There are few elements of modern professional and personal activities that don’t involve connected devices in some way. Screens are scattered throughout contemporary life and play a particularly key role in the approach most professionals take to presentations. These tools help to create engaging multimedia experiences. They allow colleagues and clients across the globe to collaborate in presentation experiences.
While these tools are certainly positive, they certainly aren’t the only game in town. Indeed, you’ve likely experienced the dread that can come from the prospect of seeing or performing yet another Powerpoint presentation. The same old methods with the same old graphics. It’s worth considering how the inclusion of high-end physical prints in tandem with your videos and social posts can shift the tone and have a greater impact on your meetings.
Let’s take a look at some of the areas where you can supplement on-screen graphics with eye-catching prints.
Planning and Organization
Your presentation may be the initiation of a project. Perhaps you are trying to engage new customers for your contracting business. Media like photos and graphics can help you to communicate your value to your customers. Plus, it only adds to the value when you provide clients with something tangible to study.
This can be particularly effective during brainstorming presentations and sessions. Printing out discussion topics and ideas can be a more effective way to spur interactions. Indeed, simply having printed images with scenes, objects, and phrases can be a more creative way to encourage your colleagues to think outside the box.
Physical prints can also be great tools immediately after these meetings. Brainstorming sessions are often most effective with follow-up protocols in place. When you print out the ideas generated in the meeting, this gives colleagues the chance to rank and prioritize them. Once everything is agreed upon, you can then formalize these with high-end printed documents to be referred to throughout the project.
Minimizing Errors
Technology continues to have a positive impact on the commercial climate. The growing ecosystem of innovative digital tools is key to business success and is tangibly shaping the future. Software that enables remote collaborations, the internet of things (IoT), and AI business analytics all play roles in operations and successful presentations. However, it’s also important to recognize how over-reliance on these during presentations leaves room for errors.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use digital tools during presentations, but you should certainly not depend only on these. Make sure all of your slides have high-quality printed versions as backups. This way, should you experience technical problems, you’re not left floundering until the tech is back up and running. You can instead switch to your physical items.
Indeed, a better option when engaging in a presentation is having a combination of printed materials and digital assets that will help mitigate the potential for tech problems:
- Powerpoint slides
- Posters
- Handouts
- Product examples
- Models
These materials allow your audience the chance to interact with your presentation in ways they might be more comfortable with; not everyone engages with learning material the same ways.
Photo by cottonbro from Pexels
Communicating Ideas
Presentations are all about the effective dissemination of ideas. When you’re stuck at the front of a room clicking through a set of slides, it can be easy for the situation to become dull and for otherwise great ideas to become lost. The use of printed materials can be instrumental in driving clarity and engagement.
Mood boards can be particularly useful in this regard. When a product or service doesn’t already exist, simply describing it in text format alone isn’t enough. A well-presented mood board can show clients and colleagues a clear direction for progress. You can include atmospheric elements like
- Printed color swatches
- Inspirational slogans
- Representational movie stills
- Photographs of similar products
Using a physical mood board also creates something colleagues can engage with more easily than a computer screen.
Demonstrating Brand Relevance
Particularly when you’re pitching a new product or service, it’s important to show how it fits into the brand. Your colleagues, executive decision-makers, and the marketing department need to be able to see your ideas are consistent with the business’s image and values. Using printed materials in your presentation can be vital in providing this context.
Use the distinct elements of the brand design in sample packaging materials. Show how the colors and images help the concept tie into the core identity of the company. You can use this to show how the brand can evolve through the application of eco-friendly materials.
Don’t forget to use your prints and branding to create promotional materials. These can be for customers as well as employees. Use your branding on
- Brochures
- Posters
- Writing implements for employees
- Sweatshirts for the first customers to buy a product or service
- Bags for carrying swag at conferences and trade shows
Have you designed a book cover for a client? Use that cover in promotional materials like posters and swag. Using high-quality printed items to do this tends to ensure colleagues take these items more seriously.
Conclusion
While digital tools are a key part of contemporary presentations and marketing materials, it’s important not to rely entirely on these. Utilizing high-quality physical prints and materials can improve organizational practices, reduce errors, and boost engagement with your ideas and company. They can also be a tool in demonstrating how your project fits into the values of the brand. It takes a little extra effort but can ensure your presentation has the best possible impact.