My first introduction to Prezi was during a student presentation in my college class in spring 2011. I was impressed by its visually pleasing, cutting-edge style and noticed that many students quickly adopted Prezi for future assignments. I soon realized that this presentation revolution was not only spreading rapidly across my college campus, but also through the professional realm as showcased by guest speakers on campus. Even TED Conferences became an investor and major user of Prezi.Prezi Logo

So as we have done for other new tools such as Google+ and Pinterest, I decided to explore the practical uses of this trending technology.

 What is Prezi?

Prezi is a cloud-based presentation software that allows users to create interesting, multi-dimensional presentations that go above and beyond a typical presentation. Instead of the usual linear presentation, Prezi enables users to create a visual map so viewers can zoom in and out interactively. Because it is still relatively new and quite different from previous presentation software, Prezi helps companies differentiate themselves by creating presentations that stand out and are memorable. Prezi incorporates psychology in its design based on how visual images and space affect memory.

Why should I look into this?

Presenters using Prezi can literally zoom out to show the big picture and zoom in to detail the finer points of the presentation. In Susan Gunelius’ Forbes article, she quotes Ben Rigby of Sparked.com:

Prezi allows us to present high-level information, but if an audience member asks a specific question, we can use Prezi’s zoom function to dive into detail without opening new documents or skipping around in our presentation.

Gunelius herself describes Prezi as a “free and easy to use presentation tool that enables you to create visually engaging and unique presentations with little technical knowledge.”

Resource Rich

Easy to learn and use, Prezi offers tutorials, web sessions, peer support groups, and templates to make using Prezi painless and fast.

  • Ned Potter, ABC News Science and Technology reporter, created the presentation below that offers some helpful tips for effectively using Prezi.

Like many online service companies, Prezi is continually adding new features for their customers. Two features I want to highlight are Prezi Meeting and Prezi Viewer for iPad.

Two Powerful Prezi Features

  • Prezi Meeting allows users to use Prezi as a collaborative Web 2.0 tool. This feature, available on all Prezi platforms, promotes team use and interaction. Up to 10 users can simultaneously participate in the presentation – they can all be in the same building or in different countries. This Google Docs-like feature allows the team members to view, edit, and also have multiple presenters of the Prezi.
  • Today mobile-compatible offerings are essential for any online service. The Prezi Viewer for iPad app allows users to view, pan, and zoom in and out of their presentation on their iPad. Initially editing was not possible using the Prezi iPad app, but the latest premium version (but not the new iPhone version), is now fully functional.

To me, Prezi looks like a powerful new tool worth exploring further. What are your thoughts on these services from Prezi?

Prezi is using a freemium business model, with basic features provided at no cost and advanced features available for a premium.