2018-03-20
Note: This content was written prior to BrainStory, the brand that followed Slide Lab.
Achieving effective and creative presentations is not easy. They always require effort, work and dedication. There is no doubt that there are no effective and creative presentations that are unplanned and done spontaneously. Its preparation demands a lot from the presenter, both before and during the presentation itself.
That's why we've decided to dedicate a post to this topic and share seven steps with you. At Slide Lab, we consider them crucial to the creation of effective and creative presentations.
1 – TIME
Effective presentations that are creative always, always starts a long time in advance. Only with time will you be able to study your audience beforehand, be properly backed up by documents on the subject you have to present, build a great story that supports your idea, and finally get to dedicate yourself (or ask someone else to dedicate themselves) to the visual part of the presentation. Finally, only with time will you be able to rehearse – rehearse long before the D-Day.
2 – GOAL
To achieve an effective presentation, it is very important to start by setting up a well-defined goal of the presentation. There are many kinds of goals, and your goal is not always to sell something. Your goal may be to get the audience to accept a change in the company, or to act differently in light of a problem. There are as many goals as there are presentations. What matters is to know exactly what your goal is. Remember, a goal must be something tangible and achievable.
3 – AUDIENCE
Knowing your audience is the second step to an effective and successful presentation. The presentation must, under all circumstances, be created in line with the audience. If you're presenting topic A to a group of children, it's not the same as presenting topic A to a group of teenagers, or a group of parents. Each audience is unique and particular, and its characteristics must be taken into account when creating any presentation. You should ask things like: Do you know anything about the subject we're going to talk about? Or is it the first time you’re hearing about it? Are you dynamic or do you have a rather conservative profile? Age, values, culture, language... everything is important and should be taken into account when preparing your presentation. Your presentation will only be effective if you are able to reach the audience and “transform it” somehow. Your message has to echo through the audience. For that, you have to know it from the beginning.
4 – RESEARCH
In addition to researching audience-wise, it is very important that you research about the subject you’ll be presenting, be it a theory, a story, or a project of yours. It is always important you are well backed up by documents, analyse what has already been published on the subject, check similar projects that have already been presented and have an in-depth understanding of the story you want to present. The audience hopes whoever is going to present is as informed as possible on the subject. That is also the only way the presenter feels comfortable while facing the audience and answering all sorts of questions. At the time of the presentation, the presenter should feel that they are the most “capable” person to speak on the subject and should show that to the audience. It’s true no one knows everything about a subject, and one must have the humbleness to know that there are always those who know more, but at the same time one has the obligation to know as much as possible about the subject.
5 – HISTORY
Do you know your audience and are you well backed up by documents on the subject you will be presenting? It's time to start thinking about a great story to support your idea. Telling a good story is the best way to engage your audience and to properly convey the idea you want. Whether you're selling a product, trying to get a project approval, explaining an idea... in the end, your goal is always to get the audience to subscribe to your idea. Stories have the power to move people and make them act, regardless of what that action is. Accepting a change in the company, joining a voluntary project, buying a book, approving a new product in the company... the list goes on and on, but the winning formula is always the same, the power of a good story.
6 – VISUALS
A good story in itself is powerful enough to move an audience, but effective and creative presentations always have a strong visual support format. If you can't get help from professional presentation agencies, all hope is not lost. You can always create a good visual support by using impactful images that help you tell your story. The key here is not the tool you use (PowerPoint, Prezi, Keynote) but the way you use it. We advise you to use few written text and many visual images. Keywords can help you convey your idea. But do opt for images over words. Use a lot of good images, symbols and icons that will help you convey your idea in the best way possible.
7 – REHEARSING
Finally, after going through all the steps we described above it is always, always necessary to practice and rehearse. Rehearsing your presentation when you can with the resources you will use (e.g. projector, TV, board...) is as or more important as the previous steps. Rehearse, several times, and present it to someone you know if you can. Having direct feedback while rehearsing is very important and will help you be prepared for the day of the presentation.
