How to use visual aids
1. Try to use landscape format where possible which is similar to the human vision. Avoid vertical slides and transparencies.
2. Use color where possible.
3. The first slide should have the name of your presentation, your name and possibly the conference name and date.
4. Have between 3-5 points per slide. More than 5 is too many and you should use a second slide.
5. Remember to pause so the audience can read the whole slide.
6. Do not block part of the slide or transparency (i.e. by standing in front of the projector or by design (if you wish to present parts of it later on).
7. Remember that a picture or graph is very informative. Check beforehand that your visual aids are of good quality and that they can be read from a distance.
8. Turn the slide and overhead projectors off if they are not being used for your presentation.
9. Use the pointer as much as possible and always try to face the audience as much as possible.
(From Recommendations to Presenters, Multimedia Environmental Simulations Laboratory, http://mesl.ce.gatech.edu)
Expressions to introduce and explain your visuals
Take a look at this …
Let’s have a look at this …
I’d like you to look at this …..
Here we can see ….
The….. represents ….. . And the …. represents …. .
Let’s look at …. in more detail. As you can see,….
I’d also like to draw your attention to ….... .
13.10. Match the phrases in the left column with the phrases from the right column to make complete presentation extracts. Underline the most useful expressions to introduce visuals.
Extract 1
1. Have a look at this graph. As you can see, … |
A) … shows turnover in millions of dollars |
2. The vertical axis … |
B) … it’s a fairly typical growth curve for a young company in the early stages of its development. |
3. … and the horizontal axis represents … |
C) … the years 2000 to 2010. |
Extract 2
1. I’d like you to look at … |
A) … at product movement in the high growth sector. |
2. … which shows … |
B) … the current position of six of our leading products. |
3. Let’s take a closer look for a moment … |
C) … this chart, … |
Extract 3
1. The graph we're looking at … |
A) … the production level in the Netherlands, … |
2. The full line shows … |
B) … very clearly demonstrates the comparative productivity of our European plants. |
3. … and the dotted line … |
C) … represents the average productivity in Europe. |
13.11. Look at the diagram representing the number of cars and drivers in the USA. Comment on the diagram using phrases from activity 13.10.
13.12. Using verbs in Active Voice instead of Passive makes the presentation more informal. Use the words given and make these presentation extracts more informal according to the model:
Model: It’s a well-known fact that the Internet is the information channel of the future. (Everybody)
Everybody knows that the Internet is the information channel of the future.
1. It’s been proved that direct mailing gets a less than 1% response rate. (They)
2. It’s being suggested that so-called smart drugs can actually increase intelligence. (They)
3. It’s generally agreed that the number of new cases of AIDS is falling. (Almost everyone)
4. It’s widely believed that Thailand and Malaysia will continue to outgrow Taiwan. (A lot / us)
5. It’s not known whether a mile-high building is technically possible. (We / not know)
6. It’s a little-known fact that more people die of tuberculosis every year than were killed in both world wars. (A lot / people / not realize)
7. It’s a popular misconception that Total Quality originated in Japan. (People often / mistake / thinking)
8. It’s debatable whether such an ambitious objective can be achieved in two years. (We can’t /be / sure / we)
9. It’s doubtful whether a cure for the common cold will ever be found. (We / not expect / anyone)
13.13. Read the text Four Basic Types of Questions. Then fill in the table with the responses below.