You are facing the decision-makers who can put a lucrative contract in your pocket. You are about to get your PowerPoint presentation rolling. It's a make-or-break moment. They have been pitched to with PowerPoint from other companies with big reputations and experienced sales departments but they are interested in you and your company. Will the weeks you have put into your preparation pay off?

Let's rewind a few days and look over your shoulder...

While we watch, you fire up PowerPoint and head for your previous best presentation. Skip to slide 2. It is headed: 'We have the best solution for your needs'. Great start! But then you begin to think...they don't know us yet, so I'd better tell them who we are and what we have done for other clients. You delete the out-of-date bullets and start typing. Bullet 1... Bullet 2... Ah! You hit Bullet 8, and the text shrinks so that it is too small to read. Easily solved! You start a new PowerPoint slide and carry on.

Three slides later and you've completed the list. What's next? A diagram! You set to work on slide five...

Lets press 'Stop' on that scene and consider the slippery slope you are on.

PowerPoint's slippery slope

You moved off down the slope by making the assumption that because bullet points are the default slide mode in PowerPoint, they are the way to go. A quick web search will find you lots of reasons for not using bullet lists (or PowerPoint at all) but the most important is that audiences have become 'blind' to bullet lists and switch off when they see one. Its not called 'Death by PowerPoint' for nothing!

You picked up speed with the second assumption, that PowerPoint is easy. It's a common trap when people have had little or no training. And most of us haven't.

You rushed towards the PowerPoint abyss when you went off the point of the objective and turned it into information about your company; not about your potential client's needs.

PowerPoint success factors

Lets rewind to a different scenario...

Long before firing up PowerPoint you consulted colleagues. Together, you constructed a shortlist of reasons why the company you will be pitching to may be letting the contract. You've identified how your company can meet their objectives in a unique and advantageous way. Based on this, you've mapped out the structure of your PowerPoint presentation. Its also what you did to put your successful proposal together.

Yes! Your first PowerPoint success factor was the realization that your presentation does not need to tell them anything new. Its purpose is to remind them why they were interested enough in your proposal to ask to see you. Watching you manage your PowerPoint gives them an opportunity to assess you and to prepare questions. It's a test masquerading as an information-giving session!

Your second PowerPoint success factor comes when you recognize that the people you are presenting to are not interested in what your company has done for other clients. They only care about whether you will solve their problem better than anyone else. So put your company information in a handout, not in your presentation.

Your third PowerPoint success factor is that your presentation is going to keep your audiences attention and focus them on your message with more impact than your competitors. To do this you have invested in some good PowerPoint training. It is not difficult to find, but be aware that the learning curve has only just started when you are taught how to apply PowerPoint animations!

Eight stages of personal PowerPoint development

There are at least eight stages of development people go through if they are persistent with PowerPoint:

1) Using Microsoft wizards and templates.

2) Introducing animations and graphic elements, such as clip art.

3) Discarding clip art in favor of photos.

4) Experimenting with PowerPoint's more advanced features, such as multiple template masters.

5) Going minimalist or rejecting PowerPoint altogether for fear of getting it wrong.

6) Introducing storytelling techniques to structure presentations.

7) Developing new graphic approaches to the expression of ideas.

8) Getting right the balance between 5, 6 and 7.

If you can get to the sixth stage your confidence will be greatly increased and so will your chances of having 'make' rather than 'break' PowerPoint moments.

Get to the eighth stage and you will be head and shoulders above your competitors!

Steve Hards is Sales and Operations Director for Visual Exemplars Ltd. which produces Perspector, the unique 3D add-in for PowerPoint on PCs. Perspector has a library of customizable images that enable you to use it at any stage of your PowerPoint development to give your presentations a decisive edge. View Perspector in action in this introductory video and see other examples of the Perspector WOW! factor on the website: http://www.perspector.com

Copyright 2007 Steve Hards. All Rights Reserved. Reprint Rights: You may reprint this article as long as you: do not edit the article, give author name credit and follow all the EzineArticles terms of service for Publishers.

In this month's column, Michael C. Oldenburg shows you how to use your favorite Microsoft Office 2007 programs on your cell phone.

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First impressions mean everything in today's world. Whether you are going on a blind date or interviewing for a job, you work hard to give off a positive image. In these situations, physical appearance is emphasized. You have to dress to impress in order to blow away the competition.

Our visually oriented society emphasizes the importance of a professional physical appearance in the business world. This is why women sport high heels and men wear ties. Not only is a person's physical appearance necessary to consider in this setting, but also the work he or she presents plays a role in first impressions.

Small business owners and large corporations also want to appear professional. One of the best ways to do this is to always make sure business materials are polished inside and out. Annual reports, sales proposals, presentations and employee manuals are just a few of the documents that require a little bit of special attention when it comes to presentation.

Sure you could staple or paper clip those materials together. You could even throw the loose sheets into a folder. However, if you really want your materials to turn heads, you should consider binding your documents. Not only is this more convenient for those who utilize the material, it also looks impressive to anyone and everyone who comes across it; and that is the kind of project you'll be proud to put your name on.

If you need to bind more than just a couple of documents, it probably makes sense to purchase a binding machine and do the job yourself. Costs for outsourcing bound documents can add up quickly and outsourcing services can sometimes take days to complete the job. Depending on the volume of binding that you need to bind, there is most certainly a binding machine that will fit your needs and your budget.

There are many different types of binding machines depending on your needs. Desktop binding machines are perfect for the home office or small business. They're smaller and more convenient for a smaller volume of work. There are a number of other types of binding machines depending on what type of binding you want to do. GBC / Ibico, a top office product manufacturer, offers a wide variety of these machines along with several other companies.

When choosing which binding machine you want to purchase, you must first anticipate what type of binding materials will best suit your needs. Here are some of the most widely used binding options:

* Plastic Comb Binding: Comb bindings are made up of plastic teeth that insert into the holes along the edge of the documents. This is a simple and inexpensive way to bind materials. Plastic combs generally have 19 loops (for 11" documents) and are available in twelve different colors.

* Spiral Coil Binding: Coil bindings consist of one long coil that spirals though the holes in the paper. These bindings are most popular in notebooks. When done properly, the ends of the coils won't catch or snag on other materials. Plastic coils are ideal for documents that need to be mailed and are available in over sixty different colors.

* Twin Loop Wire Binding: Wire binding is one of the most elegant binding styles available on the market. These binding spines come in a C shape and close to form an elegant round wire spine along the edge of your document.

* Thermal binding: Thermal binding and Unibind both use a preformed cover with glue in the spine to provide the look and feel of a perfect bound document. Unibind and thermal binding provide some of the most professional looking documents of any of the different binding styles.

If you find it difficult to choose between these different binding styles, there are some binding machines that can do multiple kinds of binding. For instance there are machines that bind both wire and plastic combs or coil and plastic combs. These are great for companies that aren't sure what types of documents they'll be working on. However, regardless of which binding machine you choose to purchase, all provide a great service; they allow you to present important information in a professional way. A good first impression: What more could a business owner or an employee ask for?

Jeff McRitchie is the designer and Director of Marketing for http://www.MyBinding.com He has written hundreds of articles on topics related to Binding Machines

Binding Supplies, Binding Covers, Laminators, Laminating Supplies, Index Tabs, 3 Ring Binders, Paper Shredders and more.

PowerPoint allows you to easily create and distribute photo albums, and you can add action to your electronic photo albums through the use of panning and zooming effects.

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