use the software. They are tips that help presenters focus on communicating their message clearly when using PowerPoint. If you currently use PowerPoint when presenting, these tips will help you communicate more effectively.

102 Tips to Communicate More Effectively Using PowerPoint

Computers & Technology

Programming

Boring presentations are not the problem. Confusing presentations are the problem. PowerPoint presentations have a bad reputation today because audiences often leave confused and unsure of what the presenter was trying to communicate. In this book I share: - My RAPIDS approach to plan and deliver a presentation the audience will understand. I show how this approach applies to the four most common types of business presentations and provide case studies of where this worked to help my clients. - Proven ways to select colors and fonts that work. - Methods for creating effective slides, including: writing the headline, selecting the best visual in each situation, using best practices to create over 30 different visuals, and preparing slides to make an impact in a presentation. - Practical steps for implementing these ideas in your own presentations, along with resources to consult and tips on evaluating your own presentations.

Present It So They Get It

Software

This book contains a three step approach to help business professionals create effective presentation visuals. Step 1 is writing a headline that summarizes the message you want the audience to understand and remember from that slide. Step 2 is to select and create an effective visual for the slide. The book focuses on this step because corporate presenters have said they need the most help with this area. The different messages in business presentations are broken down into six categories. The 66 visuals shown are organized into 30 groups and sub-groups under the six categories. Each visual is explained, examples are shown, and tips for creating the visual are given. Step 3 is to focus the audience during the delivery of the slide by using callouts, building the slide piece by piece, and by organizing complex information.

Select Effective Visuals

Presentations are an increasingly important part of every business professional’s job and the current approaches that most professionals use don’t work well. Most presenters use the Grab &amp; Hope method to prepare - grabbing previous slides from different sources and hoping the presentation is coherent at the end. It usually results in overloaded presentations that are difficult to understand. This book introduces a different approach. By applying the ideas a GPS system uses, the GPS approach to presentations starts by setting the Goal of the Presentation, analyzes the Present Situation, and the determines the Steps required to take the audience on that journey. Like a GPS system for a trip only displays the required level of detail, the GPS approach for presentations focuses the content in the presentation and gives three additional opportunities to make extra detail available to the audience. Finally, like a GPS system, each step is displayed visually, one step at a time, so the audience can follow the steps easily. This approach will save you time in preparing presentations and result in a presentation that has a clear message and focused content. The approach is based on years of teaching this method in customized in-house workshops at organizations around the world.

GPS for Presentations: A structured approach to planning presentations with a clear message and focused content

Dave, Paradi