Are You Committing These PowerPoint Sins?

Rousing written copy can move audiences to action. A heartfelt, smartly conceived video is even more powerful. But the most influential way of all to communicate is live and face-to-face. (As the saying goes, “nothing takes the place of face-to-face.”)

In business, we quite often see this in the form of the presentation briefing. Whether it’s a simple management update or an important sales demonstration worth millions of dollars, we send countless subtle and not-so-subtle messages to our audience as to whether or not they should believe, trust and invest in us. These messages all serve to either buttress or undermine our main message — that is, the takeaway, reflection or call to action we wish to impress upon our audience.

Unfortunately, many presenters today confuse the main message itself with the most convenient tool they have available — PowerPoint. The result over the past couple decades has been nothing less than presentation carnage. Lazy or just plain unknowledgeable presenters bore their audiences to death with text-crammed slides, incongruent color choices and distracting imagery. The cost is countless hours of lost productivity, confusion and lowered morale (who actually wants to waste their time in a forced meeting where they’re assured to learn nothing of value because they aren’t engaged?)

Being improperly trained in the use of any tool, especially a powerful one like PowerPoint, is a recipe for disaster. Fortunately, there are abundant resources available for learning first the basics, then the finer points of presentation design using PowerPoint and other software (like Apple’s Keynote presentation tool).

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For a limited time, you can sign up to receive Digital Delta Media’s Monthly Communications Toolkit and receive the complimentary guide “How To Avoid the 7 Deadly Sins of PowerPoint.” This two-page quick-reference sheet will warn you of seven of the most common presentation software mistakes to avoid, as well as the tried-and-true techniques for correcting them.

Careers are made (and sometimes dashed) based on how skilled individuals are at expressing their ideas to the right people. Put yourself on the inside track by signing up to get “How To Avoid the 7 Deadly Sins of PowerPoint” — simply fill out the form on the right!