Designing

for Showcase
Workshop.

GUIDE FOR GRAPHIC DESIGNERS

 Give your clients
elegance, versatility,
and control.
Built for a mobile sales force, Showcase Workshop
entrusts marketing and sales managers as well as
their agency with an unprecedented level of control
over their branding.
Showcase Workshop closes the gap between the creation of sales
materials at headquarters or within your agency, and their use in face-to-
face sales presentations.
It’s a complete collateral management system that’s never out of date.

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Leading brands selling everything from energy to
creativity, from motor vehicles to education use

They need your

Showcase Workshop to:
Control content from any web browser

smart design.
Eliminate print and distribution costs
Coordinate an international sales force
Ensure a consistent sales experience
With Showcase Workshop, salespeople in the field
have the product information and software integration
they need to save time, sell more, and boost revenue.
But to succeed, they need enticing, intuitive, branded
presentations.
That’s where this Designer’s
Guide fits in.
In the next 15 minutes, we’ll cover:
How to get started quickly (3 steps, pages 5 -19)
the specs (pages 20-22)
The three new revenue streams Showcase
Workshop offers through its creative partners
program (page 27)
Inspiring examples of Showcase designs (28-30)

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 How do enterprises use Showcase to distribute
& control their existing collateral? 5
1 They nail more
sales!
Create a Showcase
Workshop account
3 4
2 Add users and The team uses
publish the Showcase in meetings
a. C
 reate a content map to impress customers
showcase
b. Design menu screens
c. Upload sales/
and prospects
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marketing collateral Prospects ask for
and menu screens to
Showcase Workshop 8 7 more information.
The sales team sends
file library them links to content
The insights from The Showcase
d. Assemble content from Showcase
analytic data is Workshop app collects
in the Showcase
incorporated into analytic data along
Workshop editor
future updates the way. Admin users
can check analytic and
activity data across all
users in the account
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Three steps
to a smoother
design process.
Rejoice! There is no ‘one best way’ to design a
Showcase presentation.
In fact, that limitless potential is probably what
attracted your creative mind in the first place.
Here’s 3 tips to ease your design process and
please the team.

Organise a content map

Design menu screens

Build the showcase

5
 Organise a
content map.
Where a website needs a site map,
a Showcase presentation needs a
content map.

6
 Some of your clients will have
a shipping container’s worth
of collateral to cram into their
Showcase. A content map will keep
you sane, and keep them happy.

Menu Screen

Video played within Showcase

PDF/Presentation viewed
within Showcase

Password-protected content

External link (requires

Internet access)

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 Time to get your
hands dirty:
Design menu
screens.
Design your customers’ menu screens using
your regular design software, and save them as
images using the specs on pages 20-22.

Showcase’s blank template option offers the opportunity to

reinforce your client’s brand, and the overall intent of their
Showcase presentation.
The following pages reflect Showcase’s design best practices.
Bonus points for big buttons!

088
 1. Choose a consistent hotspot design that will work across all locations of the Showcase.
2. Breadcrumbs help users to remember where they are within the Showcase.
3. Clear the area around the ‘Menu’ button (located in the bottom left of the screen), the
‘Home/Back’ button (located in the upper left corner of the screen) and the ‘Share’
button (top right).

Even though the hotspots change size,

they all adhere to the same basic shape.
Users never have to wonder.

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 Not so much.
These two menu screens don’t use consistent hotspot devices, forcing the user to think
about what a hotspot is on each screen, detracting from the overall experience and impact.

10
Consistent
In some cases, you’ll have to change the hotspots’
placement to suit your design. With a consistent
appearance, different placement won’t distract your

Appearance.
prospect. For an example of smart use of hotspots, check
out these screenshots from Career NZ. See how their
position changes throughout the Showcase, but retains a

Flexible consistent appearance?

The user never questions which visual

Placement. device is a hotspot in this Showcase

presentation.

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 Likewise with these
examples from Z Energy:
consistent appearance,
flexible placement.

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 Here’s some final
examples from Maxava.
Say it with us now:
Consistent appearance.
Flexible placement.

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Worth Repeating: There are three locations on the screen that are off
limits to your hotspots: the top left, top right, and
bottom left corner of the screen (regardless of the
tablet’s orientation). This is where the Showcase
app reserves real estate for the back button, share
button, and menu button, respectively.

Keep clear for back button

Keep clear for share button

Keep clear for menu button

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 Build the
showcase.
Here’s where it all comes together.

The following five-step process assumes you’ve

already designed your menu screens, using the
specs on pages 20-22 ,and have uploaded them to the
Showcase Workshop file library.

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Building
basics. This is a single blank slide you can start with.

1. Create a new Showcase

When you create a new showcase from the
Home tab, you have a couple of options:
• New showcase from template
• New blank canvas

You can select the exact device orientation and

The templates have background images,
hotspots, and sample files already in place as
a starting point. Useful for those just getting to
grips with Showcase, but designers will quickly
graduate to the ‘blank canvas’ option.
aspect ratio you want to work with if you know it.
If you don’t know the ratio, or are designing for
multiple differently sized devices, fear not - all
sizes still scale gracefully on different screens,
with subtle letterboxing where necessary.

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 The default ratio of 4:3 will work great in almost 3. Create a new hotspot
any situation, or search for the device type +
”aspect ratio” online. Showcase ‘hotspots’ allow you to add
interactions which provide access to your
The blank canvas chooser will also tell you the
collateral.
best pixel dimensions for background images in
your chosen ratio.
Once you’ve chosen the settings you want, click
‘Make it!’ to get cracking with your brand new
showcase.

2. Set a background
Click the ‘New hotspot’ button.
Select ‘Set background’ from the side bar.
A new hotspot will be created.

Choose your main menu design file from

the file library.

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4. Position & resize the hotspot
To position a hotspot, click to highlight the
hotspot you wish to position.
Drag with the mouse cursor to move the hotspot
to a position on your showcase.
To resize a hotspot, use the drag handle at the
bottom right corner of the hotspot.
For ‘pixel perfect’ resizing, you can also
manually adjust the width and height properties
of a hotspot from the side bar.

5. Add content to the hotspot

Click on the hotspot you wish to add content to,
and the ‘Hotspot Editor’ will appear on the right
of your screen.
Choose from images, video, documents, URL or a
sub-menu.
That’s it! Once you have built a complete showcase,
hit PUBLISH at the top right of your editing screen.

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Additional features:
PIN protect – Restrict access to materials in your
What do you
reckon?
showcase. Clicking a hotspot with PIN protection
will prompt the user for a 4-digit code. You can
assign a unique PIN to each protected area.
(Especially handy for trade show situations.)
Do you have a tip for designing Showcase
Shared Content – The shared content feature presentations? Do you have suggested updates for
allows you to create a list of shareable files to this guide? We’d love for you to share.
be associated with your showcase. You can add
If your suggestion is awesome, we’ll send you one
content from your file library, or upload new
of our very smart Showcase Workshop t-shirts, as
content to the list.
modelled below by Connor.
For more tips and full details on how to use these
other functions, download the companion, Admin Email us:
User Guide: http://showcaseworkshop.com/user-
guides/Showcase-User-Guide_AdminUser.pdf info@showcaseworkshop.com

Showcase Workshop
User Guide
Administrator

Version 4.1

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 The specs.
Ready for launch? We thought so! Just
keep these specs in mind while you’re
designing, and you’re sorted.

Landscape dimensions are given; for portrait, simply

reverse the values.
There is no file size limit. However, your client’s file
library in their Showcase workshop should not exceed
1000GB in total.

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For menu screen images on...
...iPads
Ratio: 4:3
Dimensions: 2048 x 1536 pixels
Resolution, iPad 3, 4, Air & Air 2: 264 ppi
Resolution, iPad Mini 2 & Mini 3: 326 ppi

...Samsung Galaxy, Google Nexus, Microsoft Surface 1 & 2

Ratio: 16:9
Dimensions: 1280 x 752 pixels
Resolution: 150 ppi

...Microsoft Surface 3
Ratio: 3:2
Dimensions: 1080 x 720 pixels
Resolution: 216 ppi

Any showcase you build can be used across any device.

Depending on the size, some black space may appear around
the edge, but the showcase will still work perfectly.

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 Color Fidelity
Work in RGB color. If using CMYK color, the tablet’s
screen might not render the colours properly.
Minimum Font Size
The minimum readable font size on iPad is 14pt.
We suggest you use 14pt or larger for all body copy.
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Video formats
Showcase Workshop has a built-in encoder; all
standard video formats (mov, mp4, m4v, avi,
wmv, flv, mpg, mpeg) will work.
Other document formats
The most common document types will appear
in Showcase without modification, including:
PDF, PNG, JPEG, PPT, XLS and DOC.
Working with MS Office: Sometimes there is a
conflict between complex Microsoft files (e.g.
Powerpoints with many layers) and the iPad’s
ability to render those files accurately. If you are
using any Microsoft Office files, we recommend
saving them as PDFs before uploading them to
Showcase Workshop.
Showcase does not support animation in
Powerpoints at this time.
From the frontlines:
Adding Showcase
to your agency’s
wheelhouse.

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Curious about adding Showcase presentations to your creative agency’s
suite of services? According to Adam Blackwell, the owner of Stun, it’s a
great way to add new revenue streams to your business.

In early 2013, Adam’s team wowed Careers NZ, a public agency, by

creating a fresh Showcase presentation under a tight deadline for an
upcoming expo. The client was impressed. Find Careers NZ’s case
study on the Showcase Workshop website at http://showcaseworkshop.
com/user-guides/Showcase-Case-Study-Careers-NZ.pdf

Showcase Software Ltd: Was Careers NZ already a client of Stun’s?

Adam Blackwell: No, they weren’t. They only discovered Showcase two weeks
before a career expo, and they really wanted to make their booth more
interactive. With a two-week deadline, we started with a two-hour dive to make
sure that what they thought they needed was what they actually needed.
Showcase: Is two weeks enough time when working with a new client?
Adam: Yes. If the resources are readily available and your agency has
the bandwidth, you can turn around a Showcase in even less time. Client
expectations have been set by the time it takes to design and update websites
which are comparatively more complex.

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Showcase: What especially impressed the client with your For the kind of personal presentations that Showcase
team’s work? fosters, the priority isn’t educating the viewer on every
possible aspect of all of your offerings. It’s about
Adam: Our speed. We took days to turn around the initial
allowing the user to discover the key information that’s
design. They were even more pleased by the speed
relevant to her in the smoothest fashion.
of subsequent changes and updates to the materials.
Showcase makes it incredibly easy. Showcase Software Ltd: Why would you recommend
Showcase to other creative agencies?
Showcase: What raw materials did you have to work with?
Adam Blackwell: Showcase allows you to present
Adam: We ran with a couple of basic PowerPoint decks, a
information in a more intuitive approach than even
Word document, a handful of emails, and their style guide.
a website. It gives you so much versatility to apply
We quickly mocked up a suggested visual approach - just
creative thinking however you want. Once someone
a few screens - for their feedback.
decides to explore your Showcase, he’s on your
Because tablets are still relatively new, clients aren’t as desired path.
familiar with their format. So you have greater leeway with
If you have some experience with design, Showcase is
your design suggestions.
very easy to use. You don’t need to hire a developer,
Showcase Software Ltd: How did you decide on content and you can still meet your clients’ emerging needs for
organization? a mobile presence.
Adam Blackwell: Some clients have a hard time organizing
their content first; some prefer to (or have to) organize
as they go. You do have to start somewhere, though, so I
suggest determining a few goals for the Showcase first.
The organization of the content will flow from there.

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 Creative partner
program
Boost your agency’s revenue with
Showcase.

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Have you watched as your clients diverted their
advertising budgets toward app development?
That’s revenue siphoning out of your budget.
Many of your clients don’t need a custom app coded from
the ground up. They just need something that will align
with their brand, update smoothly, and allow them to keep
pace with the rapid advancement of technology.
They just need you to introduce them to Showcase.
Create three new revenue streams for your agency.
Revenue Stream #1: Get 20% of every Showcase
subscription you sign up.
Today, enterprises around the world are paying a flat
$20 USD/user/month fee for access to Showcase. And
they’re loving it. Why not tap into that demand, and resell
Showcase to your clients? For every subscription that you
sign up, your agency will earn 20%, month after month
after month.
Add three new revenue streams to your agency today.
Learn more about our Creative Partner Program by emailing us.
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Revenue Stream #2: Create or adapt their collateral
for Showcase.
Though Showcase is easy enough for your clients to use
out of the box, they’ll probably want some out-of-the-
box creativity from your agency. They’ve trusted you to
plan, design, and execute smart sales and marketing
materials in the past. That’s just what they’ll need when
they subscribe to Showcase.
Revenue Stream #3: Manage your clients’ regular
updates.
Some of your clients may need to update their sales
collateral regularly to comply with government
regulations or frequent changes in their industries. With
Showcase, it’s easy to offer this additional service on a
retained basis.
If your agency already provides content or user
management services, why not bring that offering into
the mobile era?
 Here’s some
sample menu
designs for
inspiration.

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Pride & Joy NZTE

Spark
The Warehouse

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Vodafone RaboDirect

Now go create Showcase magic!

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 Showcase Software Limited
US Head Office
510 Red Hill Avenue
San Anselmo, CA 94960, USA
New Zealand Office
19 Blair Street, Te Aro
Wellington, 6149, New Zealand
Phone: +64 4 385 6572
Email: helpdesk@showcaseworkshop.com

@showcaseworks
Showcase and the Showcase logo is © Showcase Software Limited 2016. All rights reserved.