Any of us working in the marketing, advertising, and event industry has had to make a presentation at some point. But one thing is to quickly put together some content in a PowerPoint for internal needs, and quite another is to create a truly engaging, effective, and powerful presentation to convey a message to a specific audience and help boost your brand. That's why today, we're going to explore some tips on how to make a presentation for an event.
The challenge of creating really efficient presentations is so great that some brands (and we know it from experience) turn to specialists that adapt the content to the presentation and layout it in record time. However, excluding these cases, when we can rely on a professional for that purpose, it will be up to us to assist the client in shaping the presentation.
It depends (as always)
A quick and quite common disclaimer for this blog. The format, design, and balance between written and visual content will depend a lot on the type of event. It's pretty clear that an annual capital markets day is quite different from the launch of a limited edition of sneakers, and a national convention for a pharmaceutical company has nothing to do with the team-building for a bank. Common points? All these events will probably require one or several presentations. Differences? Everything else.
Goal, audience, and timing
These are the three key points to consider if you're wondering how to make a successful presentation for an event. In other words, why we say what we say, who we are addressing, and how much time we have to convey this message. Depending on the answers, our presentation will lean towards a higher density of textual or numerical content or towards a greater emphasis on visual and design elements. Length, perhaps, is the only aspect that always follows the same criterion: the more concise, the better. The audience's attention, even the most engaged, tends to wander. Therefore, aim to condense the most important information in the first half of the presentation.
Format
When it comes to the format, against all odds, there is also some room for creativity. Various formats, originating from the start-up world, were designed to present ideas to future investors communicating their huge potential in a truly convincing way, but without stealing too much time from these busy individuals who often finance such projects.
PechaKucha (Japanese for 'chit-chat, chatter'), Ignite, 20x20, Lightning Talks, Elevator Pitch — these are just a few names for the formats that, with some slight variations, fundamentally share the same philosophy of presenting ideas (sometime quite complex ones) quickly and effectively.
Let’s take, for example, the 20x20 format. Essentially, it involves 20 slides with 20 seconds of presentation for each. Moreover, these slides should be as visual as possible with minimum of text and an image that conveys the idea conceptually and directly. And here is where we come to what, perhaps, is the most important rule of making a presentation.
Balance
In this case, we are talking about the balance that must exist between what is presented visually and what will be narrated based on this content. The presentation should capture the key points and serve as a support tool for the speech, but never replicate the speech itself.
Large text boxes, unreadable graphics, vast amounts of data... Everything should be simplified to the maximum or take the most visual form possible for the audience to digest it properly. If we had to come up with a formula, out of 100% of the content, 20% should be reflected in the presentation, and the remaining 80% should be developed by the speaker.
Tools
Remember that technological advancements allow us to design without being designers and significantly improve our writing. There are numerous tools, such as Canva, Genially, or Emaze, that are very intuitive, easy to use, and offer a wide variety of templates and almost endless customization options. Let your imagination fly and create something really creative.
Previous rehearsals
And finally, a practical piece of advice. Always rehearse presentations on-site, especially if they involve embedded multimedia content. This is important not only to test the audiovisual equipment but also to control timing and space. It will help you feel more comfortable and natural on the day of the event.
