In today’s fast-paced business environment, effectively communicating complex information is crucial.
VisibleThread recently hosted a webinar titled “At a Glance Graphics” with expert Mike Parkinson, focusing on proposal graphics. Mike is a self professed geek. He is a CPP APMP Fellow, 1 of 36 Microsoft PowerPoint MVPs in the world, a best-selling author, and an industry thought leader. Mike is a partner at 24 Hour Company (www.24hrco.com), a premier creative services firm, and owns Billion Dollar Graphics (www.BillionDollarGraphics.com).
The webinar explored the latest trends and techniques for turning words and data into engaging visuals that grab attention and convey messages clearly. For professionals looking to improve their bids and proposals, mastering these graphic creation skills is not just helpful—it’s essential.
During the webinar, participants shared their biggest challenges when creating proposal graphics. The results showed: 45% struggle with finding the right tools, 35% face time constraints, and 20% lack design skills. Mike highlighted three key takeaways from these findings:
- Finding the right tools: Nearly half of the participants need help selecting graphic creation tools. This emphasizes the importance of recommending easy-to-use and efficient tools.
- Time constraints: Over a third are short on time, indicating a need for streamlined processes and time-saving tools in graphic creation.
- Design skills: A smaller but significant portion lacks design expertise, suggesting that training or accessible resources would be helpful.
Mike shared practical tips and techniques to help professionals create winning proposal graphics. He discussed how to effectively communicate complex information using the latest trends and methods for creating engaging visuals. Let’s look at the key takeaways from this session and learn how to transform your proposals with effective graphics.
Key Takeaways
- Clarity is king: Mike emphasizes that modern evaluators want clear, concise information. Effective at-a-glance graphics prevent miscommunication and ensure a message is understood immediately.
- Latest trends in graphic design: The webinar introduces the latest tools and software for converting text into engaging visuals. This includes vector-based graphics using PowerPoint, and Adobe Illustrator.
- Power of visual communication: Mike highlights that well-designed graphics have a lasting impact. Combining text and visuals can create a powerful “marriage made in heaven,” significantly enhancing proposal effectiveness.
- Enhancing bids and proposals: By using the GASCAP method, you can craft compelling graphics that showcase your proposal’s strengths. The GASCAP method stands for Goal, Announcement, Story, Chunk, Assemble, and Picture. This approach boosts your chances of winning contracts.
Graphics aren't better than text and text isn't better than graphics. You put them together, you have a marriage made in heaven.
