I'm sitting on a plane and the man next to me is creating a PowerPoint presentation. I'm not entirely sure what the purpose of his presentation is but the slides look dull and boring and laden with details and information.
Sure, he's using bullet points and the occasional graphic but his slides aren't interesting or visually appealing. Plus, his presentation is black on white (think overhead slide) and he is also showing some revenue and expense figures similar to a balance sheet.
I resisted the compelling desire to lean over and say, "Dude, you really need to spice up that presentation."
The vast majority of sales presentations I have watched, attended and been subjected to miss the mark, especially when people use PowerPoint.
Here are a few key things to keep in mind if you want to create a PowerPoint presentation that catches and keeps your prospect's attention.
Limit slide content. The general rule of thumb is six bullet points with no more than six words per point. I personally like to limit each slide to one key point and use it as a talking point; however, I do create some bulleted slides in some of my sales presentations.
Include only relevant content. Forget about trying to explain every single product or service you offer or talking about the awards your company has won, who your clients are or other self-aggrandizing information. As Sgt. Friday used to say, "Just the facts."
Never, ever start with slides about your company. That's the most common approach and fastest way to lose someone's attention. Instead, make your first slide about the prospect and your understanding of his or her potential problem or current situation.
Use the reveal feature. Don't show everything all at once because people will read ahead and tune you out. Use the animation feature to reveal each point as you present it. However, avoid using cutesy animations, sounds or character enhancements. Keep it simple.
