Shufflrr: Conversation with James Ontra

James Ontra has specialized in digital presentations for over 20 years. In the early 90s, when PCs first offered sight, sound and motion, James developed applications implemented at high profile events like CES, the Olympics and exhibits in Epcot Center. As technology evolved and video became more mainstream, he developed presentation management platforms that could be used in everyday business scenarios. Through several businesses -- iXL, Ontra Presentations, PPTshuffle and now, Shufflrr, James has solely focused on methods to manage all file formats, PowerPoint in particular, for better presentations.

In this conversation, James discusses Shufflrr.

Geetesh: What exactly is Shufflrr, and what motivated you to create this platform?

James: Shufflrr is presentation management -- a document management system for presentations. We developed it simply because our clients asked for it. Over the years, clients from a range of industries all faced the same challenge: controlling their brand and message across a dispersed group of users, while at the same time, giving those same users a fast, easy way to create and share a presentation. Add reporting and other functionality, and you have a holistic approach to managing presentations. Corporations are waking up to the value of treating presentations as an important part of the marketing mix. And Shufflrr makes it easy for them to do so.



Geetesh: There are other Shufflrr alternatives out there, but you seem to have added features to make Shufflrr easier to use and share – can you tell us more?

James: We offer a holistic approach to presentation management, summed up best by our tagline, Share, Shuffle, Show:

1. Share: Sharing is on two levels. First, you can send links to anyone inside or outside the Shufflrr network, and/or collaborate in a folder with a colleague. Second, Shufflrr is business social. It is a closed network of your company colleagues who can share, like and comment on your marketing materials. It’s a great way for marketing department or corporate office to get spontaneous and direct feedback from their users in the field


2. Shuffle: Not only can you find and preview PowerPoint slides, but all files are formatted to present visually. So you can take PowerPoint slides, videos, pictures, PDFs and make a new up-to-date, legally compliant presentation in minutes that just works.


3. Show: Not only can you find and preview PowerPoint slides, but all files are formatted to present visually. So you can take PowerPoint slides, videos, pictures, PDFs and make a new up-to-date, legally compliant presentation in minutes that just works.

---