Episode 130: Emily Schneider

Emily Schneider

Intro: [00:00:00] Welcome to the Pretty powerful podcast where powerful women are interviewed every week to share real inspiring stories. And incredible insight to help women or anyone break the barriers, be a part of innovation, shatter the glass ceiling, and dominate to the top of their sport industry or life's mission.

Join us as we celebrate exceptional women and step into our power. And now here's your host, Angela Gennari.

Angela Gennari: Hello and thank you for joining us for another episode of the Pretty Powerful podcast. My name is Angela Gennari, and today I'm here with Emily Schneider. Hi Emily. I. Hi, Angela. Thank you for having me.

Thank you so much for being here. So Emily is a seasoned visual storyteller with nearly two decades of experience in marketing and branding, with a passion for transforming complex ideas into captivating PowerPoint presentations. She combines strategic storytelling with eye-catching design to [00:01:00] empower clients to deliver their messages confidently and impactfully.

Very unique niche. So what made you want to get into being a visual storyteller? I.

Emily Schneider: Uh, that is a great question. So it's kind of the evolution of my whole career journey. I, uh, studied visual communications, graphic design and art history in college, and I graduated with a desire to be a designer, um, in some field or some way.

Mm-hmm. Um. I started really my career in the advertising agency. I worked for shopper marketing, which is working on campaigns and promotions that happened at point of purchase specifically. So working with a lot of CPG brands, um, and helping to create yeah, engagements and ways for their consumers to be excited to buy their product, give reason, to share new news, those kind of things.

And I realized that, you know, part of that process as I, as I worked my way through the agency life was. You had to sell your stuff into your clients. Mm-hmm. And I loved [00:02:00] being able to see how my clients responded. That was something that was missing from just general marketing. 'cause you don't really know how your clients react.

You know, if sales go up, but you don't really know if what you said or what you did at Shelf made an impact in their decision or. Right. You don't really have, like, unless there's a big consumer journey testing, you know their journey, but you don't really know and you don't get that feedback right away.

And there was just something really magical I loved about being part of that storytelling. Um, I've always been a storyteller. I think that's what connects us. I think that's how we, I. As humans just can share and empathize and just relate to each other. And so the fact that I can bring my skillset of visual storytelling to life, um, and it again, it's kind of this sweet spot that I love, um, it's really helped me bring my business to life and, and do the things I love.

And I believe if I'm gonna work hard, I gotta love what I do. So.

Angela Gennari: Absolutely how I got there. A hundred percent. A hundred percent agree with you. Um, so I love that you say, you know, that, that you really focus on storytelling because there's so much of sales and presentations that [00:03:00] I feel like are just, they're just reiterating a, a thing.

They're working so hard on. These are the benefits, and this is, you know, why you wanna buy our bus, our, our product or our service. But storytelling really does pull it all together. And I think that's what I love the most about doing sales for my company, is that when people are talking to me about my company and my services, I'm telling the story of the business.

I'm like the, the very last thing that I focus on is what we do. I focus 90% on why we do it, why I got sick. Started what inspired me, and all of those things are what really grab the person who's listening and, and it gets them to buy in to what you're saying because nobody cares. What is this saying?

Nobody cares what you do unless they know that you care or, or how you feel. Y yes. Yeah. So I, I just feel like that's, that's part of the journey, you know, part of. You know, we're not just a security company. We are, you know, a woman-owned business who had, I had 20 years of bad experiences [00:04:00] in a particular, you know, area.

And I decided to solve a problem. And people love that because they're like, ah, I get that. Like I wanted to solve problems before too. And you know, I never had the guts to go in and do my own company. And so it just kind of gives them that ability to say, yeah, I get it. I get why you're doing what you do.

Emily Schneider: And we don't remember what people say. We remember how they made them, how they made us feel. Yes. And so stories are that connection. They're to your point, they give us the why. They give us that human touch. They allow us to relate to see ourselves. You tell me facts and I kind of remember facts. I don't really remember, but you, I remember stories.

I remember. Again, think about just in your memories. It's stories. It's these feelings. It's. This emotional tie, it creates that trust, that credibility, and it cre it gives you a differentiator and you Yeah. Become memorable. And when we can remember stories and we connect to them, we're more likely to do and act upon them.

Um, yeah. There's so much power in a will in a well-crafted story, so that's awesome to hear. [00:05:00] It's especially in sales and introducing who, who you are and what you do, and. Getting people to, to believe you and to trust you. Yeah. So,

Angela Gennari: yeah, I mean, we've had so many salespeople come through the, the company and, you know, I always feel like the worst person to, to bring in is somebody who's a seasoned salesperson, because generally they stick so much to the, you know, this is what we do, these are the services, this is the product, this is the pricing.

Do you wanna buy it or not? Right. And so I think the people who, who can come in with just a, a whole different background, you know, they're, they're. They're not as, um, it's not as intimidating, you know, you don't feel like you're being sold to, like, I don't like to, I don't like to be in a sales meeting where I feel like I'm being sold to.

I wanna be in a meeting where I feel like I'm having a great conversation and I'm learning something and somebody is inspiring me to wanna do business with them. Those are the people I work business with.

Emily Schneider: I always say, you wanna be, you wanna collaborate, right? Yeah. You don't wanna be talked to, you wanna talk with.

Mm-hmm. And that's what I love. And I think that that is so powerful about presentations versus [00:06:00] marketing. Marketing is a one to many conversation. Yeah. The brand talks to you, you don't really get to talk back. You don't really get to engage. You just kind of have to respond. Or you, I mean now social media people can respond to it, but like, you're not really in that like in depth, like let's, let's hear each other's points of view and sales.

Con meetings are one-on-one conversations, especially to your point when they're done, right? Yeah. You can hear what your client needs and you can ga and you can cater your story and your pitch to hit exactly what their pain points are. And isn't that like. We all want help. We all like, especially when you're in a sales meeting, when you've raised your hand, when you've called somebody and you need their service, you know there's something you need.

And so when somebody can answer that, it, it helps make your life and your job easier. And that's the win, that's the goal.

Angela Gennari: Absolutely. A hundred percent. So, um, I love that you've really focused on this presentation style because, um. Presentations are a challenge and, and I have to do presentations from time to time.

And there's, there's a, what's the phrase? Death by [00:07:00] PowerPoint. Yep. So tell me how to avoid death by PowerPoint. Because we all get into the situations where we have to do a presentation, and some of us are not great talking in front of people, and so, you know, they end up sitting up there and reading slide by slide.

And, you know, the, there's. You know, a whole book of text on, on a given slide. So tell me how to avoid death by PowerPoint.

Emily Schneider: Yeah, I mean that's exactly what death by PowerPoint is, right? Yeah. That's where you show up and you're like, I could have, this could have been an email, right? This could been something I read on my own.

It's a document. There's no feeling, there's no empathy, there's no story, there's no personal touch. Yes. Um, and so how do you combat that? You take your time when you develop your presentation, the first step. Is really knowing your audience and what you want them to think, feel, and do. So we're talking really simply from the beginning, having a groundwork of what that end goal is.

So you can write your story or you can set it up with the right slides to tell that story, and then it's crafting your narrative. And just like in a traditional story, right, we lay the [00:08:00] groundwork, we, we set up who the, the characters are, what we're here for, why we want them to. To do something and we create this like kind of emotional connection, and then in the middle you give all the facts.

You really support it. You give your reasons to believe your benefits. It's kind of, again, all that that traditional sales content of this is what we do, this is how we've done it, and then the end, you. Summarize that and you, and you remind them of why you're here, and you remind them of what you want them to do next.

Do they have questions? Would they like to know more about your pricing? Would they like to have another conversation? Meet more people. And when you can simplify those two steps before you even get into your presentation, you've already aligned yourself with a really simple, strong story. You know your why, you know what you, again, who they are and what you want them to do.

And so. You've already kind of eliminated a lot of that death by PowerPoint because when you over communicate, when you don't have that clarity to begin with, you share too much. Yeah, you say too much, you tell too much, and that's, that's part of death by [00:09:00] PowerPoint when it comes to designing the slides.

Now that you have your story crafted, it's really hitting on some really basic principles. Be intentional with your slides. Keep it to one to two key takeaways per slide. Don't overload it

Angela Gennari: and give

Emily Schneider: yourself space, white space, blank space, full color. That really helps balance your audience to listen and see what you're saying because your slides should be the background music to your, to what you're saying.

They should be supporting it. They shouldn't be your script if you're reading from your slides. You don't have a presentation. Yeah, you have a, you have like a booklet and nobody's gonna listen, and our brains can't even function. They can't take in all that information at the same time. Yeah,

Intro: we can

Emily Schneider: process images though 60,000 times faster than words.

So the more words you put up there, the less they're gonna digest. The more images, the more you design it, the more likely they are to remember and to feel and to think about something. It's, it's kind of an amazing, like our brains do a lot of the work for us, so [00:10:00] yeah, we, we can, we can, we should ride on that wave.

Um, the other thing to be really. Intentional about is you're being simpl simple and consistent when it comes to to font copy, and then with visual. So when it comes to text, choosing one to two fonts. When you write headlines, make them headlines, make them succinct. Give them, you know, say what that slide is supposed to do or what the person's supposed to digest.

Don't just say summary, say recap of the quarter four. Right? Like you give them more detail so they understand what they're gonna be learning about or reading about or hearing about. Um, and. Make your bullets short and simple. I mean, 30 words is ideally on a page if you can get there. I know sometimes it's not, but when you have, again, too many words, people don't know what to do with it and they don't hear it, they read it, and then they tune out because it's information overload at that point.

So the less you have up there and the more it's key [00:11:00] and kind of bulleted. Points in terms of copy and content. It allows your audience to follow along with your voiceover, and that's where the emotional connection comes in. So you really can kind of connect those two really well. Um, and then using, again, we said like using simple fonts and one, you know, one to two styles as well.

But also when you think about. Headlines where, how are they treated? Are they always in the same spot? Are they all caps, are they lowercase? Same when it comes to content, subheads, bulleting, you want, you wanna match treatments along the page. And styles, our brains will do this amazing job of putting the pieces together if we set it up properly.

And when you're simple and consistent, your brains are really good at, our brains are really good at connecting the dots. Yeah. And similarly approach when it comes to visuals. So. Keep consistent in terms of if you use photography, does it feel like it's from the same photo shoot? Are they stylized the same?

And if not, a little trick is turning them black and white. It lets your image shine without the colors or [00:12:00] that saturation or the differences to really show when it comes to data. Simplifying your data. Using the same colors when you stop, talk about similar concepts or content is a really good way to streamline information, let your brain do the heavy lifting.

Um, do you have to communicate all the data points at all the time or does the bar chart show that the evolution of over a period of time, but I don't have to know every number along the way. Mm-hmm. Simplifying that information allows your audience to see the bigger picture without getting caught up in the details.

Those simple things when it comes to designing your data. Allow your, again, your audience to listen to you and to be engaged with what you're offering so that at the end when they're ready to do something or ask questions, it's not about, go back, I'm confused. It's that their, they, their, their takeaways are getting you to the right conversation to move your business forward.

I apply that same principle with illustrations and icons. Pick one style. Don't mix and match even with transitions. [00:13:00] Sometimes transitions are, don't use transitions, it's an overload. We think we're wowing people, but we're actually causing confusion. So simplicity and consistency are critical when it comes to, um, eliminating death by PowerPoint.

Angela Gennari: Oh my gosh. That's such great advice. Thank you so much for all of that. So, you know, you brought up photos, and this is one thing that I really kind of struggle with because you know, in my mind, I think, well, people are visual learners. They need to see graphs and they need to see photos. But you can overdo it on graphs, don't you think?

Emily Schneider: I think you can overdo it on everything. Yeah. I think it's a balance and you gotta be, again, it comes back to really the, the three principles. I always, I mean, I live by them in my whole life, but really when it comes to my design work is simplicity. Consistency and intentionality. Mm. Images have to be intentional.

Data graphics have to be intentional and use, if you just put a pie chart out because you have numbers. Mm-hmm. Are you really telling the story? I am, uh, I'm actually working with a client right now on some data information and we were just talking about like. I was like, I don't feel like we're [00:14:00] designing the data.

And it's like, no, because the data's baked in. But when we bring, but when we connect the pictures or the right type of data, or the way we design, I mean, simply designing numbers really big with the support. You know, the 70% of all people agree that this is the right choice. That 70% is bigger and that little support copy is under is smaller.

That's designing with intention. Your data, if you put it in a pie chart, does it do the same impact as if you just see that 70% number? You know, you gotta be intentional with how and what you share. Um. To help, to help connect those dots for

Angela Gennari: sure. Wow, that's really great. So I, you know, 'cause I, I think about this all the time.

When I'm, when I'm going through a PowerPoint and I'm trying to design, my brain will get stuck on those things. Like, okay, this was all capitalized. Now this is not, and you're using periods after these bullet points, but you're not using 'em after these bullet points. And like, I will get stuck on those little intricacies when somebody's doing a presentation for me and I'm like, why did they, you know, so well [00:15:00] done.

Presentation allows you to truly focus on the message because if you're like me and you get caught up on the details and that stuff becomes a distraction, then you know, you, you're taking away from a message. And I, and I really do feel like some people just get stuck on those things. And I'm one of those, I'm one of those who I get stuck on the details.

Me too. Yeah. Yeah. And you don't listen to, and I'll focus on that and I'll disregard the message. 'cause I'm like, why didn't they just. You know, why did they use a different font? And you can tell that was copy and pasted because it's totally different than everything else.

Emily Schneider: And you lose credibility and trust with your presenter.

Not only are you now disengaged and you're not listening to them, but you don't, you don't ha their, you know, brand persona is so important and it's, yes, it shows in, in that. And again, as a small business owner, I and I work with a lot of smaller businesses, it's really important that they show up, that they create that trust.

Again, whether external or internal. The little details make a difference. Now that can be stuff you could streamline at the end. Yeah. Again, I don't think like when you're [00:16:00] building your presentation, you don't wanna get caught into it. But you know, one of my biggest tips is plan ahead. Right? And you gotta give yourself time because the death by PowerPoint, the over-communication thinking I'm showing my knowledge, is actually to me a sign of like, I didn't plan for this and I crammed it in at the last minute.

And you miss all those things. Again, it's not gonna be perfect. I just looked at something today and I was like, oh, that page number has jumped, right? Like, we all think we're humans, but in the bigger scheme of things, to your point, it's really obvious when all of a sudden you're like, why is that font different?

Or Why are you using green when the whole, every time you talked about this is red, and now my brain is creating this own story? Because we're naturally gonna create stories. We naturally, as we listen, we start to connect it to ourselves. And so. The more you can keep your audience engaged and connected or their thoughts about what you're sharing is, is always a win.

Angela Gennari: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. A hundred percent. So, yeah, 'cause I, I think about that too. And, and then sometimes I think people overuse stock photos and, and then I'm like, but I'm not seeing, [00:17:00] like, if you have a brand, right? And I'm a big believer in stick with your brand, brand, brand, brand, like lead with the brand. Be consistent with a brand and then all of a sudden you throw in a couple stock photos, you're like, Hmm, well that's not consistent.

Or, or it looks weird. So I'm curious because you have these two different types of photos. Like you have, I, you know, you have stock photos that are like professional models doing very. Regimented things and everything is perfect in the photo. And then you have the real life photos. Like for example, I have an event staffing company, right?

So events are never perfect. It's not gonna be a cloudy day, or somebody's shirt is partially untucked or you know, the radio is a little off center, whatever it is. But I'll try to take a photo of my employees and it's not perfect the way a stock photo is, but it's real. So do you go for real or do you go for perfect.

Emily Schneider: So I think it really depends on what you are looking for. And to be honest, I don't think it's so much about one, it's quality uhhuh. So as long as the image is crisp and [00:18:00] you, you know, it's shot kind of from a natural tone, I think it's, it's great. And sometimes stock photos are really obvious that their's stock photos to a point.

Right? And like they're not good, but it's really about focusing in and cropping your images to hero what you want. Mm. And then I don't think the details are as, as in that, in that bigger scheme of things, it's not as important like. When you talk about a stock photo, I just did one where it was about contracts.

Okay? And it didn't matter if I saw the person's back or what I saw, but it was about their, it was about their relationship. And if you have the right moment captured and you can crop in on that, the rest of it, it doesn't matter, and it becomes either. For your copy to go, or you can crop it in a beautiful way.

But I think it's really, to me, I would focus, use, use the crops as a way, um, or a cropping to really create again, that intentional and that simplicity and that focus. And not about the details, but I think there's a time and place for both. Um. Consistency. So if you're gonna use some of your own shots, use your own shots.

Yeah. Um, the worst is when you get it. When [00:19:00] I, when clients suggest stuff and I'm like, I'm happy if you send it from your phone, but like, don't down re it, just like, send it because our phones take great photos, but you then don't, don't intermix with stock photos or, you know, kind of try and find images that feel a little bit more raw or a little bit more messy, if you will.

So, yeah.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. That's great. Yeah. 'cause I love using pictures of our actual staff, you know, and, and at events. Sure. But they're never perfect. Right. You're never gonna find that perfect photo. When you're at an event and you're dealing with real people who, you know, they, they're not gonna have that perfect model persona.

Yeah, of course. But the, the, the stock photos don't feel relatable to me, you know? Yeah. So I guess it really depends on what you're trying to say and what you're conveying, I guess, makes a big difference. Totally. Um, so when you're telling a story, how do you engage the audience from the beginning? Because I've heard all kinds of different things.

Like you start with a joke or you start with a visual aid, or you start with this. How do you grab somebody's [00:20:00] attention from the beginning?

Emily Schneider: Because that's a really good question. I actually don't coach on presenting. I just coach on and help fine tune scripts or the story. Okay. But I think the biggest point is.

I think, however, whatever you're most comfortable with is the win. If it's a joke, if it's a tip, if it's a, if it's, you know, whatever feels a, a video, whatever feels right. The biggest win is you have to tell people why they're there and what you want them to do. Mm-hmm. However that comes in. And that could be right before the joke.

It could be during the joke, it could be after the joke. But if you don't level set of why we're all here and what our goal is. Nobody's gonna know what to do, and then they're feeling lost the whole way, and they're kind of trying to figure it out. It's, it's that idea. I was just listening to something today about parenting and like when you have boundaries and you give your kids the container that they can work in, they feel safer and they know what to expect.

And so I think we have to approach our conversations or our business meetings the same way. Just like when you set in a meeting, usually for an internal thing, you, you put an [00:21:00] agenda. That helps people know what to expect. And so I think you have to say why we're here, what the goal is. And it can be very, you don't even may necessarily have to have a slide, but you wanna make sure you voice that over and be natural and human about it.

Um, but it all comes back to knowing your audience and what you want them to think, feel, and do. And when you have that laid out, you kind of have your, your entry of, of grounding that. Um, and again, we live in a chaotic world, so I dunno about you, but I'm always running into a meeting from something else, so I need that reminder of like, okay, we're here to do this, to review this, to talk about this.

It's so helpful.

Angela Gennari: Yeah, absolutely. So. When you were saying that, it reminded me of like, you know, kind of that tell people what they're going to learn and what they're gonna get out of that. So like when you start a meeting, like, Hey, we're here to review our 2024, uh, revenue and to see what we're gonna be planning for in 2025 to set our goals and to blah, blah, blah.

So you kind of tell them why we're here, what we're gonna do, and then how, what the result is that you wanna have at the end. [00:22:00] Is that right?

Emily Schneider: Exactly. Because think about it, if not, if you just jumped in, you're like, okay, welcome. And then it's like, okay, here's our 20, 24 goals. Yeah. People are like, well, what?

Okay, great. Now what? Yeah. Like what are we doing with this? I don't, you know, what am I supposed to be? What am I supposed to be con, like how am I supposed to be connecting the dots in my own brain of what you're trying to tell me so I can do something or learn? So yeah, for sure.

Angela Gennari: And when you, when you're talking about connecting the dots in your, in your brain, that really kind of, it really resonates with me.

And the reason is because I feel like when I don't have a.to connect, my brain will make up whatever the.is. And that may or may not be accurate. Accurate. So I know people who are kind of overthinkers will do the same thing. Like we're filling in the gaps with what we believe and not necessarily what we're being told.

And you wanna keep that out, like I. You know, you, you should always make sure that like when people are talking about you or your reputation, you give them the content you want them to believe.

Emily Schneider: Exactly. I like to use the term, I help my clients become conversation [00:23:00] conductors. Hmm. So just like when you go to an orchestra and the conductor stands on stage and he tells, and he guides the instruments and the symphony to create this harmonious experience, that's what you should do as, as a presenter.

You should use your slides and your script and your audience to create this experience by showing them and playing, you know, and giving them the cues that they need to, to feel this experience or to feel this, you know. Uh, yeah, I guess experience is the right word, but to have to be connected and to listen intently.

And so you have to be, you have to lay the groundwork and then you have to set the beats and give them the right information at the right time so that they can carry it along. If not, you're just setting, you're giving them everything and they have to figure out how to make this. Work to your point, and whether it's right or wrong, but if you can guide 'em along in the right way, they're gonna do exactly what you need them to do.

And they're gonna be informed and they're gonna be ready, and they're gonna feel more empowered and they're gonna feel heard, and we know that that is how we drive success. [00:24:00]

Angela Gennari: Yeah. That's beautiful. I love that analogy. Um, because you're right, it is very much like you're just weaving it through, so you know, versus an information dump, you know?

Yes. Where you just kind of bombard somebody with a whole bunch of information and then they have to figure out how this all goes together. Yes. Yeah, exactly. Okay, very cool. So what advice do you give to your, to your entrepreneurs and your business owners when it comes to, um, developing a story that resonates Because it's hard as a business owner, you wanna talk about what you do.

Um, so how do I develop a compelling story?

Emily Schneider: It goes back, you kind of said it's the why. Why are we here? Why do I wanna help people? What is my value? Um, so I think you start internally and then you reflect it out. So start with like, why I wanna do this, and then flip it to be about why you're gonna help them, or what's the value for your listener?

Because really if you talk about all I, they're not engaged, but if you talk about them

Angela Gennari: right as the

Emily Schneider: reason you're helping them or the value, or [00:25:00] how you make their life easier and better. They're, they're all in, everybody wants a little tip on how to, on how to succeed. So I think there's, it's, it gets really into that, those, those cause and effects and that getting back to the root cause of who you are, what you do, why you do it, and then flipping it.

So it's, it's audience centric.

Angela Gennari: Okay. Very cool. So how do you deal with those who are not good at presenting? Because that's, that's a scary thing for some people. How do you get over that?

Emily Schneider: Yeah. So I hope that because of the work that I do with my clients, and I usually have a 10 day minimum from kickoff to final delivery.

Mm-hmm. That, that gives them the time to really digest and get excited about their content. And when I work with them, I help simplify, right? We help elevate that visual story so they're so excited to talk about it. It makes more sense, it matches up with how they feel or what they're gonna say. And so that confidence kind of is a natural cause of the work that we've done.

Angela Gennari: Very cool. That makes a lot of sense. Yeah. 'cause [00:26:00] that's, that's one thing that I hear all the time of like, I don't like to present. I feel nervous. I don't like to talk in front of people, but I think if you're talking about something that is within your wheelhouse or your comfort zone, it does make it 10 times easier.

You just have to get comfortable with the information.

Emily Schneider: Yeah, you gotta get comfortable, you gotta practice those kind of things. For sure.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Practicing for sure. I think that that's a really big deal. And then also practice in front of like a Zoom. And this is one thing I was doing before I would do any kind of public speaking, is I'd record myself on Zoom and then I'd watch it back and be like, oh, I need to stop saying, um, and I need to stop doing this.

And you realize certain things about your, I guess, um, your behaviors that you're, you're, you overlook pretty easily.

Emily Schneider: Sure I do that with podcasting. I go back and I listen and you're like, yeah, you get a little cringey, but you always learn. And that's the other thing is like. You could do. I am always a big believer of like, do it.

Do it. Yeah. And then you can figure out and you can learn and you're always gonna be better. But the first time, of course, it's gonna feel yucky and gross, even the first time [00:27:00] you use content. And uh, one of the reasons I love PowerPoint as a medium is it allows my clients to continue to evolve their presentation.

So they, we might work together to create their pitch deck. As they use it a few times, they might realize that, okay, I'm gonna flow this a little different, or I don't need to say this, or My data is updated and I can hit on this point better. And they can go in and update it, and then they still feel really good about it because it starts to evolve as they evolve, as a, as a as they share that.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Very cool. So what key elements of a successful PowerPoint presentation should we all be including?

Emily Schneider: Uh, so I think it all starts with knowing your audience. Taking time to craft your story. And I always suggest crafting it offline. So use post-it notes, use Sharpie, get your outline, your ideas written out.

You'll start to see this natural flow or how things can fit together. And then you can come to the power to the, to the presentation. Um, and I think it, it really, it's really about, again, once you know your audience, you'll know what information to keep, what to [00:28:00] highlight, what that goal is, and so you can craft the information per slide with that intention.

So it's an overall. Intention approach, and then an individual slide, um, specific intention.

Angela Gennari: Ah, very cool. Yeah, I think that's the, the hard part for people is, you know, just getting down to how do I condense all of the things that I wanna say, but you've gotta put 'em into a, a, a short amount, like a small amount of information so that it's not just rambling on about things just because you know them.

Emily Schneider: Yes, and I also am a big believer, like I don't, I don't restrict slide counts, so I think you are better off to have more slides with less on them because it, again, it slows you down as a presenter and it gives you time to talk about the right things and then you'll start to see if you really need that when you start to break it out.

That's why two to three things, the most key takeaways on a slide really helps. So if you need to divide slides up, divide 'em up, then you'll start to see what's actually, what's actually important too.

Angela Gennari: Yeah, [00:29:00] love

Emily Schneider: that. Our brains, again, digest information when, and so having a slide change gives your audience something, oh, a cue that something has has changed and I need to pay attention, or it's new and I wanna listen again.

Brief tune in. So

Angela Gennari: what is the, the, like you said, you don't restrict slide counts. That's totally makes sense, because you're right. I think too much information on a slide is just going to keep you stuck there, you know? And, and then that can, that can lead to kind of a disjointed, you know, you're not flowing through the whole thing.

So what is the a, what is the ideal time for a presentation?

Emily Schneider: So again, I think it's all dependent on where you are, who your audience is, what you're sharing. Um, I've been talking to somebody and they had a hundred slides in 10 minutes, but because of the way that they talk and their story and the, the type of slides that felt good, but another guy used 10 slides in 30 minutes Okay.

'cause of the story. So I think it really depends on what you're comfortable with and what you need and how you're sharing. Um. [00:30:00] Again, I think when you know how long you have, you can put your information in properly. I, from experience, did a masterclass and I tried to cram everything in in too short of time, and I felt rushed.

I was like, okay, next time we're gonna do this longer. Okay? Because I don't wanna take information away, but I need to, I. Give people time to digest it and me to talk through it slowly. Right? You don't, you don't wanna be like, not only yelling at people, but like rushing them through. They're not gonna pay attention anyway.

So I think it's, it's really a balance and it's knowing your audience, knowing where you're delivering, how it's gonna be interpreted, and how you can, how you can showcase what you need to say.

Angela Gennari: Very cool. Um, so what are, what are some of the mistakes that people make in their PowerPoint presentations?

Emily Schneider: Uh, going back to the death by PowerPoint.

Way too many points on the slide. Yeah. Different fonts using all different types of styles and colors and choices. Um, over, over designing and especially because we have some beautiful templates out there Yeah. Um, that you can pull from. And now with like AI and stuff and they're great, but are they highlighting.[00:31:00]

Focusing on the thing you want. So they might take your headline and put it really cool at the bottom, but like, that's not gonna be relevant to your audience. They're gonna have a hard time finding it. Um, and then over animation, I think animation, sometimes again, people think the wow factor helps elevate, but it actually just causes confusion.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. And it's distracting, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I agree. Sometimes all the, the noises and the whipping back and forth, you're like, yeah, just show me what you're trying to show me. Yes, yes. Yeah, I agree with you on that one. Um, so, okay. Very cool. So what, so when you started your business, how, what were some of the obstacles that you had to overcome in starting your business?

I.

Emily Schneider: So the first thing I think is just the awareness. Mm-hmm. So when I, I've been a freelancer for five years, so I've kind of worked for myself for, I guess six years now. Yeah. Um, and then a year ago when I niched myself, it was really just telling people, this is what I do and this is how I help people. As a general designer, creative director, people know that title.

They know that there's, you do [00:32:00] creative work, but they don't know how to use you. But when I can say I do PowerPoint design and I help leaders, you know. With, with their information and I make concise, impactful presentations that resonate properly with their audience. They're like, oh. I use PowerPoint.

Mm-hmm. I have something to tell. I need help. Right. Versus just, I'm a creative designer and I design marketing materials. Like what does that mean? Yeah. So I think it, for me, it was an awareness factor and it was doing the work to tell people. Um, and it was kind of getting out of my own way. 'cause sometimes that's really hard to tell people, Hey, I'm available or I need work.

Um, I still have a hard time and I still do it every month where I reach out to some of my favorite clients if I haven't heard from them, you know, and it's been a little bit, and I'll say, or at the end of the quarter, I did it last year, at the end of the year and was like, okay, I. You know, you don't wanna, it's, it's, there's a little bit of vulnerability, but that's the beauty of the work I do, is I get the flexibility of a freelance project.

So projects come in, projects go out, so I gotta keep that funnel going. Mm-hmm. Um, and it's raising my hand to be honest and saying, I might not know all the answers, but I [00:33:00] can figure it out whether it's for myself. Support with my client request and having communities and teams of people who you know you can rely on, who can help process or, or answer questions or just be a voice.

Because when you're running your own business and you're doing it all, it's

Angela Gennari: very

Emily Schneider: overwhelming.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. It can be for sure. And having just a sounding board is so critical. Yeah. Yeah. Just somebody to run ideas by who doesn't have a, a personal vested stake. You know, like, yeah. Yeah. If it's a spouse or family member, like sometimes you need an outside perspective where they're not just gonna tell you what they think you wanna hear, they're gonna tell you what you need to hear that that's.

That is one of the most invaluable parts of business to me.

Emily Schneider: And I think even going a step further, like I'm part of a bunch of different communities. Yeah. So I'm part of an entrepreneurs group in my, for women in my local, um, town. Yeah. I'm part of a marketing cohort, so I'm learning how to be market with other people who do totally different businesses.

I'm actually in a small business, uh, or a presentation design community for people who are building their presentation businesses. So finding like-minded people doing similar work, but [00:34:00] like-minded people doing different work. Yes, to your point, it, it opens that sounding board because my husband has great ideas.

We just had a great conversation this weekend. I'm like, you have so much passion and great ideas, but like, it doesn't work always like that. Right? Or you don't get it because you don't own a business or you're not doing all the things. So having people who can kind of push and pull you in all the ways.

I think it's, it's that well-roundedness.

Angela Gennari: Absolutely. Yeah. And, and I'm the same way. Like I'll have, um, you know, I have a, like a women's group that I belong to and, you know, sometimes they give me really great advice and then sometimes I go to, like, I'll talk to, to m and a people just about like funding and like what makes sense for growth and not because I'm trying to, you know, merger acquire, but because.

That advice is vastly different than what I'm gonna get from my people in my industry. Exactly. So, yeah. Yeah, I know. I think it's really important to have that, that diversity of thought when it comes to problem solving.

Emily Schneider: Yes. That's a great way to put it, for sure.

Angela Gennari: Mm-hmm. So how do you measure success of a, of a presentation?

[00:35:00] Like, I just finished a presentation and I get tons of questions, or I finish a presentation, I get no questions. What is better?

Emily Schneider: Um, I always think questions are better, especially when they're, when they're the questions that are guiding you to the decision you want. So if, uh, a client who had an investor meeting, right?

Like they weren't the, the goal was to update their investors and get them to continue funding with them. Yeah. And so when they, afterwards, when they're not having questions about, show me that data, or, I'm confused, but it's more of. Let's talk about the long-term plan or, that was so interesting that we invested in this way.

How do we repeat that? It's the quality and the, and the quantity of questions I think that are really, are really important. Yes, for sure. Questions are the best. Like, yeah, right? Yeah. No questions means I think you like who are you? Did anybody listen? Did they. I feel like that

Angela Gennari: confused, was I that good that I just answered all their questions?

Or, or, or, right. Was I that confusing where they're just like, I need a minute to think about all this. Right. And so yeah, I always like wonder like, should I be thankful for questions or [00:36:00] does that mean I didn't do a good job of explaining it? Like I always wondered about that.

Emily Schneider: I think questions are good. I mean, even in myself, when I get, when somebody tries to sell me something and I'm like, okay, I'm good.

And you can tell they're like running questions. You're, you know, you're not interested. Yeah. You know what I mean? But when they're interested, you're like, okay, tell me more about that, or, that was really cool. What if Those are really great. Um, those are, I think it's always better to have a, a good conversation at the end

Angela Gennari: for sure.

Yeah. Absolutely. So what do you do, you know, how do you, how do you stay inspired? How do you continue to grow and evolve in what you're doing?

Emily Schneider: Um, so I have this like really, you know, personal passion of just like my two basic, my two fears are being basic and staying still uhhuh. And so those keep me fueled very well.

Um, I kind of mentioned I have. A network of communities, various ones along with coaches and therapists and people that I can lean in. Um, and I am working really hard and I have been for the past year of finding time to take breaks, to take pauses throughout my day and learning [00:37:00] that there's actually, you know, working smarter, not harder is actually where the beauty is.

Um, and for me, that's getting offline, whether it's sketching. Not bringing my computer somewhere and doing some sketches or thinking through things. I do a lot of reading, um, about data science, about neuroscience, but also just about personal growth. So again, my mind is always fresh and I'm thinking and using tactics differently.

Um, and then it's working out as well. So again, it's, it's creating that mental and physical wellness space for me that really helps me stay inspired. And then there's always like. Blogs that I listen to, or there's a couple magazines that I grab at the library that like design wise, but mm-hmm. Really it's about getting outside of this industry to then fuel myself to, to get back into it.

Angela Gennari: I think it's brilliant that you listen to like neuroscience and things like that because all of that has something to do with how we present and how information is received and how we can be effective. So I love that stuff as well. I love to listen to books where I'm learning something about. Why people make the [00:38:00] decisions that they make and, you know, how, why, why do people buy versus not buy?

And what, yeah. You know, what leads people into a decision to do business with you? Like, I love that stuff because for me it just, it, I would much rather connect with someone who wants. To collaborate and do business. Like I go into everything as a partnership, right? Uhhuh. So even though I am their vendor, I'm also their partner because I don't wanna just be an order taker.

I feel like the collaboration is where all the magic happens.

Emily Schneider: You can. I couldn't have said that better myself. Yeah, totally. Yeah. And to your point, it's like once you can understand people better or know why mm-hmm. Or how they function, you can help them better. You can solve their problems easier. Like when I know or, and I can better understand how we and humans digest information.

I mean, the fact that we're 65% more likely to retain information when it's visually designed. Yeah. That fact alone fuels me in when I, how I lay things out. So simply of like. You don't just need a bullet, a page with three bullets, like put the bullets in a line and design them and [00:39:00] put a breaker between them, and you've got a beautiful slide that looks so different with the right amount of information or with the right, with the same amount of information.

Angela Gennari: So yeah, absolutely.

Emily Schneider: Neuroscience is really cool. Like you got about that.

Angela Gennari: Mm-hmm. Me too. Me too. Me too. I have a psychology degree, so every time I'm like, like even like things like, uh, what is it Never split the difference of book on negotiation. Like I love this stuff because to me, like I love the idea that you can negotiate with someone and you can both walk away getting what you want because that person wants to do business with you again.

You haven't burned bridges. Yeah. You know? Yeah. You haven't been there. I'm digging my. My heels in, it's gonna be my way or the highway. Like that doesn't get you anywhere. It doesn't get you long-term relationships. You want that trusted partner. And so, yeah. So things like that. I just, I, I, I geek on that.

Geek out on that too. I love that you

Emily Schneider: say that. 'cause I used to think when I first started my business and working alone, that I always put all this pressure on myself to show up to every creative review, whatever kind of work it was with a perfectly polished like. Like I, to your point, I wanted them to have no issues.

I wanted them to be like, yes, [00:40:00] we buy it. Yeah. And now my whole process is collaboration. We're gonna jump in and it's gonna be a little messy, the first two reviews because you're gonna see my work in progress and I'm gonna show you options. Or today a client was like, I like that, but like, what happens if we did it in this color?

And I was like, okay, let's look at it. Like that's why we have this time. It's, I want you to be part of the process. I don't know your business. I don't, I'm learning, but you're the expert. And if we can work together, everybody feels heard. And when you feel heard, you feel valued. And to your point, that's what a successful relationship is really about.

Angela Gennari: Absolutely. Absolutely. When, um, you know, when we go into any kind of partnership or any kind of like, uh, relationship with a new, uh, let's just say a venue, a concert venue or doing security for an event, I always say like, this is a work in progress. You know, because I used to be such a perfectionist where I had to be perfect or else everything that I promised them was gonna be garbage, right?

Uhhuh, like, they'll never trust me if we don't deliver at a hundred percent and we're perfect. So like now I go into it, I'm like, look, I [00:41:00] need. Grace for the first two times, right? Yeah. Like, I need grace. We're going to mess up. I wanna get this right for you. So I need you to just communicate every time we do something wrong, every time we do something right?

Like, I wanna know what you are thinking at all times so that I can then adjust and I can, you know, move forward from there. But like that continuous collaboration back and forth, I think is so key. Like I used to make all these promises of like, oh, it'll be perfect. It's the best you've ever had. It's gonna be this, it's gonna be this.

And now I'm like. We are going to work together to come up with the perfect solution. Yes. I love

Emily Schneider: that. Right. Well, I put it all on you because Yeah, to be honest, what they're thinking is gonna be perfect and what you're thinking is gonna be perfect are so different anyway. Absolutely. So to your point, to meet them somewhere is like such a win-win for everybody.

And it takes a lot of that. I'm, I'm a recovery perfectionist too. Uhhuh, I get that. I

Angela Gennari: feel that. So. Yes. Yeah. Well, and a lot of it, you know, the, the perfectionism comes from imposter syndrome, you know? Yes. Like when you, when you feel like, you know, maybe I don't belong in this room, you're gonna make all these [00:42:00] inflated promises, you're gonna have this pressure to be perfect.

You're gonna, and now like I've, I've gone beyond imposter syndrome, like I know we're good at what we do. Right. And so I think that actually helps me. To ask for grace from the beginning, because I'm also a realist now, and I'm like, eh, okay. I know things are gonna go a little bit wrong, or you may not be like over the moon with us in the beginning, but I just need you to talk to me about it.

If we talk about it, we get through it. You know, we set expectations properly, we move on. And so that has helped so much in building that, those trusted relationships.

Emily Schneider: Yeah. That's so insightful. Thank you for sharing. That's amazing. Yeah.

Angela Gennari: Yes. So what advice would you give to your 18-year-old self? Oh, stay curious.

Oh yeah, that's a good one.

Emily Schneider: Yeah, just like, and keep asking, asking questions.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Yeah. I think all the, the, the, the beauty is in the questions, right? I think so many times we're afraid to ask the questions and then we go through, uh, making assumptions and just ask the [00:43:00] questions.

Emily Schneider: Yeah, yeah,

Angela Gennari: for sure. I love that.

So, um, so as women, we give our power away all the time in different ways, you know, whether that might be giving somebody else credit for our work or, um, or, or just. Not stepping into our power and a and a chance that we had an opportunity to is, is there a time that you gave your power away or is there a time that you stepped into your power that you wanna talk about?

Emily Schneider: I. I feel like I have stepped into my power just in the past year as this PowerPoint queen, as like really one of my handles is in social media. But yeah, I think it's, I read a book, um, by John Dattner called The 15 Commitments of a Conscious Leader. Ooh. And through it I was really like, it felt like he was talking to me.

You know, it's one of those books. Yeah. And I got to the point where he talks about your zone of genius. And it's your zone of genius is this space where you do work that illuminates you in a way that nothing else does. Mm-hmm. And then you can shine that outward. And I have always been somebody who I loved helping people.

I loved building their confidence. I loved [00:44:00] making people smile in any way. And whether it was like doing, giving away my power by all my energy and saying yes to everything or whatever that was. Mm-hmm. And I realized that this is my zone of genius because it lights me up. I. Feel so confident. I believe in the work I love.

I love doing it in this crazy, weird PowerPoint world that I used to think was a bad word, and now I love it. Right? And I geek out about the data science and how we connect. And then the best part is, is now I can be part of the solution to help somebody else be more confident in their work. And this world is wild.

And I feel like somebody recently said we're living in the Twilight Zone. And if I can, you know, I, I'm not gonna change the world with PowerPoint, but if I can help somebody else smile and change their world or make their job a little easier so they can do their work better. That's an amazing win.

Angela Gennari: Well, and it's a win for the people who are listening to the people, because honestly, like, who doesn't wanna have a great storyteller in front of them?

Like, I'll listen all day to somebody who's a really good storyteller. Mm-hmm. Versus somebody who's just information dumping on [00:45:00] me. Right. Totally. So like, I wanna know the story, I wanna know the vulnerabilities. I wanna know what, what made you wanna do this? Why are you here? You know what created this human being in front of me?

Like, I wanna know all these things. I don't just wanna know what you're selling. I wanna know why you're selling it. So, yeah. Yeah. No, I think it makes it enjoyable for the person on the other side, not just the person doing the person team. Yeah. Right.

Emily Schneider: So it's like this ripple effect and it all starts and again, it's like this, this concept of your zone of genius and being this thing that illuminates you and so that I have stepped into that.

I've owned it. I use that term. Um, I know this is my magical map and I love that I get to share it with people.

Angela Gennari: Oh, that is so cool. I wish we would all get to that place where we feel like we are in our zone of genius. 'cause I just love that phrase.

Emily Schneider: I think you can, I think it just, it takes being curious and it takes the work.

Mm-hmm. And

Angela Gennari: it,

Emily Schneider: you know, it wasn't, it wasn't, it was not an all upward journey for sure. And it's still not Yeah. It's, it's, it's, it's, it's definitely a process, but it's part of, it's a, it's a great ride.

Angela Gennari: Yeah. Absolutely. Emily, this has been such a fun conversation and I hate that it's coming to a close because you are [00:46:00] just so interesting and fun to talk to.

Emily Schneider: Oh, thank you so much, Angela. It was such, so great to be here. I loved it too.

Angela Gennari: Yes. So one more question for you. Um, what do you wish more people knew?

Emily Schneider: Oh, that's a good one. I think that the power of kindness can just like, really help everybody.

Angela Gennari: Yes, yes. Amen to that. Yeah, I agree. We could all be a little bit more kind to each other.

It's amazing what'll happen. Yeah. Well, thank you so much, Emily. This has been such a pleasure. So where can people find you?

Emily Schneider: Yes. So my website is a great place to start to learn more about my work, see some examples. That is I am emily schneider.com. Okay. I also wanna give a little plug that I have a free resources tab on there so you can download my one pager, which talks about some of the tips that we went through about how to craft the presentation.

And you also can get, um, uh, access to my webinar, uh, and watch that video. So where I do some training again, so a little bit more of how to, how to [00:47:00] apply these principles into your own world. Um, but I also. I'm on LinkedIn and I love connecting and networking on there too.

Angela Gennari: Very cool. Well, thank you so much and again, you've been a, a pleasure to talk to and I've just learned a ton as I'm, as, I'm actually doing some PowerPoint presentations now, so this has been super helpful for me.

Emily Schneider: Awesome. Thank you so much. It was so nice to be here.

Angela Gennari: Absolutely. So we will see you guys all on pretty powerful podcasts next time. And if you wanna check out Emily Schneider, she's also going to be on pretty powerful podcast.com. Have a great day everybody. Bye-bye.

Intro: Thank you for joining our guest on the pretty powerful podcast.

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