Non-Profit Presentation Skills
Posted by Bridget Gleason on Tue, Mar 02, 2010 @ 08:00 AM
Non-Profit presentations - there's a lot at stake...
I'm sitting on a train in India - traveling from Chadipury to Kolcata. I am here with a group of CARE supporters - looking at various health, education and economic development projects in rural villages around the country.
The work is stunning. The presentations are not. I am not tolerant of bad presentations with my technology clients, but for some reason, I am even less tolerant here. Perhaps because I feel that there is more at stake. The problem of poverty is enormous and stubborn. I don't know much about how to improve health in a rural village, but I do know how to craft a message that people will respond to.
So here are Bridget's Five Rules for a Non-Profit Presentation:
- Rule #1: Don't read your slides
Your slides are meant to serve as guideposts for what you want to talk about. DO NOT READ your slides. It is boring, insulting and a waste of time
- Rule #2: Choose three main points
Choose three things that you want the potential donor to remember (and no more!). Once you have identified the three most important things, build your PowerPoint presentation around those three points. Yes, it's true - that there is more to tell but you are more likely to lose your audience if you give them TOO much information vs. too little.
- Rule #3: Keep your slides uncluttered
Font size should be 20 points or greater.
Have no more than 4 bullet points per slide (and that's a LOT) with no more than two points under each bullet.
Use graphics.
- Rule #4: Remove unnecessary slides
Be RUTHLESS about determining which slides you need and which ones you don't. If the slide doesn't relate to one of your three main points AND if your slide isn't absolutely essential to the understanding of that main point - REMOVE IT.
- Rule #5: Present with passion
If you aren't excited about the topic (and if that excitement doesn't show), then why should the potential donor be excited? Moods are contagious - if your passionate about the topic, let it show. If not, perhaps you are in the wrong job.
Non-Profits will do well to spend some time and money improving the way they present and tell their stories. Andy Goodman (the Goodman Center) is a fantastic resource for non-profits and is full of free resources. Don't hide great work behind a poor presentation.
If you'd like help with your next presentation to donors, I'd be happy to review your presentation and offer feedback. Give me a call.