Shows and events that only happen once present their own special design issues. This includes the suffering of the quality of the design due to time constraints, from the start of production to the actual date of the event. Some designers even deliver up-to-the-minute content, AT SHOWTIME. Poor show flow and content control rear their ugly heads when this sort of thing happens. Each show reveals who is going to be the one to make those possibly fatal last-minute design edits.
Not that any of those issues are foreign to an internal design department. In-house designers have an additional set of challenges brought on by the big differences between external or for-hire designers.
1. Longevity of content/design
Since the product or presentation is developed internally the files often get re-used and honed for multiple speakers, events or seminars. The design needs to support and reflect other internal campaigns and ebb and flow with internal changes in thinking and corporate objectives. Will the look of the template feel outdated alongside other materials in two months? Does the design further corporate messaging or does it only reflect one opportunity or engagement?
2. Multiple content contributors
When setting up production workflow the number and more importantly style of contributors that have access to the content in production is a major. It is the design department’s job to factor in all of the potential contributors and set up templates that allow those departments a look or style that fits within the overall presentation design. Some sales representatives like to add case studies, some like to work free form from image slides, templates need to be developed that encourage each of these style types. Once the file is out in the field, you have little control over how the template is used, if you provide the right framework, end users are more likely to follow the intended design template.
3. The speed of technology
Since the product is designed to have legs and have a longer use period a new issue arises, how will technology advance during the presentation life-cycle? Is your presentation widescreen and all of your sales reps are still using older laptops that don’t feature wide screens? Are you developing for widescreen projected scenarios yet most of your end-users are chomping at the bit to use tablets for display? Technology plays a part not just in applications for development but also in the end use display. Is bleeding edge technology worth it for one presenter when the majority of your users will be stuck with older devices?
4. Library of files/update
Once a presentation is developed where will it live? Who will have access to it? Who will have editing capabilities? Will there be a repository for single slides? Will there be one file that houses all content that can be edited by end-users? The answers to these questions are very personal to a corporation. Some don’t want end users to edit content. Some don’t want content on a public cloud platform. Access control is very important and should be considered early in the process.
5. Export for various formats and venues
Someone on the internal production team needs to be a whiz about devices, screens and export formats. Taking all of the above into consideration distribution becomes a challenge unto itself. The position I take is that wherever I’m sending this file or to whomever, they don’t know anything. Dumb. So I need to understand the screen resolutions, file formats, operating systems and applications that might be included in the presentation delivery. Contact must be made with the person that will run the show or who is in charge of its display to understand any hiccups or challenges. You developed your presentation to be cross platform, to be run from Macs and PCs in PowerPoint, but did you confirm that the video you compressed in Quicktime run on the end machine?
Presentation designers and developers are trying to deliver well laid out content in an attractive design. We all want our end users to be confident when delivering their content and we all want to engage audiences. Along the way we have specific challenges to overcome, sometimes it’s nice to hear that you’re not alone in your struggle.
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