Making Presentations

Powerpoint Tips And Tricks

There are many ways to describe what has been a successful PowerPoint presentation. You should define your success according to the following ascending levels:

• Your client was impressed by the PowerPoint presentation more than your handling of the presentation or your company's proposal.
• Your client was impressed by your handling of the presentation more than your PowerPoint presentation or your company's proposal.
• Your client was impressed by your company's proposal more you're your PowerPoint presentation or you're handling of the presentation.
• All of them equally.

Interesting set of answers? They should be, because they are correct. Many people go into a sales presentation in the mistaken hope that a mind-boggling PowerPoint extravaganza will distract the customer's attention from the fact that they have not too much of an idea of how to make a presentation, their audience and what is expected of them. They stand there like talking heads reading from the presentation and hope that the client's (who shortly may well not be) will not ask too many questions.

So many people have attended such presentations that it would be funny if it weren't true. It shouldn't have to be that way. PowerPoint is an immaculate presentation tool, if its power is harnessed and restrained. Here are some tips and tricks on Powerpoint that will help you use it the way it was meant to be used.

• We all know that PowerPoint can provide some pretty interesting effect. Animations, animated charts, breathtaking sound effects, slides that slide in from the top, the bottom or the side. All these effects can be pretty effective. But not if you use them all at once. Don't act like a kid with a brand new toy. Use the PowerPoint effects sparingly.
• You use the PowerPoint slides to emphasize points in your presentation. These are the points that you want to ram into your client's brain. Nothing else. Just because the page looks empty, don't feel the need to fill it with more text, some clipart or a family portrait. You will lose the effect completely.
• Never orchestrate your presentation so that the slides change according to a pre-determined interval. You might be into a discussion and a trial close when all of a sudden the screen changes, Very distracting. The moment is lost, maybe never to return. Don't let it happen. You control the PowerPoint. It doesn't control you or the presentation.
• Be careful which fonts you use in your PowerPoint presentation. Don't go for something too artistic or flowery. You are here to make a presentation not a fashion statement.
• Try and find a correct proportion of the size of fonts that you use, especially in the headlines. You are here to make a presentation not sell newspapers.
• Keep the background simple; don't be tempted to use large plaids or checks. They distract people and don't allow them to read the text. We are here to make a presentation, not sell curtain material.
• Here's a what to do suggestion, not a what not to do for a change. Let's say that you have to make a presentation to a group of potential clients from a major European country. What you didn't know was that most people whose mother tongue is not English, whist the may understand it very well, and speak it very well, don't know how to read English too well. They will not be offended, and will probably regard your gesture as great complement if your have their slides prepared in their native language. If you stage manage the presentation accordingly, you can read from your notes in English and they can read of the slides in Spanish, French, German or even Albanian. I have heard of people who done this, and to tremendous applause.

Every presentation and every presenter is a unique entity. These are just a few suggestions of how to work with this tool that will make you, and your company looks like the professionals you probably are. We hope you can make use of them.