Franklin Covey Shares Framework to Turn Presentations Into Action

Key Points

• Franklin Covey outlined a three-step presentation framework: develop the story around audience needs, design visuals that support the message, and deliver it authentically to inspire action.
• Effective presentations should combine clarity and connection, position the audience as the main character, define the desired outcome, and explain the benefits of action versus the risks of inaction.
• The webinar emphasized using stories and simplified, audience-focused visuals to make ideas memorable, while adapting delivery and engagement methods for in-person, virtual and hybrid settings.

Franklin Covey NYSE: FC outlined a presentation-development framework aimed at helping professionals move audiences from receiving information to taking action during a webinar led by Darren, an executive coach and senior leadership consultant at the company.

The session, titled “Presenting for Impact: Inspire Your Audience to Action,” focused on the role of clarity, audience connection, storytelling, visual design and authentic delivery in workplace presentations. Darren said presentations can influence decisions, deals and alignment around priorities, but messages may fail when content does not resonate with the intended audience.

“Every presentation is a moment,” Darren said. “A moment where something is either won or it’s lost.”

He described FranklinCovey’s broader work as providing organizations with a “human edge” in strategy execution, leadership capability and culture development. According to Darren, the company’s approach seeks to combine high-impact consulting with solutions that can be deployed at organizational scale.

Presentation as a Story

Darren encouraged attendees to view a presentation not simply as a collection of information, but as “a story about the value of your idea, product, or service.” He said this framing shifts a presenter’s focus from the points they want to make toward the information an audience needs to hear.

He identified clarity and connection as two core principles of effective communication. Clarity without connection may inform an audience without making them care, he said, while connection without clarity may entertain an audience without giving it a clear understanding of what to do next. Combining both can create the conditions to inspire action.

The company’s three-step process is built around:

• Developing the story by identifying the audience’s needs and obstacles;
• Designing the experience through visuals that support the message; and
• Delivering the presentation in an authentic, engaging manner.

In developing a presentation, Darren advised participants to make the audience the “main character.” Presenters should consider what an audience wants, what barriers stand in its way and how the proposed message or solution can help overcome those barriers, he said.

He also recommended defining the desired future state by considering what the audience should do, know and feel after the presentation, then comparing that with its current actions, knowledge and feelings.

Setting Stakes and Using Stories

Darren said presenters should establish why their message matters to the audience, including what benefits may result from action and what risks may arise from inaction. He suggested a “story synopsis” format: a presentation should help a particular audience address a defined challenge or goal through a proposed solution.

For structuring a presentation, he pointed to a “three big ideas” approach. Presenters can first brainstorm all relevant points without judging them, then organize those points into themes. Each major idea can follow a “state, support and signal” structure: state the point, support it with evidence or examples, and signal the transition to the next point.

The webinar also emphasized storytelling as a way to add meaning to a message. Darren cited the Significant Objects project, describing an experiment in which a felt mouse purchased for $0.50 was relisted with a story about bringing good luck and later sold for $62. He said the broader experiment sold $129 worth of thrift-store goods for more than $3,600 after stories were attached to the products.

Stories can help audiences remember ideas and connect them to their own experiences, he said. He also encouraged participants to use personal anecdotes, examples and narratives to give context to data rather than relying only on statistics.

Visual Design and Delivery

When designing slides, Darren said visuals should serve the audience and advance the story rather than function as a presenter’s notes or memory aid. He urged participants to simplify content, use one main idea per slide and create a clear visual hierarchy so viewers can quickly identify the central point and supporting information.

He cautioned against overcrowded text, excessive imagery and charts that make it difficult to see the intended message. For data-heavy presentations, he suggested selecting visual formats that best fit the point being made and using approved artificial intelligence tools, where applicable, to consider alternative data visualizations.

Darren also said presenters should plan for the setting, whether in-person, virtual or hybrid, and communicate how and when questions will be handled. He noted that hybrid presentations require deliberate engagement across both remote and in-room participants.

On delivery, he said effective presenters do not need a particular personality type or level of charisma. Rather, they should speak naturally, communicate with conviction and engage audiences in ways that feel authentic to them. He encouraged attendees who experience presentation anxiety to “name it, tame it and reframe it” by identifying the emotion, examining the underlying belief and adopting a more constructive perspective.

The session concluded with FranklinCovey offering attendees a downloadable resource covering the concepts discussed and directing those interested in expanding the approach within their organizations to continue the conversation with the company.

About Franklin Covey (NYSE:FC)

Franklin Covey Co NYSE: FC is a global consulting and training firm specializing in performance improvement solutions for individuals and organizations. The company offers a range of services, including leadership development, productivity tools, execution frameworks and assessments designed to foster personal effectiveness and drive business results. Its flagship offerings integrate training workshops, digital resources and coaching to support clients in areas such as strategic planning, team productivity and change management.

The origins of Franklin Covey trace back to the merger in 1997 of Franklin Quest Co, founded in 1983 by Hyrum W.

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