beyond bullets

Looking for a few good BBP consultants

Lately I've been receiving more requests from companies and individuals who would like to hire consultants and/or designers who are proficient in the BBP approach. I'm in the process of putting together BBP training and certification programs, but in the meantime, I'm glad to make referrals if I can find a match.  Here's an example of what a very large software and services company is looking for:

We need a BBP and PowerPoint presentation expert who can manage the creation and updating of PowerPoint presentations for an exciting technology company focused on TV delivery and technology. This person would be able to manage all aspects of production, use a marketing-mind to convey technical information in a clear, exciting way as well as hammer the marketing messages we want to get across to our various audiences. Marketing experience and technology experience (or at least communicating about technology) is a must!

Other requests for BBP consultants/designers include:

• A fast-growing social networking technology company in Silicon Valley is looking for someone to help its sales team with solid BBP skills. 
• A large non-profit organization who is looking for help with training presentations.
• A wide range of individuals and groups who would like help with different types of presentations.

Interested in these sorts of opportunities?  Then I'd be glad to hear from you.

Since the BBP Story Template is the primary way of structuring ideas using the methodology, I'd like your responses to be in the BBP format so that I can get a sense of your familiarity and proficiency in the approach.  So to start, all that you need to send is a completed Story Template in a Word document that presents your case of why you would like to be referred to one of these organizations or individuals to help them apply the BBP approach to their presentations.

I'll review the story templates based on the clarity of the stories and language, and if I see a match with what the groups are looking for, I'll get back to you about sending some samples of PowerPoint files next.

Please send your Word documents here by July 24 - I'm looking forward to hearing from you!

Seminar recording now online

If you'd like to take a look at the online recording of my May 10  web seminar "Transform Your PowerPoint Beyond Bullet Points", you can view the Windows Media file recording here.  The presentation is an overview of the basics of the BBP approach. The recording quality of the graphics isn't the best, but there's enough there to get a visual idea. Enjoy!

Join me for a no-cost web seminar May 10

If you missed my introductory web seminar last year titled "Transform your PowerPoint Beyond Bullet Points," I'll be presenting the session again at 9am PT on May 10 in association with Microsoft Office Work Essentials and the International Association of Administrative Professionals. The seminar covers the basics of the BBP approach and there's no cost to attend, but you have to register first by clicking on the Register link in the left-hand column of this page >

Presentation professional? Take a survey!

Do you create presentations for a living?  Are you interested in finding out more about the profession, and how you relate to it?   The Presentations Council is one of the most active groups within InfoComm, a trade association for the A/V industry. The have been connecting those within the presentations industry with their collaborative blog, Visual Being, and now they are taking a big step to begin to quantify and analyze the industry as a whole.  Below is a writeup that describes the survey - as a bonus, it looks like they're giving away five Amazon gift certificates in a drawing:

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INFOCOMM PRESENTATIONS PROFESSIONAL SURVEY
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How Do You Compare with Your Peers…

• What types of organizations do Presentation Professionals work in?

• What areas of expertise and background do Presentation Professionals have?

• Do you outsource your content development/delivery/overall communication strategy/technology/visual/graphic development, or do you do it in-house?  How often does your organization contract with outside production firms for presentation development?

• What types of challenges do Presentation Professionals experience today, and how concerned are they about these challenges?

Find out by participating in InfoComm International’s Presentations Professional Survey.  This online survey should only take you about 10 minutes to complete.

To thank you for your participation, you will receive the results of this survey by e-mail, once compiled. You will also get three Microsoft PowerPoint or one Corel Presentations master, or one Apple Keynote, all free of charge. In addition, you will have a chance to win one of five $50 Amazon gift certificates.

To be sure your responses are included; please complete this survey by April 28, 2006.

This survey is completely confidential and anonymous. All data will be consolidated with other participants and will not be available to anyone as individual responses.

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To participate, please copy and paste this address into your browser:

http://www.surveypro.com/TakeSurvey?id=18853

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Thank you in advance for your participation.

Questions? Contact [email protected].

LA Times runs a feature Beyond Bullets

The LA Times ran a feature story about my work on the front page of the business section yesterday - you can download a PDF version here: Download LAtimes_Atkinson_PowerPoint.pdf .  I thought reporter Claire Hoffman did a great job - she interviewed some of the people who have been using the BBP approach, or who have attended a workshop or talk. It's nice to see an article make it to print that promotes a positive spin on how PowerPoint can be used, rather than the same tired criticisms.  Hopefully this will help to spread the good word about what many of you are doing in your own organizations, and help to transform our PowerPoint cultures into something more concise, clear and meaningful.

BBP 2.0

Good news for those of you who have enjoyed Beyond Bullet Points - Microsoft Press is planning on publishing an updated version of my book to coincide with the upcoming release of Microsoft Office 2007 early next year.  The book will carry the same title, and will include instructions on using the approach with the new version of PowerPoint in Office 2007. I can also make revisions and add up to 100 pages of new material to the book, plus include a bonus CD.

I'm excited to be able to return to the book and update it to reflect your feedback from the last year, and incorporate a list of new ideas that I've been collecting.  So far on the list of revisions I've got:

1. A new introduction
2. More material on the research that indicates why moving beyond bullet points improves learning
3. Ways to make the Story Template easier to use
4. New chapters on Storyboard Design, focusing on how to illustrate the 3 levels of hierarchy that correspond with the 5-, 15- and 45-minute columns
5. How to increase interaction with an audience, especially when using a Tablet PC
6. Tips for changing your organization's PowerPoint culture
7. And in the CD: A collection of completed story templates from a variety of professions, along with completed PowerPoint files.

What would you like to see in the new version of the book?  I'd love to hear it - you can post your thoughts in the new area of the discussion board here.

How to Prevent PowerPoint Overload

Interested in reducing PowerPoint overload?  Check out the archived recording of my March 23 Microsoft Office LiveMeeting Leadership Forum seminar titled "How to Prevent PowerPoint Overload." The online session went very well - a total of 2,107 people attended in the two rooms that were set up to accommodate the large crowd. To view the recording or to download a special PDF copy of selected slides, visit this link.

"Desperate Executives"

It may not be news that PowerPoint is becoming more common in courtrooms today, but it is news when someone uses it exceptionally well. Attorney W. Mark Lanier presented his closing arguments Monday in a Vioxx trial in New Jersey, and the presentation generated extensive coverage by the Associated Press, New York Times, Reuters and the Wall Street Journal. 

I had worked with Mark on another Vioxx trial last year, but this time we started completely from scratch and used the Beyond Bullet Points approach to craft a new visual-verbal story using PowerPoint.  In the Texas trial, we had referred to the popular TV show CSI, but in subsequent trials the defense team had co-opted the reference. So this time, we chose a different TV-inspired theme to make the story accessible, memorable, and persuasive to the jurors. The result? Read what some of the journalists who were there had to say about the presentation:

John Curran (Associated Press Writer), "Closing Arguments offerred in Vioxx Trial," BusinessWeek Online, April 3, 2006:

"A jury hearing the case of two men who attribute their heart attacks to the painkiller Vioxx heard starkly different summaries of the evidence Monday, with a Merck & Co. lawyer defending its handling of the drug and a plaintiff's attorney ripping the company as desperate and dishonest...In a fiery, 75-minute monologue accompanied by a slide show, Lanier seized on Jones' statement from the start of the trial to jurors that they would be like detectives on the TV show 'CSI,' saying the show 'Desperate Housewives' offered a more fitting comparison. Calling the story of the Vioxx franchise 'Desperate Executives,' he showed a 'Desperate Housewives' graphic before substituting the heads of Merck executives in place of those of the series' actresses, telling jurors Merck saw Vioxx as a potential sales dynamo that would help replace revenue lost when Pepcid and other Merck drugs came off patent."

Jeff May, New Jersey Star-Ledger, "Vioxx closing arguments feature CSI, Desperate Housewives," April 4, 2006:

"...plaintiff attorney Mark Lanier built his summation around an imaginary television show called 'Desperate Executives,' a retelling of the marketing of Vioxx and a takeoff on the ABC hit 'Desperate Housewives.' In a slick graphical presentation, broken up by real Vioxx commercials targeted to consumers, Lanier transposed images of the five Wisteria Lane stars with photos of former Merck Chief Executive Ray Gilmartin and four top sales and research executives from the company."

Jon Hurdle, Reuters, "Jury hears closing arguments in Vioxx trial," April 3, 2006:

"Lanier presented his closing to the jury in the form of a TV series he called 'Desperate Executives,' a play on the popular series 'Desperate Housewives.' Lanier's series consisted of four episodes: 'Shoot for the Moon'; 'Trouble in Paradise'; 'The Cover Up'; and 'Game Over'."

Alex Berenson, New York Times, "Jury to Start Deliberation in Two Vioxx Injury Cases," April 3, 2006:

"Mr. Lanier brought his Texas twang, trademark humor and showmanship to his closing, telling the jury that the case should be called 'Desperate Executives', a corporate version of the television show 'Desperate Housewives'." 

Heather Won Tesoriero, Wall Street Journal, "Merck Vioxx Case Is Sent to Jury As Lawyers Give Final Arguments," April 4, 2006, pg. D.3:

"Making dueling references to television shows 'CSI' and 'Desperate Housewives,' lawyers on both sides of the Vioxx trial here presented closing arguments in the cases of two men who blame Merck & Co. for their heart attacks...[Lanier] told jurors that the case wasn't like 'CSI,' but like 'Desperate Housewives,' referencing the popular television show. He showed a slide of the show's logo in which he had replaced the main characters' faces with those of Merck's key Vioxx players and said Merck was a case of ‘Desperate Executives.’ ‘They deviated from what they should have done, started saying things to cover their trails,’ Mr. Lanier said. He told what he called ‘the Vioxx story’ in four episodes and argued the company's need for profits prompted it to overlook patient safety.”

It's interesting that AP writer John Curran used the phrase "starkly different", which is similar to the way that reporters described the presentations in the Texas trial last year.  Both sides used the same tool - PowerPoint - to make their cases, but when one side decided to tap into the true power of the tool beyond bullet points, the results were, well, newsworthy. 

Keeping Your Media Human

When you use projected visuals as a persuasive backdrop to your communication, they become much more than "visual aids" tacked on to your spoken words. They can summarize your point, frame your ideas, and influence mood and emotion.

But one downside of using media is that it can become too absorbing, and create a level of detachment that shuts down the human connection between presenters and audiences. 

In order to keep your person-to-person communication experiences more engaging, here are three things you can do to break the media formality:

1. Black out the screen.  This is probably the simplest and most powerful technique - to simply hit the "B" key and turn the screen to black. The image-filled screen creates such a powerful presence, that its sudden absence focuses attention intently on you. Use this when you want to emphasize the most important points in your storyboard. In the Beyond Bullet Points method, you would black out the screen during each of the storyboard frames that correspond with the 5-minute column in the story template.
2. Write on the screen using a Tablet PC. I'm not someone who gets excited about new gadgets, but I've had the IBM ThinkPad X41 for a few months now, and it's become a powerful new addition to my toolkit to help me engage my own audiences. Whenever I begin a workshop, I show this slide (Download humanize.ppt)  that features a PowerPoint box.  When I present it, I ask the audience, "When I say the word PowerPoint, what words come to your mind?"  As I call on audience members for their responses, I repeat what they said, and then write their response directly on the screen with the stylus that comes with the Tablet PC. This makes a powerful statement that this is going to be engaging, I am going to listen to you, and we are going to create this experience together.
3. Use hand-sketched graphics. Especially these days when the graphical trend is toward 3-D, gradients and hyper-stylized backgrounds, adding hand-sketched graphics is an effective way to make your presentation style more human and down-to-earth. If you have a Tablet PC then you can sketch your graphics directly on the PowerPoint slide with a stylus; otherwise you can sketch on paper then scan the images and add them to the slides.  If you're more of a scribbler than a sketcher, ask one of your colleagues to lend their sketching talents to your slides.

Try one of these techniques the next time you present, to break the media barriers and make sure you keep your presentations appropriately sociable.

Join Me for an Oct. 5 Online Workshop

If you're interested in taking your storymaking or storyboarding skills to the next level, join me in an online workshop tomorrow, Oct. 5, at 9am PT or 5pm PT.

Based on the techniques described in my book, Beyond Bullet Points, the first workshop, Story Template 101, explores how to use the 3-act story template to define and refine your communications. The second workshop, The PowerPoint Storyboard, builds on the basics by exploring a range of visual techniques to apply to your storyboard.

Using the Microsoft Office LiveMeeting web seminar service, you'll be able to view the materials in a browser while we discuss it by phone, and the sessions are recorded for you to view at a later date.  Workshops are $25 per person, and are limited to the first 12 people who enroll, in order to keep interaction levels high. If you can't make it tomorrow, there will be more workshops coming up.

Learn more, or sign up through a web page here.