PowerPoint Tip: Finding high-resolution logos and research graphics for your presentation

If you have ever had to put a logo on a slide, you know some of the challenges that exist. If it is your own logo, you probably have a high-res image easily available from your marketing department. But if it is a client or supplier logo, now you’ve got problems.

You can go to their web site and grab the logo from their home page, but it is usually small and low resolution. When you try to resize it to be large enough for the slide, it looks chunky, and not a good representation of that organization. You could search for the logo on Google Images, but you might end up with the old logo and be embarrassed during the presentation when they point that out.

How do you get a high-res logo from their web site? You need to know where to look. Some organizations actually have a logo download page, but most do not, and you need to be a little more crafty in your approach. In this tip, I’ll outline a way to find the high-res logo you are looking for and use it on a slide.

The key is to find the logo on the company’s web site embedded in a PDF document. PDF documents almost always have high-res graphics in them that look great in a presentation. Finding an appropriate PDF document could take hours of searching, or you can use Goolge’s advanced search tool to find it quickly and easily.

In the Google search bar, use a search phrase like this:
“annual report” filetype:pdf site:www.abc.gov
I use “annual report” as the primary search phrase because most organizations usually post their latest annual financial or other type of report on their web site. You could also try “press release” as another type of common document that gets posted.
The filetype:pdf narrows the search to only PDF documents so we aren’t using low-res web pages as a source for the logo.
The site:www.abc.gov narrows the search to only their web site (obviously you would replace www.abc.gov with their web site address). This means we are only using documents that they have posted and will reflect the official logo.

From the results of this search, select a recent report and open it to see if it has their logo (it almost always will). Zoom in to make sure the logo is clear and high-resolution. Save the PDF file to your computer and exit your browser.

Open the saved PDF file using Acrobat (the free Reader is fine). Zoom in on the logo so it fills the screen as much as possible. In Acrobat, use the Snapshot tool to capture the logo: Click Tools – Select & Zoom – Snapshot Tool. Use the crosshairs cursor to draw a rectangle around the logo. As soon as you release the mouse button, the logo is captured to the Windows clipboard (you may see a message notifying you of this).

Now switch over to PowerPoint and paste the logo on to your slide. You may want to crop it and you will want to size it to fit the usage on this slide. If you want it to have a transparent background, try the Set Transparent color tool in PowerPoint, which usually works quite well with logos.

Now you have a high-res, good looking, current logo on your slide. You can use this same technique to locate other graphics, such as diagrams or graphs from research firms who make them available in press releases. The next time you need a logo in your presentation, use this technique to make it look good.

A Black Friday/Cyber Monday Shopping List for Presenters

The frenzy of shopping known as Black Friday and Cyber Monday in the US is almost upon us. If you are a presenter or have someone on your gift list who delivers presentations, here is a list of some gifts that presenters would love to receive this Christmas. I’ll start with some that are smaller and lower cost, but still very appreciated.

Presentation remote: not being tied to your laptop allows you to connect much better with your audience. My favourite is the RemotePoint Navigator by Interlink Electronics.

Wireless travel mouse: when travelling, a wireless mouse makes it easier to get work done in hotel rooms, and it doubles as a backup for a presentation remote. My current one is the Microsoft Arc mouse, which is small, light, and works well.

VGA extension cable: you never know where the projector connection will be, and a 12 foot VGA extension cable allows you to position your laptop where it is most convenient for you, regardless of where the connection is.

Now let’s move to some of the more expensive purchases that presenters would love to find under the tree this Christmas.

Apple iPad: if most of your presentations are one-on-one, an iPad is a great way to present. You can even hook it up to a projector for small groups. I’ve done a video on how you can present corporate PowerPoint presentations on an iPad here.

Data projector: even though many corporate boardrooms have a projector, there are still many rooms where a presenter needs to bring their own. Look for one that is light, but has at least 2,000 lumens and is a minimum of XGA resolution (1024 x 768).

Laptop: the number of laptop choices is overwhelming. Look for one that has a good processor (I suggest an Intel Core i3 or better), at least 4 GB of RAM, a good video card, and at least a 500 GB hard drive. Those specifications should make the laptop last for at least two to three years.

Of course you should always check your prices and shop wisely, whether it is at a store or online.

Happy shopping!

PowerPoint Slide Makeover #65: Using a common denominator for comparisons

Just a quick note to let you know that a new Slide Makeover Video Podcast based on the ideas in "The Visual Slide Revolution" is available for your viewing through the iTunes Store, online or through my YouTube channel. If you want your audience to understand a comparison of two or more values, you must make it easy for them to see the difference without having to do calculations in their head. This makeover shows how to use a common denominator to make the comparison easy to understand.

This slide is similar to those submitted by the participants in my workshops - someone just like you who is looking for a way to make their presentations more effective. If you want to submit some of your slides to be considered for a future slide makeover, e-mail them to me at Dave@ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com.

If you have already subscribed through iTunes or another podcatcher, the new podcast should be automatically downloaded when you next run the program.

To subscribe via the iTunes Store, click here.
To view online or get the RSS file for other podcatchers, click here.
You can also watch all the podcasts on my YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/ThinkOutsideTheSlide

If you have subscribed via iTunes or YouTube, please provide your positive feedback on the videos in the Comments and Ratings areas of the service so others know the value you get from the videos.



To get your own copy of "The Visual Slide Revolution", click here.
To access quick "how-to" videos for only $1.99 each, click here.

PowerPoint Tip: Solve your presentation delivery problems

After you have planned your presentation and created persuasive visuals, you need to prepare to present your presentation. In today’s newsletter, I want to share some of the delivery tips I most often use when answering questions from participants in my workshops.

I’ll start with a good presenter evaluation feedback form I featured earlier this year from Jim Endicott of Distinction Services that you can find here. As you look at the specific items that Jim suggests we use to evaluate presenters, pay attention to those parts of each item that are underlined. The underlined phrases are the measurement criteria you should pay attention to when practicing before you deliver your presentation.

The equipment we use to present still seems to give some presenters a challenge. Make sure you practice connecting your laptop to a projector if this is unfamiliar to you. The key connections to focus on are the video connection and your remote. Make sure you know how to toggle the display so that is shows on both the projector and your laptop screen (check your user's manual if you need to). If you are bringing your presentation on a memory stick, practice taking it to a different computer and running through every slide to make sure it looks and acts the way you expect it to.

A mistake I see too many presenters make is they talk to the screen when they are delivering their presentation. Please don’t do this. It disconnects you from the audience and gives the impression that the screen is more important than they are. I have two articles on my web site that have techniques to help you if you find this is one of your presentation habits: both are listed in this section of the article archive.

Moving through the slides also causes a problem for some presenters. If you don’t own your own remote, I suggest you get one. My favourite is the RemotePoint Navigator from Interlink Electronics (available at CDW.com and other retailers). It allows you to advance your slides without being tied to the laptop. You could also use a remote mouse to advance your slides, but be careful to not make the mouse run across the screen while you are holding it (press Ctrl+H in Slide Show mode to turn off the mouse pointer). Some presenters are now using an app on their smartphone to link across a wireless network to their laptop and advance their slides that way. Practice this to make sure it will work properly before you rely on it for a live presentation. If you need to jump to a slide in the presentation, press Ctrl+S in Slide Show mode and select the slide you want to go to. This is great for jumping to a detailed slide to answer an audience member’s question.

Remember that rehearsing your presentation using the equipment and room setting is the best way to be prepared to deliver an awesome message. Use these tips to raise your game for your next presentation.

Book Review: Using Resonate by Nancy Duarte to improve everyday presentations

When I agreed to review Nancy Duarte’s latest book, Resonate, I did so with the desire to find nuggets that everyday presenters could use. Those who have to present regularly in small group settings such as sales presentations, team meetings, project updates, and budget reviews, don’t have the time or desire to use some of the techniques that main stage conference presenters have the luxury to use. So this review is written from that perspective, and I have structured it around the nine rules Nancy uses in organizing her book.

First, let me start by saying I think that almost every presenter can benefit from reading this book. Nancy and I agree that if a presentation does not have a good structure, the fanciest visuals in the world won’t matter. That’s why structure is the first thing I address in my workshops and it is why Nancy refers to this book as a "prequel" to her first book on creating visuals. Even if you have heard this before, you will see some new ways of thinking about the planning of your message by reading this book.

So let’s look at what an average corporate presenter can learn from the nine rules that Nancy shares in Resonate.

Rule #1: Resonance causes change
In this first rule, Nancy asks us to shift our perspective from self-centered as presenters to being focused on serving the audience and helping them along their journey. A good starting reminder for all presenters.

Rule #2: Incorporating story into presentations has an exponential effect on outcomes
This chapter is the core of the book and the one I found most insightful. On page 26 Nancy has a masterful illustration of the differences between reports, presentations and stories. Pay attention to the differences and see how each is unique. Then, on page 36 she introduces what I consider to be the most important concept of the book, The Presentation Form. It is not a form in terms of fields to fill in, it is a shape that shows how presentations move between "what is" and "what could be" in powerful ways. When I saw Nancy describe this in a live presentation recently, a light bulb went off that explained some of why my presentations have improved since making a few key changes. The form applies to all presentations even though the examples she gives are main stage keynote style presentations – not the ones most of us will deliver. For an everyday presentation, craft your message so you move between describing the current state and the state you want the audience to move to, flowing between the two as you move through your message. Reread this chapter a few times.

Rule #3: If a presenter knows the audience’s resonant frequency and tunes to that, the audience will move
This chapter is about knowing your audience, something that both Nancy and I feel is not done well by too many presenters. The diagram on page 71 is very insightful and illustrates well the desire to move the audience to share more of what we know and understand. Spend some time with this diagram and how it can help you see your role as presenter in a slightly new way.

Rule #4: Every audience will persist in a state of rest unless compelled to change
Once you have discovered characteristics of your audience, this chapter examines how important it is to craft a message that moves them from where they are to where you want them to be. Nancy gives some good ideas about what you need to consider when creating this path.

Rule #5: Use the big idea to filter out all frequencies other than the resonant frequency
I like Nancy’s idea of a filter and I have been talking about using a filter for a while now because it is a perfect analogy. You will want to put a lot in to your presentation, but you need to use a filter to strain out anything that will not be purely focused on the key message you want to communicate. I think the story section on page 108-111 is a particularly good guide for presenters in crafting focused stories that do not ramble on without making a clear point.

Rule #6: Structure is greater than the sum of its parts
Once you have all the ideas, you need to arrange them in a coherent structure or else the message is confusing. Nancy gives some good advice on different ways to organize your information on pages 128-129. Keep these pages close when deciding on the structure of your presentation. Use the great process recap on pages 142-143 as a quick reference guide when collecting and organizing all the ideas you have that may be part of your presentation.

Rule #7: Memorable moments are repeated and retransmitted so they cover long distances
In main stage keynote style presentations, Nancy shows how you want the audience to take away something that they will never forget. This is the toughest idea in the book for everyday presenters to apply in their hurried work life. Most presenters don’t have time to carefully create these “over the moon” ideas. For most presentations that happen every day, I think this is really an extension of defining the goal of the presentation. You’ve thought about what you want the audience to do, know, understand, feel, etc, at the end of the presentation. Make sure you clearly state that during the presentation.

Rule #8: Audience interest is directly proportionate to the presenter’s preparation
This chapter is all about delivery and preparing for your time at the front of the room. Entire books are dedicated to delivery, and Nancy hits some key points in this chapter. The advice to screen your presentation before others is great advice for high-stakes presentations, but probably not practical for most regular everyday presentations. You should rehearse before you deliver, but if that can only be done at home in front of an empty room or cooperative family, that’s fine in my opinion.

Rule #9: Your imagination can create a reality (James Cameron)
Nancy leaves us on an inspirational high by showing how presentations have literally changed the course of history through a number of case studies. It highlights the importance of crafting an effective presentation. If you want to be a successful communicator, you need to make every presentation count.

Is this book valuable if you are an everyday presenter? Absolutely. Look past some of the examples that may not be from the world you live in, and focus on the key ideas that are applicable to all presentations.

If you want to watch a webinar that Nancy did introducing some of the key concepts in the book, she’s put the video online at http://blog.duarte.com/2010/11/that-resonates-with-me-video-recording/

To purchase your own copy of Resonate by Nancy Duarte, you can buy from Amazon in the US by clicking here and Amazon in Canada by clicking here.

Why I suggest you choose a boring font for your PowerPoint slides

Recently I’ve read a number of articles or online comments that exhort presenters to abandon boring fonts like Arial or Calibri. The argument is these fonts are overused and instead, you should search for and use a cool font that makes you stand out. One article even suggested what search term you should use to locate an appropriately cool font.

This may be a good idea for a main stage conference speaker who has complete control of all the technology parameters and will never have these slides shown on a different computer or e-mailed to anyone else. In my opinion, it is bad advice for the vast majority of presenters who deal with the real-world situation of having to present on different computers and e-mailing their presentation as a follow-up or to those who couldn’t attend.

For the presenters who live in the corporate arena, choosing a cool downloaded font is a bad idea. Why? Because you run the risk of your text being unreadable or gibberish. Here’s why I say this. When you use a downloaded font, it resides only on your own computer and doesn’t travel with the presentation file unless you’ve specifically set the option to do this (hands up if you know where this option is hidden). When that presentation arrives on another computer, PowerPoint doesn’t recognize the name of the cool font and so it substitutes another font it does know about. You don’t get to choose the substitute font, it does it for you.

And what happens to your carefully designed slides? One time I saw it select a font that made most of the text run off each slide and text boxes ran on top of each other, making the presentation look like a mess. Another time PowerPoint selected Webdings as the substitute font and all I saw was gobbled gook. Is that what you want a key decision maker to see when they open your presentation? I didn’t think so.

So my suggestion is stick with a boring font like Arial or Calibri. When your presentation arrives on another computer, it will look exactly like it did on your computer. Will the recipient of the file think poorly of you for using a boring font? If your message is well crafted and supported by persuasive visuals, I don’t think they will even notice.

PowerPoint Slide Makeover #64: Breaking the addiction to bulletizing a single point

Just a quick note to let you know that a new Slide Makeover Video Podcast based on the ideas in "The Visual Slide Revolution" is available for your viewing through the iTunes Store, online or through my YouTube channel. In an effort to fill a slide, too many presenters break one point into multiple bullet points. This makeover shares lessons for breaking this addiction and creating visual slides that help you communicate more effectively.

This slide is similar to those submitted by the participants in my workshops - someone just like you who is looking for a way to make their presentations more effective. If you want to submit some of your slides to be considered for a future slide makeover, e-mail them to me at Dave@ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com.

If you have already subscribed through iTunes or another podcatcher, the new podcast should be automatically downloaded when you next run the program.

To subscribe via the iTunes Store, click here.
To view online or get the RSS file for other podcatchers, click here.
You can also watch all the podcasts on my YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/ThinkOutsideTheSlide

If you have subscribed via iTunes or YouTube, please provide your positive feedback on the videos in the Comments and Ratings areas of the service so others know the value you get from the videos.



To get your own copy of "The Visual Slide Revolution", click here.
To access quick "how-to" videos for only $1.99 each, click here.

PowerPoint Tip: Tools for working with audio or video to include in your PowerPoint presentation

The latest version of PowerPoint (PowerPoint 2010) includes built-in audio and video editing tools that make it almost like a media editing software program. But what about the vast majority of us who don’t have the latest version? Today I want to share some of the tools I have used that will help you edit, convert and show audios or videos during your presentation, no matter what version of PowerPoint you have.

The first tool is used to convert videos into the preferred PowerPoint format of WMV (Windows Media Video format). It is called Any Video Converter and is available at www.any-video-converter.com. When you go to download it at their web site, make sure you go to the free downloads page in order to get the free version. I like this software because it is no cost, and does a great job of converting many different formats. It even allows you to convert online videos from YouTube as well. This is important if you are showing a YouTube video when you won’t have Internet access.

If you can’t install software on your corporate computer, I’ve just discovered a new online conversion tool that looks very promising. The web site is www.online-convert.com and audio and video conversions are two of the many conversions it will do. I’ve tested this site with a couple of videos and was impressed with the results. It allows you to convert a file from your system or it will go grab a YouTube or other online video. You can instantly download the converted file or e-mail it to someone (if the file isn’t too large). It also allows you to change the video parameters, including capturing only a certain portion of a video.

Once you have the video converted, you may need to edit it. You can use Windows Live Movie Maker, which is a free download from Microsoft’s web site. It works with and outputs WMV files, so it is ideal for videos you want to use in PowerPoint. You can also use the online video editing tool I mentioned last issue at www.jaycut.com.

If the video you want to use is not in a format that PowerPoint accepts and you don’t want to convert it, you can use the VLC Media Player that plays video clips in almost every format I’ve ever heard of. You can download it for free at www.videolan.org/vlc/. One way I’ve used VLC is to play QuickTime MOV videos. I associate the MOV file type with VLC in Windows so that it knows to open MOV files using VLC. Then, on my slide, I’ll create a hyperlink from an image to the video file on my computer. When I activate the hyperlink, it automatically starts playing the video in VLC. I like VLC because it plays so many different formats and its player window is nice and clean.

To record or edit audio, the utility I mentioned last time, Audacity, is the best. You can download it at audacity.sourceforge.net. If you are recording an audio track, use a microphone, like a USB headset mic you might use for video chatting with friends. It gives much better quality than a built-in computer mic. Any distortions in quality are more noticeable when amplified in the meeting room, so get the best audio quality you can. If you need to get an audio track from a video clip, you can use the Any Video Converter utility mentioned above to convert the video to an MP3 track and then edit it in Audacity.

I know this tip is a long one, but I hope you now have a number of new tools to use when creating audio and video to use in your PowerPoint presentations.