Perfect Presentations - Part 1
I hate giving business presentations, and I do anything I can to avoid them! It’s not that I’m bad at them (many years of practice has made me quite good), it has nothing to do with me not liking to talk (anyone who’s met me will tell you that I can talk the hind legs off a donkey), and it’s certainly not anything to do with nerves (being a DJ means that I regularly find myself on stage in front of large audiences). I just don’t like them - simple as that!
I’ve had many labels stuck on me in the past; including Techie, Geek, Designer and Coder - but recently I’ve been called an Entrepreneur, which is a new one for me! The label stems from my development of Britster - a niche social networking site focused on Britain - and carries with it the threat of presenting the project to potential venture capitalists and the like.
I plan to write a few articles covering this topic, but one of the most important aspects of a presentation is the materials you use to reinforce your sales pitch. They can make the difference between a successful presentation and one that flops - so from slides and brochures to props and snacks, here are the essentials that entrepreneurs should bring to their first meeting.
PowerPoint Slides
A typical day for a venture capitalist involves attending a stream of meetings, all aimed at securing investment. If all you have is a selection of slides, then you’re VC is probably going to leave the meeting with more questions than answers - which is not going to get you investment!
Don’t get me wrong - PowerPoint slides can be a powerful way to back up your message, but you should only use them as a prop, and not as a crutch. So, with this in mind:
- Limit the number of slides you use to less than twenty. Fifteen is an optimal amount
- Include only key topics. Go too deep with the details, and you’ll confuse them
- Keep slides free of clutter. An investor doesn’t care if you’re great with PowerPoint skills
- Use just enough words to remind you of your key points.
Demos and Props
Presentations are fundamentally boring to sit through, so the more you can get your audience involved, the more memorable your presentation will be. Appeal to all five senses if you can - and still bring something that demonstrates your strengths, even if your business is service-oriented rather than product driven.
Use whatever props are necessary to create curiosity, particularly if they provide evidence of what your customers think. If you provide a service then this could be a printout of a customer’s e-mail or letter, or photographs of your most satisfied clients. Use three or four of these validate your pitch.
Brochures and Handouts
The main objective of your first meeting with a potential investor is to get a second meeting - so save the detailed statistics, handouts and media kits for the latter of the two, and limit what you give the VC to take away! Nice glossy brochures always go down well at an initial meeting.
If you get a second meeting then you should definitely put together a comprehensive media and marketing plan - particularly if your company sells products at a retail level. Cover who you’re marketing to, how you plan to penetrate the market, and details of the physical nature of the product (size, weight and box design for example). If you’re an online business with mostly online marketing, then media kits and brochures are less important - but you should still include one or two slides that cover the basic information.
Material Production
The people you’re presenting to may know that you’re not yet at the million-dollar company level, but you should still prepare your materials like you are! They’re indicative of what you represent - so even if your business only turns over fifty thousand a year, you still want the VC to perceive your future value to be much greater!
- Get your brochures and other materials printed on heavy, high-quality stock
- Have all brochures and booklets bound
- Use a semi-gloss or matt finish. Glossy paper is too reflective and can be hard to read
- Don’t use photocopies! Full-colour printing is essential
- Have everything professionally printed - and that doesn’t mean some dodgy 30-minute printer in the town! Spending some more money on this will benefit you in the end.
What You Shouldn’t Bring
- There’s no need to attend your first meeting armed with your fifty-page business plan. This (and any business summary) should be limited to two or three slides
- Don’t bring a lot of printed figures and spreadsheets. You’re obviously passionate about your business, or you wouldn’t be trying to get funding - so sell them that passion instead of a bunch of number-work!
- Bringing a load of food is bad - unless it’s a prop! Snacks and drinks will be provided at most meetings, but avoid eating if possible - you’ll only end up detracting from the message you’re delivering. Don’t let your throat go dry either though - drinks such as water or coffee are fine.
I hope you’ve found this article useful. Although I’m writing from my new ‘entrepreneur’ point-of-view, it should hopefully be relevant enough for anyone facing any sort of presentation!
Do you have any other tips? What helps you to get through those dreaded presentations or investor meetings? I’d love to hear your ideas! 
Thanks to: Scot Smith, Jo, Paul B, Damien, Aaron, Tomo, Raphael, Tess, Jennifer, Tolumi, Leanne, Katie, Kathy, David Airey, Robyn, Johno and Vivien for the comments on my recent (somewhat sporadic) posts!
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Paul, you are so right to advise folks to find ways to engage folks in an audience besides talking at them and using PowerPoint. Recent research shows that lecture style presentations and PowerPoint work against most peoples’ brains… Here’s why… http://brainbasedbiz.blogspot.com/2007/07/have-plan-to-overcome-boredom.html
That’s great Robyn - thanks! My favourite quote: “they have little power and even less point”
If PPT presentations are generally pointless, why do MD’s, Sales people (PC terminology was going to write salesman
) still use them? And why oh why have I just been asked to design one?!
Very very useful tips - think I’ll show them to the sales “team”
haha i hate business presentation too.that’s why your article is great!!! it’s true
So when are we going to see you on tv: the Dragon’s Den? :p
I totally agree with you that you should have proper printed brochures etc. it will leave a good impression. Interesting post! I never had to give this kind of presentation, guess I’ve been lucky so far
Presentations are excellent propaganda. On the negative people think way too much about powerpoint when people say present, but they really are an excellent opportunity for interaction with future investors / customers / etc. I spend alot of time in both formal / informal presentations as a a part of my role (big 5 mining company), and there really is nothing better for engaging individuals to a cause. My lessons learned as follows, most of these the hard way.
Biggest horror story was my first major presentation, where I managed to roll out 2 hours worth of materials in 45 minutes. I think people were bleeding from the ears after that one.
- Don’t use powerpoint “features”, ever. Fly ins, transitions, sound bytes…no. The best use of powerpoint is as a placeholder for full-screen renders that you’ve produced elsewhere (eg, photoshop). Outside of that, usual rules apply (minimal, steve jobs style content = novelty and interest, at least in this decade).
- Ensure if you have a distinct presentation that it is a complete narrative. Think of the flow of the content, maintain logical sequence in your concepts and ideas. Don’t cut from topic to topic, and providing the presentation is concise, avoid using summaries.
- Avoid cutting in and out of mediums - don’t drop from powerpoint to a web demo, then to a vid, then back to powerpoint - find a structure that lets you exist in one medium then another, or consider rolling more complex presentations into video presentations or other communication packages.
- Generally, handouts are to either i) encapsulate materials or content that are too technical for casual presentation or ii) provide take homes for the invested individuals. Decide which is which and then define it as so. For the former make sure it isn’t of a form that will draw technically minded individuals away from your presentation. In the latter case, bundle it in such a way as it won’t present a distraction (eg, in an envelope or package, be creative) and intentionally note the fact its for perusal at a later date.
- Hack your room layout. Especially true of rented venues. Don’t be afraid to turn up early and screw around with tables, chairs etc. Make sure it suits the audience - don’t have your dev team sitting at shouting distance, likewise don’t have vc’s sitting in each others laps, or in cheap plastic chairs. If you can’t get a really, really excellent venue, consider if you can afford to rent additionals (plants, comfy chairs, etc) and make the most of what you have.
- Timing is everything. Morning slots are hard to get but try for them. Early morning and after lunch are bad - either you are in the middle of the morning stress assault or your crowd is half asleep. 9-11am works great because the morning rush is peaking off (on a good day), and people are starting to look forward to the midday peak.
- Practice and contingency. Practice your ass off until the presentation is more known to you than family members. And plan for something to blow up - if you have two presenters, what is your plan when there’s only one? If the projector burns out, where do you pick up from? If you have a last minute cancellation, is there another time you can quickly make available? That day? That week?
- Above all, own the space, completely. Keep an hour free before hand, an hour free after. Turn up early, be waiting in a key point in the room, have nothing urgent bordering on the event. Make sure the layout allows people to flow into the room in such a way that you are their main focus. Have every last item ready before anyone arrives. Anticipate laydown areas for bags, have materials accessible or in each seating location. From the moment they see you to the moment they leave, don’t allow anything to distract you from the interaction between you, and them.
- Own the space v2 - ensure you are mentally together for the event. Leaving an hour free before hand lets you be ready, an hour after ensures there’s nothing on your mind towards the end of the session. Have time to psyche up. Believe your own hype. Stare yourself down, know that you know your materials, know that you’re the subject expert. Don’t be aggressive or over the top, just _certain_ about the fact that it is definitely you who should be there. Most motivational speakers have a minimal number of props or presentation materials, simply because they own the audience completely just on the back of their own charisma and confidence.
- If you provide any form of beverage, coffee or otherwise, keep a stack of towels somewhere convenient. Weird? Accidents can happen, and if you can help it, you want people to be able to clean up a spill (either on furniture or themselves) without having to wander off, especially if you have multiple parties you are presenting to. The next thing you know someone is checking their phone and suddenly back to the office on short notice. Additional smartass points when you are suddenly prepared for such a random event.
I really love presentations. Powerpoint isn’t pointless, but I hate to simply get the same slides I already have seen as a printout - that’s soo lame.
I’d like to mention two things:
1. Be an entertainer
No, not a stand up comedian, but just think from the view point of the one you are presenting too. Don’t take yourself too serious, don’t promise too much and don’t forget to be entertaining. You even can be funny if that’s appropriate.
2. Know who you are talking to
It’s easy today to know who you are talking to. So talk with the people before you. It’s not like you can prepare a perfect presentation. It’s not a mirror you are talking to. Experienced listenesrs will interrupt you and try to ask things you are not prepared for. So be prepared for a dialogue. BTW: “What was your name again?” is just not allowed.
Wow! Great article. I’m going in for a job interview soon, and I know it’s not exactly the same thing, but I’m still selling something - myself! I’ve read time and time again that sending a thank you note makes a big impression on someone who has spent their time listening to you and your ideas even though they don’t know you, especially in this day of everything being digital. It’s also a great opportunity to put your face or product in front of them again, remind them of your key points and it’s even better if the card can reflect some aspect of what you’re selling.
Zep had a GREAT point, expect dialog. Whenever I have to give a presentation, especially a speech (though that’s usually not interactive) I always treat it like I’m talking to someone about a subject I’m passionate about, I’m lucky if that is truly the case. They will hear my enthusiasm and it will (hopefully!) be contagious. Things are always more interesting when the person talking is interested.
@ PaulB : I really have no idea why so many people still use PowerPoint! It’s outdated (and looks it), and almost every presentation ends up looking the same. Perhaps it’s just because it’s the simplest thing to use - and installed on every machine running Office?
@ resetblog : Thanks for your comment! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
@ Tess : I’d love to be on Dragon’s Den! Not for the obligatory ripping apart from the Dragons, but just so I can say I’ve met them!
@ Tomo : Wow! I think you win the prize for ‘longest comment ever’ mate!
Some great tips - thanks! I especially like the accidental spillage prevention measure, and will be sure to implement that at every presentation I do from now on!
@ Zep : It never fails to amaze me how people doing presentations often don’t even bother to include a Q&A session at the end - and look shocked when somebody wants to ask them a question!
@ LaurenMarie : I’m glad you found it useful!
Good luck with that interview - although I’m sure you’ll be fine! 
Very much laughing at length comment. Never realized how much ramble I’d generated until clicked post. Luckily (or unluckily) you don’t seem to yet have a dribble filter so it managed to get through.
I’m sure if anyone ever reads my actual blog out loud they may inadvertently consume the worlds precious oxygen reserves.
[…] to the following for their comments on my last post: Robyn, Paul B, resetblog, Tess, tomo, Zep and […]
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Great article. Another important point is body language. You get the fiddlers, the pacers, the statues, and the men who stand with their legs apart and their hands in their pockets!
I often used filmed feedback in my training courses, so people can see exactly what they look like. It can be quit a shocker!
Thanks for your comment Amanda - I’m glad you enjoyed the post!
The tip about body language is a good one - I use a lot of hand gesturing while I’m presenting, but I started off being of the statue category!
I’ve never tried fimed feedback - must remember that one!
Read ‘The art of the start’ by Guy Kawasaki http://blog.guykawasaki.com for some good ideas.
Thanks for the link Blair!
Thanks for sharing your pearls of wisdom with us. You make some valid points, thank you.