Welcome Procrastinators, Laser Pointer Says It’s Not Too Late

San Diego, CA (PRWEB) January 28, 2014

Procrastination is human nature. Presentation slide decks are ambitiously started weeks before the conference, and then finished in a panic days or hours before they are due. Walking up to the podium, the speaker shudders as the lights dim and the first slide comes up, thinking oh well, I did the best I could.

Laser Pointer, a leading medical/dental presentation design firm, helps their clients take their lecture content and deliver it with credibility, professionalism and an eye to adult learning principles. There are some simple down-and-dirty tricks that can be employed when and if last minute panic has set in.

According to SlideShares Zeitgeist 2013 presentation on How did the world of presentations change, presentations have 20% fewer words per slide and 58% larger font than in 2012. Overall image usage increased 53% and image size grew by 16%. This is fantastic news for the procrastinator and can be used to their advantage.

Just last week, a doctor called Laser Pointer and said his presentation was tomorrow. He said, So once Ive gotten through that, can I send it over for a makeover? The truth is, improvements could have been made, even with less than 24 hours to go.

In this particular case, the titles of each slide were in different font sizes and colors, a telltale sign that these slides had been mixed together from various presentations. Image sizes were also varied and placed inconsistently throughout the deck. One hour spent tidying these up would have aligned this presentation with modern trends and provided this speaker with greater credibility.

Laser Pointer reveals easy and quick tips to salvage a presentation when time is tight:

1.Focus on the ONE THING. The cocktail napkin on the airplane is sufficient space to draw up a quick written outline. Discern what ONE THING the audience is coming to hear. Mindfully edit the content to deliver a focused lecture rather than presenting every possible aspect on a topic. The audience cant remember everything anyhow, so spare them the information overload.

2.Select compelling visuals. Use images that give a sense of storytelling and the whats in it for me elements that are essential to adult learning. If time is tight, first get rid of the amateur clip art. Given just a little bit more time, make use of royalty free sites such as Shutterstock or morgue file for low cost images to supplement case photos.

3.Declutter slides. First, make every image the full size of the screen. Next, reduce text down to 5-6 words per slide and use a large font (48-60 point). A fast and easy way to do this is duplicate every slide with multiple bullet points and only display one per slide. More ideally, craft a declarative statement that captures the essence of the detail originally written on the slide and move all the detailed bullets into the notes section. If needed, use a presenters split screen as a prompt for speaking to that detail.

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Welcome Procrastinators, Laser Pointer Says It’s Not Too Late