Bringing Your Story to Life

“Image is everything,” “Seeing is believing,” “You oughta be in pictures”—you've heard it all before. The look and feel of your visuals will certainly make a difference in your business presentations; you just want to make sure the difference is positive.

For instance, I can look at any presentation and within the first three visuals tell how good or bad the presentation will be, just from a media viewpoint. In most cases, the visuals are pretty bad. Some simple techniques can help even a first-time presenter avoid making the most common mistakes.

A well-conceived script containing a clearly defined objective should be enhanced with good visual support. The features and functions of PowerPoint help bring your outline and storyboard to life, giving you the opportunity to create visuals with impact. This chapter focuses on the effective design of the support elements used to direct your message.

A lot of people take for granted the importance of having well-designed visual support for the presentation. The components of the event, especially those that are most visible, can make or break the moment. If you keep following our notion of a visual presenter, you can begin to see how the support for your message must be highly visual.