Seeing Is Believing: Making Your Presentations
Visual
By: Diane DiResta
You've written your speech and you're ready to go. But have
you considered visual aids? It's true that the speaker is the
most important visual but there are some good reasons for creating
visual aids.
Reasons for Using Visual Aids
The brain thinks in pictures and most people are visual learners.
If you want your audience or prospect to remember the message,
add some graphics. Studies by 3M, Wharton School of Business,
and University of Michigan, prove that retention increases
by 70-80 per cent when there are visuals. Visual aids also
add interest, drama, and can serve as your notes. (You'll never
go blank again).
Guidelines for Creating Visual Aids
To create visuals that are effective, here are some principles to guide you.
K.I.S.S. Keep it short and simple. Charts that are busy will
distract the viewer. Create lots of white space and use bullet
points. Sentences will cause you to read and you will lose
the audience.
K.I.L.L. Keep it large and legible. Small print will not project
to the back row and large, bold print makes a stronger impact.
Landscape. You can fit more on a landscape or horizontal plane.
Accurate. Proof your visuals for typos and content errors. If you created
them, have somebody else double check for you.
Color. Add color to your visuals. Black and white is boring.
Certain color associations will add drama and aid retention.
For example, red signifies deficit, danger, excitement. Green
indicates growth, new beginnings, acceleration.
Blue is perceived as stable and calming.
Graphics.Convert text to graphics when possible. Use pie charts, bar graphs,
organization charts, and symbols. The audience will remember pictures over
words.
Tips for Using Color, Graphics, and Text
Color
- Include no more than four colors per slide.
- Use dark print on a light background or light print on a dark background.
- Maintain the same background color throughout your presentation.
- Don't use red for text. It's difficult to read.
- Yellow and white print reflect light best. Use them for text, with a dark
background.
- Avoid using red/green contrasts. Some people are color blind. Research
by MediaNet indicates that 22% of men have this color deficiency.
- Use the earth-to-sky formula when sequencing color-that is, a darker- to-
lighter sequence.
According to Tom Mucciolo and Rich Mucciolo, authors of Purpose,
Movement and Color, "selected colors should follow a natural
viewing pattern.". For example, the earth is dark, the
trees are green, the sky is blue, and the sun is yellow. Start
dark at the bottom and get lighter as you move up.
Color creates associations in the minds of your audience.
So consider your purpose when choosing background colors.
Red stimulates emotion. It works well for sales and marketing
presentations. Red means passion, competition, danger, error,
downturn. Red can fatigue the eye. If red is too intense for
some people, burgundy is a good alternative.
Green inspires involvement or interaction. It works for training
sessions or for gaining participation. Green means social,
intelligent, open, growth, money, readiness, new beginnings.
A green arrow on a slide would indicate an upturn or growth.
Gray communicates a lack of commitment or neutrality. A gray
background would not be persuasive. Instead, gray is best used
as a bridge between different slide segments.
Blue is a calm, conservative color. It suggests trust, stability,
loyalty, tradition. Many corporate logos are blue. Where red
stimulates, blue lowers the viewer's blood pressure and heart
rate. To increase your credibility, choose blue.
Yellow signifies cheerfulness and hope for the future, but
also restlessness and change. Yellow creates too much glare
and brightness for a background color. It is best used for
headings.
Purple has a mystical quality. It may represent fantasy. It
's not a good color for business information because it may
not be perceived as important. Use purple backgrounds for fun,
humorous, or light topics.
Brown is perceived as passive, searching for something solid.
So it's best not to use brown for business backgrounds. It
will be seen as unstable and less credible than other colors.
Black signifies power and sophistication. Black absorbs all
light, making objects appear closer to the eye. A black background
is ideal for things that have happened or situations in which
the audience has no choice but to accept the data. (e.g., unchanging
financial data.) Black removes emotion. You may not want a
black background for a sales presentation.
Graphics
Bar charts-show comparisons or data over specific time periods
(e.g., quarterly, yearly)
Line charts-show data over many time periods so that you can
see trends.
Pie charts-show the relation of parts to the whole (e.g.,
the percentage of the budget that goes toward office equipment)
Organization charts-show hierarchy and reporting relationships.
Diagrams-show an order, a structure, or a flow. Examples:
flowcharts and Gantt charts (a chart to visually measure steps
and progress on a project).
Symbols-represent concepts without words (e.g., a dollar sign for money)
Cartoons-add humor and get your point across memorably. (You
may need permission from the cartoonist to use them in your
presentation).
Photos of a real person or location-add realism and personal
recognition.
Graphics combined with bullets are very effective. Clip art
comes packaged with most presentation software.
Text
- Use short titles
- Create a lot of white space. Follow the 6X6 Rule. No more than six words
per line, no more than six lines per slide.
- Express only one thought per line.
- Use uppercase and lowercase text. It's easier on the eye.
- Use no more than two fonts. Choose a serif font such as Times Roman, for
titles and a non-serif font, such as Helvetica for bulleted points.
Public Speaking
- Prepare
- Rehearse
- Succeed
- Use boldface and underlining to direct people's eyes and
to create movement.
- Use UPPERCASE letters to emphasize important words in a
paragraph. (If you use uppercase for more than seven consecutive
words the audience will have to reread the visual.)
Choosing the Right Visual Aids
There are several types of visual aids you might use: flip
charts, overheads, 35MM slides, videos, handouts, whiteboards,
props, computers, and multimedia. How do you choose the right
visual aids for your presentation? It depends on several factors:
Size of the group. For groups of 100 or more, you're better
off with 35MM slides or computer projection.
Room set-up. If you have no table space in your presentation
venue, you may not want to use overheads.
Budget. With a limited budget, you won't be able to produce
a video or rent audio-visual equipment. Props and handouts
may be a better choice.
Company culture. Organizations often have a preferred medium.
If everyone in the organization uses overheads, chances are
you'll have to as well.
Purpose of the presentation. Are you presenting to train others?
If so, you may want to use flip charts. Are you presenting
to sell your product to an upscale crowd? Then you'll want
state-of-the art technology.
Your comfort level. Most speakers choose what's comfortable
for them. Some presenters may never use overheads because they
find them clumsy. Choose what works for you and your audience.
Visual aids can make or break your presentation. Choose them wisely and remember:
You are the most important visual aid!
Diane DiResta shows people how to create high-trust connections
every time they speak. Diane is an international speaker,
coach, and author of KNOCKOUT PRESENTATIONS. To read a free
chapter or to learn about company programs, visit http://www.diresta.com.
