Making Your (Power) Point
By: Ellen Neuborne
Presentations don't have to be a bore. Here are six new ways to liven them up.
The only thing worse than sitting through a boring PowerPoint
presentation is delivering one. Yet death by PowerPoint may be one of
the biggest risks of doing business. On any given day, some 30 million
PowerPoint presentations are delivered, according to Microsoft. Of
course, when it was released for Windows in 1990, the software was an
exciting new way of presenting information. But that's not always the
case today. Among the most common offenses: Speakers simply read the
slides to the audience; the text is too small; the color and animation
are dull; the charts are too complex. Technology got us into this mess;
now, technology is working hard to get us out. There are scores of new
products designed to enhance, or even replace, PowerPoint. Some cost
thousands, others are free. Here are six offerings that can help make
your next presentation less of a snooze and more of a blockbuster.
Best For… Instant feedback
Cool Features: With TurningPoint's instant-polling
technology, each audience member gets a credit card-size response pad.
Using PowerPoint, the presenter puts questions up on the screen.
Audience members key in their responses, which are funneled via a
wireless connection into the presenter's computer. The results are
calculated and organized into PowerPoint graphs and instantly displayed
on the large screen.
In Action: Architect Michael Dingeldein recently faced
200 parents, students, administrators, and neighbors--all there to see
Steed Hammond Paul Architects' long-awaited designs for a new school
building. Rather than waiting for the reaction to trickle in, he
distributed TurningPoint response pads and polled the audience
throughout his talk. "The audience engagement was incredible,"
Dingeldein says. "They were laughing and cheering as the results came
up on the screen. What it does to the audience is incredible. They're
right there with you."
Price: $2,920 for a 25-user system
Best For… Luddites
Cool Features: Rather than adding fancy graphics or
animation, Ovation software lets people with limited computer skills
make their run-of-the-mill PowerPoint presentations visually exciting,
adding depth, motion, background, and improved resolution from more
than 100 templates. Even better, it's an out-of-the-box product, with
no confusing licensing fees.
In Action: Investment manager Sean Lehmann makes
dozens of presentations a year--often to employees about their
companies' 401(k) plans. It's not unusual for him to look into the
audience and see the dreaded eyes-glazed-over look. "The material can
get kind of dry," he admits. Ovation injects new life into the standard
PowerPoint slide show--allowing Lehmann to, say, place his slide data
into a home office environment, so the bullet points move from the
animated computer to the to-do list to the appointment book. At a
recent presentation, Lehmann could tell the visual gymnastics were
making a difference. "Instead of leaning back with their arms folded,
they were all sitting up straight, looking ahead, some taking notes,"
he says. "We got their attention."
Price: $99.95
Best For… Groovy graphics
Cool Features: In the unending battle between
Macintosh and PC users, Keynote wields one of Apple's most potent
weapons--super-rich visuals. Designed by and for Mac users, Keynote
presenters incorporate 3-D images, a wide variety of shapes and
textures, plus sharp photography and animation.
In Action: Richard Warner, CEO of What's Up
Interactive, was just starting his presentation to the Technology
Association of Georgia last year when through his earpiece he could
hear the chatter of the venue's audio-visual squad. "As I was beginning
my presentation, one of them said: 'Damn, what is that? It's
beautiful.' Another responded: 'I'm sure it's Keynote.' 'Can we get
that?' 'No, it's just for Macs.' " Audience members seemed equally
impressed. Three of them are now his clients.
Price: Licensing fees start at $69 per seat per year for 10 to 99 users.
Best For… Staying on schedule
Cool Features: Thermometer for PowerPoint is just what
it says it is: a thermometer-style bar that sits in the bottom area of
each slide, displaying how much of a presentation has progressed and
how much remains. The tool can be customized to be seen by the
presenter, the audience, or both.
In Action: Most presentations go on way too long, says Geetesh Bajaj, a technology consultant and author of Cutting Edge PowerPoint for Dummies.
He developed the thermometer to make sure that didn't happen to him
during his own client presentations. The gauge keeps him on schedule
and ensures he gives enough time to each slide; even better, he no
longer finds himself rushing through the end of his slides when time is
running out. In fact, Bajaj likes the tool so much that he shares it
for free on his company's website; so far some 100,000 people have
downloaded it.
Price: Free
Best For… Presentations on the road (or even off-road)
Cool Features: This laptop is built for abuse--a
shock-, dust-, and spill-resistant machine designed to operate while
bouncing around in trucks, at construction sites, and on factory
floors. Features include an LCD screen, integrated wireless, and a
tablet PC function that recognizes handwriting.
In Action: To sell their computerized measurement
devices, execs at Faro Technologies, based in Lake Mary, Florida, give
presentations under harsh conditions. Once, while making a presentation
at a St. Louis factory, a Faro rep knocked his Toughbook off its perch
and it crashed five feet to the shop floor. Not only did the machine
not break, says David Morse, a vice president of sales, it didn't even
stop running its application.
Price: $3,000 to $5,000, depending upon configurations
Best For… The "wow" factor
Cool Features: In addition to the standard charts and
text, Ontra allows users to easily incorporate video, audio, and
animation and can make a presentation seem more like network television
than the standard slide show. Ontra can work alongside PowerPoint, or
replace it entirely.
In Action: Sales execs at Tribune Entertainment rely
on flashy presentations to help convince national advertisers to
purchase time on its syndicated programming. In the past, that often
required using a laptop computer, a VHS player, a DVD player, and a
monitor. Ontra combines standard informational slides with digitized
video clips--and the entire presentation runs off a single laptop. "Now
that we're not trying to juggle three machines and all their moving
parts, we can focus on giving our pitch," says Clark Morehouse, a
senior vice president.
Price: $250 per month to $10,000 per month, depending on the number of users and the range of features desired
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