JFK vs PP III
Good Things Come In Threes
Despite the fact that part 2 of my JFK vs. PowerPoint project was something of a flop compared to the original I've decided to finish the trilogy. (New readers should probably look through part 1 and part 2 before the read on). This time I have not limited myself to the use of Slide Ware (PowerPoint/Keynote). I've made a dynamic presentation based on the same audio-clip as I've used in the previous examples.
Seductive Visuals
Hopefully you'll find that this version commands attention and is actually quite interesting to watch. And I really hope it serves to demonstrate a point. That point being that despite this latest iteration probably being the most visually pleasing, it is no more effective in presenting the message than the original 'boring PowerPoint'.
While the two version differs a lot in quality and dynamics they have at least one problem in common: When you force the audience to read they cannot give their full attention to the spoken word. This means that no matter how beautiful the text is displayed on your PowerPoint-slides they will harm your presentation if delivered at the same time as you speak. If you look at the second example however you'll find that the imagery is designed to augment the speech. The images should work either to make the message clearer or to strengthen your audience's emotional connection to the material.
The first rule towards better PowerPoint presentations is in my mind so simple it's almost ridiculous. Text = Bad. Imagery = Good.
As always there is also a higher quality QT version available.
The Empire Strikes Back
-Seduced By The Dark Side Of The Force
In hindsight I’ve become increasingly aware of some shortcomings in my last post about technical presentations:
Returning to the master slide after each and every detail seems redundant in my presentation example. The Star Destroyer Blueprint is easily recognizable even in its miniature form and the viewers should have few problems recognizing the different parts based on the highlighting of the miniature model.
Return of The Jedi
Keep in mind that more complex blueprints could demand going into more detail. If this is the case the technique is an easy way to assure your audience is focusing where you want them to. When you’ve performed the return-to-master-trick a few times the audience should have familiarized themselves enough with the layout so that you can skip this interim step.
If nothing else I hope my slip-up has served as a reminder to the fact that no two presentations should be treated the same. Every case must be true to itself and follow its own dynamics.
PowerPoint Jedi
-Improving Technical Presentations
Strong visuals, less text, no bullet points and a clear story-like structure are some of the steps on the journey to become a PowerPoint Jedi. I recently watched a Q&A session with Garr Reynolds where he was asked how best to give a technical presentation. His answer was something like "Give the audience a copy of the printout". (Due to the low image resolution of PP-slides). I agree that this is a good idea but don't think it should be the final word.
Heart of Darkness
It is not uncommon that a detailed technical printout is at the heart of the presentation. Normally this would mean an audience familiar with most of the technical terms. If you're giving a presentation of this nature it still needs to be as effective as possible. It is important that you lead the audience so that you all focus on the same details at the same time. This is where the Rebel Alliance can help!
Attacking the Death Star
When attacking the Death Star, rebel leaders had to communicate the technical details to a crowd of pilots. They could have just handed out printouts of the thing and given a standard PowerPoint presentation. Luckily they didn't. If they did, the emperor would already have won. Instead they split the information into smaller chunks, focusing on one piece of the puzzle at the time. I suggest you do the same.
Death[star] By PowerPoint
Use the Force
By all means, let the audience have a printout of
the technical information and begin the
presentation-segment with the same image. Then you
can start focusing on the details. I reckon you don't
have an R2-unit to help you, but you might
should have some sort of image-processing program and
a high-resolution scan of the information you want to
share. Create separate images from parts of the
high-resolution image, detailing different parts. It
is easier to show and tell, than just tell, so I've
tried to give an example below.
A quick and dirty Keynote example
I've borrowed the blueprints from
The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels (Star
Wars)
Update: When exporting to flash a lot of the transitions etc. was lost on the way. I have therefore included a Quicktime-version where everything should look as planned. Macusers can also download the original Keynote-file, if they're interested(?)
Presenting Presentation
Repeating myself
This post is a straight follow up to my last one.
After writing
Setting the Mood the subject has lingered with
me. Looking through my bookshelf I couldn't help but
being struck by the difference in presentation from
one book to another. I was particularly taken by the
difference between Cliff Atkinson's
Beyond Bullet Points
Both books tackle PowerPoint/slideware
Presentations and set forth to make the reader a
better, more efficient presenter. I've
praised Presentation Zen earlier, so I
won't go any further than saying
buy it
Judging two books by their covers
Where the book really fails however is in its presentation. This is bad for any book but could be disastrous for a book about presentations. How many people have seen that cover and decided that whoever's behind it clearly don't know anything about presentations. The book has done very well, despite this shortcoming though. (Mostly due to strong word-of-mouth I believe).
Imagine coming into the bookstore looking for a book on presentations. Just look at those two covers, which book would you choose? I don't think they even compete in the same division...
Setting the mood
How your story might start sooner than you think
May the 22nd Indiana Jones and the Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull opens in theaters worldwide. Probably the most eagerly awaited film of the year thanks to the huge following of the franchise and the time passed since the last one was released. I am part of the fold and have huge expectations for the next Indy-installment. I have a fairly clear idea about what I am going to get. Any fear of Lucas and Spielberg messing with the formula has been removed by the marketing material. As soon as the first teaser-poster was released I was convinced this film will deliver. "The Man With the Hat" is really back.
The poster was, of course, created by one of my heroes, Drew Struzan. He has become the semi-official Indy-illustrator and his work immediately puts you in the right frame of mind: This is Indiana Jones done the way it has always been done. This is Indiana Jones done right!
Only 3 more weeks left to wait!
A Lesson To Be Learned
I am not suggesting that you hire Mr. Struzan for all your projects (but if you have the means, feel free). It is however important to acknowledge that the presentation of your "story" starts earlier than you might think. If your "story" is a PowerPoint Presentation then what do you put up on the screen before you start the show? A blank slide? A Windows desktop? The latter will hardly put anyone in a mindset ready to be inspired. Is your story a DVD you've made or a book? Then what does the cover look like? Does it look good? Or more importantly, does it look right? If you've written your doctorate thesis on the use of nano-technology in cancer-treatment please tell me you didn't use the dreadful comic sans-font!
Of course the quality of your work might
win your audience over, but why make it more
challenging to begin with? Always think about your
audience's first impression of your work. As the
saying goes: "You only get one chance to make a
good first impression". I'll leave you with this
YouTube Classic. Robert
Ryang made an "alternative" trailer for
Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining".
JFK vs PP II
Time for a sequel
Some
of you might remember my post
Killer Looks where I sought to illustrate how
bad visuals, or more specifically bad Power Point,
can destroy even the greatest of speeches. My
example seemed to work quite well and I received a
fair amount of positive feedback. As the post was
also one of the most popular posts I've made, a
sequel was inevitable. The thing that irked me
about the original was that while it demonstrated
the point I was trying to make it was also rather
contrived. The Power Point Presentation was
designed to be bad and while I've
experienced similar examples in real life it did
tickle the "do-better"-itch.
The original "Boring Powerpoint" clip
The where- and whats
What if I tried to make a proper presentation to
go with the same speech? Would it still detract
from JFK's dynamic delivery? To make the experiment
more comparable to presentations in the wild I
decided not to pull out the big motion-graphics
guns. Everything was created in Apple's Keynote
which is part of the excellent
iWork
The Result
I find it hard to distance myself from my own work and the legendary status of President Kennedy's Inaugural Speech makes it even harder. I am confident that it works okay but Kennedy's charisma is so strong it will always be dificult to improve upon. I'll leave it up to you to decide whether this presentation detracts or ads to the speech...
"Presentation Zen"
Really it's as simple as that. If you ever do slideshow presentations (Powerpoint, Keynote etc.) this book will help you communicate your message in the most effective manner. It doesn't matter if you're a pro or amateur this is the book that will help you fulfill your potential as a presenter.
The look of required reading
Now personally I never have to do presentations. I am however quite interested in them as I am nearly in all visual forms of communication. Unfortunately I am occasionally subjected to presentations and find that they differ from the rare good to the all-too-common terrible. A few are even help-get-me-out-of-here-my-brain-is-melting horrible but I've yet to witness (live) a single presentation that deserves the great-stamp. OK, I'm probably quite stingy when it comes to my great-stamps, but needless to say the Powerpoint-presentation-genre is in dire need of improvement.
Based on Garr
Reynolds blog of the same name,
Presentation Zen
If you run a business where a lot of the communication is carried out through powerpoint you should buy a copy for each and everyone of your employees. I wouldn't be surprised if this modest investment would actually improve your productivity.
So, this is it. After all the false prophets among books on presentations this is the Jesus-book. It will save us all, make you a better person and make the world a better place for all of us. (OK, maybe not, but it will make you a better presenter and give the audience a better experience).
Killer looks
One of the ideas I was experimenting with in my recent superman-film was the attempt of making the visuals entertaining enough to overcome the world's least passionate voice-over. Based on the feedback I received it seems I had a certain degree of success. I'm sure you'll also agree that well delivered speeches can work brilliantly on their own. I therefore started to ponder the thought: "can a brilliant speech be ruined by poor visuals?"
Powerpoint-presentations are today's most used form of oral-visual presentations. It is also the most loathed one. The last few years have spurred a lot of articles about how Powerpoint is often used in a way that actually lessens the impact of a message, so the answer to my question should be fairly obvious. But how far can you push it? I chose a few seconds from President Kennedy's inaugural address as this is one of the most inspirational speeches made in the last century. Below you can see how it comes across when I've "complimented" the speech with slides from a standard Powerpoint-template.
Edit: I've replaced the original quicktime-file with the YouTube clip
To me the effect is almost unbelievable. I find the 40 seconds or so to be mind shattering dull. Now here's the trick: Try playing the clip again, but with your eyes closed. It's better isn't it? So, if poor visuals can lessen the power of JFK in his prime, then just think what they could do to your average presenter. Does this mean you should just skip the visuals the next time you're making a presentation. Not necessarily. The right visuals can improve the audience's experience and their emotional connection with the material. However, if you're not willing to invest the time and resources to get the visuals right, you're probably better off leaving Powerpoint at home...