DIANE HARRISON 1

A POWER(FUL) POINT: LESS IS MORE

A POWER(FUL) POINT: LESS IS MORE

The financial world is awash in presentation decks—loaded with data, charts, tables, graphs, and an
endless series of bullets. Financial folks seem to think that lots of proof points make for strong
arguments in favor of whatever they are selling. In the financial industry, many PowerPoints are
assembled by analysts or other data-driven professionals, with zeal to ‘prove’ the message with
lots of numbers-oriented content. But the reality is something else: lots of proof points tend to
obfuscate facts and dilute the message they are supposed to be reinforcing. In the world of
presentation decks, less is more.

PowerPoint, released in 1987 as part of the Microsoft Office package, revolutionized the world of
content delivery with its creation of electronic presentations consisting of a series of slides, or
pages. Suddenly, every Tom, Dick, and Harry with a pc could create decks of information in
support of meeting presentations. Today, more than 30 million PowerPoint presentations are
made every day. The trouble with so many of these presentations though, is in their content and
organization, or more the lack thereof.

A TERRIBLE BUT COMPELLING EXAMPLE OF TOO MUCH IS NOT BETTER

The impetus for this article came to me when I ran across an interesting but disturbing article a
couple of months ago, titled ‘Death By PowerPoint: the Slide That Killed Seven People.’ It was a
short piece written by a doctor, James Thomas, on his blogsite, Mcdreamiemusings.com, back
in April. The focus of it was on how a muddled, overly-complicated and poorly executed
PowerPoint presentation given by the engineers in charge of the space shuttle Columbia led in
some measure to the death of the crew when the shuttle blew up upon re-entry to Earth’s orbit.

A piece of foam insulation had broken off the shuttle early in the mission, causing damage to
one of the wings. The unknown was whether or not the damage would impact the shuttle’s re-
entry due to the extreme heat generated, and whether or not the Columbia crew should attempt
a repair prior to re- entry. Thomas summarized the crucial presentation meeting on earth that
ultimately dictated the fate of the seven crew members on board:

NASA officials sat down with Boeing Corporation engineers who took them through three
reports; a total of 28 slides. The salient point was whilst there was data showing that the tiles
on the shuttle wing could tolerate being hit by the foam this was based on test conditions

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A POWER(FUL) POINT: LESS IS MORE

using foam more than 600 times smaller than that that had struck Columbia. This is the slide
the engineers chose to illustrate this point:

The tragic fact of this slide is buried in its terrible layout and busyness—namely, that the foam strike
had caused damage to the wing in multiples of hundreds more than previous tests. Clearly, the
committee should have voted to have the crew attempt a repair to the wing rather than risk re-entry
in its damaged state, which was the conclusion they reached. As Thomas put it: Imagine if the
engineers had put up a slide with just: “foam strike more than 600 times bigger than test data.”

TIGHTEN THE MESSAGE AND CLEAN UP THE FORMAT

While lives are not literally on the line in most of our business efforts, it can be a form of professional
suicide to be a chronically poor presenter. There is a difference in presentations that are primarily
used as a supplement to a verbal presentation, such as a speech, versus presentations in which the
deck itself is the primary message conveyer. But in each form, brevity and clarity are paramount in
importance.

Here are ten tips for keeping your PowerPoint decks short, sweet, and on point.

1. Be short, short, short – but not nonsensical.

Phrases that are memorable are, in many cases, better than complete sentences. The goal is to
create content bites for the recipient. Make your point in as few words as possible, and choose
these words wisely.

2. Find a point of interest to use as a foil to the financials.

A lot of numerical information layered upon itself for page upon page may be technically
accurate, but it can also be dull and dry. If you can help the numbers come to life with a
comparison to some examples that are non-financial, it can emphasize the impact you are trying
to make with data.
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A POWER(FUL) POINT: LESS IS MORE

3. Think about it as a story you are telling…one that should take 5 minutes.
The presentation should have a theme, an introduction, proof points, and a conclusion—much
like a story. All these elements are important to creating a memorable concept for the recipient
to retain. Organize your content in a logical story flow and it will immediately improve its clarity.

4. Use the format to reinforce your points.

PowerPoint is a presentation software package for a reason. The layout and graphic organization
of the information works with the content to deliver messages more effectively than simple
words and numbers. If you are not comfortable with or creatively oriented in formatting
PowerPoint, engage help from someone who is skilled in this area.

5. Make it unique and custom- avoid the boilerplate templates.

While the software comes loaded with many preformed layouts and color schemes, to create
your own style, it is best to build your own look. No other deck will have the same format, and
establishing your personal style in your deck ties it more closely to you and your message.

6. Imagery helps!
By this I am not referring to the Clip Art version of imagery embedded in the Office suite. There is
a world of free graphics and images available online that can enhance and customize the layout
and feel of your deck. Spend some time looking for photos and graphics that visually improve
your deck and the end result will pay off greatly in memorable ways.

7. Pace your points.

While the whole presentation should be able to be absorbed within 15 minutes or less, each
slide is not an equal time share. Don’t be afraid to use the tempo of content delivery as a means
of enforcement for certain points you want to highlight in the deck. Some pages might have two
or three brief phrases on them, where as others might have a series of overview summary data
that is meant to be more of a reference page. Let the message dictate the content amount and
pace of delivery.

8. Embrace the white space.

Any graphic artist or artist in general knows the value of negative space, also called white space,
in helping to feature that which appears around it. While not as beautiful as fine art, PowerPoint
slides also use the concept of white space to set off the content of each slide. Again, if you are
not visually oriented or creatively skilled in layout, use the help of someone who is. Your
presentation will benefit from the attention.

9. Smart and entertaining can reinforce information.

Don’t be dull above all! There’s no rule that serious information can’t be engaging as well. Being
witty, using a joke that shows off a point you are trying to make within your presentation, or
asking stimulating questions of your audience can all work in concert with the messages you
want to deliver. Keep the interest level high and you have a better chance at making an impact
with your deck.
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A POWER(FUL) POINT: LESS IS MORE

10. Solve a problem.

Using case studies and examples bring concepts to life in a way that just relaying straight
information cannot do. People like to be able to relate to information, not just have data pushed
at them. If possible, pose a problem and walk through a solution process that demonstrates the
information you want to deliver for maximum impact on your audience.

So keep in mind that PowerPoint is a method of conveying information and not just text typed on a
page sideways in large fonts. The medium is not the message, the message dictates what and how
you display information in support of it.

Diane Harrison is principal and owner of Panegyric Marketing, a strategic

marketing communications firm founded in 2002 specializing in alternative assets. She has over 25 years’ of expertise in
hedge fund and private equity marketing, investor relations, articles, white papers, blog posts, and other thought leadership
deliverables. 2019 AWARD WINNER: Global Business Insight’s Most Innovative Wealth Management Company – U. S. |
Acquisition International's Alternative Asset Communications Expert Of The Year- USA | Acquisition International's Best
Specialist Marketing Communications Firm- Financial Services | Business Excellence Awards – Alternative Asset
Communications Expert of the Year - USA 2018 AWARD WINNER: Acquisition International's Sustained Excellence in
Specialized Marketing Communications - USA | Corporate Insider's Excellence in Marketing Communications – USA. |
Acquisition International's Best Financial Services Marketing Firm – USA. A published author and speaker, Ms. Harrison’s
work has appeared in many industry publications, both in print and on-line. To read more of her published work in
alternatives, please visit www.scribd.com/dahhome. Contact: dharrison@panegyricmarketing.com or visit
www.panegyricmarketing.com.

PANEGYRIC MARKETING | JULY 2019