Tucson, AZ (1888PressRelease)
June 21, 2007 - At a time when researchers and business gurus alike are condemning PowerPoint and writing its obituary, presenter and author Robert Lane is demonstrating to audiences that PowerPoint could, instead, be approaching its Golden Age to the benefit of presenters and audiences alike.
At the launch in Tucson, Arizona today of his book "Relational Presentation: A Visually Interactive Approach', he declared that PowerPoint's renaissance will come about when presenters learn to make their presentations media-rich and interactive, thus enabling them to customize their presentations on-the-fly.
"Even presenters who are experienced enough to know better find it difficult to resist the urge to fill slides with bullet point after bullet point. The problem is that such slides lock presenters and viewers into a fixed, linear sequence which severely restricts the potential for communication.” says Robert.
"If someone asks a question during a slide show, presenters typically respond by either putting people on hold until the presentation gets to a relevant point, or they abandon their flow to answer the question. The barrier to effective communication lies in the linear structure of presentations.”
Robert Lane contends that the renaissance for PowerPoint will come when presenters, fed up with these and other limitations, realize that by using PowerPoint alone it is possible to skip or add slides to the sequence of a presentation at will - and the audience does not even have to know. Robert has developed techniques for organizing slide shows into networks that, in contrast to the limiting linear structure used by most presenters, can be navigated quickly from any point in a presentation.
"It is possible to customize the message completely on the spot. This seemingly magical ability to interact flexibly with audience members using the prepared slide resources depends heavily on the use of hyperlinks within slide shows. When I started using these methods ten years ago I assumed everyone would find it easy to adopt this concept and develop the techniques on their own. However, it has turned out that interactive use of PowerPoint is a major paradigm shift and many speakers who try it on their own do not succeed for various reasons. My team and I have therefore developed structured learning materials such as live online workshops and now the book 'Relational Presentation: A Visually Interactive Approach' to give learners the benefit of our ten-years experience. We also are producing self-study videos of the same workshops.”
"Making the transition from regular presentation to a relational style requires a whole different way of thinking about your message. Using Relational Presentation techniques, a presenter has total freedom to go anywhere, at any time, regardless of whether he or she is in the middle of a bullet list, a linear slide show, a sequence of animations, or anything else. There is never again a reason to feel trapped by PowerPoint's functionality or design.”
About Robert Lane
Robert Lane is a digital communications consultant, trainer, writer and professional speaker, based in Tucson, Arizona. He specializes in helping companies and educational institutions worldwide develop, implement and maintain Relational Presentation platforms. Robert regularly demonstrates Visual Interactivity concepts through dynamic, on-site speaking engagements.
To see a Relational Presentation in action, view the demonstration video and self-study learning materials on the Aspire Communications website: http://www.aspirecommunications.com
