******************************************************************* Dave Paradi's PowerPoint Tip     Issue #140 August 7, 2007 Published & Copyright by Dave Paradi of ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com Circulation 8,653 ******************************************************************* Please forward this newsletter to sales executives and professionals who want to achieve greater sales rep productivity and deliver presentations that close more sales.  If this newsletter has been sent to you by a friend, sign up to get your own copy at http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/newsletter.htm . ******************************************************************* In this issue: PowerPoint Live Seattle Public Workshop September 28th PowerPoint Tip - The Value of Preparing Early Best of the Blog - Fireworks as a model for PowerPoint slides Dave's Travel Schedule ******************************************************************* PowerPoint Live - New Orleans Oct 29-31 Would you like to meet other users of PowerPoint in a format where you learn from the true experts and get a chance to exchange ideas with others from around the world?  If so, the fifth annual PowerPoint Live conference is for you.  I am presenting the keynote address on the final day of this year's conference and the organizer, Rick Altman, has given me two great opportunities for you to take advantage of.  The first is a draw for a complimentary registration and the other is a savings of $75 off the registration. Time is limited for each (the draw is made next week), so check it out at http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/powerpointlive.htm . ------------------------------------------------------------------- Seattle Public Workshop September 28th My one day Think Outside The Slide workshop is coming to Seattle next month.  Sign up now and don't miss out.  Get all the details at http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/powerpointseminar.htm . ------------------------------------------------------------------- PowerPoint Tip: The Value of Preparing Early When you travel, it is almost inevitable that you will see someone working on their presentation in the airport waiting area or on the airplane.  Inevitably, they will get off the plane, jump into a rental car and drive to a meeting room where they will present that set of slides.  By leaving the preparation to the last minute, you don't give yourself four advantages that preparing early gives you. First, when you prepare early, you leave yourself time to let the ideas percolate in your mind.  You can review your presentation without being rushed and make revisions.  This makes your presentation better.  Presenters regularly tell me that they thought of a great way to present an idea after the presentation and wished they had thought of it before they presented.  By preparing early, you give yourself the time to think of these great ideas. If you have ever arrived at the presentation site and realized that you have forgotten a cord or piece of equipment, you know the next advantage of preparing early.  I've seen presenters forget their power cords, presentation remotes and all sorts of other equipment. By preparing early, you can make a list of all of these pieces of equipment so you don't forget any of them. When you prepare at the last minute, too often your slides turn into a dump of what you are going to say.  Then you end up reading the slides to the audience, which is the most annoying thing you can do according to the surveys of audiences.  By preparing early, you have time to think of visuals that allow you to have more of a discussion about the ideas.  You also have time to prepare the visuals, such as graphs, diagrams and photos. Finally, when you prepare early, you can relax and enjoy the experience.  I remember one presentation years ago when I left everything to the last minute and was creating slides late the night before the presentation.  I wasn't relaxed and didn't feel as confident as I could have.  The presentation went OK, but it could have been so much better if I had been well rested. When you prepare early, you can check your presentation and slides to make sure everything works the way you expect it to.  Members of the Think Outside The Slide Members Site have access this week to a new video where I demonstrate a number of ways to test your slides before you present.  If you are not a member, watch the video tour and sign up at http://members.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com . ------------------------------------------------------------------- Best of the Blog -  Fireworks as a model for PowerPoint slides Now before you think I've lost my mind and I'm suggesting that we make our slides look like exploding fireworks displays, rest assured that I am still sane. While watching a fireworks display recently at Disneyland with my family, I noticed how you see the firework explode and then a moment or two later you hear the boom. And it caused me to think that a firework is a good analogy to how our PowerPoint slides should work. Our audience should see the visual, take it in, then hear us talk. If we are talking while the audience is trying to understand the visual, they won't be listening to us and our message will be lost. The point for presenters is to wait until the audience has seen the visual, comprehended it and then start speaking. This is usually a delay of only a second or two, but it is important in helping our visuals and words make the greatest impact. Other recent blog posts at http://pptideas.blogspot.com : You better know PowerPoint to get into Chicago's MBA program ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dave's Travel Schedule I work with sales teams who struggle with the quality of their sales presentations and the productivity of the sales reps in creating the presentations. Sales executives would like their sales reps to easily create presentations and deliver a customized and consistent message every time. My research based PowerPoint Presentation Effectiveness System helps my clients achieve greater sales rep productivity and deliver presentations that close more sales.  You can save money by booking me to speak to your organization or conference when I am close to your area for other clients.  Here's where I will be in the next few months: August 9 - Toronto, ON August 14 Lexington, KY August 15 Cincinnati, OH August 17-20 Chicago, IL August 24 Toronto, ON August 28-30 San Diego, CA & Mexico September 7-9 Winnipeg, MB September 17-19 - Mississauga, ON September 28 Seattle, WA one-day public workshop - register at http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/powerpointseminar.htm September 27-30 Seattle, WA October 10-12 Washington, DC October 18 Barrie, ON October 25 Ottawa, ON October 26 Huntsville, ON October 29-31 New Orleans, LA at PowerPoint Live - register at http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/powerpointlive.htm November 14 - Toronto, ON December 6-9 - Halifax, NS E-mail me at Dave@ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com to discuss how my Think Outside The Slide(tm) sessions can help your organization be more productive and improve communication throughout the organization. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Privacy Policy: I will never sell or distribute your e-mail or information to anyone. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Need articles for your newsletter?  Check out my many articles at: http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Recommended tools I use in my business: KickStartCart shopping cart system: http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/default.asp?pr=31&id=42487 Credit Card Processor PayPal: https://www.paypal.com/row/mrb/pal=8ADSGLU62YXWW Webinar provider GoToWebinar: http://snipurl.com/webinarhost ------------------------------------------------------------------- Check out the books, e-books and other learning tools at: http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/resources.htm ------------------------------------------------------------------- If you want to read back issues of this newsletter, click on the following link to go to the Archives: http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/archives.htm ------------------------------------------------------------------- Microsoft, PowerPoint, Windows and other terms are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.  Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation.  All books, products and seminars are independent publications and are not affiliated with, nor have they been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation.