People have long been researching the effectiveness of using visual aids in presentations. In fact, the Management Information Systems Research Center at the University of Minnesota conducted a study in 1986 that was “designed to systematically explore how computer generated visual support affects the persuasiveness of a presentation.”
The results of the study were released in a report titled “Persuasion and the Role of Visual Presentation Support: The UM/3M Study” and concluded that: “Perceptions of the presenter, as well as audience attention, comprehension, yielding and retention are enhanced when presentation support is used compared to when it is not. Presentations using visual aids were found to be 43% more persuasive than unaided presentations.”
And to think, the University of Minnesota study tested only the visual aids available in 1986: overheads and 35-millimetre slides! It’s fascinating to think about how much technology has changed and improved with the advent of presentation software like PowerPoint, Keynote and Prezi.
The study may be 26 years old, but it still resonates today. And the importance of visuals in presentations has been proven again and again. For instance, more recent statistics attributed to business communications company Decker Communications state that when presenters use visual aids in their presentations, they are twice as likely (67% versus 33%) to achieve their audience objectives than speakers who don’t use visual aids.
If that’s not an argument for incorporating visuals into your presentations, then I don’t know what is. Our Speaker Resource Centre offers a number of teleseminar recordings related to effectively using visual aids. They are:
• “Unforgettable Presentations: Using Prezi to Create Stand-Out Speeches” by Angie Agrewal, the chief evangelist of Prezi, whose presentaiton we mentioned in in our Inspiring Speaker Friday post last week.
• “Let Me Illustrate My Point: Illuminating Your Presentations With Simple Drawings” (scroll down to the fifth seminar on the page) by Mike Artell, a children’s author and illustrator, stand-up comedian and professional speaker.
• “Slide:ology – Lessons From an Academy Award–Winning Slide Strategist” (scroll down to the second seminar) by Nancy Duarte, who we featured on Inspiring Speaker Friday a few weeks ago.
• “Tell Powerful Stories With Pictures: A National Geographic Photographer Shares Tips for Speakers” (scroll down to the fifth seminar on the page) by award-winning photographer Dick Durrance.
Stay tuned throughout the week for more information on how to make the most of visual aids in your presentations. To your speaking success!
