How to find the right designer for your presentation?

Ok, let’s say you’re already at the inflection point, and ready to outsource all or part of your presentations to be crafted by a professional.

Even when the decision to outsource has been made, you still feel unsure about your next steps.

• Where and how do you start looking for your designer?

Do you go to the job board? Do you ask your network for references? Should you look for the generalist graphic designer, who can help you with all the things design, or specifically for the presentation designer?

• How do you kick off the project?

Do you prepare a detailed description of what needs to be designed or just leave all the raw materials to your designer as they are?

• How do you ensure that the project is done right?

Do you ask to be involved in every step of the design process or deal with revisions as they come?

If you’re looking for answers to these questions, read through until the end, and let me give you some clarity.

Done right, your presentation has the power to establish authority and gain the trust of your audience or even buy you a loyal investor.

But before you say anything, I just like to say that yes — it is possible to find remote specialists who actually take the time to fully understand you, articulate your comprehensive ideas and connect them to the deeply held beliefs of your audience through the power of visual storytelling and presentation design.

So the question you should be asking right now is, how do you find the right professional to do this for you?

It may be safe to assume that your initial preference would be someone with experience in your field. 

Say, you’re in the Life Sciences industry — obviously, you won’t be looking for an ex-doctor to design your presentation but you’ll look for someone with experience in similar projects. (My IT-based clients are usually thrilled to know I’m coming from the cybersecurity field, though).

The thing is, it doesn’t really help.

You might feel that their “experience” gives you a sense of safety because they already have an understanding of what you do. But I have a strong opinion that experience in the same field doesn’t always guarantee that this professional will handle your project successfully.

What matters then?

So, let’s say that a designer with an engineering background might be quicker in understanding your product features, but if the designer is not accustomed to translating your brand story to a non-engineer audience, or capture what’s essential in your pitch deck for a Series B funding round, then your outsourcing approach becomes counterproductive. 

Hence, it is advisable to choose a presentation designer who could:

1. See the story behind the concept.

Having a crystal-clear understanding of your business vision means finding the story and the gaps deep within your market’s underlying motivations.

This ability is important so that your presentation is able to relate to your audience not only in a logical sense but as well as on a personal and emotional level. 

Look for a designer who can evoke strong feelings and excitement into your presentation regardless of your niche yet act with restraint so you don’t overwhelm and confuse.

Here are 5 things that will help you check whether a particular designer is capable of helping you do just that:

• Ask about their workflow and presentation design process. A good sign is if they incorporate thorough research before creating a design brief. 
• Is the designer asking relevant questions about your brand story? A good designer will ask you about things to help them better craft your narrative and bring data to real life.
• Are they considering both the target audience and presenter in mind? A designer who is able to take account not only of the design of the deck but also the delivery tactics will offer a holistic perspective. 
• Ask them to explain your vision and goals for the presentation in their own words. If they don’t align with where you want to go with the presentation, take it as a sign that they aren’t capable of taking you there.

2. Segregate important from less important in building a clear hierarchy (not always a linear sequence) out of the plain one-level data.

Your designer should be able to analyze and structure your materials into a persuasive & engaging storyline — one that is integral to your audience and goal.

Crucial in this task is knowing how to organize the content and ideas that you unload to your designer and find key messages that will flow and show depth, interconnection, and call-to-action.

Here are 3 things your designer should know so you can be sure your presentation will leave a mark on your audience.

• Conciseness is key — working with content meta-structure means telling your story while ensuring the most impact in the least amount of time because let’s face it, you don’t have all day to convince your client to buy into your proposal.
• The order gives clarity — there are plenty of frameworks or structures that can be used to organize your content into a seamless flow of ideas that your audience could easily understand and relate to. The designer should be able to plan out your audience’s experience of your presentation throughout the slides to keep them engaged until the end.
• Widening the gap boosts perceived value — this is one of the best ways to emphasize your message. Build up your story (and the excitement) around your most important points by finding out your audience’s biggest pain or biggest dreams then position your idea at the center of those personal aspirations so it resonates with your audience long after the presentation.

If you’ve read this far, then you should already know that finding out if your designer fits your needs is quite easy to test - I’ve done that myself when I was hiring my first employees, and I always encourage my clients to do the same.

Here’s how you can do it: don’t spend too much time on the data preparation. Unload relatively raw content to the designer, and start the first presentation design step (building the story structure and crafting style mockups), based on that.

You’ll feel it right away if you’re one step closer to taking your business to the next level. I did.

Do you think finding the right professional to do your presentations will significantly elevate the way you showcase your business?

If you’re looking for any assistance in outsourcing your presentations, hit us up with a message and we’ll see how we can be of any help to you.

Or just check out how we do things at PrzntPerfect! 

#presentationdesign #powerpoint #storytelling