Presenting new ideas, whether it's to your in-house team, your board, or a green audience at a conference, is your time to shine.

This is your moment to tell a captive audience just exactly why your product or business is the bee's knees.

Yes, public speaking is terrifying, which also means it's exhilarating. 

One of the quickest ways to flourish (or flunk) a presentation is to use visual aides. The next time you're presenting, mesmerize your audience with one of these hip, modern presentation tools. 

Say NO to PowerPoint

PowerPoint was invented in 1990, right around the time of the personal computer. Yeah, it's that old. PowerPoint hasn't fundamentally changed their program since that time.

Sure, there are new background slides and video can be integrated. But, overall, PowerPoint is the same old blah that it's always been.

If your garden business chooses to present with PowerPoint, you're saying that your brand just keeps doing what works. Traditional isn't always bad, but it sure isn't memorable.

With your presentations, you want and need to innovate. Be an industry leader, who's not afraid to try new tricks.

Alteratives to PowerPoint

PowerPoint is out. Simple as that. Since 1990, there have been countless new, interesting ways to capture your audience's attention during a presentation.

By using new forms of media during your presentations, you guarantee your audience will think your brand is modern, forward-thinking, and ready for fresh ideas--in every way.

PowToon

Ignore the cutesy name. PowToon is actually a really powerful tool for your garden business. PowToon allows you to create animated videos. You need no design experience, and you can still create "look and feel" animated presentations.

PowToon is a drag and drop way to create stellar presentations like nothing you've ever seen before.

You do need to pay for PowToon, but the price is worth every penny--and way more. Up until this point, animated presentations have cost upward of $2,000 dollars! But, your business can pay a monthly fee of just $19, or a one-charge fee of $8 for each presentation.

PowToon integrates seamlessly onto your garden blog or website, so it's an investment that will last and forever be remembered.

 SlideSnack

If you like the general format of PowerPoint, then you'll love working in SlideSnack. SlideSnack is a modernized version of PowerPoint.  SlideSnack looks fresh, but keeps the slide feature you've become accustomed to in PowerPoint. Also, SlideSnack is optimized for sharing on Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube--of course, you get the direct url link to your presentation too!

SlideSnack looks sleek and has oodles of free backgrounds that look like your in-house designer made them. I promise they're that good. And, SlideSnack allows you to upload audio and save the presentation as a video if you so choose.

SlideSnack takes all of the features of PowerPoint you love and brings them into the 21st century, for free.

Prezi

Prezi is one of my FAVORITE ways to spice up presentations. Instead of being linear, Prezi works like a mindmap with an explosive, visual experience that creates a story arc. The images and backgrounds on Prezi are inspired by sleek, modern infographics, which all work together to zoom in and out and create stories within stories.

Plus, Prezi allows you to upload and revamp exisiting PowerPoint presentations. You also get a url for each presentation and can download it.

Try out these new ways to give a stellar, creative presentation to remain a garden industry leader!

Craving even more ways to be a garden industry leader? Read our 2013 Garden Trends report below!