One Useless Slide You'll Never Design Again

Warning: the slide you are about to see was made by a real company during a real business presentation — and it will hurt your eyes!

When I first looked at it I thought “there is something completely wrong in the way most companies make presentations”. 

The problem 

The problem is we use PowerPoint too much. We make slides for anything, even for communicating where the toilet is. When looking at a slide like the one above, it’s clear that we became the tools of our tools. 

Think about it, what’s the first thing coming to you mind when you are asked to make a presentation? I bet it’s PowerPoint (or any other presentation tool for that matter). That’s exactly the problem: people associate presentations with a tool and not with a story. That’s why you have slides showing that “toilets are located just outside in the corridor”. 

“People associate presentations with a tool and not with a story.” [Tweet this]

The reason why most presentations suck is because we spend time creating slides rather than crafting a story. In fact, creating slides should be the last bit of the presentation process. Remember, slides are incredibly powerful when they amplify your message — but when they don’t, they are incredibly useless. In fact, they work against your message. 
Audiences would be better off if most slides were eliminated. Have you ever thought about presenting with no slides at all? Who said we need slides?

The solution 

       

I suggest you follow this 3-step process in order to decide whether to use slides or not. 

1. Use a message map
A message map is a simple tool that helps you structure your story. Here’s how it works. Write down the single message you want your audience to take away. Then, find three main supporting points. Your presentation will be based on those. Here’s a short video of communication coach Carmine Gallo showing how a business can use a message map to tell its story. According to Gallo, “it is one of the most powerful tools in communication. It works each and every time”. 



2. Plan analog 
Close your laptop, get away from it and craft your story with pen and paper. I’ve learnt this from Garr Reynolds and I can tell you it’s the most valuable presentation-related piece of advice I’ve ever received. You’ll be much more creative by planning your presentation in an analog way. 
You can translate your message map into slides, but (1) on a piece of paper first, and (2) only if they help amplify your message. If not, do not use them.

3. Open PowerPoint (if you can't resist)
Only once you’ve planned your presentation “analogically” should you open PowerPoint. If you’ve decided that slides might help you get your message across, then design visuals that complement your story. But you don’t have to. In fact, when in doubt, don’t!           

The slide I showed you above is good for (almost) nothing. But it is good for showing that if we only focus on PowerPoint, we run the risk of becoming the tools of our tools. Next time you are asked to make a presentation, forget PowerPoint, get away from your laptop and think of your presentation as a story, not as a series of slides. [Tweet this]  

IMAGE: Business Television 

Quick Guide To The Picture Superiority Effect

Do you know that you are more likely to remember concepts when they are presented to you as pictures rather than as words? This is the Picture Superiority Effect, which has been proven true by several experiments. 

Here's a YouTube video that does a great job at explaining this concept in 30 seconds.

Repeat with me: people remember pictures better than words. [Tweet this]

“People remember pictures 

better than words.”

Dr. John Medina—molecular biologist and research consultant— wrote Brain Rules, where he shared what scientists know about how our brains work. One of the things they know for sure is that “based on research into the Picture Superiority Effect, when we read text alone, we are likely to remember only 10 percent of the information 3 days later. If that information is presented to us as text combined with a relevant image, we are likely to remember 65 percent of the information 3 days later.”

There are many fields where the Picture Superiority Effect is used. Here are a few examples:

• Marketing communications: highly visual billboards, posters and brochures get more attention
• Advertising: ads with pictures get more business
• Social media: posts with images get more likes and re-shares

As Randy Krum pointed out in his blog Cool Infographics, this ad campaign from Verizon is a perfect example of the Picture Superiority Effect in action. 

This map shows Verizon’s network coverage area compared to that of their competitors. Three days after seeing it, what do you think are you more likely to remember, the words or the maps? 

What I struggle to understand is why individuals and companies do use the Picture Superiority Effect in their marketing communications, advertising, and social media activities and but not in their presentations. Is a customer presentation less important than a Facebook post?

Instead of designing 40-word slides nobody will remember, use picture superiority to make your presentations more memorable. [Tweet this] A short message supported by a quality image is way more powerful than a full paragraph on a slide. 

According to Dr. John Medina, “the brain does not pay attention to boring things”. Because a 40-word slide is indeed a boring thing, then the brain does not pay attention to 40-word slides. 

“The brain does not pay attention 

to boring things.” — Dr. John Medina 

Two more points:

• For the Picture Superiority Effect to work, the images must be relevant to the content. You can’t assume that any image would work. Make it relevant!
• Picture superiority applies to any visual display, not just images. Therefore, people are also more likely to remember concepts when they are presented to them as charts and graphs rather than as words. 

 Not convinced yet? Then take this:

“Use the picture superiority effect to improve the recognition and recall of key information. Use pictures and words together, and ensure that they reinforce the same information for optimal effect.”

— Universal Principles of Design (page 152)

Make it visual!

IMAGE: CameliaTWU via Flickr

The Two-Step Formula For Convincing Anyone Of Anything

Here's a simple yet powerful trick to convince and persuade people to embrace your idea. I’ve learnt it from Marco Montemagno, digital entrepreneur, public speaker, broadcaster and founder of Super Summit. 

Premise: if you’re not following Marco Montemagno yet, do start now! He constantly shares great business advice on his social media channels. He is a must-follow especially if you speak Italian, but he also shares content in English. 

A few days ago he posted a video about how to convince anyone to do anything. Because it’s in Italian, I’m going to translate the key points for you.   

  

First day of school for one of his sons. 600 wild kids who don’t want to go into their classrooms. The situation is uncontrollable, so much so that all the parents ask themselves how the Head teacher can possibly manage to get the attention of 600 kids. Here’s what she does: she rings a bell until all kids stop doing what they are doing and then says, “do you want to stay here and get bored with your parents (thumbs-down) or do you want to come in your classroom to read wonderful books and get the best sweets of the school (thumbs-up)?”

In a nanosecond, all the kids went to the classrooms. 

The communication lesson Marco Montemagno drew from his experience is this: in order to convince someone to embrace your idea, you need to do these two things:

1. Link frustration to the existing situation, the one you want to change
2. Link pleasure, desire, advantage to the new situation, the one you want to be in

Think about it, this is exactly what the teacher did. 

1. “Do you want to stay here and get bored with your parents?”. She associated boredom with the situation she wanted to change
2. “Or do you want to come in your classrooms to read wonderful books and get the best sweets of the school?”. Huge pleasure associated with the situation she wanted to be in

“Associate frustration with the situation you want to change and pleasure with the situation 

you want to be in.”

Let me give you a business example. Do you remember how Steve Jobs introduced the first iPhone in 2007? Have a look at this (from 4:37 to 7:40).

When he introduced the Apple’s “revolutionary” user interface, he put two messages across:

1. The key problem with the then smartphones was that their buttons and controls couldn’t change. They all had keyboards and control buttons fixed in plastic whether you needed them or not
2. Because every application needs a slightly different user interface, Apple invented a new technology called Multi-Touch, “which is phenomenal. It works like magic.” 

Doesn’t that sound familiar? Steve Jobs—Apple's Head teacher—first linked frustration to the existing smartphones by highlighting their main problem; then he linked huge desire to the upcoming iPhone by listing all the reasons why its new user interface was phenomenal. 

  

This simple trick can be used in a myriad of situations. For instance, in a presentation where you introduce your next big thing, or in a chat with your boss where you need her approval to get your project funded. As Marco Montemagno pointed out, even politicians often use this formula to get more votes.    

Next time you want to convince anyone of anything, associate a lot of dissatisfaction with the situation you want to change and a lot of pleasure with the situation you want to be in. 

If you liked these ideas, say thanks to Marco Montemagno.

IMAGE: marcomontemagno.it

Interview With Rick Altman, Host Of The Presentation Summit

Rick Altman has a 25-year experience in training and consulting on the whole of the presentation process, from preparation to design and delivery. He is host of The Presentation Summit, an annual conference for presentation professionals held annually. And he is also author of the book Why most PowerPoint presentations suck, and how you can make them better. 

Recently I had the pleasure to interview him and here's a recap of what we discussed about. 

Why do most PowerPoint presentations suck?

Many people would tell you it’s self-evident. I see three main reasons:

1. The tool: PowerPoint is probably the easiest program in the Offie suite to start using. Both my daughters started creating slides where they were 10 years old. And while Microsoft would tell you this is one of its virtues, I would tell you that’s a very bad thing. People declare themselves proficient long before they should. 
2. Design: People are asked to design presentations all the time, but very few have a background in graphic design. Most people don’t even know what the word design means. The result is that slides often act as a barrier between speaker and audience. 
3. Speaking: We are asking people to do this thing that they are scared to death to do: speak in public. 

Combine these three points and that’s why Death by PowerPoint is in everybody’s vocabulary today. 

Can you tell us about The Presentation Summit?

This is our 13th season. For four days we will cover all the facets of the presentation experience, from message crafting to presentation design, software techniques, and delivery. The thing I am most proud of is the way we created a community around this conference. We brought together people who didn’t know where to turn for help with the greatest challenges of giving presentations. Thanks to our Summit, not only have they learnt how to overcome these challenges but they have also made lasting relationships. 

This year you have two big names in the communication world. One is Garr Reynolds. 

Yes, we don’t deserve such good fortune. This will be his 5th time speaking at the conference. He will be speaking from his home in Japan. In the last couple of years we had him speaking at our Guru Session, which starts at 9pm and goes until midnight (middle of Garr’s day in Japan). It’s for those who can’t get enough of this experience. Last year his appearance was wonderful because he understood it was late for us, in fact we had a lot of beer and wine on that evening. He came with no agenda at all and started taking questions. He was hanging out with us. In fact at one point he actually got a beer too. 

What do you like about Garr Reynold’s approach to presentations?

If you look at his work, everything just fits in a magical way. You know that you are in the presence of a brilliant designer when you can’t really explain it. It’s like recognizing fine art, can you describe what it is? Maybe not, but you know it when you see it. I feel that way when I see Garr’s work. His ideas are profoundly simple and he shares them with such an elegance that everybody can relate to.

The other big name is Guy Kawasaki. What is he going to talk about?

He is going to tell us the “10 Things All Presenters Should Do”. From there the sky’s the limit. 

I’m sure one of the 10 things will be his famous 10-20-30 rule. What do you think about it?

It’s so simple as to be almost profound. But it also is quite disruptive. I have clients who are shocked when I tell them the font size should be at least 30 points. As a former venture capitalist, Guy Kawasaki had to sit through so many presentations and that has given him a perspective on this world that's unique. The 10-20-30 rule comes straight out of that. 

What are the 3 things all presenters should do? One tip for preparation, one for design, one for delivery.

• Preparation: You must know your material. People have to understand their narrative and have to practise with their visuals. 

• Design: Separate, separate, separate. There are three tenets to a good presentation: what you say, what you show, and what you give. That is, what you say out loud, what you show on the screen, and what you give to your audience afterwards. Those should be three separate things and each of them should be as good as you can possibly make them. What happens all too often is that the deck you prepared is the only thing you have. You say it, you show it, and you print it. If you can separate out these critical pieces of the presentation experience, you are going to become much better. 

• Delivery. Find your most genuine self. What is it about you that others want to hear about? You can’t fake genuineness and there is no substitute for it. Of course you learn some tactics and strategies to become a better communicator, but you can’t try to become somebody else. 

“There are three tenets to a good presentation: 

what you say, what you show, and what you give.”

In the Summit you'll have a “PowerPoint vs Keynote” session. Do you think the presentation tool makes a difference?

No. Of course there are differences between PowerPoint and Keynote. Each of them enjoys advantages over the other. But the software you use is just a mediocre commodity and should not be the biggest determinant of your success. You can perform good work or bad work with either one. 

(Here is my take on this topic)

You'll also have a Pecha Kucha session. Do you think people can get better at presenting by practising Pecha Kucha?

(Pecha Kucha is a presentation format where the presenter shows 20 images, each for 20 seconds. The images advance automatically and she talks along to the images)

Without a doubt, and I have first-hand experience in this. There is a lot of skills involved. First of all, you can’t fake it — you really have to know your stuff. Also, you have to have practised your material enough so that you can anticipate slide transition. And all have to be timed out. Of course you don’t have to be a robot, yet it’s tremendously challenging. 

Data visualization. What are your tips for displaying data effectively? 

Simplify as much as you can. Here's where the software works against you. Who decided that every chart must have a background by default, or the lines going across them, or axes with tick marks? What does any of that contribute to somebody’s understanding of your message? All this weaken our ability to tell a good story. Let’s not forget: we are the presentation, not our slides. So it’s up to us to tell the story behind these numbers. The chart should help us, not take over for us. 

(Here are my data visualization tips)

How do you convince people and companies that the way they have always been making presentations is not effective and that there is a better way?

It’s hard, both in corporate America and all over the world. One thing I do is I show people some before-after slides, so that they can see a slide that’s much more evocative then the junk they have created. Another thing I do is I make them practise with a properly crafted slide which is different from the slide they have been using, which they became addicted to. It helps. Remember, Rome was not built in a day and in the last several years I have seen real improvement. So we need to be patient.  

These are just some of the ideas Rick Altman shared with me. If you want to get more insights, here's the full video.



Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed it, share it :)

IMAGE: Rick Altman on Vimeo 

The 5 Best Sites And Blogs on Communication and Design

Here’s a collection of the top web resources with the best content on communication, presentations and design. 

(1) Presentation Zen

“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.”
— Garr Reynolds  

Without doubt, Presentation Zen is the presentation blog. Best-selling author and speaker Garr Reynolds delights the reader with tons of gems on presentation preparation, design and delivery: the three key elements that make a great presentation.   

Content-wise, Presentation Zen is the benchmark all other blogs should be measured against. If you find someone who writes about presentations without knowing Garr Reynolds, do yourself a favour by not listening to him.

@presentationzen

(2) Ethos3

“In 25 years looking at stuff like this, I have never encountered something like this. You guys really know your stuff.” 
— Guy Kawasaki on Ethos3 

Ethos3 is one of the world’s best presentation agencies. They do two things: presentation design and presentation training. His founder—Scott Schwertly—is author of the boook “How to be a Presentation God”. Ethos3’s blog is full of practical tips on how to become a better presenter. 

@Ethos3 

(3) Canva 

“The easiest to use design program in the world.”
— The Webbys 

I wrote about Canva already. Canva is an online service that makes design simple for everyone. What they have is not just a blog, it’s much more than that. It’s a Design School. Here you can find valuable tips on typography, colour, images, and design in general. They also provide great tutorials and teaching materials. On a scale from 1 to 10, the value you get from their articles is about 11.

@canva 

(4) TED

“Ideas worth spreading.”
— TED mantra  

Just in case you don’t know it (I doubt it), TED is an organisation whose aim is to spread great ideas. They do it in the form of short talks (18 minutes or less). It began as a Conference on Technology, Entertainment and Design (hence TED), and now covers any topic.  

TED Talks are viewed by millions of people every day. There must be a reason for that! Here are the three TED talks I like the most.

@TEDTalks

(5) Big Fish Presentations 

“Content is King, but design is its Queen.”
— Big Fish Presentations 

These guys are not as famous as Garr Reynolds or Nancy Duarte, but they also know their stuff. Their blog covers topics from presentation theory and design to public speaking. Definitely worth checking out. 

@BigFishPresCo 

Putting all together

• Speaking.Alltop 

Alltop.com was founded by Guy Kawasaki, hence it’s guarantee for greatness. It’s an aggregator of the latest stories from the best sites and blogs that cover a topic. Which topics? Anything you can think of. Like presentations and public speaking? Check out speaking.alltop.com. More interested in design? There you go: design.alltop.com. It’s that easy. 

@alltop 

• Echo Story

Disclaimer: I created Echo Story

Echo Story is a weekly newsletter of what I find in business, communication and design, and human-interest topics and think is worth sharing. With Echo Story I help people find better content. The idea is similar to Alltop, but it only focuses on the three topics above. Talking about communication and design, if you don’t want to be bothered finding great content yourself, you can simply subscribe to receive the best of the best straight to your inbox. Once a week, for free. 

Here's what you missed last week. Sign up free if you like it: http://eepurl.com/bdIUb9 

If you know other sites and blogs that you think should make the list, please let me know. I’d love to add them to my favourites.