Bullet points and endless walls of text have been the industry standard for high stakes presentations for much too long.
What exceptional presenters can tell you is that impact is rarely about what you say and more about how you say it.
When it comes to the art of persuasive presentations, narratives always take precedence over numbers, a fact which few people know as intimately as Jim Szafranski, CEO of Prezi.
Read along as we explore tested and tried strategies that will take your presentations to the next level in conversation with him.
Avoid The Pitfalls Of Pure Logic And Immerse Your Audience In the Decision Instead
One particularly common pitfall presenters fall into is the over-reliance on logic.
While facts remain crucial, modern-day leaders must also engage senior teams holistically by creating compelling narratives.
The best way to accomplish this is to immerse them in the context and consequences that the decisions before them entail.
With years of experience in creating presentation tools at Prezi, Jim Szafranski recommends trying out the ‘fork in the road’ approach for particularly high stake decisions.
“For example, you can list out two choices at a decision point or you can visually bring your audience into a fork in the road and take them down each pathway a few steps to simulate the impact of the choices on your customers or business.”
As Jim notes, going through the second and third order consequences in a visual manner boosts both engagement and retention – both invaluable resources to any presenter.
For even deeper immersion, you can combine this approach with presenting complex decisions as stories.
It is all well and good to go through graphs and sales projections on the screen, but nothing beats a well told story that pulls the board in as characters in dialogue with the firm and its future.
Don’t Make Presentations a ‘Tomorrow Problem’
Crafting compelling narratives isn’t an overnight affair.
Developing the kind of rich and storied narratives that sway senior leaders requires time and reflection. This is why Jim cautions us against relegating presentations to ‘tomorrow problems’ that we handle last-minute during gaps in our day to day workflows.
“Give yourself time to ruminate on the narrative, its components and the imagery that will bring it to life. Reflect also on the ways to make the storytelling process interactive.”
For best results, get started with your narrative early, even if it is just scribbles on a napkin.
Thanks to modern tools like AI, creating immersive 3D designs and interactive visuals that flesh out your narratives is no more taxing than adding text to traditional flat slides. By effectively leveraging technology, you can craft truly cinematic journeys that immerse the boardroom with no measurable increases in the level of effort.
And remember, having all the AI tools at your disposal does nothing to help with the fact that consistently knocking your presentations out of the park remains impossible when you are not doing your real ‘narrative’ homework.
Crafting Compelling Narratives with Modern Tools
There’s no better time to emphasize the importance of wrapping up with a crisp summary than the conclusion of our story on how to level up your presentations.
Below, you’ll find a synthesis of Jim’s top five tips for crafting engaging presentations that are bound to help you create more compelling presentations level regardless of where you are in your storytelling journey.
- Start By Telling A Story: Build a captivating storyboard that you’d like to immerse your audience in. Build trust by personalizing the story and engage them early on with provocative questions or surprising facts that show that you understand them as well as the material you are presenting.
- Go Boldly Beyond Traditional Slides: Modern tools have liberated presentations from the constraints of slide-by-slide formats. In fact, the most progressive collaboration tools are rapidly heading in an immersive and 3D direction, making bullet-point-laden slides a thing of the past. This is because successful narratives hinge on painting a picture in the audience’s mind, and the mind best processes narratives visually. Your presentation format can and should amplify your story. Embrace the change and jump on the trend early by experimenting with modern presentation platforms that allow you to perfect your visual narratives.
- AI Is Your Ally: AI has been a game-changer and it excels in honing, adapting and improving narratives. From suggesting imagery to refining prose, AI is making the task of creating compelling presentations easier than ever, setting a new industry standard for high-quality presentations.
- Play To the Strengths Of The On-Screen Office: The on-screen office is the future of the enterprise, and technology is pushing workplace communications and meetings to resemble the engagement levels of consumer content applications like TikTok or Twitch. Using on-screen content like newscaster-style graphics, company-branded name tags, and gifs help keep attention on the video meeting screen.
- Use An Infinite Canvas: We don’t think in bullets, instead, we retain and recall information visually. This is why engaging the human brain in its natural element is such a powerful tool. Remember that movement and spatially immersive visual elements are key to keeping attention.
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