The right visual aids. (part 2 of 2) 08/23/2009
...Continued from a prior post - see options 1 and 2 below. 3. Hire a professional to create custom graphics for you- there are tons of talented professionals who would be happy to help you out. I have used sources from www.crowdspring.com and www.elance.com both are excellent places to find talent, but Crowdspring lets you try before you buy. You give them a budget and a project description and artists will submit entries hoping you will choose their design and award the funds to them. I decided I needed more professional pictures so I hired someone to create illustrations for my slides. This is one concept: "The banker is watching you more closely than ever."  Original illustration by Gemma Barrett, done through CrowdSPRING. Pro: You get some gorgeous images Con: You have to keep your presentation consistent. So if you need to add something at the last minute or change a concept, you need to hire the designer again to keep the same look. And once I had these, I realized that the fact that they are so professional actually doesn't fit with my persona. One of the things that has bugged me about Microsoft's presentations over the years are that they are so obviously professionally done and corporate, they don't reflect anything about the presenter. I love these drawings and the creative person who did them for me, but this approach didn't work for me. 4. Take your own photographs- how hard can it be - right? Well take it from me, it's harder than you think to get an image that doesn't look like your 4 year old niece from Alabama created all your pictures. I tried this approach for a presentation called "17.5 ways even a nerd can be heard". Here's one of the slides.  #1 Know Yourself - photo of a mirror by Geni Whitehouse Pro: No one else has a picture like this in their slides. Con: No one else would want a picture like this in their slides. Can you tell this is a mirror? I don't think so. 5. Draw your own pictures- live-on a flipchart- without PowerPoint! This is my new favorite way to present. So here's how it happened. I presented a topic to the CALCPA Napa group last week and they don't have a facility for sllides. So I bought a table top flipchart and took it and pens with me. I created my complete presentation in PowerPoint and printed the handouts from there so people could look at them later and see what I had been trying to draw. But then I went through the whole presentation by drawing each of my 10 points. Did I mention I can't draw at all? That made it even better.  Photo of drawing on a flipchart to illustrate point #3 : Never Use Words When A Picture Will Do'. Note picture frame. Pro: Portable, easy, interactive, gets your audience involved as they try to figure out what this could possibly be. Con: You might end up with marker on your hands, it's a little hard to see if you have a really large crowd, but otherwise it works. And did you know these little table top flip charts with 20 sheets run $30? Mine was 3M's Post-It brand. Comments04/27/2010 03:35
Thanks for the detailed information, I was always confused about this topic Leave a Reply |  Geni Whitehouse
Countess of Communication Brotemarkle,Davis and Co. LLP Author of How to Make a Boring Subject Interesting : 52 ways even a nerd can be heard I am an accountant on a mission. I want to permanently remove the blight of BORING that has attached itself to members of my profession. But the boring blight doesn't stop there. It's everywhere. I've found it in wineries (although it's a tad more palatable when served with alcohol), in science labs, even in Art museums. And technology people carry the "B" gene too. But the condition need not be fatal. I work with CPAs through my strategic partner, Mentor Plus, an organization that has been providing CPAs with the skills their clients crave for more than 19 years. I lecture around the country to accountants and technology audiences and I have a ball. I was a partner in an Atlanta CPA firm when I realized technology was my true passion and I have been fighting the nerd versus geek battle ever since. And through some stroke of absolutely amazing luck, I now find myself in Napa -- the most gorgeous, hospitable place imaginable. Are you on Twitter? You can follow my nerdy life there : evenanerd Contact me geni@evenanerd.com I am a graduate of the Jeff Justice Comedy Workshoppe and the Persuasive Speaker course taught by Speechworks. I highly recommend both of these organizations. I am not unbiased, nor do I wish to be. I have done work for anyone and everyone in the software industry or the accounting profession. But if I am not impressed by what you do or can't find an angle that is interesting or unique, I won't work for or with you. And if you are stodgy or boring, there are not enough dollars or even euros to make me help you. See samples of my writing here: www.salestaxradar.com www.mybizcounts.com  ArchivesJanuary 2012 CategoriesAll Other websites you might enjoy: |
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