Blog posts tagged SlideShare

SlideShare: The YouTube of PowerPoint

When we talk about the business use of social media, we tend to make a few distinctions. The first is that some social marketing channels are better for talking to consumers (Twitter and Facebook) and that others are better for networking with businesses (LinkedIn, Ecademy).

Then we talk about engagement (having conversations, basically) and broadcasting (pushing out a message). Social media types generally view broadcasting as a no-no. But there’s a place for it. YouTube straddles the divide between the two - it’s a broadcast that encourages interaction via comments, shares and simply embedding the video in your own site. YouTube is great and video works really well as a promotional tool. But we’re very aware that not so many small businesses have the confidence, the time or the technical skills to make a video.

So what other options are there? There’s podcasting, but the same caveats apply. This week I’ve been taking a look at something that does pretty much the same as YouTube, but using software that many business owners will already be familiar with. If you’ve ever used PowerPoint to create a sales presentation, you can use SlideShare to broadcast it to the world. SlideShare is basically the YouTube of PowerPoint. You create a presentation, download it and share the link. Other people can view it, comment on it, embed it in their own site.

Presentations may not necessarily be as immediate as videos, but think about it: how much more convenient is this than emailing a great big file to lots of people over and over? And what about the opportunity to pick up ‘floating’ prospects who just happen to be browsing in a related topic area?

So what can you use it for? Well, most people seem to use it to talk about the service they provide (there are a lot of consultants touting their expertise), particularly in social media; some people are using it to preview longer publications;  some people are using it to present statistics or arguments; yet others are using SlideShare as a basic product catalogue. Personally, I think simple step-by-step guides work well and can be helpful to businesses selling products that require a degree of technical skill (being a cyclist, I rather like this one on fitting a bike tyre).

Much like YouTube, the quality of presentations is variable and they range from the trivial to the profound. But it’s fun looking at things and you might just find a useful outlet here for your own business. If you do, the same rules apply as for a presentation to an audience: be clear, be simple, illustrate your point well and don’t use loads of text, like these guys.

Anyway, the reason I was looking at SlideShare is because I’ve been reviewing some content produced by one of our sponsors, business software company SAGE. I’ve been looking specifically for material that is of use to small business owners - ie, not pushing product, but sharing knowledge. Frankly, this is something not many FTSE 100 businesses do, but Sage are a bit more savvy with their social media use than a lot of other big firms. I came across this SlideShare presentation - I like the way it intersperses the more general observations with specific tips about using social media in your business. Equally smart is that when you think of Sage, you don’t think social media - but that’s how oblique modern marketing is.

I’d be keen to hear what you think about SlideShare and whether we should produce a guide to using it effectively. I’d also like to know what type of content you like to read generally - maybe you subscribe to an e-newsletter, read a blog or always click the links from a particular business Twitter account? Post your thoughts or a link to your favourite content and we’ll make sure we look at what’s interesting to you and your business.