2010 Version Includes Sought-After MS Visio® Filter, Large Scale Project Management, SharePoint® Collaboration

SAN DIEGO — (BUSINESS WIRE) — September 1, 2009

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SmartDraw.com, maker of the SmartDraw, the software that helps you work smarter by communicating visually, today announced the release of SmartDraw 2010, a new offering aimed at helping organizations put an end to communication breakdown by enabling the average businessperson to communicate effectively using visuals.

“In this economy nobody can afford new software that offers only a few fancy new bells and whistles,” says Paul Stannard, CEO of SmartDraw.com. “People and their organizations are only going to invest in new software if the product can offer substantial return on investment, and that’s exactly what we have delivered with SmartDraw 2010.”

Eliminating Workplace Problems through More Effective Communication

SmartDraw software enables the average business person to communicate more effectively through visuals. Studies have shown that communication which includes both words and visuals is up to six times more effective than words alone. A flowchart is a more effective tool for explaining a process than a long list of numbered steps; an organizational chart is a more effective tool for communicating the structure of an organization than a page-long written description; and so forth.

Most people don’t use any kind of visual when they communicate because they think that it’s too difficult to do.

SmartDraw 2010 automates the tedious tasks that used to make drawing difficult and makes it possible for the average businessperson to communicate complex information and ideas clearly and quickly.

Business Problems Solved with SmartDraw 2010

SmartDraw 2010’s improvements are aimed at helping businesspeople do the following:

• Eliminate Poorly Defined Projects - Projects often run late for several reasons; not having all of the actual work identified properly at the beginning of the project is one of the most common reasons. SmartDraw 2010 helps prevent this problem by giving users the ability to begin a project as a mind map which they can use to identify all of their tasks, and then seamlessly transition from a mind map to a project chart that can be used for scheduling.
• Avoid Boring, Ineffective Presentations – PowerPoint isn’t a great tool for planning or even building a presentation, as evidenced when presenters read individual bullet points word-for-word from their slides. SmartDraw 2010 makes up for PowerPoint®’s limitations by giving users the ability to properly plan entire presentations with storyboards, sequence their charts and diagrams with animation, and even build full PowerPoint® presentations directly from SmartDraw.
• Keep Larger Projects Under Control – Complicated projects that involve a large number of people and tasks often spiral out of control because the people managing them can’t properly track progress or manage the details of who’s supposed to be working on what. SmartDraw 2010 gives users the ability to keep larger projects under control with smarter, more flexible project charts; users can hide and expand groups of tasks to avoid information overload, track progress more clearly, view projects as a timeline, and more.
• Prevent Botched Jobs – Botched jobs occur when people are unclear about who is responsible for what, when the technical details of a job are not well-understood, or when employees have not been properly trained to do their work. SmartDraw 2010 can help prevent botched jobs by giving everyone in the organization the ability to communicate work details, responsibilities, and anything else effectively using visuals. Users can embed all of their visuals into any Microsoft Office® document, share their work with Microsoft SharePoint® integration, or even import Microsoft Visio® documents directly into SmartDraw.

Learn more about how SmartDraw 2010 can help organizations overcome communication problems by viewing SmartDraw’s guided tour video or by downloading a free trial of SmartDraw.

About SmartDraw.com

SmartDraw.com is the creator of SmartDraw, software that helps you work smarter by communicating visually. Because people are six times more likely to retain and understand information presented to them visually, SmartDraw helps businesses increase their bottom line by improving communication, refining operations, completing projects on time, and successfully implementing their plans. Whether it’s a flowchart to explain a business process, a Gantt chart to show a project schedule or an organizational chart, SmartDraw is unique because it draws more than 70 different types of visuals for you, including timelines, maps, charts, decision trees and floor plans, resulting in presentation-quality visuals in just minutes. The company’s customers include more than half of the members of the Fortune 500, 2,000 K-12 schools and universities, and thousands of law firms, police departments, health systems and private enterprises of all sizes. In fact, SmartDraw is downloaded more than 3 million times each year. Founded in 1994, SmartDraw.com is a privately-held, San Diego, CA-based company and is part of the Working Smarter Network. For more information or to download a free trial version, please visit www.smartdraw.com .