Besides the speakers, here’s what’s great about this event:

• It’s free!
• Speakers record 6-20 minute videos so you’ll get great pithy bits of wisdom and perspective in a short amount of time
• It’s online so you can access it any time during the two days (and for a few days after the event)
• You have access to and can download more resources and tools

My angle: Leadership without communications is NOT leadership. Join me to learn three key priorities for your communications.

Register here for the event. Hope you can make it, and spread the word.

Be sure to drop us a line with some feedback — I’d love your thoughts.

Last but not least, October 29 is the deadline to enter our Decker Made to Stick Messaging seat giveaway! Comment here with why you need help with messaging to enter.

My guess is that the amount/time of preparation wasn’t the problem…it was HOW he prepared! (Which, unfortunately, is WAY too common.)

Likely spent all his time studying the market opportunity, adoption rates, features/benefits, competitive landscape, and perfecting the business abstractions.

What he shoulda/coulda/woulda done:

1. Get out of the weeds and focus on THE ONE thing, aka “The Lead of the Story.”

2. Add something (actually, anything) compelling. You’ve got to get the listener emotionally and actively engaged. We advocate using SHARPs (Stories, Humor, Analogies, References, Pictures) to help make your message sticky. He “tried” to do this by quoting a dictionary, which conjures up ZERO emotional resonance.

3. FOCUS on delivery. The falls by the wayside in so many business communications – not just the high stakes presentations. Without showing confidence and passion, he’s not motivating anyone to get that phone.

What are the takeaways?

-Prepare right

How you prepare is as important as the time in prep. It’s not just the research, the points to make, it’s also the behaviors. Communication rides energy, and there was precious little in this presentation that SHOULD have been exciting.  So…

-Rehearse right

Rehearse a lot, and rehearse on video. If Mario Carlos just rehearsed a few times, with an audience, and with video, it would have to be much improved. Observed behavior changes. I doubt if he would not get rid of his many hesitations and non-words if he had heard them. I doubt if he would have had such a flat tone if he had heard it. And I would think he’s smile a bit if he had seen it. But too late – the time to rehearse and get better is before the event. And ideally well before the event so you don’t have to think about the behaviors. Rehearsal time gives confidence in the content, as well as in oneself.

-Get good feedback

Sure there had to be some feedback on an announcement of this size, but what kind was it to result in that performance. Honest? Helpful? Performance changing? I doubt it. Probably good feedback on the content of the slides, maybe timing, and of course what to be sure to include. But feedback on the experience itself? I really doubt it.

Communication is an experience – witness the name of our blog. It is a combination of what we say and how we say it, and the great majority of the time business people treat it like a written essay. If you say the words, people may not necessarily get it. They may be tuned out. As we were to Mario Carlos, and thus to Nexus, and thus to Google. Not a good experience.

With all the recent emphasis on the design of your PowerPoints (Keynote for the Mac), it’s time to revisit the fact that your visuals are NOT your presentation. You and your Point of View are the centerpiece. I think that the emphasis on PowerPoints (we’ll call them PP for brevity) is because 2008 WAS a great year for great design with the publication of Garr Reynolds’ book “Presentation Zen” and Nancy Duarte’s “slide:ology” (both still best sellers on Amazon.) Make no mistake that having powerful and visual support materials is critical to your impact. But it’s still your impact – it’s not a PP.

Keep in mind that we’re talking here about in-person presentations, not PP ‘decks’ that are designed to be used as a written report. Also, many major conferences think ‘decks’ when they ask their speakers to send in their PowerPoints in advance. Why? They are NOT their presentation! (This just happened to me, and I did it because the client IS the client. But it misses the point of the experience.)

Unfortunately we find that in about 95% of the cases for most speakers in business today their PP’s are the centerpiece of their message. They create their content around their PP’s, rather than figuring out what they want to say, and then using PP’s, (and videos, and exercises, and SHARP’s, etc.) to SUPPORT their presentation.

When it comes to persuasive impact in our communications, it is not through technology, but only with it. YOU are always the centerpiece of your presentation, and no graphically dazzling slide should ever replace you. Nor Twitter stream for that matter.

With all the advances in technology, we must continuously emphasize the critical importance of human confidence in the delivery as well as in the tools of delivery – the primary tool being yourself. With greater “high tech” we need a corresponding increase in “high touch.” Think of using videos – embed them in your PPs. And experiment with a live Twitter stream – this can be distracting in a more formal speech but is great for tech/breakout/collaborative sessions. And remember that with this advanced technology and the many more options available for visual support, your confidence and control as the centerpiece has to be even more skilled.

Think of Steve Jobs and why his presentations are so powerful. (He led our Top Ten Communicators of 2005 list, even before the famous iPhone announcement, and was on the list most years since.) While he uses elegantly simple slides and perfectly timed and executed demos, he remains the center of the presentation. Often, (as at the top of the screen here) he will completely clear the screen (using a black slide – that’s the way to do it) to keep the audience’s attention on his energy, on his enthusiasm, and on his words. Not the PowerPoint’s. (Or Keynote’s in this case.)

Remembering that you are the presentation, develop visuals that enhance your point of view. After all, visuals are important:

• “I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” Cicero
• 55% of likability – critical component of trust – comes through the visual behavior of the speaker Mehrabian
• A 500% average increase in retention occurs when visuals are used in a presentation
• 83% of what we know is learned by seeing and observing

For your own personal and visual impact, see yourself on video. And
when you get to support, for great tips on presentation design, check
out Garr Reynold’s blog Presentation Zen and Nancy Duarte’s blog slide:ology.

Always keep in mind that you are your most important visual aid.
Train yourself first so that you have a confidence that never quits in
the face of new technology. And then add great design.

Nancy Duarte at Apple Store

So the Flip Video came out – and it works great for a very small (iPod size) video camera of adequate quality that you can immediately edit and put up on YouTube. Here's an example – my first shot.

And Nancy was great – overcoming a lot of background noise and distractions at a busy downtown Apple Store. Here is Nancy with her first key point, on the importance of Telling Great Stories.

She had terrific slides of course, but even moreso was her great content (Dru took some notes as I was busy with Flip Video):

1. Tell Great Stories – she illustrated with visuals that ALSO told the great stories by themselves.
2. Reach Beyond Projection – a presentation can be slides – projected, but she told also of the many other varieties, from decks (the written) to on the web, to PDA plus devices – where you can interact, collaborate, and view. In other words, the world of presentation is a new world.
3. Show Don't Tell – and here she gave a great example of a Garr Reynolds' presentation on SlideShare.
4. Create a Profound Experience – unusual was a chart of visual storytelling that looked for the conflict and resolution. Nancy said to identify those points in a preso where you want people to be conflicted, for conflict generates emotion generates action.

Dru Scott also bought a few more copies of Slide:ology. That deserved an iPhone picture.

The Flip Video was OK, but the quality isn't great when you have poor sound and a screen as background. For a longer and higher quality view of Nancy, you might try this interview.

Other tidbits:

• Nancy said to use high quality images – they evoke credibility, and Duarte Design spends over $150,000 a year on images!
• Nancy Duarte and Garr Reynolds have changed the process of creating and presenting in less than a year with their influence, blogs, and particularly their wonderful and complimentary books Slide:ology and Presentation Zen. Both books are in the top 100 at Amazon already. Amazing.
• Twitter, Tribes (also in the top 100 at Amazon) and Technology are changing the face of communicating. (At least task and relationship communicating – nothing will ever replace 'face to face'…)
• The video revolution continues. Flip Video costs $179 and enables anyone to immediately shoot and edit and be able to use videos in their PowerPoints, blog posts, YouTube or devices. And video is the BEST way to capture emotion to influence to action in a very short time.

I repeat what I said in the forward to her book, "It’s more than slides and design – it’s about communications and inspiration. And this book will help anyone – beginner or top professional – to get to the top of their game."

Read these good reviews – I couldn’t detail it as well – and then click on Amazon and get the book:

• Presentation Zen - (This is a great review!) "should come bundled with every copy of PowerPoint"
• The Extreme Presentation - "nine neat insights from among several in the book"
• Squared Peg.com – "jam packed with information"
• Presentations Roundtable – "you need this book"
• Six Minutes -  (Also a great review)  "a classic reference text for presentation skills"
• VizThink – "We were so excited about the book, we had to do a podcast"

If you scan all these reviews, and don’t get the book, you’re not on the right blog!

And Nancy has a great new blog too.
    

It was to be an informal event – and in a sense it was. Garr Reynolds had been up for 40 hours traveling from Japan to San Francisco to speak at Stanford, and then immediately came over to Duarte Design headquarters tonight to speak again to a small group of friends. It was like a who’s who of presentations: Nancy and Mark Duarte, Ben and Kelly Decker, Microsoft folks, Slideshare, Ian Griffin of the National Speakers Association – and the publishing and PR people of Peach Pit Press and Eastwick, among the many Duarte designers and others.

One occasion for the gathering was that Garr has finished his book! "Presentation Zen" is out and it’s great. A review will be coming, and more of the experience of this stimulating night with creative presentation people. One interesting point to bloggers, among many insights, was how his blog at Presentation Zen was the start of the community that led to the book.

But I had the feeling that with Garr’s remarks, his new book, and Nancy Duarte’s yet to be published new book as well, and several other factors in the technology world that there will be a new age of presenting.

There just might be a breakthrough so the business world can see the light – it’s not our data we are presenting, it’s experience. It’s not PowerPoint text, it’s design in pictures. It’s not information, it’s influence.

More to come on these exciting developments, a "Presentation Zen" book revue, and highlights of Garr’s remarks.

Garr Reynolds with his first book, presented by Publisher Nancy Aldrich-Ruenzel of Peach Pit Press

So the Ten Questions for Nancy Duarte:

1. Question: You’ve made a great impact in the design and presentation world. Why is design important in the first place – why not just put out information?

Answer: To most people the words “presentation design” are an oxymoron. In reality presentations should not be delivered without careful thought and planning going into the visual aides. Presentations that are designed well are easy to interpret and give stronger credibility to the presenter. We should design our presentations well for the sake of the audience

2. Question: What is the one most important principle of design?

Answer: Simplicity is by far the most important principle. If visuals aren’t simple, they aren’t clear. We need to guide audiences to where they are supposed to start to process the information and in what order. Many presentations today create visual vertigo by too much complexity, too many visual vantage points and annoying animations. Remove anything that isn’t adding value to the message.

3. Question: Why do you think design is neglected when people put together presentations?

Answer: There are oceans of ugly PowerPoint out there. The bar is set so low in this communication medium that few people have ever even seen a well-developed presentation.  Renowned presenters like Al Gore invest in powerful visuals to tell their story but more importantly they invest extensive time into rehearsing the content so they can use their visual aides effectively.  It takes a tremendous amount of time to pull together a great presentation.

4. Question: You are finishing your first book. Why did you write it?

Answer: I’m writing this book (title in process) as a clarion call or manifesto. Each revolution begins with unrest. The people finally shout “enough” and then someone brave enough to take a stand and have a compelling rally cry changes history. Presentations are scorned by designers, derided by industry luminaries, and abused by companies and individuals. Oh, the unrest is there all right but who is doing anything about it?
I feel at times a bit like William Wallace from Braveheart. This book serves as my grand speech to try to get the troops to press forward. Granted, Wallace was disemboweled at the end (which could happen to our audiences if we don’t change). 

5. Question: And of course, what’s the quick summary?

Answer: Over the last fifteen years, professional communications have changed drastically. Presentations are the primary way we communicate. There is a proliferation of presentation software in the workplace, but there are no documented best-practices for how to communicate optimally in this ubiquitous medium.
This is not a how-to book; it’s intended to challenge a presenter’s current approach, thought process and behavior toward developing visual support. It is a blend of conceptual thinking, inspirational design, solid principles, insightful interviews, and many before-and-after examples. It is full of practical approaches to the visual story development process. Most of the existing books about presentations address the digital tools or delivery, but none explain how to apply proven design principles to develop more effective visual aides. 

6. Question: Why the Presentation Ecosystem? (See following page for Nancy’s Presentation Ecosystem graphic.)

Answer: I built this presentation ecosystem to begin discussions around all the facets of a presentation and to show their interrelated nature. So many times presenters only put effort into a small subset of what it really takes to pull together a well thought through and designed presentation. When my friend Jim Endicott referred to the presentation development process as a three-legged stool, it made sense—message, visual story and delivery. Ironically, an enormous number of books dedicate themselves to message development and presentation tips, but little information exists on crafting graphically compelling presentations.

7. Question: When you put together the design elements for Al Gore’s Academy Award winning movie “An Inconvenient Truth” (and maybe you can take some credit for the Nobel Peace prize he won?), what was the biggest challenge?

Answer: Working with such a successful thought leader has been very rewarding. He is gracious, open and smart. Many people don’t realize that he still travels around with just as much fiery passion delivering his presentation. The biggest challenge in reality is keeping up with him! His file is close to 600 slides and is translated into eight languages. He’s a busy guy!

8. Question: Who is the best and worst communicator you can think of in this year 2007?

Answer: There isn’t a single communicator that stands out for me which is sad to say during an election year.  One of the best things that has happened for communicators over the last year is that TED has begun to circulate their presentations via the web. Each presenter is a compelling communicator plus they have to constrain their talks to 18 minutes so the messages are rehearsed well and the content is succinct.

9. Question: What’s next for Duarte Design?

Answer: We believe that presentations, when done well, are quickly becoming a much more valuable communication medium.  Many of our clients are beginning to realize that presentations prepared well have an extended reach beyond just the traditional face-to-face delivery methods. Technology has matured to where presentations are being delivered via the web and devices in increasing numbers. We are pushing out presentations on just about any device and just about any web scenario you can dream up. We’re creating video slides, filming presenters on chroma screens, syncing slides with audio, pushing them into virtual worlds and putting them on video iPods, you name it! The options are endless.

10. Question: What’s next for Nancy Duarte?

∫Answer: As soon as I hit “send” to the publisher I want to take a looooong overdue vacation and sleeeeeep.

Presentation Ecosystem Graphic Follows:

Click on graphic to enlarge:

Click on graphic to enlarge