Tag: visual storytelling

What Makes a Killer Sales Presentation?

presentation design

sales presentation tips

visual storytelling

Jul 03, 2019

Sales presentations play a crucial role in growing your business. Having a well-crafted deck is an absolute must in landing new buyers, business partners, and investors.

However, despite the proven results of good presentations, many professionals still idly neglect the effort to make an effective sales deck.

At SlideGenius, we’ve worked with many of the world’s biggest companies. We know what makes a successful sales presentation. Having spent years creating decks that bring out the very best qualities of companies like yours, we know a little something about motivating clients to start buying ASAP.

Here are some tips on how to transform an ordinary deck into a sale-generating machine:

Bring Storytelling into Your Sales Presentation  

Who doesn’t love a good story? In the complex world of sales, stories can leave lasting impressions on clients even more than facts. Statistics often lack context. Stories provide the context that make statistics real. A good PowerPoint presentation is the summer blockbuster of the business world.

Your presentation’s story tells your audience how you can help them be the hero. More than wanting to know the hard data, they want their problems to be solved in some amazing way, their performance to improve beyond belief. Your presentation shows them how your company will make that happen. This will help clients relate with your business on an emotional level.

Consider the three-act structure when building your PowerPoint. The first act is your introduction. It is where compelling problems are raised to contextualize and dramatize your presentation. These should be problems fine-tuned to be recognizable by your intended office. If they don’t feel the pain by the end of the first act of your presentation, they won’t connect to the story.

The second act of your presentation is your where things change, how you help your potential customer defeat this problem. Detail how your business solves the problems established in the introduction. Try pairing your solutions with real life scenarios to illustrate the effects your business creates clearly.

The third act is a strong call to action, how everything in your story begins. You’ll want to discuss financials. If this is an investor deck, talk about projected revenue and your milestones. If this is a sales pitch, discuss your pricing model and guarantees. Above all, know what action you want this person to take next and tell them to do it.

People retain information better with context. Developing the story of your presentation creates that context.

Be Smart with Your Words  

Your choice of words says a lot about who you are. But how much you say determines how much people listen.

Don’t fill your deck with too much information. It’s hardly engaging when your audience is spending most of their time mentally interpreting all the information you’re spewing. Give your key points some room to be properly understood. It will allow you to speak at a controlled pace, making it easier to guide your audience as the presentation progresses.

A tightly written deck also gives you the space to inject impactful visuals into your slides. Some clients may have difficultly visualizing what you are offering. Do that job for them. Pairing your content with the right visual aid will effectively amplify your message while also raising retention rates.

Design Brilliantly   

Simple PowerPoint designs can deliver the biggest impact. We’ve all seen slides that are jam packed. When things start to look too cramped, don’t be afraid to break up the information into multiple slides. This gives your content room to breathe. Overcomplicating designs only creates unnecessary clutter, thus jeopardizing the clarity of your message.

Consider the color, layout, and imagery of your slides as amplifiers to your message. Striking visuals will always be more memorable than bland blocks of text. You can make bits of information easier to understand by translating them into tables or graphs. Having more visually oriented slides also removes the crutch of “script-reading”, a common mistake that happens when presentations are text heavy.

This doesn’t come easily for everyone. In order to get the job done right the first time, it may be best to hire someone. Professional help with your sales presentation can be both affordable and tremendously beneficial in terms of your long-term investment.

SlideGenius Creates Sales Presentations for You

When your work starts to pile up, and you just don’t have the time for it all, let SlideGenius take care of designing your next sales presentation! Whether it’s an animated marketing video, or a PowerPoint presentation, we deliver professionally crafted pitch materials that will help your business grow.

Our work is possible thanks to our phenomenal team of designers, writers, and animators. We’ve worked with over 3,000 clients, honing our design skills to always create exciting presentations that are consistent with unique standards.

The work we do has helped our clients raise hundreds of millions of dollars for their businesses. The achievements earned by our clients are our measures of success. Together, let’s bring your company up to brand new heights! Reach out now to get a free quote on how we can help.

Contact us today!

Extending the Metaphor: 3 Tips for Choosing Images in Prezi

images in prezi

presentation design

Prezi Feature of the Week

prezi tips

visual storytelling

Nov 06, 2014

Choosing the right images is essential in Prezi, where visual storytelling and movement play a central role in how ideas are conveyed. Prezi presentations rely on motion and spatial relationships between content, making it important to select images that not only support your message but also enhance the flow and storytelling.Here are three key tips for choosing images in Prezi that extend your metaphor and strengthen your presentation:

1. Choose Images that Reinforce the Metaphor

In Prezi, visuals are often used to build upon metaphors that guide your narrative. To make your presentation more cohesive and compelling, choose images that directly support and expand on the metaphor you’re using to frame your presentation.How to Do It:

  • Extend the Visual Metaphor: If you’re using a metaphor of a “journey” or “roadmap,” choose images like roads, paths, or maps to visually reinforce that concept. If your metaphor is a “growth” story, use imagery of plants, trees, or seeds sprouting to illustrate stages of development.
  • Create Consistency: Choose images with a consistent style, color palette, or theme. This helps create a cohesive narrative and makes it easier for the audience to follow the flow of your story.

Example: For a presentation on business development as a journey, you could show images of winding roads, signposts, and checkpoints to symbolize the progress and milestones along the way.

2. Use High-Quality, Simple Images

Prezi’s zooming feature allows you to move in and out of different elements, making the quality and clarity of your images especially important. High-quality images enhance the professionalism of your presentation, while simple, clean images help avoid overwhelming your audience.How to Do It:

  • Use High-Resolution Images: Because Prezi zooms in on images, you’ll want to use high-resolution visuals that retain their quality even when enlarged. Pixelated images can be distracting and diminish the impact of your presentation.
  • Avoid Overly Complex Images: Simplicity is key in Prezi. Choose images that communicate one clear idea rather than those packed with too many elements. Complex images can confuse your audience and detract from the overall message.

Example: If your presentation covers financial growth, a clean, simple bar chart or line graph works better than a crowded chart with excessive data points.

3. Align Images with Movement and Flow

One of Prezi’s strengths is its ability to move seamlessly between content areas. The images you choose should align with the movement of your presentation, both spatially and thematically, ensuring that the flow of your narrative feels natural and intuitive.How to Do It:

  • Follow the Flow of Movement: Prezi allows for zooming and panning between different sections, so place images strategically to enhance the flow. For instance, if you’re moving from one idea to the next, use images that complement that transition, such as a visual that leads the eye from one point to another.
  • Link Images to Key Messages: Use images to serve as visual anchors for important concepts. Place them in a way that makes your narrative easy to follow as the presentation zooms in and out.

Example: For a presentation on project management, you could use an image of a Gantt chart or timeline that the Prezi zooms into, helping the audience focus on specific stages of the project.

Final Thoughts

In Prezi, images do more than just supplement text—they drive the entire visual storytelling process. By choosing images that reinforce your metaphor, maintaining high quality, and aligning with Prezi’s natural movement, you can create a visually captivating and engaging presentation. These tips ensure that your images not only support your message but also help guide the audience through your narrative seamlessly.

Visual Storytelling: How Stories are Told in Pictures

Marketing

presentation design

visual storytelling

Oct 28, 2014

Are pictures worth a thousand words? Let’s examine some facts. According to a whitepaper published by NewCred and Getty Images, the following statistics are proof:

  • 40% of people will respond better to information presented visually
  • 83% of human learning is visual
  • 44% of users are more likely to engage with brands on social platforms if they post pictures
  • Articles and blog posts that contain images get 94% more views than those without

Aside from all that, there’s also proof in the way our mind works. The human brain can process visuals 60,000 times faster than information presented through text. In fact, we’re all highly attuned to our sense of sight. According to Dr. John Medina, vision trumps all of our other senses. With these facts laid out, it’s easy to see why images are important to presentations and marketing materials. Through visual storytelling, you can use pictures to create stronger emotional impact. Pictures can tell a story that immediately allows your audience to connect with the message you’re sharing. So whether you’re delivering a presentation or revamping your social media profiles, visual storytelling is the best way to go. When selecting pictures to use, try to keep in mind the four key characteristics of visual storytelling:

Authentic

The best stories come from candid moments. It’s why photo sharing has become so prevalent in the age of social media. Replacing the super-polished stock photos are snapshots that allow others to see the world through a more personal perspective. Take, for example, Dove’s Real Beauty campaign. Instead of featuring models that are photoshopped to perfection, Dove featured everyday women and challenged today’s absurd beauty standards. To find images that are more authentic to your story, focus on what your brand stands for. Look for images that convey your identity and experiences as a brand. Next, look for something that will resonate with your audience. Think about the people you’re addressing and what might be authentic for them.

Relevant

Visual storytelling should also take into account what’s happening in the world. After all, your message doesn’t exist in a bubble. It’s contextualized in a milieu—a world where billions of individuals are discovering new things every single day. Make sure your visual stories are relatable and relevant to the audience you want to target. Consider what Oreo did to make the most out of a blackout that interrupted the Super Bowl. For your own visual story, choose images that evoke a sense of time and culture.

Sensory

The only thing better than a picture is the real thing. But since you can’t have real situations on a PowerPoint slide, you’re going to have to settle for the next best thing. Visual storytelling thrives on imagery that can heighten emotions and senses. Close-up and macro shots are great for showing textures that audiences can almost touch. On the other hand, a long shot can also take your audience into a particular scene, allowing them to experience it through a wider perspective.

Archetypal

Lastly, the best of visual storytelling alludes to narratives that are practically as old as time. If you think about it, you’ll notice that all your favorite stories are tied together by recurring themes and archetypes. These are universal symbols—called such because they can be found across many different countries and cultures. For your visual stories to be a success, you need to take these symbols and turn it into your own. Find an archetype that relates to your brand and make it your own. Get to know your own new character and find images that correspond to this new version of a well-loved symbol. Visual storytelling is a great technique to use in presentations and marketing efforts.  By weaving imagery together, you can create a story that speaks volumes about your core message. READ MORE: The Power of Visual Storytelling – NewsCred + Getty Images (Whitepaper) Featured Image: Ravinder M A via Flickr

PowerPoint Design Ideas: Visual Storytelling

content marketing

infographics

PowerPoint Design

visual storytelling

Jul 29, 2014

Visual storytelling is gaining more and more traction in social media platforms. Users these days are more inclined towards infographics, photos, and videos than purely text-based content, especially with the advent of social media and fast information. Brands are wise to take advantage of this trend in their marketing strategies. And you would be too, if you learn to apply visual storytelling in your PowerPoint design.

A group of people in business attire gathers in a modern glass-walled conference room. One person is presenting near a digital screen displaying charts on client experience, pivotal for consulting firms. Sunlight filters through large windows, illuminating the room.

The importance of visual storytelling

Humans are highly visual creatures. We’re naturally attracted to beautiful colors and interesting patterns. In fact, our brain is able to process images 60,000 times faster than information presented in text. It’s also easier for us to retain visual information. According to Dr. John Medina, after three days, we’re able to recall 65% of information if it was presented with images or illustrations. So if you’re presenting information that’s bulky with data, the audience will thank you if you can integrate comprehensible illustrations. Take the usual charts and graphs a step further by weaving stories through imagery.

Integrating visuals to enhance the core message

There’s more to visual storytelling than sticking random pictures to your slides. Your statistics won’t make much sense if the visuals you add only serve an aesthetic purpose. Visual storytelling is about using different media that contribute to the message you’re presenting. As an example, here’s a small part of an interactive infographic by Collaborative Fund, Hyperakt and Start Up American Partnership: The infographic, which you can view in full here, showcases the positive effects of car sharing to the environment. It offers a lot of statistics that are perfectly illustrated to create more impact. It’s hard to imagine the difference a vague number makes but through this illustration, you can perfectly see how much carbon dioxide emissions have diminished. Here’s another example, this time, from a Facebook post by Intel:

Intel showcases their brand identity while adding a bit of humor at the same time. For your PowerPoint design, make sure you choose pictures with interesting narratives. There’s always a rare gem in the sea of cheesy stock photos. Especially if you know where to look.–Your text-based, bullet-point-ridden PowerPoint design isn’t helping anyone. It’s not engaging your audience, and it’s not helping you get your message across. Instead, you should consider taking inspiration from visual storytelling. Showcase and illustrate your key points with visual elements, and your PowerPoint design will have more impact. If you need help, contact us to schedule a free consultation. Our professional PowerPoint designers will be happy to take your ideas and turn them into reality. Featured Image: Håkan Dahlström via Flickr