Good design + storytelling = impactful presentations

While your words, presence and storytelling skills will have a huge impact on your success, the fact is: Your presentation’s design matters, too, and not only to your audience!

Research has shown that 91 percent of presenters get a big confidence boost from using a well-designed deck. Yet, 45 percent find it challenging to design a good, creative slideshow.

We get it. Not everyone has an intuitive eye for design. So, here are a few facts to keep in mind that’ll help you create more impactful presentations.

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Go heavy on visual storytelling, light on text and stats.

Researchers found that after watching a presentation, only five percent remembered statistics, while 63 percent remembered stories. That’s good news for you. It means less time cramming slides full of words, numbers, sales pitches or pleas for charitable donations. Instead, think in terms of storytelling and spend more time using pictures, videos and other storytelling tools. Afterall, there’s a reason the phrase “show me don’t tell me” exists. Visuals and stories not only speak to people’s intellect, they speak to their emotions. For example, say you’re trying to raise funds for your local dog rescue. Instead of focusing on number-filled slides showing how underfunded you are—start with an uplifting video about a particular furry friend who found a good home. Or, better yet, bring the four-legged friend along to interact with the audience! A word of caution: Avoid overly sad and depressing stories. (We’ve all seen those heart-wrenching pet ads with the sad soulful eyes and sappy music.) Multiple studies suggest that your audience will have a much better attitude toward a positive appeal—than toward a negative one. Plus, the negative ones don’t necessarily translate into more money.

Make yourself a visual element of the presentation.

Sure, slides are great and they play a huge role. But for a truly impactful presentation, the presenter is the main visual element. Okay, okay. I know the very idea of having all eyes on you elicits a bit of panic. With some practice it can happen. Know what you’re going to say—but don’t have it memorized word for word. That allows you to walk among your audience, make eye contact and get up-close and personal—instead of preaching from the pulpit. One way to do this is to practice in front of family and friends. You can also use the presentation coaching tool that may already be built into your slideshow software. A good one will:

• Evaluate your pacing, pitch, as well as your use of filler words, informal speech, euphemisms and culturally sensitive terms.
• Detect when you’re being too wordy or when you sound too “robotic”—like you’re just reading the text on a slide.
• Continue to “learn” as you use it, adding additional suggestions in the future.
• Deliver an in-depth report with personalized stats about your performance and suggestions for improvements.

When all eyes are back on the slides, make sure they look enticing.

If you’re not sure how to begin, look for a slideshow program that offers built-in help with your presentation’s design. For example, there are integrated features available that will:

• Work in the background as you add content to your slide and generate design ideas to choose from.
• Detect your pictures, charts or tables and give you suggestions for arranging them in an organized, eye-catching way.
• Transform text like lists, timelines, etc. into easy-to-digest graphics.
• Shows illustrations in various layouts, in addition to suggesting ones for your key terms and concepts.

Know how to read the room—even during online presentations.

More and more of us are presenting online every day. While it’s convenient, it’s also easy for you (and your audience) to miss those all-important personal nuances like facial cues and natural interactions. Luckily, presentation software is quickly adapting to offer richer, more lifelike presenting capabilities, including:

• A bird’s eye view: A special panel view (that only the presenter can see) lets you instantly check your notes, engage in chats and see your audience, while the audience sees only the slide.
• Customizable modes: This let you customize how your video feed and content appears to the audience. It allows them to see you, the speaker, interact with your presentation slides, making everything more immersive and engaging.
• Live reactions: Imagine the rush you’ll get from actually seeing your audience react in real time! Look for video chat software that lets your audience use emojis to instantly share reactions to your presentation. Not only does it keep them engaged, it helps you gauge your audience.

Whether you’re giving a presentation for school, work, a charity event or something else—the same rules apply. The key to creating impactful presentations is having easy access to the right visual tools, the ability to engage the audience via storytelling and interactive experiences and, last but not least, plenty of good, old fashioned practice.