by The Open University
Available in 42 free installments
Owner:
Title of presentation ? we felt that Slide ?A? was probably the better of the two as it had a simple title in a clear font with a sensible size of typeface which would show up at the back of a room. The overall design was clear and uncluttered and there was a point of focus with the coach graphic.
On the other hand, Slide ?B? had too much information on it ? the title was too long. The font illustrates a common mistake in preparing slides ? the author has got carried away with the power of the word processor and used more than one font (this is often the case with the use of colour as well). The font for the main title is too light-hearted for the purposes of a presentation to shareholders ? it's as if the presenter isn't really serious about the issue of customer service. In addition, the overall design is too cramped, with everything squashed up into the top of the slide and the smaller font would be difficult to see at the back of the room.
Analysis of customer comments ? we chose these two versions of presenting data as graphs to illustrate a major difference in the use of line graphs (A) and bar charts (B). Of the two graphs, Graph B is more suitable for the purposes of the title. It shows clearly the proportion of the three different types of comment. (This could have been made equally clear by using a pie chart.) On the other hand, a line graph like Graph A is more suited to showing trends in data. We also felt that Slide A had too much information on it and the scale could not be easily read ? at least Slide B had zero, 50 per cent and 100 per cent as reference points for the audience. The presenter would presumably have the exact figures for the talk. Overall, the typeface and fonts chosen were OK for both slides. As far as the graphics were concerned, it was important that the columns for Slide B were quite different colours (grey, white and black) and that there was a key for the audience to look at while the presenter was talking.
The conclusion ? Slide B was again the better choice because it was clear and simple. Slide A has far too much information on it and very dense text. This would lead to the audience trying to read it (with difficulty as the typeface is too small) probably while the presenter was talking, so they would miss something. It may also encourage the presenter to read the whole slide out to the audience ? again, bad practice! The use of bullet points in Slide B means that the presenter can usefully ?reveal? each main point in turn with the use of a piece of paper over the OHT. This can be a good technique in ?staging? the main points to the audience and allows you to recall what you have prepared to say for each bullet point.
Above all, success with visual aids relies on being prepared, planning in advance how you are going to use them, and knowing what to do if things go wrong.
