Impactful presentations made easy

37 years after it's invention, Microsoft Word is still the go-to for most text-based documentation in the majority of businesses and organizations. This year alone, billions of Word docs will be written and circulated by ordinary (no offense!) office workers like you and me. That said, despite decades of practice and an increasingly image-savvy user base–thanks smartphones!–so many of us still struggle to put together a killer doc that harnesses the right visuals, fonts and design practices to enhance our work and help get our message across.

In this post, we'll walk you through some common mistakes to avoid and a few simple ways you can turn your newsletters, meeting notes, memos and more into something people really understand and remember–and want to read in the first place. 

If you've ever worked in a Marketing department, you've probably been part of plenty of projects that never saw the light of day. Un(der)used design projects, photo shoots and ad campaigns are all part of the territory, and most of us are familiar with endless ideation and brainstorming sessions that never lead to anything. Not to mention that 67-page brand bible that took three months to write but was never read by a single colleague. Except perhaps a reluctant proofreader. 

A good presentation can mean the difference between winning the pitch or losing the deal. Between securing the budget you need for next year or dealing with cutbacks. Between educating, informing and inspiring people or putting them to sleep. 

In other words, the humble PowerPoint presentation is not to be taken lightly. With enough practice and the right tools, a simple 10-slide deck can create life-changing moments for you, your business and your audience. However, it's surprisingly common in this day and age to still be seriously underwhelmed by most presentations–even those created by extremely smart people working at very successful organisations.

In this practical post, we cover the 5 common presentation fails you can easily avoid with the help of a few simple tips and access to the right images.

Have you recently taken the plunge and invested in a brand new DAM system? Or are you in the process of evaluating and weighing up the options? Great! Your life is about to get a whole lot easier. At least in theory. 

It's been said a million times that a picture says more than a thousand words, but it's also worth pointing out that there are thousands of ways to use each picture, and how things like placement, cropping, filters and adding text can either enhance or detract both from the visual appeal and effect of the image.

It goes without saying that one of the main reasons people choose to create a presentation and not a Word doc or Excel file is so they can use photos, icons and clipart to enhance their message, so we take a look at a few dos and don'ts to keep in mind when working with presentation images. 

Setting up your company's image bank can be a pretty daunting task, and getting people to use thing is often equally difficult. In this post, we decided to do things a little differently and jump on a Microsoft Teams call with Jules, Pickit's VP of Customer Success, to get her three top tips. Watch the video to hear what she normally says to customers using Pickit to create an image library for the first time, or get a quick overview below. 

In this post, we get straight to it and list ten things to keep in mind when you're creating your next PowerPoint presentation. Follow these and you'll be well on your way to mic-dropping at work. 

Now that many of us are working remotely, we're suddenly spending a lot more time in front of a webcam–whether it be for staff meetings, brainstorming sessions, webinars or online social events after work. For some, this new shift is a welcome opportunity to catch a glimpse of where and how our colleagues (not to mention celebrities) live. It's also a narcissist's nightmare given that our new camera-driven careers happen to coincide with some pretty out-there hairdos brought on by the sudden closure of many local beauty salons and grooming establishments.

Whichever category you belong to, we'll help you find the right image and look your best on your next Microsoft Teams call.

Whether you feel like a presentation pro or you get the shakes when it’s your turn to step up for a monthly report, delivering a deck remotely is often a different animal altogether to live presenting. No more relying on stage presence, charisma, persuasive body language or your ability to work a room. And if you're more of a butterflies-on-steroids presenter, you probably think this is your ticket out; “Finally, I don’t need to bother with all that empty rhetoric stuff and can get straight to business.” 

Not so fast!