Autumn is a busy time for professional speakers, with many events targeted specifically at the small business community. These are usually put together with the financial support of a commercial organisation. But when it is explained that, before proceedings start, there will be a short message from the sponsor, a cold chill always runs through the audience.

Bad sponsor presentations follow a predictable format. First, some random statistics about the economy and market are presented with no relevant context. Then there is an overcomplicated and unreadable slide detailing the organisational structure of the company. Finally, the company’s products and services are listed, in bullet-point form.