About a year ago, I wrote how PowerPoint-based presentations are a sales killer, and recently an incident in the sports world reinforced my claim. In my post last year, I argued PowerPoints were counter-productive because rather than encouraging a dialogue they presented only what you felt your audience wanted to hear.
Even Kobe Bryant fails with PowerPoints
This summer, Kobe Bryant and the LA Lakers learned about the shortcomings of PowerPoints that I described (I’m a little shocked Kobe is not reading my blog regularly, but I guess he was busy rehabilitating). Kobe and the Lakers were trying to entice free agent LaMarcus Aldridge, who was being pursued by multiple NBA teams, to sign with the Lakers. When they met with Aldridge, they put on a beautiful presentation on the benefits of playing with the Lakers and playing in Los Angeles.
Following the meeting, the Lakers felt it went very well because the presentation was so powerful but it was actually a disaster. According to Business Insider, the Lakers felt they had a 50 percent chance at Aldridge and that the meeting went “very well.”
In reality, Aldridge considered it a disaster because the Lakers did not convince him how the team would become a championship contender. He felt the presentation focused too much on outside opportunities, not on basketball. Aldridge subsequently signed with the San Antonio Spurs. Continue reading “Why PowerPoints are often awful”