Nothing is more embarrassing than presenting in front of a group of clients/peers/co-workers, making what you think is a stellar presentation, only to discover a major typo that suddenly appears during your talk. Beyond the possibility of losing credibility, your audience may fixate on the error rather than hearing your message. After crafting a presentation, you’ll want to […]
Process
Version Control
Version control may not sound like a big problem, but here’s a typical scenario that can drive budgets up quickly. The client sends the designers a file. The design team assumes they have the final file and no one is still working on slides. Unbeknownst to the designers, the client has one or more people […]
The Top 7 Ways to Save Money on Your Project
1. Follow a standard subject line protocol in all emails involving the project. Project number and client name – description EXAMPLE: 12-0000 Big Hot Co. – Event keynote sample slides 2. Use a consistent name for the project. Too many times, clients have varying nicknames or acronyms for projects and we can’t tell if it’s a new […]
Using the PowerPoint Selection Pane
The Selection and Visibility Pane is an extremely useful feature in PowerPoint 2007/2010. So useful, in fact, that you may wonder how you ever worked without it. The Selection Pane keeps track of everything on the slide in a task pane on the right side of the desktop. View the Selection Pane: On the Home […]
Selling with a Hands-on ROI Demo
Bluewave is all about visual storytelling. We design professional presentation media that help our clients deliver clear, compelling and visually impactful communications for corporate events, keynote executive speeches, product launches, sales meetings and road shows. These are often big-stakes situations, where high pressure, precision and state-of-the-art multimedia predominate. But sometimes the most effective selling tool […]
Slide Aspect Ratios: What You Need to Know
Many PowerPoint presentations are formatted at the default 4:3 aspect ratio, which is the display size used by older TV screens and projectors. Widescreen shows, with a 16:9 aspect ratio, are becoming more and more common. Keynote conferences and other high-end events will likely be displayed in widescreen environments. For smaller venues, widescreen HD-capable DLP chip projectors are now very […]
How to Get Help with Microsoft Office Products
Microsoft Office Discussion Groups is a great resource for any questions you may have about working with PowerPoint, Excel, Word, Outlook and other Microsoft Office products. It’s the place to go when you’ve finally thrown in the towel and conceded defeat, or just want to get more familiar with techniques and procedures. http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/default.mspx You can ask questions […]
The Collaborative Process in Brief
Needs Analysis Review project briefs or outlines Clarify the message Identify the target audience Determine the optimal media/platform Proposal Development Statement of work — Includes a description of the project and list of deliverables. Budget — Each budget is project-based. We keep our customers continuously updated on budget as we proceed through design and production. Schedule — […]
The First Quarter Inch — Developing Project Guidelines
Life is like a yardstick. In some ways, the easy part is the last 11¾ inches. The hard part is often the first quarter inch: getting organized and defining goals. Don’t cut corners on that first quarter inch, for it often moves the project from good to great. Many of our clients have clearly defined […]
Cut Costs on All Your Creative Projects with These Six Rules
Rule #1 — Allow plenty of time. Not enough time is the most common problem any design firm faces. Too often, the client is expecting a fast turnaround at a low price. Rule #2 — Respect the design team. Respect their creativity, judgment and effort. They are professionals and deserve to be treated as such. […]