Your presentation’s opening is important but it’s also important to keep your audience engaged throughout the entire presentation. Being creative in your presentation technique is important, especially in today’s age of distractions. The last thing you want to see when you’re in the middle of your key points is the key decision maker’s eye glaze over or worse go into their phone. Here are 7 tips and tricks you can use to maximize your presentation software’s capabilities and make your presentation interactive.
1. Utilize a video element
Appropriately placed videos can be a valuable asset to any presentation. It’s important not to let the material you choose to show detract from your message, but if it’s something that further conveys your point, it can be a nice break for your audience to watch/listen to someone else for a few minutes. The presentation software that you use can either make or break this because if your video isn’t loading or is buffering this can be a distraction as well. Be sure to test out the presentation beforehand preferably at the location where you will be giving it so that you can be certain that it works. Additionally, consider using QR codes to provide easy access to videos or external content.
2. Avoid large chunks of text and bullet points
This is a crucial design point. Nearly everyone who hates presentations mentions this as a main reason. If you have a large chunk of information to give that requires text then it’s better to use a handout or simply add a QR code that is linked to a handout using a QR Code Generator . That way they can read it at their own leisure by using a QR scanner. Equally important: never read your slides to the audience. They can read. You’re there as a presenter to give additional information and the slides are there as a support, not a substitute.
3. Tell stories
Stories are a way of connecting to your audience real and concretely. Whether it is case studies or other types of stories that support your main points, it is imperative to make your points stand out. To stay memorable and not be boring, storytelling resonates with every audience. And of course, if you’re not a natural master of narrative, you can take advantage of tools to handle creative plot generation, giving you the inspiration you need to spice up your presentation with a good yarn. Even the best writers need prompts, so don’t be shy about using what’s out there.
4. Integrate images
People have trained their brains to remember images vs. text. Pictures are worth a thousand words and if you can incorporate more pictures as individual slides versus constant text in your slides, your message will have more impact. You can use photo editors to add filters, and icons and even remove backgrounds from images to make them look more engaging.
5. Use creative platforms
There are different tools appropriate for different purposes. While generally, it may be appropriate to present on a typical large screen, sometimes there can be a place for presenting on other mediums such as tablets, iPads, iPhones, Android, etc. Your presentation software can either enable you or hinder you here. Some ONLY work on tablets while others only work on desktops. It’s optimal to keep your options open and utilize a tool that allows you to do both.
6. Use appropriate graphs and charts
Graphs and charts are great for visualizing data. It’s much more poignant to see stats visualized in charts than to hear raw numbers (or worse see them in a large spreadsheet.) Some people understand large data sets well but seeing it visualized will drive the point home even further and be much more memorable.
7. Ask the audience questions (and allow them to ask you questions as well)
It’s great to open up with questions and then encourage interaction throughout the rest of the presentation. Depending on the size of the group it can make sense to have designated time frames for questions. However, particularly in business presentations it makes sense to let the decision-maker ask all the questions they need whenever they think of them. This will help them understand you better and give you a better shot at closing the deal.
For more info on CustomShow’s enterprise presentation software click here. If you’re looking for more design tips and tricks check out our partner SalesGraphics.
Every good presentation is a good presentation builder that fits the intricacies and identity of your organization. At CustomShow, we believe our presentation software can do just that. View the power of CustomShow in the video below:
