Presentations Can Suck

Real talk: Of all the presentations you've sat through at work, how many of them have had an impact on the way you work or navigate through life?

For most people, the answer is pretty consistent. Work presentations seldom leave lasting impressions. Especially when the purpose of a session is to report on information, rather than foster engagement or participation among attendees.

Business presentations are often taken for granted, which is evident in the way they're often delivered. For many institutions and organizations, slide decks have become the de-facto solution for sharing information. They're presented more often than they should be, saturating personnel with information in the same format over and over when the method could otherwise be an email, video message, or group discussion.

So, how much of your message is your audience actually retaining through your slide deck?

In this deep dive, we're exploring undoubtedly the most common method used to deliver presentations - the slide deck - and how they can either make or break your presentation.

What's the Deal with Slides?

Why focus on the slide deck? Because survey after survey shows that a high percentage of people use presentation software to create the slide decks that drive their presentations.

One survey from Presentation Panda, showed 89% of respondents use Microsoft PowerPoint to create presentations, while the remaining 11% use other leading tools like Google Slides, Apple Keynote, and Prezi.

Many organizations and institutions have made slide-decks the go-to solution for sharing information with an audience. But slide decks serve a specific purpose, and shouldn't be synonymous with the word "presentation".

A presentation marks an event where information (usually an idea, proposition, or story) is shared with an audience, whether in-person or virtually. Whereas, a slide deck is one method used to deliver a message. This method has become familiar to most people through the use of conventional slide decks (you know, the linear PowerPoints and Keynotes that you're used to).

Though, not all presentations are created equal. Nor should they be! Presentations don't always require a slide deck, nor do they have to be linear. In fact, some presentations are so engaging and interactive, they don't require any visual point of reference at all. Many people have become conditioned to (and rely on) the use of a slide deck each time they deliver a presentation. This can inadvertently set a precedent for you and the audience that a presentation is synonymous with a slide deck, and one ought to be expected every time a group is in session.

Let me be clear. I'm not claiming there is no use for slide decks in a presentation. They can be powerful tools for certain types of presentations, which I'll outline later. But as the old saying goes, with great power comes... well, you know the rest. The presenter is responsible for making sure the slide deck compliments the message, not distracts the audience.

Let's unpack this further by exploring challenges first, before we get into solutions. What better to start with the single hardest problem every presenter faces at all times: keeping an audience attentive and engaged. Then, we'll dive into the advantages and disadvantages of slide decks to get a clear picture of how they help us combat the attention problem.

The Attention Problem

Dr. John Medina, a molecular biologist and author of The New York Times Bestseller, "Brain Rules", provides insight into the attention span of most audiences.

"Peer-reviewed studies have confirmed that approximately 10 minutes into a presentation or lecture, most people have mentally checked out."

The Ten Minute Challenge

The "10-minute" phenomenon isn't necessarily something we can explain, as the reason for each person differs considerably. One person may fantasize about their Alfredo pasta waiting in the fridge for lunch, while another finds the presenter not engaging enough to care. One person could simply have a larger attention span than their peer, making the reason for the "10-minute" phenomenon as complicated as the wiring of people's brains. 🤯

Still, the outcome seems to follow a consistent pattern: 10 - 15 minutes into a presentation, people begin to pay less attention or none at all. Attendees begin to look elsewhere for something interesting enough to keep them stimulated, whether that be the Slack message from a colleague that needs an answer, or the infamous impulse to glance at a phone to view the latest text message, email, or Tweet.

In 2018, Prezi (the popular online presentation tool) contracted Kelton Global to conduct the State of Attention report, which uncovered two insightful statistics about the presentation habits of 2,036 full-time business professionals.

• 4 in 5 admitted they shift their focus away from the speaker during a presentation
• 95% admitted they multitask during meetings

Those are some pretty high numbers, leaving presenters with a serious dilemma. What's the best way to capture and maintain the attention of your audience during a presentation? Shifting focus away from the speaker is exactly the opposite outcome of what any presenter wants. Even if the audience gazes at a slide deck, visuals will always need context. The speaker is responsible for clarifying and quantifying the content on screen.

Multitasking

Multitasking is another obstacle found in the study, and it's even worse because the word is a misnomer. In recent years, the scientific literature has made clear that in most situations, our brain isn't really capable of focusing on two things simultaneously. Neuropsychologist, Cynthia Kubu, and neurosurgeon Andre Machado, MD, addressed this fact in their TIME Magazine article titled, "Why Multitasking is Bad for You".

“When we think we’re multitasking, most often we aren’t really doing two things at once. But instead, we’re doing individual actions in rapid succession, or task-switching.”

The problem of "multitasking" during a presentation is especially bad when you realize that most people in a session trying to multitask are actually incapable of doing so. Their brains are simply tuning out parts of the presentation to accommodate the focus they're giving the other task. It's a dangerous balancing act that can quickly go south for both the attendee and the presenter.

So, what's the most effective solution to combat the short attention span of participants?

The good news is, you don't have to go down the rabbit hole of neuroscience to find out. You can tweak your slide deck and leverage a few presentation tactics to tackle these inevitable challenges head-on.

Let's review several advantages of slide decks to determine how they can help boost attentiveness and engagement.

Advantages of Slide Decks

Using slide decks for your presentations offers several advantages:

1. They're visual aids: A slide deck provides a visual representation of the information you presented, making it easier for the audience to understand and follow along.
2. They keep your message organized: A slide deck can help structure and organize the content of the presentation, making it easier to stay on track and cover all the necessary points. It also helps presenters and attendees save time by reducing the need for extensive notes.
3. They can engage your audience: Incorporating multimedia elements, such as images, videos, and animations, into the slide deck can help capture the audience's attention and keep them engaged throughout the presentation. This is especially beneficial when accounting for different ways people learn, whether auditory, visual, or kinesthetic.
4. They're accessible post presentation: A slide deck can be easily shared with the audience before or after the presentation, making the information more accessible and easier to review.
5. They're highly customizable: The presenter can customize the slide deck to match the branding and messaging of the presentation, making it a powerful tool for conveying a consistent and insightful message.

While those benefits may seem compelling, they're only as effective as the person behind the design, structure, and delivery of the content.

Let's play devil's advocate for a moment and go over some disadvantages.

Disadvantages of Slide Decks

Consider the following disadvantages of using a slide deck:

1. Your design can be distracting: A poorly designed or overloaded slide deck can distract an audience and reduce the impact of the presenter's message.
2. Technical Issues: Technical issues, such as compatibility issues with different devices or software, can disrupt the presentation and lead to delays or confusion.
3. Over-Reliance: Relying too heavily on the slide deck can lead to a lack of flexibility and spontaneity in the presentation, making it difficult to adapt to unexpected situations.
4. Lack of Personal Connection: A slide deck can create a barrier between the presenter and the audience, particularly if the presenter reads large bodies of text from the slides, rather than engaging with the audience directly.
5. Accessibility: While a slide deck can make information available, it can also create accessibility barriers for people with visual impairments or other disabilities.

Again, these disadvantages are indicative of a poor job done by the person(s) behind the slide deck, not necessarily the slide deck itself. Let's review a few ways  you can overcome these pain points.

• You can easily curb distracting slides by following good design principles. This includes using the appropriate text font and size for maximum readability, using symmetry to minimize too much white space on your canvas, and limiting your color scheme to avoid visually overwhelming your audience.
• You can avoid technical issues by preparing for your presentation with a Plan B if things go south, like keeping a physical copy for yourself to use while a colleague troubleshoots your issue (because you should never go it alone), and sharing materials with your audience before your session begins.
• You can overcome over-reliance on your presentation by becoming hyper-familiar with both the subject matter and narrowing the focus of your message. Create a "key takeaway" statement that summarizes the outcome you hope your presentation produces. If your audience members summarize your presentation with a similar statement in their own words, you've accomplished your main objective.
• Text-heavy slide decks are the worst way to share a message with your audience, because you could have just given the audience the slide deck to read and absorb on their own if they knew you would read the entire slide to them anyway. Instead, try reducing your paragraphs to 3-5 bullets that you can use as markers for your message. By markers, I mean words or phrases that prompt you to verbalize the paragraph you want to share, instead of sharing it all on one slide.

Strike a Balance

I know it sounds cliche, but you have to find the right balance. ⚖️

Your presentation should be agnostic to the method of delivery. In other words, focus on the message you want to share and the content that makes up your message first, before deciding whether your message should be shared through a video recording, a slide deck, or an informal meeting. Remember, a presentation marks an event where a message is shared. The nature and purpose of the event must be considered first and foremost, before the method of delivery comes into play.

This level of strategic alignment helps ensure your content is the primary focus when you bring people together, before you indulge in the theatrics. Don't get me wrong, theatrics are an essential component of an impactful presentation. After all, it's the reason Hollywood has been so successful in sharing millions of messages in tens of thousands of films over time. Memorable films provide a masterclass in keeping audiences across the globe hooked on a journey from exposition to climax, and back down to a conclusion. And the best films are the ones where writers and directors make the message their "North Star", not the camera shots and special effects that are supposed to serve as byproducts of a compelling message.

In the same way, many web designers who work with clients seek to understand the nature of the project and the content that will make up its pages, before they start design work. Understanding the message a client needs to relay to their site visitors drives the design process, because the design is given purpose. When you create a design without a clear message as the backbone of your efforts, your design lacks purpose and value.

Your slide deck is no different. It should compliment your message to make it memorable, creative, and impactful. The objective of your slide deck should be to visually grab the attention of your audience, and help them absorb the information you're sharing. The highest impact you can achieve is when your audience applies the knowledge they gain, turning it into wisdom.

Four Tips for an Impactful Presentation

A lack of retention is not always indicative of a poorly written message, per se. Since presentations mark "events", multiple factors play into successful events. Logistics, production quality and body language are just a few elements to consider. If you're a presenter, you're in luck. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when planning your presentation and designing a slide deck.

1.  Keep it Simple

Avoid cluttering your slides with too much information or too many visuals. Use simple and clear language, and limit yourself to one main point per slide. Stick to a minimal color palette (2-4 colors), and choose fonts that are easy to read.

Don't overload your audience with too many slides either. Keep your total slide count to a minimum. Somewhere around 10 - 15 slides tends to be a sweet-spot (including transition slides).

2. Use Visuals to Enhance Your Message

Use high-quality visuals such as images, charts, and graphs to illustrate your points and make them more memorable. Choose visuals that are high-quality and relevant to your content, and avoid using generic or overused stock photos, as they can detract from your message.

As I said before, do not (I repeat, do NOT) include paragraphs on your slide unless they're absolutely necessary. Slide decks are supposed to be designed, not written. Use a Word Doc or email to write and share bodies of text with your audience. Your slides should have visuals that prompt you (the presenter) with the next part of the message you want to convey.

For example, instead of writing a paragraph about how sales have increased by 70% over the last four quarters, you can display a bar graph that shows that incremental increase over time. The bar graph should be the only thing on your slide, and when the slide is shown, prompt you to verbally discuss any details pertaining to that data.

Key takeaway: Let the visuals do the talking. You focus on explaining.

2. Follow Good Design Principles

Use good design principles to make your slide deck visually appealing and easy to follow. This includes proper use of white space, aligning elements, and balancing text and visuals. Use animations and transitions sparingly and strategically (please, for the love of all things presentations, don't use the curtain transition effect in PowerPoint 🤢), and test your presentation on different devices and screen sizes to ensure it displays properly on all platforms (e.g., Teams, Slack, Zoom, etc.).

Consider Branding

Use consistent branding throughout your slide deck, including your logo, color scheme, and fonts. This will help establish credibility and make your content more recognizable. Stick to a consistent color scheme, and avoid using too many colors on one slide (shoot for at least 3-4 colors per slide that compliment each other on the color wheel).

💡Tip: Check with your company's marketing team for slide deck templates you can use that will help you follow standard brand guidelines.

Consider Readability

Also, be sure to use a clear and easy-to-read font with appropriate font sizes for different elements. Leave out the fancy cursive and use 18 - 22 pt font or higher for body text, and 28 pt font or higher for headings. These font sizes are recommended for virtual presentations, and may need to be increased for in-person presentations at the office or for keynote speeches.

3. Tell a Story

Use your slides to tell a compelling story and guide your audience through a narrative. Everyone can relate to a story! Organize your content in a logical order, and use transitions to create a seamless flow between slides. Use storytelling elements, like anecdotes or examples of real-life scenarios, to make your content more relatable and engaging.

Stories can also help you address the "10-minute challenge", allowing you to use the narrative to check-in with your audience every 10 minutes by asking them a question, raising a scenario, asking for insight, or even playing a game or activity relevant to your message. The sky is the limit!

4. Practice, practice, practice

Once you've designed your slide deck, practice presenting it multiple times, and from multiple angles. This will help you refine your message, identify any problem areas, and ensure that you are confident and engaging when presenting.

Bringing it all home.

This article is certainly not an exhaustive list of all presentation tips and techniques, and there is more to come on this subject. But it should equip you with some fundamental principles about the nature of presentations and how your slide deck can boost the impact your message has on your audience.

YOU (the presenter) are the life of the presentation, not your slide deck. Think strategically about what you want to say and the key takeaways your audience should remember when it's all said and done. Every little thing you include in your presentation should serve a purpose for your audience. It's okay to end up with a few "deleted scenes". As long as the message remains your primary focus, designing your slide deck will begin to take shape on its own.

Sources:

• 1 - Noar, A. (2018, May 22). New Survey Results on Presentations … #2 Will Shock You! - Presentation Panda. Presentationpanda.
• 2 - Gallo, C. (2014, April 30). Why PowerPoint Presentations Always Die After 10 Minutes And How To Rescue Them. Forbes.
• 3 - Bellur, S., Nowak a, Kristine L.. & Hull, Kyle S.. (2015). Make it our time: In class multitaskers have lower academic performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 53, 63-70.