If you were to listen to the advice of most keynote speakers they’d say there there’s a simple recipe for making a presentation: make and point then tell a story.
But keynote speakers don’t have to make presentations that contain data or analysis. So what do you do if you have to present complex information or make multiple points for just one slide? When this happens you more than just simple advice, you need a system.
Probably like most of you I often have to do complex analysis. Sometimes it can involve gathering data over two or three different organisations. For example a few years ago I completed an analysis for a UK criminal justice system. I had to build a picture of how three different organisations worked together and problems that resulted from the interactions.
I had to explain the consequences of the following points.
1. Some police officers have to leave the scene of the crime without gathering all the statements
2. There are frequent late submission of police reports
3. There is a lack of clarity between prosecutors and police
4. There are poor arrangements in place for the provision of legal aid
5. There are often court cancellations due to lack of preparation (I actually had 10 points to make).
Here’s how I did it.
1. Soon after opening the presentation I explained that I had 10 key points to show them about the failure of the criminal justice system. I specifically mentioned the number of points so that the senior executives could track progress through the presentation.
2. I gave each point its own slide. And in-between the points I repeated the same slide which showed a blueprint of the system. This helped the audience to remember and understand how the whole thing knitted together. It also re-grabbed their attention by moving between the picture and the points.
3. After every point I reintroduced the blueprint but with a different part of the picture circled in red. This had the effect of:
a. Drawing attention to that part of the picture
b. Moving the executives mentally through the presentation and picture.
I recently met an executive who had been at the meeting. He mentioned how much he still remembered from the day and the simplicity of the structure I used. So here’s my advice to you, steal my system, use it and refine it. If you do you’ll get more than change from your presentations, you’ll get remembered.