Member Article

Quit the Clutter - 5 Tips to cutting text-heavy presentations

It’s very easy to fall into the trap of creating a text-heavy presentation – particularly if you’re working quickly, or have a lot of information to share in a short amount of time. However, recent research from University of Harvard shows presenters and presentations are typically rated worse if they have too much text, and not enough graphs, images, and animations. Harvard also found audience members were less likely to make a ‘positive decision’ following the presentation if it was too text-heavy. Generally, you are more likely to concentrate on any piece of material if it is visually more exciting, split into smaller paragraphs and concise. When creating your presentation, this will be vital if you want to get your across and make it visually appealing for your audience - dodging any text-heavy material is point key. We’re far from the days of filling your screen with as much text as possible in order to get across all the information, statistics and graphs you think necessary. As technology has evolved, so has the method of presenting. With this in mind, we’ve come up with a few tips on creating a more concise, creative and attention seizing presentation.

1) Every Image Should Serve a Purpose

Make sure every image in your presentation serves a purpose. Simply adding images to an already crowded slide isn’t going to help. Your images should replace text and provide context to your speech – they need to be relevant and relatable. An easy way to ensure this is to draw out your presentation on paper or use post-it notes first to build from images you might already have in mind. From there you will be able to include the most important facts or quotes. Think of it like building a house – consider the foundation, the main building blocks, the roof (or conclusion) and then what can be added to make the interior more exciting. It is important to make sure that you have something to say about your images that is not only a vital talking point but one that will make a lasting impression on your audience. You should be able to talk people through your images, let your visual image sink in whilst you talk through your presentation – it will keep your audience engaged and is more likely to be remembered later. This is especially important when considering your first and last screens – what is the one thing you want the audience to remember when you finish talking?

2) Be eye-catching

It’s inevitable that some portions of your presentation will require more text than others. When showcasing results, or the technical specifications of a product, you will need more text than you would prefer. It is still important however, to make certain things stand out more than others. Highlighting specific words or phrases will make it much easier for your audience to remember your screens – I would suggest picking one or two key facts that you want your audience to remember and make them stand out.

By breaking up the text and splitting the information across your slide will help break down the heavy block of text. It will also help your audience by telling them exactly where to focus their attention rights from the beginning of each screen. Highlighting your fact or quote is the best way to grab your audience’s attention, but you don’t want to go overboard and highlight everything – other methods you can employ are using italics, quote bubbles or making the text bold.

3) Background Imagery

Keeping the attention of your audience is only half the battle, the hardest part is getting them to focus in the first place. You want to start and end your presentation with an image that encourages engagement before you even begin speaking. Imagine taking your audience to an art gallery, you don’t want the artwork to be plain and boring, but at the same time you don’t want to scare them away.

Starting out with the right background image is key. By using one image strategically throughout your presentation, alongside the structure of your topics, you will create an effective and memorable masterpiece. When choosing a colour or image for your background, consider the psychology of colours, what will make your audience feel a certain way towards your presentation. Research shows that people associate colours like red and purple as bold and creative, whereas blues and greys are seen as trustworthy and logical.
People are more likely to engage in a presentation that is clear, colourful and crisp. You will want to be bold and striking but be wary that this may come across too strong and you will instantly lose the attention of your audience. Finding a good balance is ideal but consider what you are presenting and how you want your audience to feel when you’re finished e.g. filtering red tones into a pitch about new ideas will make your audience more excited and inspired.

4) Symbols & Motifs

By setting a motif you will visually tie your presentation together, grabbing the attention of your audience and keeping them engaged. According to research by Thorpe, it takes only ¼ second for the human brain to process and attach meaning to a symbol. In comparison, it takes on average 6 seconds to read 20-25 words. When making your presentation, you should begin by using relatable symbols or images as talking points and build out from there. This will help your audience remember your presentation, even if they weren’t engaged, they are more likely to process and remember your image than they would a heavy chunk of text.

5) Making an emotional connection

One of the last things you’d consider when making a presentation is building an emotional connection with your audience. However, you should aim to provoke your audience through both verbal and visual imagery.

Emotive storytelling has been proven to be a more effective method when encouraging your audience to engage in your presentation and evoke emotions. Using a more conversational presenting style lets you adapt your style and delivery for a more relaxing and engaging experience. The storytelling approach allows you to take your audience on a collaborative journey, encouraging involvement and engagement with your presentation from beginning to end.

When developing a presentation is can be easy to slip into old ways and include more text than necessary. You need to keep your audience at the forefront the entire time and begin with the end in mind. When your audience walks out of the room, what message do you want them to remember the most? Planning your presentation beforehand is as important as planning how you’re going to build a house. Without the right foundations or building blocks, it may just crumble and certainly won’t look pretty.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Prezi Next .