6 Scientifically-Proven Ways to
Improve Your Presentations

Do people remember your presentations? Probably not - but now there's something you can do about it. Here's a summary of the important scientific research that will really improve your results. Let's start with the six conclusions. You can then read about the research that led to these conclusions:

1. Use fresh, innovative and relevant visual material

This is to overcome the jaded memory barrier.

2. Use graphics and animations

Particularly if you want to persuade people to do anything.

3. Use as little text as possible

Don't use it to explain anything - use it just as an anchor or a headline.

4. Focus on a single goal

The more goals - the less effective you will be.

We've got a formula to explain that (see later).

5. Limit the number of key points

There should be no more than six chunks of information to remember. Don't include anything - text, graphics or animation that isn't directly related to the point being made.

6. Don't use clip art for decorative purposes

It's counter productive - it detracts from your overall message.

Read on to learn why researchers came up with these conclusion. Alternatively, if you'd like to see software that uses these techniques click here: presentation software

Research Results

Why people forget your presentation

In a famous paper on memory A.G. Miller concluded that "absolute judgment is limited by the amount of information. Immediate memory is limited by the number of items." There is agreement that the number of "chunks of information" that can be held in this immediate (short-term) memory is small. The number 7 is widely cited but for presentations we suggest using 6 chunks as the working upper limit.

Ebbinghaus worked to discover how much people

forget and the following chart is based on his work.

You can see that a person will lose 60% of the

information they've learned after just 1 hour!

After 31 days they've lost 85%.

The Ebbinghaus losses are in addition to losses

caused by Miller's immediate memory limitations.

That means the amount of information retained

after a typical presentation is tiny. However,

something can be done about that.

Research Results - How to get people to remember

R.C. Shellenberger carried out a series of experiments and found that pictures increased the likelihood of recall (over words) for both men and women. This confirmed earlier work by Rowe. Shellenberger also found that colour increased recall.

Mayer & Moreno work in the multimedia learning area and they found that words and pictures work better than words alone. They also found that animation and narration work better than animation and on-screen text.

We assume that reading is natural but neuroscientists would disagree. Judith L. Lauter, director of the Center for Communication Neuroscience has said that "reading problems are an expression of an entirely normal brain; it is just that different brains have different abilities" These results mean that if you really want your audience to remember your key points then you have to add visual elements.

However, Mayer & Moreno found that unrelated material (e.g. clip art) reduces effectiveness - so care is needed. There is one additional factor that will help people remember. A.M. Glenberg explained that memory is sensitive to frequency and to novelty. In other words, people will remember the unusual.

Research Results - How to persuade people

King et al. compared the persuasive effects of graphics and text and found that graphic groups were more inclined to agree to act after viewing a presentation than text only groups. Previous research reinforces this finding. One theory is that viewers may become more cognitively involved in the process and therefore more committed to the attitude change (Perloff & Brock, 1980).

Vogal et al. found that presentations using visual aids are 43% more persuasive than unaided presentations. They also found that colour is more persuasive than black & white.

Young and Robinson studied the effectiveness of advertisements. They found that viewers of persuasive ads had more peak experiences of the visuals and there were stronger linkages between the visuals in these ads. B. J Philips10 studied the use of visual metaphors in advertising. She found that "metaphorical claims in ads appears to make consumers receptive to multiple, distinct, positive inferences about the advertised brand." She also points out that pictures in ads may be unusually potent persuaders.

The evidence is overwhelming that graphics are better at persuading an audience to act than either text (e.g. bullet points) or an unaided presentation. Visual metaphors are particularly effective and can result in positive inferences as well as the immediate direct benefits.

The focus formula

If you want your presentation to achieve results then you will need to focus on your core objective. If you decide not to focus on a single objective there are some consequences. The main one is the probability that you will achieve nothing.

We use the following formula to describes the risk:

P = P/N2

Where: P is the probability of achieving the objective(s)

p is the probability of achieving a single objective

n is the number of objectives.

For example, suppose the probability of achieving an objective is 60% (you have a good chance). You decide to add a second objective. Now the probability has dropped to 15% (not good). If you add a third objective you're down to 7% (forget it)

Learn more about how our presentation software packages use these principles
by clicking on this link:

REFERENCES

1 Miller, G. A. (1956) The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information, The Psychological Review

2 Ebbinghaus H. (1885) Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology, Translated by Henry A. Ruger & Clara E. Bussenius

3 Shellenberger, (2004) R.C. Sex differences in memorization: a study of visuospatial memory, Department of psychology, Missouri Western State University

4 Mayer, R. E. & Moreno, R. (1998) A Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning: Implications for Design Principles

5 Hotz R. L., Understanding how the mind works could reshape classroom instruction, Los Angeles Times (article)

6 Glenberg, A.M. (1997). What memory is for, Behavioral and Brain Sciences

7 King, W., Dent, M., & Miles, E. (1991), The Persuasive Effect of Graphics in Computer-Mediated Communication, Computers in Human Behavior

8 Vogel, D. R., Dickson, 0. W., J. A. Lehman (1986) Persuasion and the Role of Visual Presentation Support: The UM/3M Study, Management Information Systems Research Center, School of Management, University of Minnesota

9 Young, C. E. & Robinson, M., (1992) Visual connectedness and persuasion, Journal of advertising research 10 Phillips, Barbara J., (2005), Indirect persuasion in advertising: how consumers process metaphors presented in pictures and words, Journal of Advertising