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May 2002

In this month's free e-news from Wilder Presentations, I'd like to discuss three ideas for presenters and one for designers. As always, there's a monthly challenge at the end. This seems to be the bulletin of recommending products. Just so you know I do not get anything for recommending products. I do it because I like them or think some of you out there may be interested.

FOR PRESENTERS:

STEP 7: CONCLUDE WITH CONVICTION

People ask me, "What do I do at the end of my talk? I've already said everything." Here are some ideas:

For the auditory, logical-minded person: Present a reasonable number of facts and statistics. Even if you have mentioned these in detail during your talk, it doesn't hurt to reiterate a few key statistics during your conclusion. You can also have audience members talk about how your suggestions and recommendations will work in their situation.

For the visual person: Show a picture of the product. Show a picture of the future building. If it is a small product, let people hold it. Give them a visual image, whether on the screen or in their hands. If you have been presenting different alternatives to reach a goal, summarize the alternatives by showing a picture of each one.

For the kinesthetic person: Leave them with a positive feeling about your presentation by giving them a feeling of how effective your suggested next steps will be. End with a powerful quote or a challenge such as, "Do we have enough flexibility to make this happen?" You don't have to wait for an answer-suggest boldly, "You bet we do!" or "You certainly can." Refer to people in the group and how they agree with your suggestions. Of course, get their permission first.

End on a positive note.

Say, "I know you have learned some things about x." Don't say, "I hope I have made my points."

Say, "I'm sure you are interested in our cause based on what I've said." Don't say, "If you are interested…"

Say, "I'll call you to discuss this further." Don't say, " I look forward to hearing from you."

Conclusions are your last chance to make an impression. Don't throw them away by not planning.

FOR PRESENTERS:

ARE YOU MISSING SOMETHING IN YOUR MESSAGE?

Ever heard of a meme? Here's what Jay Conrad Levinson says about them in his book Guerilla Creativity:

"Richard Dawkins, an Oxford biologist who coined the word meme in 1976 in his book The Selfish Gene, defines it as a basic unit of cultural transmission or imitation. Guerilla marketers define it as the essence of an idea, expressed as a symbol or set of words, an action or a sound. Within two seconds a meme conveys who you are and why someone should buy from you instead of a competitor. The essence of guerilla creativity is creating marketing that has meme power."

Memes can be words, pictures, or actions. Here are some examples:

Lean Cuisine

Point, Click & Wow!

Diamonds are forever

Good to the last drop

Breakfast of Champions

Paramount Pictures' mountain

Smoky the Bear

Look ma, no cavities!

Flashing headlights to say, "Your brights are on!"

Use a meme to make it easy for your audience to anchor to your talk. So many presentations are just data upon data, with no clear focus. To learn more about memes go to: www.gmarketingcoach.com/memes.htm

FOR PRESENTERS AND DESIGNERS:

CAN'T FIND YOUR FILES?

Here's a company that will help you find your files.

Presentation Librarian from Accent Graphics turns presentation materials into a searchable library of presentations, slides, images, movies, and sounds. With Librarian you can locate, update, re-create and distribute new presentations in a fraction of the time you're probably spending how. Available in five versions from Personal (for a single user) to the Web-based Enterprise Edition. For details and a free demo, visit www.presentation-librarian.com/demo.asp.

FOR DESIGNERS:

VIDEOCLIP HINTS

This hint is from Ellen Finkelsteins's superb book, How to Do Everything with PowerPoint 2002. What I love about this book is that the steps are concise, organized, and easy to follow.

First you need a videoclip, which is usually AVI or MPG file. There are three ways to create a live videoclip:

1. Internet videocamera kits let you record a video while sitting in front of your PC. They're intended mostly for sending videos of yourself while calling someone over the Internet. Prices range from $100 to about $200.

2. Take a video and then convert it into a digital format. You need both an analog capture card (hardware that you insert inside your computer) and software to transfer the video onto your hard disk. The software also compresses your video files, which is important because they quickly grow to an unmanageable size.

3. Create a video with a digital camcorder.

Once you have a video:

1. Choose Insert/Movies and sounds.

2. Select the picture.

3. Choose Format/Picture to open the Format Picture dialog box.

4. Choose the Size tab

5. Check the Best Scale for Slide Show box. This box scales any picture to the best scale for your screen's resolution. Then choose the proper resolution form the resolution drop-down box.

6. Click OK.

MONTHLY CHALLENGES:

PRESENTERS

Plan a conclusion for visual, auditory, and kinesthetic types.

DESIGNERS

Do some looking around for videoclips you can use. Or, if you have a fancy digital camera, take ten-second video clips you can then use in a presentation.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ASKED: SOME COMMENTS ABOUT MY RUSSIA TRIP

Last month I spent a week in Moscow. I loved being in Russia for the incredible educational and historical experience. To walk around the Kremlin and Red Square is awe-inspiring after hearing about it for years. To ride the 128-mile-long metro with its stations of stained glass, 60 soldier statues, tiled picture ceilings, and chandeliers is amazing. The metro comes every minute. The stations are spotless.

I was saddened when hearing or reading some of the following information. The average life expectancy in Russia is 57 years. The average monthly wage in the provinces is $100. There are the really rich and the poor. Russia went from socialism to a market economy overnight, which never gave what could be the middle class a chance. Small businesses only account for 10 percent of the gross national product. Some 850,000 small businesses are registered, but no one knows how many there are on the streets, etc. One of the biggest threats to Russian business is the lack of stable laws. People don't know what is going to happen month to month with regards to rules, regulations, and income tax.

I could go on and on. There is nothing like being in a country and walking around and talking to people and reading the papers there to truly experience it from the inside out.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO PLAY GOLF

Go to www.boogeybag.com if you want the best golf cooler you never saw. A friend of mine sells these and they are excellent if you play golf. I don't. I dance but I know some of you out there love to play.

CONSIDERING DOING A FOUR WEEK ON LINE DEVELOP AND DESIGN EFFECTIVE PRESENTATIONS TELE-COURSE

Hi, I've been asked to do an on-line seminar. If you are interested, please e-mail me at claudyne@wilderpresentations.com and tell me to let you know more details.

It would be once a week for four weeks. Tele-course includes:

An hour phone call once a week.

Hour individual phone consult.

One slide presentation commented on with ideas on how to make it better.

Cost would be $299.

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To subscribe to Presentation Points or visit my home page, go to www.wilderpresentations.com.

Copyright 2001, Claudyne Wilder. All rights reserved.