what is the visual presentation

We use essential cookies to make Venngage work. By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.

Manage Cookies

Cookies and similar technologies collect certain information about how you’re using our website. Some of them are essential, and without them you wouldn’t be able to use Venngage. But others are optional, and you get to choose whether we use them or not.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are always on, as they’re essential for making Venngage work, and making it safe. Without these cookies, services you’ve asked for can’t be provided.

Show cookie providers

• Google Login

Functionality Cookies

These cookies help us provide enhanced functionality and personalisation, and remember your settings. They may be set by us or by third party providers.

Performance Cookies

These cookies help us analyze how many people are using Venngage, where they come from and how they're using it. If you opt out of these cookies, we can’t get feedback to make Venngage better for you and all our users.

• Google Analytics

Targeting Cookies

These cookies are set by our advertising partners to track your activity and show you relevant Venngage ads on other sites as you browse the internet.

• Google Tag Manager
• Infographics
• Daily Infographics
• Popular Templates
• Accessibility
• Graphic Design
• Graphs and Charts
• Data Visualization
• Human Resources
• Beginner Guides

Blog Graphic Design 15 Effective Visual Presentation Tips To Wow Your Audience

15 Effective Visual Presentation Tips To Wow Your Audience

Written by: Krystle Wong Sep 28, 2023

So, you’re gearing up for that big presentation and you want it to be more than just another snooze-fest with slides. You want it to be engaging, memorable and downright impressive. 

Well, you’ve come to the right place — I’ve got some slick tips on how to create a visual presentation that’ll take your presentation game up a notch. 

Packed with presentation templates that are easily customizable, keep reading this blog post to learn the secret sauce behind crafting presentations that captivate, inform and remain etched in the memory of your audience.

Click to jump ahead:

What is a visual presentation & why is it important?

15 effective tips to make your visual presentations more engaging, 6 major types of visual presentation you should know , what are some common mistakes to avoid in visual presentations, visual presentation faqs, 5 steps to create a visual presentation with venngage.

A visual presentation is a communication method that utilizes visual elements such as images, graphics, charts, slides and other visual aids to convey information, ideas or messages to an audience. 

Visual presentations aim to enhance comprehension engagement and the overall impact of the message through the strategic use of visuals. People remember what they see, making your point last longer in their heads. 

Without further ado, let’s jump right into some great visual presentation examples that would do a great job in keeping your audience interested and getting your point across.

In today’s fast-paced world, where information is constantly bombarding our senses, creating engaging visual presentations has never been more crucial. To help you design a presentation that’ll leave a lasting impression, I’ve compiled these examples of visual presentations that will elevate your game.

1. Use the rule of thirds for layout

Ever heard of the rule of thirds? It’s a presentation layout trick that can instantly up your slide game. Imagine dividing your slide into a 3×3 grid and then placing your text and visuals at the intersection points or along the lines. This simple tweak creates a balanced and seriously pleasing layout that’ll draw everyone’s eyes.

2. Get creative with visual metaphors

Got a complex idea to explain? Skip the jargon and use visual metaphors. Throw in images that symbolize your point – for example, using a road map to show your journey towards a goal or using metaphors to represent answer choices or progress indicators in an interactive quiz or poll.

3. Visualize your data with charts and graphs

The right data visualization tools not only make content more appealing but also aid comprehension and retention. Choosing the right visual presentation for your data is all about finding a good match. 

For ordinal data, where things have a clear order, consider using ordered bar charts or dot plots. When it comes to nominal data, where categories are on an equal footing, stick with the classics like bar charts, pie charts or simple frequency tables. And for interval-ratio data, where there’s a meaningful order, go for histograms, line graphs, scatterplots or box plots to help your data shine.

In an increasingly visual world, effective visual communication is a valuable skill for conveying messages. Here’s a guide on how to use visual communication to engage your audience while avoiding information overload.

4. Employ the power of contrast

Want your important stuff to pop? That’s where contrast comes in. Mix things up with contrasting colors, fonts or shapes. It’s like highlighting your key points with a neon marker – an instant attention grabber.

5. Tell a visual story

Structure your slides like a storybook and create a visual narrative by arranging your slides in a way that tells a story. Each slide should flow into the next, creating a visual narrative that keeps your audience hooked till the very end.

Icons and images are essential for adding visual appeal and clarity to your presentation. Venngage provides a vast library of icons and images, allowing you to choose visuals that resonate with your audience and complement your message. 

6. Show the “before and after” magic

Want to drive home the impact of your message or solution? Whip out the “before and after” technique. Show the current state (before) and the desired state (after) in a visual way. It’s like showing a makeover transformation, but for your ideas.

7. Add fun with visual quizzes and polls

To break the monotony and see if your audience is still with you, throw in some quick quizzes or polls. It’s like a mini-game break in your presentation — your audience gets involved and it makes your presentation way more dynamic and memorable.

8. End with a powerful visual punch

Your presentation closing should be a showstopper. Think a stunning clip art that wraps up your message with a visual bow, a killer quote that lingers in minds or a call to action that gets hearts racing.

9. Engage with storytelling through data

Use storytelling magic to bring your data to life. Don’t just throw numbers at your audience—explain what they mean, why they matter and add a bit of human touch. Turn those stats into relatable tales and watch your audience’s eyes light up with understanding.

10. Use visuals wisely

Your visuals are the secret sauce of a great presentation. Cherry-pick high-quality images, graphics, charts and videos that not only look good but also align with your message’s vibe. Each visual should have a purpose – they’re not just there for decoration. 

11. Utilize visual hierarchy

Employ design principles like contrast, alignment and proximity to make your key info stand out. Play around with fonts, colors and placement to make sure your audience can’t miss the important stuff.

12. Engage with multimedia

Static slides are so last year. Give your presentation some sizzle by tossing in multimedia elements. Think short video clips, animations, or a touch of sound when it makes sense, including an animated logo . But remember, these are sidekicks, not the main act, so use them smartly.

13. Interact with your audience

Turn your presentation into a two-way street. Start your presentation by encouraging your audience to join in with thought-provoking questions, quick polls or using interactive tools. Get them chatting and watch your presentation come alive.

When it comes to delivering a group presentation, it’s important to have everyone on the team on the same page. Venngage’s real-time collaboration tools enable you and your team to work together seamlessly, regardless of geographical locations. Collaborators can provide input, make edits and offer suggestions in real time. 

14. Incorporate stories and examples

Weave in relatable stories, personal anecdotes or real-life examples to illustrate your points. It’s like adding a dash of spice to your content – it becomes more memorable and relatable.

15. Nail that delivery

Don’t just stand there and recite facts like a robot — be a confident and engaging presenter. Lock eyes with your audience, mix up your tone and pace and use some gestures to drive your points home. Practice and brush up your presentation skills until you’ve got it down pat for a persuasive presentation that flows like a pro.

Venngage offers a wide selection of professionally designed presentation templates, each tailored for different purposes and styles. By choosing a template that aligns with your content and goals, you can create a visually cohesive and polished presentation that captivates your audience.

Looking for more presentation ideas ? Why not try using a presentation software that will take your presentations to the next level with a combination of user-friendly interfaces, stunning visuals, collaboration features and innovative functionalities that will take your presentations to the next level. 

Visual presentations come in various formats, each uniquely suited to convey information and engage audiences effectively. Here are six major types of visual presentations that you should be familiar with:

1. Slideshows or PowerPoint presentations

Slideshows are one of the most common forms of visual presentations. They typically consist of a series of slides containing text, images, charts, graphs and other visual elements. Slideshows are used for various purposes, including business presentations, educational lectures and conference talks.

2. Infographics

Infographics are visual representations of information, data or knowledge. They combine text, images and graphics to convey complex concepts or data in a concise and visually appealing manner. Infographics are often used in marketing, reporting and educational materials.

Don’t worry, they are also super easy to create thanks to Venngage’s fully customizable infographics templates that are professionally designed to bring your information to life. Be sure to try it out for your next visual presentation!

3. Video presentation

Videos are your dynamic storytellers. Whether it’s pre-recorded or happening in real-time, videos are the showstoppers. You can have interviews, demos, animations or even your own mini-documentary. Video presentations are highly engaging and can be shared in both in-person and virtual presentations .

4. Charts and graphs

Charts and graphs are visual representations of data that make it easier to understand and analyze numerical information. Common types include bar charts, line graphs, pie charts and scatterplots. They are commonly used in scientific research, business reports and academic presentations.

Effective data visualizations are crucial for simplifying complex information and Venngage has got you covered. Venngage’s tools enable you to create engaging charts, graphs,and infographics that enhance audience understanding and retention, leaving a lasting impression in your presentation.

5. Interactive presentations

Interactive presentations involve audience participation and engagement. These can include interactive polls, quizzes, games and multimedia elements that allow the audience to actively participate in the presentation. Interactive presentations are often used in workshops, training sessions and webinars.

Venngage’s interactive presentation tools enable you to create immersive experiences that leave a lasting impact and enhance audience retention. By incorporating features like clickable elements, quizzes and embedded multimedia, you can captivate your audience’s attention and encourage active participation.

6. Poster presentations

Poster presentations are the stars of the academic and research scene. They consist of a large poster that includes text, images and graphics to communicate research findings or project details and are usually used at conferences and exhibitions. For more poster ideas, browse through Venngage’s gallery of poster templates to inspire your next presentation.

Different visual presentations aside, different presentation methods also serve a unique purpose, tailored to specific objectives and audiences. Find out which type of presentation works best for the message you are sending across to better capture attention, maintain interest and leave a lasting impression. 

To make a good presentation , it’s crucial to be aware of common mistakes and how to avoid them. Without further ado, let’s explore some of these pitfalls along with valuable insights on how to sidestep them.

Overloading slides with text

Text heavy slides can be like trying to swallow a whole sandwich in one bite – overwhelming and unappetizing. Instead, opt for concise sentences and bullet points to keep your slides simple. Visuals can help convey your message in a more engaging way.

Using low-quality visuals

Grainy images and pixelated charts are the equivalent of a scratchy vinyl record at a DJ party. High-resolution visuals are your ticket to professionalism. Ensure that the images, charts and graphics you use are clear, relevant and sharp.

Choosing the right visuals for presentations is important. To find great visuals for your visual presentation, Browse Venngage’s extensive library of high-quality stock photos. These images can help you convey your message effectively, evoke emotions and create a visually pleasing narrative. 

Ignoring design consistency

Imagine a book with every chapter in a different font and color – it’s a visual mess. Consistency in fonts, colors and formatting throughout your presentation is key to a polished and professional look.

Reading directly from slides

Reading your slides word-for-word is like inviting your audience to a one-person audiobook session. Slides should complement your speech, not replace it. Use them as visual aids, offering key points and visuals to support your narrative.

Lack of visual hierarchy

Neglecting visual hierarchy is like trying to find Waldo in a crowd of clones. Use size, color and positioning to emphasize what’s most important. Guide your audience’s attention to key points so they don’t miss the forest for the trees.

Ignoring accessibility

Accessibility isn’t an option these days; it’s a must. Forgetting alt text for images, color contrast and closed captions for videos can exclude individuals with disabilities from understanding your presentation. 

Relying too heavily on animation

While animations can add pizzazz and draw attention, overdoing it can overshadow your message. Use animations sparingly and with purpose to enhance, not detract from your content.

Using jargon and complex language

Keep it simple. Use plain language and explain terms when needed. You want your message to resonate, not leave people scratching their heads.

Not testing interactive elements

Interactive elements can be the life of your whole presentation, but not testing them beforehand is like jumping into a pool without checking if there’s water. Ensure that all interactive features, from live polls to multimedia content, work seamlessly. A smooth experience keeps your audience engaged and avoids those awkward technical hiccups.

Presenting complex data and information in a clear and visually appealing way has never been easier with Venngage. Build professional-looking designs with our free visual chart slide templates for your next presentation.

What software or tools can I use to create visual presentations?

You can use various software and tools to create visual presentations, including Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides, Adobe Illustrator, Canva, Prezi and Venngage, among others.

What is the difference between a visual presentation and a written report?

The main difference between a visual presentation and a written report is the medium of communication. Visual presentations rely on visuals, such as slides, charts and images to convey information quickly, while written reports use text to provide detailed information in a linear format.

How do I effectively communicate data through visual presentations?

To effectively communicate data through visual presentations, simplify complex data into easily digestible charts and graphs, use clear labels and titles and ensure that your visuals support the key messages you want to convey.

Are there any accessibility considerations for visual presentations?

Accessibility considerations for visual presentations include providing alt text for images, ensuring good color contrast, using readable fonts and providing transcripts or captions for multimedia content to make the presentation inclusive.

Most design tools today make accessibility hard but Venngage’s Accessibility Design Tool comes with accessibility features baked in, including accessible-friendly and inclusive icons.

How do I choose the right visuals for my presentation?

Choose visuals that align with your content and message. Use charts for data, images for illustrating concepts, icons for emphasis and color to evoke emotions or convey themes.

What is the role of storytelling in visual presentations?

Storytelling plays a crucial role in visual presentations by providing a narrative structure that engages the audience, helps them relate to the content and makes the information more memorable.

How can I adapt my visual presentations for online or virtual audiences?

To adapt visual presentations for online or virtual audiences, focus on concise content, use engaging visuals, ensure clear audio, encourage audience interaction through chat or polls and rehearse for a smooth online delivery.

What is the role of data visualization in visual presentations?

Data visualization in visual presentations simplifies complex data by using charts, graphs and diagrams, making it easier for the audience to understand and interpret information.

How do I choose the right color scheme and fonts for my visual presentation?

Choose a color scheme that aligns with your content and brand and select fonts that are readable and appropriate for the message you want to convey.

How can I measure the effectiveness of my visual presentation?

Measure the effectiveness of your visual presentation by collecting feedback from the audience, tracking engagement metrics (e.g., click-through rates for online presentations) and evaluating whether the presentation achieved its intended objectives.

Ultimately, creating a memorable visual presentation isn’t just about throwing together pretty slides. It’s about mastering the art of making your message stick, captivating your audience and leaving a mark.

Lucky for you, Venngage simplifies the process of creating great presentations, empowering you to concentrate on delivering a compelling message. Follow the 5 simple steps below to make your entire presentation visually appealing and impactful:

1. Sign up and log In: Log in to your Venngage account or sign up for free and gain access to Venngage’s templates and design tools.

2. Choose a template: Browse through Venngage’s presentation template library and select one that best suits your presentation’s purpose and style. Venngage offers a variety of pre-designed templates for different types of visual presentations, including infographics, reports, posters and more.

3. Edit and customize your template: Replace the placeholder text, image and graphics with your own content and customize the colors, fonts and visual elements to align with your presentation’s theme or your organization’s branding.

4. Add visual elements: Venngage offers a wide range of visual elements, such as icons, illustrations, charts, graphs and images, that you can easily add to your presentation with the user-friendly drag-and-drop editor.

5. Save and export your presentation: Export your presentation in a format that suits your needs and then share it with your audience via email, social media or by embedding it on your website or blog .

So, as you gear up for your next presentation, whether it’s for business, education or pure creative expression, don’t forget to keep these visual presentation ideas in your back pocket.

Feel free to experiment and fine-tune your approach and let your passion and expertise shine through in your presentation. With practice, you’ll not only build presentations but also leave a lasting impact on your audience – one slide at a time.

Discover popular designs

Infographic maker

Brochure maker

White paper online

Newsletter creator

Flyer maker

Timeline maker

Letterhead maker

Mind map maker

Ebook maker

.css-1qrtm5m{display:block;margin-bottom:8px;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:14px;line-height:1.5714285714285714;-webkit-letter-spacing:-0.35px;-moz-letter-spacing:-0.35px;-ms-letter-spacing:-0.35px;letter-spacing:-0.35px;font-weight:300;color:#606F7B;}@media (min-width:600px){.css-1qrtm5m{font-size:16px;line-height:1.625;-webkit-letter-spacing:-0.5px;-moz-letter-spacing:-0.5px;-ms-letter-spacing:-0.5px;letter-spacing:-0.5px;}} Best Practices The #1 rule for improving your presentation slides

by Tom Rielly • May 12, 2020

When giving presentations, either on a video conference call or in person, your slides, videos and graphics (or lack of them) can be an important element in helping you tell your story or express your idea. This is the first of a series of blog posts that will give you tips and tricks on how to perfect your visual presentations.

Your job as a presenter is to build your idea -- step-by-step -- in the minds of your audience members. One tool to do that is presentation graphics, such as slides and videos.

Why graphics for your presentation?

A common mistake is using slides or videos as a crutch, even if they don’t actually add anything to your presentation. Not all presentations need graphics. Lots of presentations work wonderfully with just one person standing on a stage telling a story, as demonstrated by many TED Talks.

You should only use slides if they serve a purpose: conveying scientific information, art, and things that are hard to explain without pictures. Once you have decided on using slides, you will have a number of decisions to make. We’ll help you with the basics of making a presentation that is, above all, clear and easy to understand. The most important thing to remember here is: less is more.

Less is so much more

You want to aim for the fewest number of slides, the fewest number of photos, the fewest words per slide, the least cluttered slides and the most white space on your slides. This is the most violated slide rule, but it is the secret to success. Take a look at these examples.

As you can see in the above example, you don’t need fancy backgrounds or extra words to convey a simple concept. If you take “Everything you need to know about Turtles”, and delete “everything you need to know about” leaving just “turtles”, the slide has become much easier for your audience to read, and tells the story with economy.

The above example demonstrates that a single image that fills the entire screen is far more powerful than a slide cluttered with images. A slide with too many images may be detrimental to your presentation. The audience will spend more mental energy trying to sort through the clutter than listening to your presentation. If you need multiple images, then put each one on its own slide. Make each image high-resolution and have it fill the entire screen. If the photos are not the same dimensions as the screen, put them on a black background. Don’t use other colors, especially white.

Your slides will be much more effective if you use the fewest words, characters, and pictures needed to tell your story. Long paragraphs make the audience strain to read them, which means they are not paying attention to you. Your audience may even get stressed if you move on to your next slide before they’ve finished reading your paragraph. The best way to make sure the attention stays on you is to limit word count to no more than 10 words per slide. As presentation expert Nancy Duarte says “any slide with more than 10 words is a document.” If you really do need a longer explanation of something, handouts or follow-up emails are the way to go.

Following a “less is more” approach is one of the simplest things you can do to improve your presentation visuals and the impact of your presentation overall. Make sure your visuals add to your presentation rather than distract from it and get your message across.

Ready to learn more about how to make your presentation even better? Get TED Masterclass and develop your ideas into TED-style talks.

© 2024 TED Conferences, LLC. All rights reserved. Please note that the TED Talks Usage policy does not apply to this content and is not subject to our creative commons license.

Engage your audience with powerful visual presentations.

Visual tools are critical to have in any presentation as they’re one of the key presentation aids that will help enhance your overall presentation .

We’ll give you tips on how to develop a sense of good presentation design whether you’re using PowerPoint, Prezi, Google Slides or any presentation software under the sun. The secret to creating a great presentation does not lie in a superior software, but understanding a few universal design concepts that can applied for all types of visual presentations.

Don’t be afraid to use a few presentation templates – there are ways to make the presentation ideas in those templates your own ideas and advance it in several different ways. Let’s make your next presentation on point and designed beautifully.

Presentations Are The Visual Communication Tool To Your Story

In the age of information, people remember facts faster through stories. Keep your bullet points and information short. You can use a rule of thumb to not put more than a paragraph and 3 points per slide to start.

Make your presentation the visual component of your story, but not something your audience has to read. Something that is short and succinct on screen will capture your audience’s attention and make sure they retain the main points of your message.

This does not mean incomplete slides. A common mistake presenters make is putting too little information on a slide in the name of simplicity when in fact they’re leaving out the main context.

A well designed visual presentation has a great story behind it and a well rehearsed voice telling it as well. Engaging the audience is also a great way to associate meaning or connection to the content of your slide decks. Ask questions and tell stories while showing off a great visual presentation! Think of writing the copy like writing for social media – you only have a certain amount of characters to use and a short audience attention span.

General Tips For Visual Presentations

Before you begin creating your presentation, you first need to know what makes effective presentations – storytelling. Such presentations target the audience’s emotions leading to a stronger connection to the audience member and the main point of the presentation.

Below are some storytelling tips for your slides, but remember to keep the presentation itself simple and practice makes perfect. And again, these are more for your spoken component that accompanies the visual component. These tips can be useful because they can be applied to all your presentations in general.

Step 1 is to ask yourself who your audience is and how to convey the key message you have in mind to them. Once you settle on your message, you can start designing your slides with that direction in mind.

You may wonder how to connect with an audience with your slides. Look to your own experiences, your own speaking style and tailor your message to what you know. Not many people want to hear others recite facts with no real meaning driving the story. Ask yourself, “Why does this matter to the audience and why should they care?”.

There is a lot of trust that can be built when the audience has a genuine connection to the presenter. Overall, if you have something that can solve a problem or teach someone complex things, that is enough to form a connection with your audience.

Think of the last app you used, the last email you read or perhaps the last business you purchased from. What was the content or visual elements that pulled you in?

Are you making a PowerPoint, Prezi or other form of visual presentation but it’s taking too much of your time? Enlist the help of Presentation Geeks and consider outsourcing your presentation design . Outsourcing your presentation slides allows you to free more of your time while still getting the results of an interesting presentation. You’ll have the support of expert slide designers who know what presentation visuals work and don’t work thanks to years of presentation feedback and background knowledge.

Color Design Tips For Presentation Slides

When designing your presentation, make sure you take into consideration the colors you’re using. We’ve listed a few background color combinations you might want to consider when developing the overall slide deck and the font to use.

Color Wheel Alignments:

Primary Colors: Red, yellow, blue

Secondary Colors: Green, orange, purple

Tertiary Colors: Yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple, blue-purple, blue-green & yellow-green

Analogous Colors: These are any three colors which are side by side on a color wheel. (Think green, lime green, yellow)

Complementary Colors: These are colors that are directly opposite of a color wheel. (Think green vs. purple, red vs. blue)

Monochromatic Colors: This is when you use one color and various shades or hues of it. It works well for minimal looks.

Color moods:

Red/Orange/Yellow: Generally these convey a sense of energy, are warm colors and catch your attention. Yellow is a happy warm color on one end and red is very striking and can warn of danger, and symbolizes importance, passion and sometimes violence.

Blue/Purple/Green: These colors are calming, reserved, elegant and often used for corporate slides. Think of how indigo blue is used for many large corporate entities. Green often is branded with earth or medical brands. Purple often conveys a sense of royalty, money and creativity.

Use The Power Of Photography Or Video

Pictures and videos are great visuals to incorporate into any presentation. Remember the saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words”? Well, it’s true! Photos help visualize complex information. You’ll often come across a lot of photos in research presentations as they help the audience understand examples better.

They can also save you from having to put a thousand thoughts into the PowerPoint presentation slide!

The first tip we can give to make a great visual presentation is to choose all your photos before you start. This way you can keep the consistency of the images across your slide deck and make sure they’re somewhat alike in terms of composition, mood and brand.

Use free stock photos

You don’t have to take the photos or videos yourself.

There are plenty of free resources and web pages for stock photos online – Unsplash , Pexels , Pixabay , Free Range , Creative Commons and some photos from Freepik are free to use with some accreditation.

Effective photo use

Make sure you pick an image that will focus on the main theme of the slide. One image is usually enough if the image choice is very relevant to the slide. If you have multiple photos, avoid poor or loose placement of photos all over the slide. Try to use a grid or gallery placement and it will immediately enhance the layout of the slide.

If you pick great images, making presentations can be faster. Instead of having to create an elaborate template with multiple elements, a photo with a couple of bullet points can go a long way in terms of capturing attention and making your presentation slides look professional. This is true on any presentation design platform – whether its PowerPoint, Google Slides, etc.

You can also embed videos whether they’re located on your computer, YouTube, Vimeo or other major video streaming sites. If you’re feeling nervous about your presentation or have a complex message that would be hard to condense in one slide, a video is a dynamic way of conveying your message in any type of presentation.

The Typography You Use Matters

Typography is how you will arrange and present the words in your presentation. An audience can engage when text is readable, functional and works well with the other elements in the presentation. Fonts and sizing are a good place to start establishing the tone of your presentation.

Overview of Font Choices

Elegant fonts often denote a sense of luxury or lifestyle tone. Use script fonts sparingly, but as titles they immediately give this polished and high-end look. This should not be used as body text or something lengthy to read. Think about if you sent an email in that text – it would be tedious to read. However, maybe if it were a title or a way to name email, the choice may be more correct.

Corporate fonts often are traditional, serif fonts or clean sans serif fonts that evoke a sense of trust and a clear message. Think of the fonts Lato, Helvetica or Arial – they’re go-to fonts that are easy to read, and work across many systems. This is especially helpful if you are working across teams when creating content or having to approve the content, idea or visuals.

Of course, you can incorporate more stylistic or playful fonts if you want to give your presentation a personal feel. Much like the scripted font, when used sparingly but in large titles, this choice of font can be very effective at conveying a certain personality.

Adding Symbols & Icons To Your Presentation

You can consolidate information by using symbols or icons to direct your eye to information such as an arrow symbol. What if you used a symbol instead of a bullet point? Think of symbols as anchors for the eye to quickly find information. You can collect symbols off free stock sites or use the built-in ones in PowerPoint that are free to use!

Depending on if your presentation is formal or informal , you may also want to consider adding emojis! Emojis are fun ways to express different emotions and can help connect with a younger demographic.

Overall Branding, Tone of Voice & Consistency

Another tool you may have at your disposal is if your brand, business or company has brand guidelines. It will be the guide and compass to your presentation’s information that goes within it. By keeping consistent you can achieve a polished look even if it looks very simple.

Use your business voice to communicate ideas and set the tone for your presentation. Are you in an investment banking business and want people to rely on the information given to you? That would inform perhaps using blues and purples, which are calmer colors and a cleaner look. Are you an influencer who’s buying power and spending choices matter to your audience? Maybe choosing bright colors with personal touches will make the connection. Are you designing an innovative app? Maybe more interactive slides would do the trick.

Use these questions to make sure your text and tone is consistent as this is a foundation of a well articulated brand or personal identity.

Consistent Hierarchy

Visual hierarchy is how you will arrange objects and text in relation to one another to guide your user and not confuse the objects and how they should read them in your slides. Setting rules helps differentiate and prioritize what’s important in order.

Look at the difference between these two.

Snoop Dogg just launched a wine and it’s coming to Canada

Daily hive branded content | aug 11 2020, 6:30 am.

Australian winery 19 Crimes recently announced that its new Cali Red wine, created in collaboration with Entertainment Icon, entrepreneur, and hip-hop artist Snoop Dogg, will be hitting shelves across Canada later this summer.

The collaboration offers a refreshing take on celebrity partnerships as the apparent shared values and history between the brand and famous rapper make for a perfectly organic pairing.

Comment Name:

By browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. see our user agreement for the use of cookies..

You can see a clear distinction in the example below:

Think of hierarchy of a form of narration or story structure. Your eye goes to the title, then to the subtitle, then to the body copy in a logical manner. Where the eye travels is one of those things we don’t think about often. But you can also utilize eye lines in photos. Is your subject in the photo looking left or right? Consider placing text to where your subject is looking and see how effectively your eye travels to that text.

We’ll look at hierarchy strictly as sizing of words for now, but note you can establish hierarchy with type, white space, alignment, etc. As a general rule of thumb, you should have consistent sizing for your Header (or title slide / slide title), your subtitles and your body text. That’s it! If the sizing in your PowerPoint is consistent, your words will look uniform and clean. Everything will be much easier to read and the eye will be trained to move each slide.

Don’t Forget Your Own Style

Also don’t forget to incorporate your own style and what kind of visuals you like. Even if your early visuals may seem simple, build up that design muscle with the basics and design techniques that look clean and consistent.

You’ll find as you design these basics, you’ll probably start noticing other visuals and things you like in other mediums and presentations. Keep a note or screenshot the presentation that inspired you. Create a mood-board that you can refer to in the future for quick idea inspiration. Copying gets a bad rap, but learning how to design something you like even if it’s a clone copy will teach you many things about design. Build a collection of images that informs everything you do: for your color scheme, your designs, the cadence of images, etc.

That being said, you can also use free stock websites like Freepik for some design layouts inspiration. Creative Market is a paid website but the site offers a ton of design inspiration. This site has design templates for what’s currently in and trending. You can subscribe to an email newsletter on either site to get bite sized design influence each day that goes straight to your inbox.

However, don’t be afraid to try something new!

Once you get to a level of comfortable designing, these new ideas will be much easier to execute with the technical knowledge you amassed when you started. You could even try using a new app to design your ideas to keep your knowledge fresh! (Keep in mind that most online apps like SlideShare use cookies to improve functionality and performance.)

Ask your friends or people at your organization to give you feedback and critique, as that’s also crucial to honing your design skills. The people around you also represent different audiences!

The above image looks boring, right?

That’s because there are no visual elements!

Powerful visual presentations can engage audiences psychologically with both the presentation itself and the energy of the presenter. By understanding a few universal design concepts, you can begin your journey creating wonderful visual presentations and becoming a better presenter ! Thanks for reading this blog post, tell us your tips in the comments below.

Author:  Content Team

Related posts.

FREE PROFESSIONAL RESOURCES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX.

Subscribe for free tips, resources, templates, ideas and more from our professional team of presentation designers.

7 Types of Visual Presentations

When it comes to delivering a presentation, visuals can be extremely helpful in getting your point across. There are many types of visual presentations that can be used to communicate your message.

This blog post will discuss seven different types of visual presentations and when they might be appropriate to use. We will also provide examples of each kind of presentation. Let’s get started!

What are Visual Presentations?

3. whiteboards, 5. infographics, 7. paper handouts, which one is right for you.

Visual presentations are a visual aid that can be used in both business and academia to help explain concepts or topics that might otherwise be difficult for an audience member to understand without seeing them firsthand.

In addition, visuals allow the presenter to provide more information than just words alone would do on their own because they provide context and give the audience something concrete to look at while listening.

There are many types of visual presentations, but we will focus on seven of the most common ones here. Each type has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it’s important to understand when each would be appropriate to use.

Slides are the most common type of visual aid. You can use slides to demonstrate your point and make it easier for the audience to follow along with what you’re saying. They are also pretty easy to prepare.

For example, a slide that shows how much money was spent on advertising last year might be useful in an annual meeting where everyone’s attention span is short or they don’t want to take the time to read a long report.

Graphs and charts are other types of visual presentation that can be used to show trends or compare data.

For example, you might use a graph to illustrate how your company’s revenue has increased or decreased over the past five years. Or, you could use a chart to compare the number of sales your company has made this year compared to last year.

Whiteboards are a great way to explain something in detail, as they allow you to draw pictures and write on them. For example, if your company is thinking about designing a new website but needs some ideas first, then using whiteboards would help everyone get their thoughts out.

One issue about using whiteboards is that they cannot be easily saved and shared with others. Moreover, as you need to write manually, it can be time-consuming and prone to errors.

Videos are another type of visual aid that can be used to demonstrate a concept or show how something works. It’s beneficial when you want to show live instances of your products or services through movements.

For example, if you’re selling cars, then showing them driving around would help people get an idea of what they look like in action (and not just sitting still on a lot).

The downside to using videos is that creating one from scratch can be time-consuming and expensive, so this isn’t always feasible. In addition, videos can be challenging to follow if they are not properly edited.

Infographics are visual presentations that use images and text to convey information. They can be used in many ways, from illustrating trends or comparing data points graphically; to explaining complex concepts in an easy-to-understand manner.

Infographics are especially handy when trying to illustrate a point based on a massive number of data. For example, if you wanted to show how much data your company has collected over the past year, you could use an infographic.

Posters are used primarily in academic settings because they allow students to display their research findings at conferences or other events where the audiences are present.

For example, if someone were presenting on the use of social media in politics, they might create a poster with an image of the political landscape and then use text to explain how social media is being used.

Posters can be created using software or hand-drawing, but they should always be designed with legibility.

Paper handouts are visual aids that can be used to supplement slides or other visuals.

They can be especially useful if you want to provide the audience with additional information that isn’t easily conveyed in a slide or chart.

For example, you might use paper handouts to give the audience more details about the data shown in a graph or provide them with a list of your company’s products and services.

Now that you know about the different types of visuals, how do you decide which one is right for your presentation?

Well, it depends on what you’re trying to accomplish. If you want to make your presentation more interesting and engaging, then using slides or videos might be a good option.

However, if you need to show complex data or explain a concept in detail, charts, whiteboards, or infographics might be better.

In the end, it’s crucial to pick the right type of visual that will help you communicate your message most effectively.

While there are many different types of visual presentations, the seven we’ve outlined in this blog post should give you a good place to start when creating your own visual presentation.

Keep in mind the tone and purpose of your presentation as you select which type will work best for you. And always be sure to test out your visuals on a small audience before presenting them to a larger group. Happy presenting!

Related Posts:

2024’s Must-See Visual Presentation Examples to Power Up Your Deck

Anh Vu • 05 April, 2024 • 9 min read

Keep on reading because these visual presentation examples will blow your boring decks away! For many people, delivering a presentation is a daunting project, even before it turns to hybrid and virtual displays due to the pandemic. To avoid the Death By PowerPoint phenomenon, it is time to adopt new techniques to make your presentations more visual and impressive.

This article tries to encourage you to think outside of the slide by providing essential elements of a successful visual presentation, especially for the new presenter and those who want to save time, money, and effort for the upcoming presentation deadline.

Table of Contents

What is a visual presentation.

• Types of Visual Presentation Examples

How to Create a Visual Presentation

• What Makes a Good Presentation Visual?

Frequently Asked Questions

How ahaslides supports a good visual presentation.

As mentioned before, you need a presentation tool to make your presentation more visual and engaging. The art of leveraging visual elements is all intended visual aids make sense and kick off audiences’ imagination, curiosity, and interest from the entire presentation.

The easiest way to create interaction between the presenter and the audience is by asking for rhetorical and thought-provoking quizzes and quick surveys during the presentation. AhaSlides , with a range of live polls , live Q&A , word clouds , interactive questions, image questions, creative fonts, and integration with streaming platforms can help you to make a good visual presentation in just a second.

• Types of Presentation
• College Presentation
• Creative Presentation Ideas
• AhaSlides Free Public Templates

Start in seconds.

Get free templates for your next interactive presentation. Sign up for free and take what you want from the template library!

So, what are the visual presentation examples? When providing as much information as possible, many presenters think that text-heavy slides may help, but by contrast, they may lead to distraction. As we explore the characteristics of good presentations, illustrations and graphics play an important role in delivering compelling content and turning complex concepts more clearly, precisely, and instantly to understand. A visual presentation is the adoption of a range of visual aids on presentation to ensure information is easier to understand and memorize. 

In addition, visual aids can also help to keep presenters on track, which can be used as a cue for reviving a train of thought. They build better interaction and communication between presenters and the audience, making them notice more deeply what you are saying.

Types of Visual Presentation Examples 

Some possible visual presentations include infographics , charts, diagrams, posters, flipcharts, idea board , whiteboards, and video presentation examples. 

An infographic is a collection of different graphic visual presentations to represent information, data, or knowledge intended more visually quickly and clearly to grab the audience’s attention.

To illustrate quantitative data effectively, it is important to make use of graphs and charts. For both business use and research use, graphs and charts can show multiple and complex data in a way that is easy to understand and memory.

When it comes to presenting information systematically and logically, you can use diagrams. A diagram is a powerful tool for effective communication and brainstorming processes. It also is time-saving for people to read and collect information.

A poster, especially a research project poster, provides brief and concrete information about a research paper straightforwardly. The audiences can grab all important data knowledge and findings through posters. 

A flipchart and whiteboard are the most basic presentation aids and work best to supplement lecture slides. Excellent whiteboard and flipchart composite of well-chosen words, and clear diagram will help to explain complex concepts.

A video presentation is not a new concept, it is a great way to spread ideas lively and quickly attract the audience’s attention. The advantages of a video presentation lie in its animation and illustration concepts, fascinating sound effects, and user-friendliness. 

In addition, we can add many types of visual aids in the presentations as long as they can give shapes and form words or thoughts into visual content. Most popular visual aids include graphs, statistics, charts, and diagrams that should be noted in your mind. These elements combined with verbal are a great way to engage the listeners’ imagination and also emphasize vital points more memorable.

It is simply to create more visual presentations than you think. With the development of technology and the internet, you can find visual presentation examples and templates for a second. PowerPoint is a good start, but there are a variety of quality alternatives, such as AhaSlides , Keynote, and Prezi.

When it comes to designing an effective visual presentation, you may identify some key steps beforehand:

Visual Presentation Examples – Focus on Your Topic

Firstly, you need to determine your purpose and understand your audience’s needs. If you are going to present in a seminar with your audience of scientists, engineers, business owners… They are likely to care about data under simple charts and graphs, which explain the results or trends. Or if you are going to give a lecture for secondary students, your slides should be something fun and interesting, with more colourful pictures and interactive questions.

Visual Presentation Examples – Animation and Transition

When you want to add a bit of excitement to a slideshow and help to keep the listener more engaged, you use animation and transition. These functions help to shift the focus of audiences between elements on slides. When the transition style and setting are set right, it can help to give fluidity and professionalism to a slideshow.

Visual Presentation Examples – Devices for Interactivity

One of the approaches that improve communication between audiences and the use of visual aids is using technology assistance. You don’t want to take too much time to create well-designed visual aids while ensuring your presentation is impressive, so why not leverage a presentation app like AhaSlides ? It properly encourages participant engagement with interactive visual features and templates and is time-saving. With its help, you can design your presentation either formally or informally depending on your interest.

Visual Presentation Examples – Give an Eye-catching Title

Believe it or not, the title is essential to attracting audiences at first sight. Though don’t “read the book by its cover”, you still can put your thoughts into a unique title that conveys the topic while piquing the viewer’s interest. 

Visual Presentation Examples – Play a Short Video

Creative video presentation ideas are always important. “Videos evoke emotional responses”, it will be a mistake if you don’t leverage short videos with sound to reel in and captivate the audience’s attention. You can put the video at the beginning of the presentation as a brief introduction to your topic, or you can play it as a supplement to explain difficult concepts. 

Visual Presentation Examples – Use a Prop or Creative Visual Aid to Inject Humour

It is challenging to keep your audience interested and engaged with your audience from the whole presentation. It is why to add a prop or creative visual aid to pull your audience’s focus on what you say. Here are some ideas to cover it:

• Use neon colour and duotones
• Tell a personal story
• Show a shocking heading
• Use isometric illustrations
• Go vertical

Visual Presentation Examples – Rehearsal and Get Feedback

It is an important step to make your visual presentation really work out. You won’t know any unexpected mirrors may come out on D-day if you don’t make the rehearsal and get feedback from a reliable source. If they say that your visual image is in bad-quality, the data is overwhelming, or the pictures are misunderstood, you can have an alternative plan in advance.

What Makes a Good Visual Presentation?

Incorporate visual or audio media appropriately. Ensure you arrange and integrate suitable data presentation in your slides or videos. You can read the guidelines for visual aids applications in the following:

• Choose a readable text size about the slide room and text spacing in about 5-7 doubted-spaced.
• Use consistent colour for overall presentation, visual aids work better in white yellow and blue backgrounds.
• Take care of data presentation, and avoid oversimplification or too much detail.
• Keep the data shown minimum and highlight really important data points only.
• Choose font carefully, keep in mind that lowercase is easier to read than uppercase
• Don’t mix fonts.
• Printed text is easier to read than handwritten text.
• Use the visual to emphasize punctuation in your verbal presentation.
• Say no to poor-quality images or videos.
• Visual elements need to be strategic and relevant.

What well-designed visual aids should have?

To make an effective visual aid, you must follow principles of design, including contrast, alignment, repetition, and proximity.

Why is it important to keep visual aids simple?

Simple ads help to keep things clear and understandable, so the message can be communicated effectively.

What is the purpose of visual aids in the classroom?

To encourage the learning process and make it easier and more interesting so students would want to engage in lessons more.

Tips to Engage with Polls & Trivia

More from AhaSlides

How it works

For Business

Join Mind Tools

Article • 12 min read

Creating Effective Presentation Visuals

Connecting people with your message.

By the Mind Tools Content Team

Apple® founder Steve Jobs was known widely for his great presentations. His unveiling of the iPhone® in 2007 is considered to have been one of his best presentations ever, and, if you were one of the millions who watched it online, you'll know why. The presentation was engaging, and passionate.

Jobs was particularly well known for building his presentations around powerful visual aids. He knew that slides are most effective when they tell a story rather than convey information, so his visuals were simple, elegant, and image-based. They complemented and reinforced his message, and they never competed with him for his audience's attention.

You don't have to be Steve Jobs to give a great presentation, but you do need great visuals. They convey a powerful message about your ideas and your brand, so it's essential to get them right. In this article, we'll look at how you can create effective presentation visuals – slides that connect your audience with your message.

Why Simplicity Speaks Volumes

The saying "A picture is worth a thousand words" is popular for a good reason: the human brain processes information more effectively when it is accompanied by images, or by short, memorable statements. This means that when you use simple, image-based slides to support your message, your audience can better grasp the information you're communicating.

However, many people use too many slides, or they build presentations around visual aids that are word-heavy or excessively complex.

These kinds of visual aids can negatively affect your presentation. Let's look at some examples:

• You're trying to convince the board to support a new product idea. Your slides are made up of graphs, numbers, and blocks of text from top to bottom, and board members spend most of their time reading the slides instead of listening to you. The result? You don't make a real connection, and your passion for the project is lost on them. They vote unanimously not to take the idea forward.
• You're pitching to a promising potential client. You spent a lot of time creating your slides, using many colors, animations, and fonts. However, the slides are so complex that your client has trouble understanding them. She leaves the presentation feeling overwhelmed and tired, and avoids using your firm because she fears, subconsciously, that dealing with your firm in the future could be similarly draining.
• You're giving a presentation to your department to highlight its good work. You want to feature everyone, so you make a slide detailing each person's accomplishments. Your department has dozens of people, so by the end, your team cares more about leaving than their results.

Now think about what happens when you use simple and engaging visuals. Instead of generating confusion or exhaustion, your slides create a positive connection with your audience. People might not remember exactly what you said, but they will remember a powerful image. They'll recall the positive emotions that they experienced during your presentation, and they'll start to associate your brand with clear, intelligent communication.

The results will be profound. You'll win new clients, convince colleagues to act on your ideas, and earn recognition for your team members' hard work. In short, you'll make positive impressions that will remain in people's minds long after the details of your presentation have faded.

Creating Great Visuals

Your visual aids have one job: to support your presentation . However, it takes considerable time, creativity, and effort to develop slides that do this well. Use the tips below to make the most of your preparation time.

1. Be Consistent

A common mistake is choosing different colors and fonts for each slide. This can confuse your audience and divert attention away from your message. Stay consistent with your slides, so that they form part of a seamless whole.

First, choose colors carefully, as color will affect your presentation's mood and tone. Also, think about the space that you'll be presenting in. If the room will be dark (with lights off), choose a darker background color, such as dark blue, black, or gray, with white or light-colored text. If the room will be light (with lights on or plenty of ambient light), choose a white or light-colored background, with black or dark-colored text.

You also need to match color with the tone and message of your presentation. Bright colors convey energy and excitement, while darker colors may seem more conservative and serious. Align the color palette you choose with your subject matter.

Microsoft® PowerPoint and Apple's Keynote are the most widely used presentation packages. They feature useful templates and tools, and most people are familiar with the layout of their presentations.

However, cloud-based presentation tools have features and templates that might be new to your audience, increasing the potential impact of your presentations.

2. Consider Culture

Before you create your visuals, make sure that you understand your audience. This is especially true if you're presenting to a culturally diverse group.

For example, not everyone reads from left to right, and people from some cultures may consider a particular color offensive or bad luck in business settings (look out for examples of this in our Managing Around the World articles). Additionally, jargon or slang may cause confusion with your audience.

When designing your visuals, use images and photographs that reflect the culture to which you're speaking. If you're presenting to a culturally diverse group, use pictures and images that reflect this diversity.

And keep graphics and phrases simple; remember, not everyone in the room will be a native English speaker. Whenever possible, use images to replace bullet points and sentences.

Our article on Cross-Cultural Communication has more tips for communicating with an ethnically diverse group.

3. Use Images Intelligently

When Steve Jobs unveiled the MacBook Air® , he needed to show just how small this new laptop was. The audience wasn't going to remember that it was 0.68 x 11.8 x 7.56 inches; those numbers don't create an emotional response. Instead, he showed them that the MacBook Air would fit easily into a standard manila envelope. This was a powerful way to show its size.

This kind of creativity is essential when choosing images. Your audience has probably seen plenty of bad clip-art and too many pictures of cross-cultural handshakes. Brainstorm creative, clever approaches with your imagery, and look for photographs or illustrations that tell a story in a less obvious way.

Thoughtful images will keep your audience engaged, reinforce your professionalism, and make a lasting impression.

4. Break Complex Data Down

When you have to communicate complex data or large chunks of information, avoid putting it all on one slide, as your audience may struggle to take in all of the details. Instead, either summarize the information, or split it up over several slides.

You can also use handouts to communicate complex information. Handouts allow your audience to look at data closely. This is especially important when you're presenting to analytical people, such as engineers, scientists, or finance professionals. They are trained to be skeptical about data, and a handout will give them a closer look. Once again, this kind of attention to the needs of your audience will highlight your professionalism and support your message.

5. Keep It Simple

Each slide should focus on one idea or concept. This allows your audience to grasp quickly what you want to communicate. Keep your text to a bare minimum (10 words or fewer if possible), and, where you can, use an image to convey a message rather than words: for example, consider using a graph instead of a list to show changing trends. Each slide should take three seconds or fewer to process. If it takes longer, the slide is probably too complex.

It can sometimes be helpful to follow a clear structure when creating your presentation; for example, if it is focused on a document or process with which audience members are familiar. This will help them make connections between your content and their existing knowledge.

Avoid bulleted lists whenever possible; they make it too easy to put several ideas on one slide, which can be overwhelming for your audience. If you do need to use bullets, don't use sentences; instead, simply list the fact, statistic, or idea you want to communicate. Then use your narrative to educate the audience about what these mean.

To simplify the wording on your slides further, highlight the key word in every sentence.

Next, look at the layout of your slides. Aim to use a plain background and plenty of blank space: this will help to focus audience members' eyes on your message. Avoid decorating slides with background pictures, logos or patterns that could distract attention.

Last, consider using blank slides when you need the audience's complete focus; a blank slide is equivalent to a pause, and it will add drama, tension, and focus to your words.

Many people underestimate how much time they need to set aside to prepare for a presentation. They'll spend days creating content and visuals but only a few hours practicing. Allow extra preparation time to hone your message and feel fully confident in your presentation.

First, take our interactive quiz, How Good Are Your Presentation Skills? to get an idea of how well you speak. Our articles on Delivering Great Presentations and Better Public Speaking contain tips and strategies that will help you communicate with clarity and intention.

When you practice your presentation, use your visuals. You should be able to glance at each slide and know exactly what you want to say.

If you're not confident in creating your own slides, think about outsourcing the task to a professional. This can be a smart option when a lot is at stake, or when you don't have the technical skills to create the type of presentation you want.

Consider using an outsourcing service such as Elance , Guru , or PeoplePerHour to find a suitable professional.

If you do, keep in mind that managing a freelancer requires a different approach from managing a regular staff member. Be clear about the project details, communicate your goals for the presentation, and set deadlines that give you plenty of time to revise and add as necessary.

Presentations that are too complex or lengthy can undermine your message. To create better visuals, do the following:

• Stay consistent.
• Consider culture.
• Use images intelligently.
• Break down complex data.
• Keep it simple.

If the stakes are high with your presentation and you don't feel confident with your technical skills, consider outsourcing slide preparation.

"iPhone," "Apple," "MacBook Air," and "Keynote" are trademarks of Apple Inc. (see www.apple.com ). "Microsoft" and "PowerPoint" are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation (see www.microsoft.com ). We have no association or connection with these organizations.

You've accessed 1 of your 2 free resources.

Get unlimited access

Discover more content

Tips for better public speaking.

Plan, Practice and Instantly Engage Your Audience

10 Common Presentation Mistakes

Avoiding Common Pitfalls in Your Presentations

Add comment

Comments (0)

Be the first to comment!

Gain essential management and leadership skills

Busy schedule? No problem. Learn anytime, anywhere. 

Subscribe to unlimited access to meticulously researched, evidence-based resources.

Join today and save on an annual membership!

Sign-up to our newsletter

Subscribing to the Mind Tools newsletter will keep you up-to-date with our latest updates and newest resources.

Subscribe now

Business Skills

Personal Development

Leadership and Management

Member Extras

Most Popular

Latest Updates

How to Build Confidence in Others

How to Create Psychological Safety at Work

Mind Tools Store

About Mind Tools Content

Discover something new today

Pain points podcast - presentations pt 1.

How do you get better at presenting?

NEW! Pain Points - Presentations Pt 2

Learn how to present like a pro

How Emotionally Intelligent Are You?

Boosting Your People Skills

Self-Assessment

What's Your Leadership Style?

Learn About the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Way You Like to Lead

Recommended for you

Managing emotion in your team.

How to Maintain Harmony in a Group

Business Operations and Process Management

Strategy Tools

Customer Service

Business Ethics and Values

Handling Information and Data

Project Management

Knowledge Management

Self-Development and Goal Setting

Time Management

Presentation Skills

Learning Skills

Career Skills

Communication Skills

Negotiation, Persuasion and Influence

Working With Others

Difficult Conversations

Creativity Tools

Self-Management

Work-Life Balance

Stress Management and Wellbeing

Coaching and Mentoring

Change Management

Team Management

Managing Conflict

Delegation and Empowerment

Performance Management

Leadership Skills

Developing Your Team

Talent Management

Problem Solving

Decision Making

Member Podcast

How to create visual presentations and eLearning

• Written by: Richard Goring
• Categories: PowerPoint design , Visual communication
• Comments: 4

Most presentations are a cascade of text-heavy Death-by-PowerPoint slides, while online learners suffer the torture of wading through page after page of brochures converted to click-through-eLearning. However you look at it, a wall of text doesn’t work to engage people or compel them to action, so it really can’t be effective. That’s why most people now recognize that using visuals is the way to go. But how do you create visual presentations and eLearning that works? We think there are six steps you need to follow.

Step 1. Understand the audience

To know how to make a presentation effective, you need to understand the person on the receiving end and also decide what you’re trying to achieve. Are you trying to inform the audience of something – i.e. give them information they don’t have and help them understand it. Or persuade them to do something or change their behaviour – i.e. convince the audience the reasons to act in a certain way are stronger than the reasons not to. (Selling is typically a subset of this).

And it’s worth noting that a lot of the time, when you’re trying to inform people of something as your primary objective, you’ll also need to do at least a little persuasion, to get them to believe that your information is valid, valuable, and worth acting upon. Likewise, if you’re persuading people, you need to inform your audience so that they understand enough to be able to buy into your ideas.

When informing, you should have a clear idea of what exactly you are trying to inform about, and note it down in a couple of words so that you can easily refer back to it throughout the process.

If you’re persuading people, the same thing applies, but more specifically, we find it most helpful to think about this in terms of how the audience will benefit. What’s in it for them?

The options are many and various, but something short and punchy helps you to focus your story on what’s important to your audience and will make the story worth listening to.

Step 2: Identify key message or story

Now you need to decide what information to present to your audience in order to achieve your goal. And assess how much your audience already know about the topic, so you don’t repeat unnecessarily.

Typically, anything you’re attempting to visualise into a visual presentation has a lot of detailed content with relatively little structure. So to help, we recommend you simplify down to the core message in a nicely structured way that’s easy to understand, which then helps you to pick out what detail is most important and how to bring everything together.

Then take the necessary pieces of information and organise them into a story that flows, so it’s easy to follow. Often the framework of Problem -> Solution -> Impact is a good one to follow.

• Problem sets up the context and shows why this is something people need to know and pay attention to. It helps to frame the rest of the story.
• Solution is the details of what happens, or how something works.
• Impact is the end result – that will often lead to the outcome that your audience will achieve.

Step 3: Identify key objects

The next job, within these short sentences, is to identify the objects that are crucial to telling the story.

Person, role, company – Typically these are physical things, like objects or people. You can easily spot some of these – any mention of people, groups of people, job roles, or companies, could be represented by a photo of someone, or a silhouette, or a logo.

Object, product – You may have things that aren’t people, but are still easily recognizable entities, like objects – a computer, a phone, a bicycle, a hippopotamus – or a product or service, which might be a little bit more abstract, like ‘consulting’ or ‘water treatment’ – but still a concept that you can easily put a label on. Pretty straightforward visually, you could use an icon if you just want to get across the idea of a deliverable, or a photo of the product, or a label of the product or service, or you might even have a logo for it, especially if it’s something fairly abstract.

Quote – If you want to show a direct quote from someone, try to keep it short and to the point. It should really speak for itself, which means you’re going to have to keep quiet and let the audience read it.

Location – Then you might have locations – a point on a map, like a city, or maybe a type of building, like a hospital or office tower, or it could be an office floor plan. It could be something more abstract like an objective or a target you’re aiming towards.

Data, measurable – And then you might be able to pick out some data, like figures, percentages, dates, costs, that sort of thing, or some kind of measurable quantity, which are similar but they’re more vague – concepts that you can quantify, but that don’t really have any ‘number’ attached to them – things like a level of risk, or confidence, or effort.

That’s a starter gallery of different types of key objects. What these things all have in common is that they can all be represented with some sort of visual device that can be easily recognized, so you don’t have to do too much explanation and the audience doesn’t spend too long trying to figure out what it is. You might be using pictures, or icons, or labels to represent these things to create your visual presentation, or they might make up part of a diagram, which is what we’re going to look at in the next part of the process.

Step 4: Establish relationships

Once you know what’s involved in the story, start to look at the relationships between each of the key objects, and how they interact, which will give you the layout of the slide, the framework, or the diagram. There are plenty of options, but there are a few reliable regulars that you can draw on.

First you’ve got your different types of graph , which will probably be the first choice if you’re showing data. You could make an XY graph , two axes, and the data might be bars or lines, or an XYZ graph that shows a three dimensional data set, which might shrink or stretch across the three axes.  A pie chart , to show proportions – this might be useful if you have percentages, as long as they all belong to the same category. Or you could have a Matrix arrangement, showing where elements are placed in different regions.

Then you’ve got a few ways of laying out elements that are distinct from one another. If you’ve got a sequence of dates in your information, a timeline might be a good choice, or if you haven’t you could just show a process diagram . You might just want to lay out the elements in a two dimensional space , or play around with the proportions to make a three dimensional scene , to add focus in on some elements and put others in the background. A hierarchy arrangement can show how elements are ranked in layers, useful for organization diagrams , or you could use a mind-map style layout to show connections between one big idea and a few other ideas that are linked up to it, or to each other.

A few other options for showing how things relate to one another might be a cluster or Venn diagram , to show connections or intersections between ideas, a jigsaw if you’ve got a number of things that fit together to form a larger picture, or just to get the idea across that a couple of things are well-suited to one another, and if you’re talking about a causal relationship, where one thing directly affects another, a balance diagram might work well, or a sequence that shows a push-pull relationship between two things.

This is a fairly small selection of the types of layouts you could come up with to create a visual presentation or eLearning, and a lot of slides might use two or more of these at once in order to get a complex idea across. To work out which ones to go for, you’ll have to look at your information and think about how you’d explain it, the order you’d point to your key objects, and how those key objects are related to one another. Crucially, you also have to think about the overarching message that the slide is supposed to be getting across, which you established in steps 1 and 2.

Step 5: Create visuals

Now is the time to bring everything together. The individual key objects that you’ve got, with the layouts that show the relationships between them. Think about the order you want the story to be told, which will inform the layout of your visual slides, but also the sequence in which you’ll want to use the individual elements. And animations are a real help here, as they can pace the flow of information and ensure that you keep the audience focused on the right thing at the right time. They can also be a key part of actually telling the story, to make things happen, change elements, and emphasize the relationships between your key objects.

So if you’re introducing new ideas you can add things onto the slide. If you’re simplifying a diagram or removing things you don’t need, you can remove . You can make things grow , or shrink to show changing amounts, or changing importance, and you can make things move around to new locations. If you want to combine elements together you can merge them into one, or connect them together. You can highlight something that’s especially important, for your key message, and show something being passed along from one person to another, or data being transferred. You can also change something into something else, by replacing it.

Again, there are countless examples of these, and you’ll probably want to use a few of them for each slide, but this should give you a few good ideas of ways to move your key objects around, change the relationships, and end up with the right kind of visual punchline. These things can all be done with native PowerPoint animation (and check our animation articles  and masterclass schedule for a lesson on animation if you’re not already a master at it!).

Step 6: Design

What you should have now is an idea or sketch of everything that’s going to happen on your slide to tell the story. You ‘just’ need to bring it to life and share your ideas. That’s not always an easy task, but if you check out this post by my colleague Bethany on some practical tips to achieve good presentation design , this post on some of our favorite websites for free design resources , and this one on presentation design in general, you’ll have a good head start. And of course the various PowerPoint tutorials and master classes are a wealth of information to help you out.

And if you’d like to see some examples of presentations that we’ve developed using these ideas, and then created in PowerPoint, you can draw inspiration from our presentation portfolio , showing you that pretty much anything is possible in PowerPoint.

Richard Goring

Related articles, how to create powerpoint templates that work.

• PowerPoint design

Without a proper PowerPoint template, presentations can be a bit of a mess. Here are the building blocks for developing a PowerPoint template that works!

Presentation design principles for better PowerPoint design

• PowerPoint design / PowerPoint productivity
• Comments: 17

By applying some key principles of presentation design, you can make your PowerPoint design really standout and deliver both a more ‘popping’, but also more effective presentation.

How to print multiple slides on one page

What’s the secret for how to print multiple PowerPoint slides on one page? We've got a few solutions up our sleeves, from simple and quick to completely custom!

Thank you very much, you are helping me to understand how to produce presentations so my students will want to see and learn from.

Great Estrella, lovely to hear that it’s working so well.

Its really helpful, thanks for providing such informative data in a unique way.

Just came across this while searching for Colour-Vision-Deficient-friendly PowerPoint tips. Aside from giving excellent advice, it’s wild that you’ve got graphics of what looks like Coronavirus in an article from 2017 – did you know something we didn’t 🙂 ?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Save my name and email in this browser for the next time I comment.

Join the BrightCarbon mailing list for monthly invites and resources

Throughout all stages of this project we have had a world class experience. The team was uber-responsive and open to feedback and collaboration to ensure we were getting the best presentation possible. Marc Chaanine Jamaica Bearings

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

14.1 Organizing a Visual Presentation

Learning objectives.

• Identify key ideas and details to create a concise, engaging presentation.
• Identify the steps involved in planning a comprehensive presentation.

Until now, you have interacted with your audience of readers indirectly, on the page. You have tried to anticipate their reactions and questions as all good writers do. Anticipating the audience’s needs can be tough, especially when you are sitting alone in front of your computer.

When you give a presentation, you connect directly with your audience. For most people, making a presentation is both exciting and stressful. The excitement comes from engaging in a two-way interaction about your ideas. The stress comes from the pressure of presenting your ideas without having a delete button to undo mistakes. Outside the classroom, you may be asked to give a presentation, often at the last minute, and the show must go on. Presentations can be stressful, but planning and preparation, when the time and opportunity are available, can make all the difference.

This chapter covers how to plan and deliver an effective, engaging presentation. By planning carefully, applying some time-honored presentation strategies, and practicing, you can make sure that your presentation comes across as confident, knowledgeable, and interesting—and that your audience actually learns from it. The specific tasks involved in creating a presentation may vary slightly depending on your purpose and your assignment. However, these are the general steps.

Follow these steps to create a presentation based on your ideas:

• Determine your purpose and identify the key ideas to present.
• Organize your ideas in an outline.
• Identify opportunities to incorporate visual or audio media, and create or locate these media aids.
• Rehearse your presentation in advance.
• Deliver your presentation to your audience.

Getting Started: Identifying and Organizing Key Ideas

To deliver a successful presentation, you need to develop content suitable for an effective presentation. Your ideas make up your presentation, but to deliver them effectively, you will need to identify key ideas and organize them carefully. Read the following considerations, which will help you first identify and then organize key ideas:

• Be concise. You will include the most important ideas and leave out others. Some concepts may need to be simplified.
• Employ more than one medium of expression. You should incorporate other media, such as charts, graphs, photographs, video or audio recordings, or websites.
• Prepare for a face-to-face presentation. If you must deliver a face-to-face presentation, it is important to project yourself as a serious and well-informed speaker. You will often speak extemporaneously, or in a rehearsed but not memorized manner, which allows for flexibility given the context or audience. You will need to know your points and keep your audience engaged.

Determine Your Purpose

As with a writing assignment, determining the purpose of your presentation early on is crucial. You want to inform your readers about the topic, but think about what else you hope to achieve.

Are you presenting information intended to move your audience to adopt certain beliefs or take action on a particular issue? If so, you are speaking not only to inform but also to persuade your listeners. Do you want your audience to come away from your presentation knowing how to do something they that they did not know before? In that case, you are not only informing them but also explaining or teaching a process.

Writing at Work

Schoolteachers are trained to structure lessons around one or more lesson objectives. Usually the objective, the mission or purpose, states what students should know or be able to do after they complete the lesson. For example, an objective might state, “Students will understand the specific freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment” or “Students will be able to add two three-digit numbers correctly.”

As a manager, mentor, or supervisor, you may sometimes be required to teach or train other employees as part of your job. Determining the desired outcome of a training session will help you plan effectively. Identify your teaching objectives. What, specifically, do you want your audience to know (for instance, details of a new workplace policy) or be able to do (for instance, use a new software program)? Plan your teaching or training session to meet your objectives.

Identify Key Ideas

To plan your presentation, think in terms of three or four key points you want to get across. In a paper, you have the space to develop ideas at length and delve into complex details. In a presentation, however, you must convey your ideas more concisely.

One strategy you might try is to create an outline. What is your main idea? Would your main idea work well as key points for a brief presentation? How would you condense topics that might be too lengthy, or should you eliminate topics that may be too complicated to address in your presentation?

1. Revisit your presentation assignment, or think of a topic for your presentation. On your own sheet of notebook paper, write a list of at least three to five key ideas. Keep the following questions in mind when listing your key ideas:

• What is your purpose?
• Who is your audience?
• How will you engage your audience?

2. On the same paper, identify the steps you must complete before you begin creating your presentation.

Use an Outline to Organize Ideas

After you determine which ideas are most appropriate for your presentation, you will create an outline of those ideas. Your presentation, like a written assignment, should include an introduction, body, and conclusion. These components serve much the same purpose as they do in a written assignment.

• The introduction engages the audience’s attention, introduces the topic, and sets the tone for what is to come.
• The body develops your point of view with supporting ideas, details, and examples presented in a logical order.
• The conclusion restates your point of view, sums up your main points, and leaves your audience with something to think about.

Jorge, who wrote the research paper featured in Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” , developed the following outline. Jorge relied heavily on this outline to plan his presentation, but he adjusted it to suit the new format.

Planning Your Introduction

In Chapter 12 “Writing a Research Paper” , you learned techniques for writing an interesting introduction, such as beginning with a surprising fact or statistic, a thought-provoking question or quotation, a brief anecdote that illustrates a larger concept or connects your topic to your audience’s experiences. You can use these techniques effectively in presentations as well. You might also consider actively engaging your audience by having members respond to questions or complete a brief activity related to your topic. For example, you may have your audience respond to a survey or tell about an experience related to your topic.

Incorporating media can also be an effective way to get your audience’s attention. Visual images such as a photograph or a cartoon can invoke an immediate emotional response. A graph or chart can highlight startling findings in research data or statistical information. Brief video or audio clips that clearly reinforce your message and do not distract or overwhelm your audience can provide a sense of immediacy when you plan to discuss an event or a current issue. A PowerPoint presentation allows you to integrate many of these different media sources into one presentation.

With the accessibility provided by the Internet, you can find interesting and appropriate audio and video with little difficulty. However, the clip alone will not sustain the presentation. To keep the audience interested and engaged, you must frame the beginning and end of the clip with your own words.

Jorge completed the introduction part of his outline by listing the key points he would use to open his presentation. He also planned to show various web links early on to illustrate the popularity of the low-carbohydrate diet trend.

Planning the Body of Your Presentation

The next step is to work with the key ideas you identified earlier. Determine the order in which you want to present these ideas, and flesh them out with important details. Chapter 10 “Rhetorical Modes” discusses several organizational structures you might work with, such as chronological order, comparison-and-contrast structure, or cause-and-effect structure.

How much detail you include will depend on the time allotted for your presentation. Your instructor will most likely give you a specific time limit or a specific slide limit, such as eight to ten slides. If the time limit is very brief (two to three minutes, for instance), you will need to focus on communicating your point of view, main supporting points, and only the most relevant details. Three minutes can feel like an eternity if you are speaking before a group, but the time will pass very quickly. It is important to use it well.

If you have more time to work with—ten minutes or half an hour—you will be able to discuss your topic in greater detail. More time also means you must devote more thought into how you will hold your audience’s interest. If your presentation is longer than five minutes, introduce some variety so the audience is not bored. Incorporate multimedia, invite the audience to complete an activity, or set aside time for a question-and-answer session.

Jorge was required to limit his presentation to five to seven minutes. In his outline, he made a note about where he would need to condense some complicated material to stay within his time limit. He also decided to focus only on cholesterol and heart disease in his discussion of long-term health outcomes. The research on other issues was inconclusive, so Jorge decided to omit this material. Jorge’s notes on his outline show the revisions he has made to his presentation.

You are responsible for using your presentation time effectively to inform your audience. You show respect for your audience by following the expected time limit. However, that does not mean you must fill all of that time with talk if you are giving a face-to-face presentation. Involving your audience can take some of the pressure off you while also keeping them engaged. Have them respond to a few brief questions to get them thinking. Display a relevant photograph, document, or object and ask your classmates to comment. In some presentations, if time allows, you may choose to have your classmates complete an individual or group activity.

Planning Your Conclusion

The conclusion should briefly sum up your main idea and leave your audience with something to think about. As in a written paper, you are essentially revisiting your thesis. Depending on your topic, you may also ask the audience to reconsider their thinking about an issue, to take action, or to think about a related issue. If you presented an attention-getting fact or anecdote in your introduction, consider revisiting it in your conclusion. Just as you have learned about an essay’s conclusion, do not add new content to the presentation’s conclusion.

No matter how you choose to structure your conclusion, make sure it is well planned so that you are not tempted to wrap up your presentation too quickly. Inexperienced speakers, in a face-to-face presentation, sometimes rush through the end of a presentation to avoid exceeding the allotted time or to end the stressful experience of presenting in public. Unfortunately, a hurried conclusion makes the presentation as a whole less memorable.

Time management is the key to delivering an effective presentation whether it is face-to-face or in PowerPoint. As you develop your outline, think about the amount of time you will devote to each section. For instance, in a five-minute face-to-face presentation, you might plan to spend one minute on the introduction, three minutes on the body, and one minute on the conclusion. Later, when you rehearse, you can time yourself to determine whether you need to adjust your content or delivery.

In a PowerPoint presentation, it is important that your presentation is visually stimulating, avoids information overload by limiting the text per slide, uses speaker notes effectively, and uses a font that is visible on the background (e.g., avoid white letters on a light background or black letters on a dark background).

Work with the list you created in Note 14.4 “Exercise 1” to develop a more complete outline for your presentation. Make sure your outline includes the following:

• An introduction that uses strategies to capture your audience’s attention
• A body section that summarizes your main points and supporting details
• A conclusion that will help you end on a memorable note
• Brief notes about how much time you plan to spend on each part of the presentation (you may adjust the timing later as needed)

Identifying Opportunities to Incorporate Visual and Audio Media

You may already have some ideas for how to incorporate visual and audio media in your presentation. If not, review your outline and begin thinking about where to include media. Presenting information in a variety of formats will help you keep your audience’s interest.

Use Presentation Software

Delivering your presentation as a slideshow is one way to use media to your advantage. As you speak, you use a computer and an attached projector to display a slideshow of text and graphics that complement the speech. Your audience will follow your ideas more easily, because you are communicating with them through more than one sense. The audience hears your words and also sees the corresponding visuals. A listener who momentarily loses track of what you are saying can rely on the slide to cue his or her memory.

To set up your presentation, you will need to work with the content of your outline to develop individual slides. Each slide should focus on just a few bullet points (or a similar amount of content presented in a graphic). Remember that your audience must be able to read the slides easily, whether the members sit in the front or the back of the room. Avoid overcrowding the slides with too much text.

Using presentation software, such as PowerPoint, allows you to incorporate graphics, sounds, and even web links directly into your slides. You can also work with available styles, color schemes, and fonts to give your presentation a polished, consistent appearance. Different slide templates make it easy to organize information to suit your purpose. Be sure your font is visible to you audience. Avoid using small font or colored font that is not visible against your background.

Use PowerPoint as a Visual Aid

PowerPoint and similar visual representation programs can be effective tools to help audiences remember your message, but they can also be an annoying distraction to your speech. How you prepare your slides and use the tool will determine your effectiveness.

PowerPoint is a slideware program that you have no doubt seen used in class, seen in a presentation at work, or perhaps used yourself to support a presentation. PowerPoint and similar slideware programs provide templates for creating electronic slides to present visual information to the audience, reinforcing the verbal message. You will be able to import or cut and paste words from text files, images, or video clips to create slides to represent your ideas. You can even incorporate web links. When using any software program, it is always a good idea to experiment with it long before you intend to use it; explore its many options and functions, and see how it can be an effective tool for you.

At first, you might be overwhelmed by the possibilities, and you might be tempted to use all the bells, whistles, and sound effects, not to mention the tumbling, flying, and animated graphics. If used wisely, a dissolve or key transition can be like a well-executed scene from a major motion picture and lead your audience to the next point. But if used indiscriminately, it can annoy the audience to the point where they cringe in anticipation of the sound effect at the start of each slide. This danger is inherent in the tool, but you are in charge of it and can make wise choices that enhance the understanding and retention of your information.

The first point to consider is which visual aid is the most important. The answer is you, the speaker. You will facilitate the discussion, give life to the information, and help the audience correlate the content to your goal or purpose. You do not want to be in a position where the PowerPoint presentation is the focus and you are on the side of the stage simply helping the audience follow along. Slides should support you in your presentation, rather than the other way around. Just as there is a number one rule for handouts (do not pass them out at the start of your presentation), there is also one for PowerPoint presentations: do not use PowerPoint slides as a read-aloud script for your speech. The PowerPoint slides should amplify and illustrate your main points, not reproduce everything you are going to say.

Your pictures are the second area of emphasis you will want to consider. The tool will allow you to show graphs, charts and illustrate relationships that words may only approach in terms of communication, but your verbal support of the visual images will make all the difference. Dense pictures or complicated graphics will confuse more than they clarify. Choose clear images that have an immediate connection to both your content and the audience, tailored to their specific needs. After the images, consider using only key words that can be easily read to accompany your pictures. The fewer words the better. Try to keep each slide to a total word count of less than ten words. Do not use full sentences. Using key words provides support for your verbal discussion, guiding you as well as your audience. The key words can serve as signposts or signal words related to key ideas.

A natural question at this point is, How do I communicate complex information simply? The answer comes with several options. The visual representation on the screen is for support and illustration. Should you need to communicate more technical, complex, or in-depth information in a visual way, consider preparing a handout to distribute at the conclusion of your speech. You may also consider using a printout of your slide show with a section for taking notes, but if you distribute it at the beginning of your speech, you run the risk of turning your presentation into a guided reading exercise and possibly distracting or losing members of the audience. Everyone reads at a different pace and takes notes in their own way. You do not want to be in the position of going back and forth between slides to help people follow along.

Another point to consider is how you want to use the tool to support your speech and how your audience will interpret its presentation. Most audiences wouldn’t want to read a page of text—as you might see in this book—on the big screen. They will be far more likely to glance at the screen and assess the information you present in relation to your discussion. Therefore, it is key to consider one main idea, relationship, or point per slide. The use of the tool should be guided with the idea that its presentation is for the audience’s benefit, not yours. People often understand pictures and images more quickly and easily than text, and you can use this to your advantage, using the knowledge that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Incorporate Visual Media

Even if you do not use a slideshow to complement your presentation, you can include visual media to support and enhance your content. Visual media are divided into two major categories: images and informational graphics.

Image-based media, such as photographs or videos, often have little or no accompanying text. Often these media are more powerful than words in getting a message across. Within the past decade, the images associated with major news stories, such as the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, the Abu Ghraib prison abuses from 2004 to 2006, and the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, have powerfully affected viewers’ emotions and drawn their attention to these news stories.

Figure 14.1

Even if your presentation addresses a less dramatic subject, you can still use images to draw in your audience. Consider how photographs, an illustration, or a video might help your audience connect with a particular person or place or bring a historical event to life. Use visual images to support descriptions of natural or man-made phenomena. What ideas lend themselves to being explained primarily through images?

In addition, consider how you might incorporate informational graphics in your presentation. Informational graphics include diagrams, tables, pie charts, bar and line graphs, and flow charts. Informational graphics usually include some text and often work well to present numerical information. Consider using them if you are presenting statistics, comparing facts or data about several different groups, describing changes over time, or presenting a process.

Incorporate Audio Media

Although audio media are not as versatile as visual media, you may wish to use them if they work well with your particular topic. If your presentation discusses trends in pop music or analyzes political speeches, playing an audio clip is an obvious and effective choice. Clips from historical speeches, radio talk shows, and interviews can also be used, but extended clips may be ineffective with modern audiences. Always assess your audience’s demographics and expectations before selecting and including audio media.

Review the outline you created in Note 14.11 “Exercise 2” . Complete the following steps:

• Identify at least two to three places in your presentation where you might incorporate visual or audio media. Brainstorm ideas for what media would be effective, and create a list of ideas. (In Chapter 14 “Creating Presentations: Sharing Your Ideas” , Section 14.2 “Incorporating Effective Visuals into a Presentation” , you will explore different media options in greater depth. For now, focus on coming up with a few general ideas.)
• Determine whether you will use presentation software to deliver your presentation as a slideshow. If you plan to do so, begin using your outline to draft your slides.

Figure 14.2

Source: http://www.agenciabrasil.gov.br/media/imagens/2010/01/14/14.01.10RP5978.jpg/view

Planning Ahead: Annotating Your Presentation

When you make a presentation, you are giving a performance of sorts. It may not be as dramatic as a play or a movie, but it requires smooth coordination of several elements—your words, your gestures, and any media you include. One way to ensure that the performance goes smoothly is to annotate your presentation ahead of time.

To annotate means to add comments or notes to a document. You can use this technique to plan how the different parts of your presentation will flow together. For instance, if you are working with slides, add notes to your outline indicating when you will show each slide. If you have other visual or audio media to include, make a note of that, too. Be as detailed as necessary. Jotting “Start video at 3:14” can spare you the awkwardness of searching for the right clip during your presentation.

In the workplace, employees are often asked to deliver presentations or conduct a meeting using standard office presentation software. If you are using presentation software, you can annotate your presentation easily as you create your slides. Use the notes feature at the bottom of the page to add notes for each slide. As you deliver your presentation, your notes will be visible to you on the computer screen but not to your audience on the projector screen.

In a face-to-face presentation, make sure your final annotated outline is easy to read. It will serve to cue you during your presentation, so it does not need to look polished, as long as it is clear to you. Double space the text. Use a larger-than-normal font size (14 or 16 points) if that will make it easier for you to read. Boldface or italics will set off text that should be emphasized or delivered with greater emotion. Write out main points, as well as your opening and closing remarks, in complete sentences, along with any material you want to quote verbatim. Use shorter phrases for supporting details. Using your speaker notes effectively will help you deliver an effective presentation. Highlighting, all capital letters, or different-colored font will help you easily distinguish notes from the text of your speech. Read Jorge’s annotated outline.

Some students prefer to write out the full text of their face-to-face presentation. This can be a useful strategy when you are practicing your delivery. However, keep in mind that reading your text aloud, word for word, will not help you capture and hold your audience’s attention. Write out and read your speech if that helps you rehearse. After a few practice sessions, when you are more comfortable with your material, switch to working from an outline. That will help you sound more natural when you speak to an audience.

In a PowerPoint presentation, remember to have your slides in logical sequential order. Annotating your presentation before submitting it to your audience or your instructor will help you check for order and logical transitions. Too much text or data may confuse your audience; strive for clarity and avoid unnecessary details. Let the pictures or graphics tell the story but do not overload your slideshow with visuals. Be sure your font is visible. Look for consistency in the time limit of your presentation to gauge your level of preparedness.

Begin to annotate your outline. (You will probably add more notes as you proceed, but including some annotations now will help you begin pulling your ideas together.) Mark your outline with the following information:

• Write notes in brackets to any sections where you definitely plan to incorporate visual or audio media.
• If you are presenting a slideshow, add notes in brackets indicating which slides go with each section of your outline.
• Identify and set off any text that should be emphasized.

Key Takeaways

• An effective presentation presents ideas more concisely than a written document and uses media to explain ideas and hold the audience’s interest.
• Like an essay, a presentation should have a clear beginning, middle, and end.
• Good writers structure their presentations on the thesis, or point of view; main ideas; and key supporting details and create a presentation outline to organize their ideas.
• Annotating a presentation outline is a useful way to coordinate different parts of the presentation and manage time effectively.

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

What you need to know about human perception to be great at presentations

One of the most important factors that contribute to a team’s efficiency is communicating your ideas in the right way. Visual presentations (which can be easily created in Miro) are probably the most widespread way to share your ideas, so we decided to dig deeper and find some studies of human perception that can educate you on how to give an effective presentation.

• Think of how people digest information

How does human visual perception work and how can you make presentations that are easily digestible for the viewers? These are the questions that Stephen M. Kosslyn, the Dean of Social Science and John Lindsley Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, poses in his book, Clear and to the Point . Together with a number of colleagues, he came to the conclusion that there are three steps to digesting information: it needs to be acquired, processed and then connected to existing knowledge. Without any of these phases, people don’t process the presentation’s content.

To complete the first step, the scientists recommend setting a clear structure, using easily distinguishable colors and fonts and visually highlighting the most important concepts, ideas or terms. To help people process the information, you should avoid unnecessary visual elements that can distract the viewer and make everything easily understandable (imagining you’re explaining something to a child or a novice in your field often helps). The third step, connection to the viewer’s knowledge, is related to the second step; you need to avoid jargon, think about how the information is relevant to your audience’s life and explain the difficult concepts.

• Help the majority in the room

According to a 2004 Social Science Research Network study, 65% of the world’s population are visual learners (the research also shows that around 30% of people are verbal learners, “who benefit from class lectures and from discussion of class materials in study groups or in oral presentations,” and 5% of people are experiential learners who learn by doing and touching). This research explains why visuals are so important in a presentation. Also, the study states that “variations in learning styles have been linked to gender: women tend to be more visually oriented than men, who are generally more kinesthetic.”

William C. Bradford, the author of the study, points out that these results can be used to enhance the teaching style at US law schools (the paper was originally published in The Law Teacher), but you can easily implement this learning in your work life. If you bet on visuals, the majority of people in the meeting room will be likely to appreciate it.

• Be more persuasive

According to the often-cited study Persuasion and the Role of Visual Presentation Support by Douglas R. Vogel, Gary W. Dickson and John A. Lehman from the University of Arizona and University of Minnesota, presentations that provide some visual aid are 43% more persuasive than unaided presentations. This study is falsely cited by multiple companies and blogs that claim that visual information is processed 60,000 times faster than text. But both the scientists behind it and commentators are sure that this is wrong.

After conducting the research, the authors created guidelines that can help people create better visual presentations. They claim that adding visuals can improve the perception of the presenter, audience attention, comprehension and agreement, and influence audience action. They also recommend using different colors instead of just black and white and using illustrations if you want to increase the density of visual information, display multiple dimensions, organize complex issues, support abstract concepts or illustrate trends.

• Choose your colors wisely

There multiple studies on color psychology that can help us with creative visual presentation ideas. They show how how different colors can affect our mood, perception and overall mental state. For example, in 2011, psychologists from the University of Rochester found out that color red increases the speed and strength of reactions. Other colors are often associated with specific emotions and reactions — a lot of us probably noticed that many companies, and especially tech startups, often choose blue because it’s often read as a symbol of trustworthiness and reliability.

However, other studies point out that one should be very careful when choosing color accents. Researchers from the University of Toronto realized that people who used Adobe Kuler , a web-based tool that helps to create color schemes or browse color combinations, usually stick to their 2-3 favorite colors, and there is a reason for that. Susan Weinschenk, a behavioral psychologist who has been working in the field of design and user experience since 1985, says : “If you have five different colors on the screen, nobody’s going to notice anything. But if you have everything in black and white, but the button to register has color – and it’s the only bright color on the screen – that’s what people will notice.” Paying attention to your audience’s background is also important because often colors have different meaning in culture from across the world. (This article features more of Weinschenk’s suggestions for using neuroscience in design work.)

Don’t overdo fonts

Similarly to colors, typefaces can have a considerable role in the way people perceive your work and in the way you can make an effective visual presentation. When Errol Morris, a documentary filmmaker, first read Saul Kripke’s book Naming and Necessity, he was excited to learn that fonts can affect our perception of truth. A couple of years ago, he got the chance to further investigate this subject when the New York Times published a two-part essay on a recent study about optimism. After reading it, the newspaper’s audience could take a quiz and vote on whether they trusted the study’s result. The article was presented in a number of different typefaces including Baskerville, Comic Sans, Computer Modern, Georgia, Helvetica and Trebuchet. More than 40,000 readers took the quiz, and overall, Baskerville was considered the most reliable – curiously, statistically more reliable than a very similar typeface, Georgia.

The Morris study sparked a conversation among design professionals. “Considering these findings, can we state once and for all that we should use Baskerville whenever we want to persuade our audience?” wondered Alessio Laiso, a type designer who worked for IBM. In 2016, he ran a small experiment to study how different typefaces work for different products. He applied a number of fonts to four different types of websites: a bank, a news site, a fitness app, and a clothes shop. He realized that for the bank and news site, Baskerville was still the most trustworthy type. For the fitness app, Fira won; and for the shop, participants liked Helvetica. Although this study might not be completely relevant to your specific industry, considering it can help you pay attention to the choice of specific fonts and think about your audience. Regardless of your choice, you should avoid using too many typefaces and, of course, avoid using something like Comic Sans that people perceive as untrustworthy.

• Remember that sensory channels compete

According to Weinschenk, the visual sensory channel trumps all others. This means that if you are giving a presentation, talking and showing slides with text simultaneously, people stop listening as soon as they start reading. However, slides that are easy to understand and illustrate what you are talking about – like photos, diagrams, illustrations or easy-to-grasp infographics – can serve you well.

So what can you do to ensure that your audience fully understands you? One of Weinschenk’s effective presentation techniques is to write down your main points first without any visual aids and then think about how your slides can illustrate your main arguments better without interrupting the viewer. Weinschenk also recommends using just a few words on each slide.

• Avoid creating long presentations

Now when your work is ready, it’s important to demonstrate your effective presentation skills. When you think about timing, it’s important to consider another trait of human perception: the amount of time people can maintain concentration and digest new information. Susan Weinschenk and other psychologists suggest limiting your presentation to 20 minutes or breaking down a longer talk into chunks with breaks, quizzes or other changes in activity.

In 2007 Maureen Murphy, a psychologist from the University of North Texas, studied the impact of shorter learning sessions on people who participate in workforce training. She observed two groups of adults; for one of them, an hour-long session was broken down into three 20-minute sessions, and the second group had a single, continuous one-hour lecture. The study showed that people in the first group remembered the talk better, the knowledge retention was higher, and the overall reaction was more positive.

Miro is your team's visual platform to connect, collaborate, and create — together.

Join millions of users that collaborate from all over the planet using Miro.

• Don’t overdo fonts

Keep reading

Meet the new miro — the ultimate platform that’s customizable for any collaboration activity.

4 new features for diagramming

How Pancentric is bringing design thinking to the insurance world

Home Blog Design What is Visual Communication and How Can It Improve Your Presentations

What is Visual Communication and How Can It Improve Your Presentations

Look around; how is the world communicating with you? Is there music? Are your shoes pinching your heel? Are there a million visual triggers trying to get your attention? We don’t have a crystal ball to answer the first two questions, but the third is a definite YES. What’s behind it? It’s visual communication.

Visual communication is the magic behind all the visible things in the world that tell stories, share information, and attract interest. As a person who makes presentations, you own the power of visual communication to impact, inform and attract your audience with visuals. All you need is the knowledge and the tools to make it work.

In this guide, we’ll share essential facts you need to know about visual communication and how they can help improve your presentations.

Table of Contents

Visual Communication Strategy

Visual communication design.

• Why is Visual Communication Important for Presentations?

7 Types of Visual Communication Techniques in Presentation Design

• How to Use Visual Communication at Work Beyond Presentations

Final Words

What is visual communication.

Simply put, visual communication is the practice of communicating through the sense of sight. In a more profound sense, It democratizes communication in general because with visuals, there’s less need for language or translation.

But what does visual communication do? It tells stories through images, video, illustrations , and anything the audience can see.

Visual communication sits at the top of the list of effective communication strategies and designs for all industries and fields. It’s in all the conversations about marketing, community building, and the future of work. If your presentation design still hasn’t embraced the need to thrive on visual communication, it’s time to fix that.

A visual communication strategy is key to a presentation’s overall mood and message. To create a visual communication strategy, follow the same steps as any communication strategy, and develop them simultaneously. 

To give you an idea of the scope of influence of a visual communication strategy, consider all the advertisements you see regularly. Regarding the most successful ones, their visual qualities have been minutely strategized to inspire emotional reactions from you. 

Do you want to get reactions when making your presentations ? Use a visual communication strategy to create an overarching visual quality for your presentations’ slides. 

FYI: Professionals building visual communication strategies include; brand specialists, marketing strategists, content designers, UX/UI designers, publicists, art curators, and anyone that understands how important planning and strategy are for every project.

Once a visual communication strategy is in place, it’s time to take care of the visual communication design. This is the actionable part of the process; the strategy is the plan, and the design is the creation. 

Visual communication design is essential for your presentations. You’re telling a story with your information, and visual techniques will help you add interest. Even a text section can have visual communication techniques applied. For example, the font, spacing, and layout.

Your visual communication strategy will help you choose the proper visual layout, data visualizations, and graphics for the presentation slides. 

Why Is Visual Communication Important for Presentations?

If you aren’t aware, storytelling is a massive factor in effective presentation design. To achieve it, you can’t depend on text content; you need visuals to support the information and create connections with the viewer. On a presentation slide, what’s better? A bullet point list or an infographic widget composition? The answer to this question would be the most visual option, in this case, the infographics .

Surely you’ve heard of “Death by PowerPoint.” It’s the perfect example of how visual communication influences the audience. In this case, how can it go wrong and get undesired effects? Humans create emotional and memorable connections with everything they see. As soon as a presentation proves to be a drab PowerPoint, your audience clocks out and checks their phone.

Thankfully, visual communication harnesses many benefits for your presentation designs:

• Ideas and concepts are easier to understand and transmit in visual form.
• Visuals deliver information faster and more directly.
• A good visual communication strategy is attention-grabbing and engaging.
• Visual elements and characteristics make an impact on the viewer.
• A strong visual component improves the credibility of the message.

Visual communication is vital in presenting a slide deck to an audience. Your outfit, body language, and poise all matter. The audience isn’t just looking at your presentation; they’re looking at you. Take the time to expand your presenting skills by practicing, trying new things, and improving your confidence.

Visual communication techniques are the puzzle pieces of successful content. They are so important that there are psychological applications for all of them.

Here’s a quick list to give you an idea of their importance.

1. Shapes 

Shapes have subliminal, subconscious, and even cultural perceptions. The shapes you choose to include across the slides will set the tone for the entire presentation. For example, circles represent completeness, triangles represent up and forward motion, lines represent connection, and rectangles represent stability.

2. Colors 

In design, colors are the trigger for emotion in content and visualization. Each color has a meaning and an association. Combining colors to create palettes is a practice in mood and emotional communication through vision. If a presentation is all blue and gray, it feels corporate, a vibrant color combination feels happy and inspiring. Muted and desaturated colors feel calm and inviting.

3. Typography 

The way letters look brings a sense of meaning from content to the eyes—from text to visual. There are two main font types; serif and sans serif. Serifs are more serious, while sans serifs are friendlier and easygoing. On top of that, each type has a personality that emanates through the content. The visual style of the typography in your presentation must match energetically with the tone and message of both visual and textual content.

4. Infographic elements 

Infographics are the poster boy for visual communication. Data visualization and information design are at the core of data stories and exciting business communication. Data viz graphics simplify complex ideas that can take up lots of text space in a presentation slide. Your regular charts and graphs can fall through the cracks if you don’t add a good dose of visual communication strategy and design. 

5. Photography and Illustration

Photography and illustration are classic tools for storytelling. Every slide can be easily turned into a pictorial presentation to tell your story, and you have the power to structure it how you want. Be wary of stock photography; overused images will negatively affect your presentation. Custom imagery adds integrity and uniqueness that only a visual communication strategy can achieve.

When using icons in your presentation templates , remember to keep a visual unity between them. Icons can also tell a story from slide to slide in your presentation. Stay consistent in terms of style, color, size, and positioning.

7. Layout & Visual Hierarchy

Viewers use their eyes to see, read and understand your content. When the layout is designed in a way that helps them absorb the information subconsciously, engagement is seamless. It’s as simple as following visual hierarchy and placing elements in the viewer’s line of sight in a Z or F reading pattern.

How To Use Visual Communication At Work Beyond Presentations

Visual communication doesn’t stop at presentations. There are countless other ways to incorporate visual communication at work. Here’s a—not complete—list of the design practices that embody visual communication.

• Infographics
• Visual guides
• Flowcharts and processes
• Employee training
• Internal communication
• Work attire
• Body autonomy

If someone can see it and understand it, it can be communicated visually. Take advantage of that and harness the power of perception, association, and emotional response. 

In visual communication, it’s important to remember that first impressions matter. Your presentations and the message they deliver depending on the value of the visuals throughout the slides. Discover more techniques for improving your presentations in the SlideModel blog . Learn how to incorporate SlideModel templates into your PowerPoint slide decks and leave your audiences satisfied and informed.

Like this article? Please share

Design, Presentation Approaches, Presentation Skills Filed under Design

Related Articles

Filed under Google Slides Tutorials • May 22nd, 2024

How to Translate Google Slides

Whereas Google Slides doesn’t allow to natively translate slides, such process is possible thanks to third-party add-ons. Learn how to translate Google Slides with this guide!

Filed under Design • May 22nd, 2024

Exploring the 12 Different Types of Slides in PowerPoint

Become a better presenter by harnessing the power of the 12 different types of slides in presentation design.

Filed under Google Slides Tutorials • May 17th, 2024

How to Make Google Slides Vertical

Power up your presentation skills by learning how to make google slides go vertical. Step-by-step instructions with examples.

Leave a Reply

• Tips & Tricks
• PowerPoint Templates
• Training Programs
• Free E-Courses

Visual Presentations – The Right and Wrong Way

Home > Presentation Concepts > Presentation Ideas > Visual Presentations

Presenting visually is not just about cute pictures on your slides. Learn the real difference between ‘beautiful slides’ and ‘effective visual slides’ in a business presentation.

Recent trend in presentation skills:

Presentations have come a long way in the last few years. With the growing popularity of presentation sharing sites like Slideshare, we see two clear trends emerging:

• More and more presenters are realizing the value of visuals in presentations
• Many of them confuse cute or philosophical photos slides with effective presentations

As a result, slides like these are being worshiped for their design excellence.

Another typical slide looks like this:

The slides are so beautiful that the point of the presentation is forgotten by the audience. Such presentations may get you raving fans on Slideshare and lots of readers on your blogs. But, they just don’t cut it when it comes to a business presentation. That requires a different approach to presentations.

We believe that an effective presentation in business is something that helps you convey your message clearly and effectively.  Period.

Here is a simple rule that differentiates ‘beautiful slides’ and ‘effective visual slides’:

In a ‘beautiful slide’ – picture is the hero. In an ‘effective visual slide’ – Message is the hero.

Let us evaluate 3 different set of slides with different objectives. One conveys a fact, another conveys a concept and the third conveys an emotion.

Presentation visual to convey facts:

Here is a beautiful slide that talks about the seriousness of tobacco related deaths.

The hero in this slide is the picture.

The picture is so intense that it takes away the attention from the presenter. Audience gets so busy admiring the image, that the message is lost.

Consider this alternative representation of the same information:

The hero in this slide is the message.

The attention of the audience is retained on the subject in hand. The image puts the numbers in context.

Visual presentation to convey a concept:

Here is a ‘beautiful slide’ that represents the 3 step process in creating presentations.

The hero of the slide is the picture.

A photo of two pretty executives celebrating success might look relevant to the subject of presentations. But, the picture dominates the slide without adding any specific clarity to the message. So, the slide is ineffective.

Consider this alternative:

The hero here is the message.

The 3 steps in creating a presentation are clearly illustrated without taking the attention away from the message and the presenter. We have used simple visual diagrams to make the point.

Visual presentation to convey emotions:

Here is a ‘beautiful slide’ that talks about the inadequacy of basic healthcare facilities in India.

The hero is the picture.

An image plays a significant role in triggering emotions. When you want your audience to feel your message, it is a good idea to use full bleed images. But, in this particular slide, the choice of image is not strong enough. The image illustrates the words and leaves the feeling out.

Consider this alternative which considers the emotions:

 The hero is still the picture.

But, the picture does the intended job. It captures the feeling of helplessness.

Evaluating business presentations…

The next time you see a slide with a picture on it, find the hero: Is it the picture or is it the message? In an effective visual slide, message is always the hero. However, if the objective is to express feelings, the picture should play the dominant role.

If a picture is used to express feelings, find if the picture illustrates the words or captures the feelings. If it captures the right feelings, the slide is visually effective.

Go ahead and evaluate your favorite slides with new eyes.

To express ideas in an effective way using visuals is not easy. Learn a simple 3-step process to convey your ideas visually with…

Visual Presentations eBook.

It teaches you our proprietary approach to creating diagrams with examples and exercises meant for business presenters.

Get Your copy of Visual Presentations here and change the way you present…

Return to Top of Visual Presentations Right and Wrong Way Page

Share these tips & tutorials

Get 25 creative powerpoint ideas mini course &  members-only tips & offers. sign up for free below:.

A Short Guide To Making An Outstanding Visual Presentation

Using PowerPoint or any form of visual presentation is key to attracting potential business. A good picture or visual can attract and keep attention almost like nothing else. Keep reading to see how you can own these visual presentation skills.

The easiest exact procedure to follow to get your message through to your audience and have your brand stand out from the rest is to have amazing visual presentations.

Visual presentations will almost certainly lead to positive feedback and great responses from your audience. We’ve all been through one of those presentations that you wish would end already. So let’s learn how to avoid situations like that.

The purpose of a PowerPoint presentation is to, well, make your point powerfully . And how do you do that? By being visually compelling and, accordingly, making the viewing process enjoyable.

Why Are Visuals The Stepping Stone For An Impactful Presentation? 💁🏻‍♀️

So how can you make the most of your presentation 🗒, take away 💁🏻‍♂️.

Important disclosure: we're proud affiliates of some tools mentioned in this guide. If you click an affiliate link and subsequently make a purchase, we will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you (you pay nothing extra).

Visuals Are Attention-Grabbers 👀

We all know the saying— Show, don't tell.

It's a common mistake to include a lot of text in your presentation but rather include meaningful visuals (make sure the picture conditions are great to better the viewing experience) for a higher rate of participation in your presentation.

Carefully selected imagery is the key to engaging with your public. Sometimes, it's significantly easier to explain complex concepts through a short video or an infographic .

Overall, shorter presentation times can often lead to your audience understanding complex ideas, even if they have no prior background knowledge of the subject.

The normal viewing times of videos or presentations of your audience are decreasing day by day, which is why the visual display of your presentation is so important to keep their attention.

The pair of images that you choose to use isn't there to undermine your point. Their purpose is to make your audience attentive and to emphasize what you have to say.

Images Are Action-Inspiring 🙌

Using a visual display in your presentation will make your audience react. You can use them to raise awareness about a certain topic or to inspire your public to take a specific action.

More often than not, messages delivered visually receive a more powerful reaction and a higher rate of participation from people.

Is All That Text Necessary? 🧐

You can try to follow the 6 x 6 guidelines for one slide as a general rule. This means you should have a maximum of 6 key points, each with six words. This way, you can keep everything succinct, organized, and easy to understand.

Even when you're preparing an audio-visual presentation (which can be a better choice for people with learning difficulties), your focus should still be to keep the text short and sweet on each of the individual images.

Having no more than 140 characters on your slide will leave you with a lot of white space. This will make your presentation look more clean and organized. But also, it will help your audience focus on the key points you're trying to make.

Make sure that your background color combinations emphasize the key points and don't take attention away from them.

Use Straightforward And Precise Fonts 𝘼𝙖

While you might be tempted to break the mold with your presentation, fonts are not the place to do this. Try to use standard sans serif fonts, like Open Sans, Tahoma, Verdana .

These are easily recognizable and look good on the viewing window. Try not to use more than 2 or 3 different fonts in your presentation. The key to having an outstanding slide deck is organization and consistency.

Using too many different elements will distract and confuse your audience.

Any feedback activity from your audience will also result in this conclusion, and if your audience is confused, your rate of participation from the audience declines.

Say No To Poor Quality Images 🙅🏽‍♂️

Needless to say, high-quality images will make your presentation look professional . Try as much as possible to color-coordinate your visuals with the color scheme you’ve chosen for your slide deck.

Their purpose is to enhance and underline, not to overwhelm the slide, so make sure the picture conditions in your presentation are top-notch! Using binary image classification might also be a good idea to simplify complex concepts.

To avoid bad quality on your pair of images used in your presentation, make sure that your laptop display resolution agree with your presentation.

Another thing you should keep in mind: not using too many individual images . Generally, it’s good to try and use a single picture—or 2, if they’re relevant. Your presentation isn’t a photo album.

Use Contrast For Emphasis And Grabbing Attention 💁🏻‍♀️

You can use contrast cleverly in your presentation. First of all, it can help your message "pop" with a high-level contrast between your background and your text.

You can also add a bar of color behind your text —to make it more legible and bring it to the center of attention. Binary image classification is also a great way to emphasize the contrast between concepts.

Contrast can also be used to highlight your key points . Choose a color from your palette to emphasize important text on your slide. Make sure that your key points are a few times larger than the supplementary information given.

By making your key points a few times larger than supplementary info, you're creating contrast and thus pointing your viewers into the right direction of where to look, helping those with possible learning difficulties.

Nevertheless, it will lose its power if you use this trick too often. So use it wisely. Using an arrow symbol during your presentation will also emphasize the important points.

Limit Your Color Palette 👈🏽

Yes, rainbows are really pretty, but not in your presentation . Be mindful of what colors you choose and if they come together harmoniously.

There's no need to go overboard—you can grab attention without using complex textures or gradients. You can, for example, use a background of blocks to emphasize the message in front of it.

Even though it's tempting to make an art-inspired presentation, keep this for a more fitting audience and not for business proposals.

To choose the right colors for your presentation, you can use tools like Kuler or coolors.co . Using these can help you learn a bit about which colors go together and which ones don't.

Additionally, suppose you want to do this right. In that case, you can even look at an analysis of color theory to see how your palette can influence your audience's emotions.

Doing this avoids the risk of presenting a pair of images and evoking the wrong response from your audience.

Data Visualization Is Your Salvation 📊

Project management presentations or anything with a lot of numbers and data to present can be dreadful.

Luckily, you can use a lot of elements to make your life easier in your individual images — charts, graphs, radials , binary image classification, and more.

By doing this, you can simplify complex information or even a lot of information in a short period of time, even if the audience doesn't have prior background knowledge of the subject.

Shorter presentation times often work better for explaining complex ideas. Additionally, you can always look online for some free timeline templates to showcase progress or presumptions, or learn how to make your own timelines in PowerPoint.

The key is taking all the data and putting it into individual images that are easy to remember and understand.

Skip The Bullet Points 📝

Ideally, you should focus on a single idea for each slide. This means that instead of having five bullet points, you should have five slides focusing on each key point to do an in-depth analysis.

This way, you can make sure that people remember what you say, and your audience will be able to draw comparisons between the five slides. Also, bullet points are kind of old , aren’t they?

Surely, you can find more attractive ways to structure information within a slide. Try content boxes, bubbles, all sorts of frames—just don’t go overboard with your elements.

Mind The Visual Hierarchy 🎨

Even if you have no background knowledge in graphic design , you can still organize elements on your slide or picture, depending on their importance.

The purpose of this procedure is to let your audience know where their eyes should go first on each picture, and then second, and so forth.

You can do this by making use of size, the correct laptop display resolutions, white space between elements, or proximity between elements. Another smart thing to do is to use repetition to your advantage in your visual display.

Having only one element in your viewing window will make it pop—so your audience will know that is the main point. When your audience is viewing your presentation, they shouldn't wonder where to look on your PowerPoint.

Audio And Video Elements 🎙📹

Choosing tasks using video and audio elements can help you explain complex concepts so much easier. An audio-visual presentation is also a great way to create interaction with your public.

Using these gives you a break from talking and your audience a new point of focus. Embedding a video into a PowerPoint presentation is not hard if you decide to go this route.

However, make sure not to pick a 10-minute video, but rather use shorter presentation times.

You should use these items as a short, fresh breath of air—not let them have the presentation for you.

Additionally, make sure this content is relevant not only to your content but also to the audience— or you will lose their attention, as this is a big feedback influence.

What Do You Think About Interactivity? 👨🏾‍💻

No matter how good your presentation is, there is always going to be a low-energy moment . A good way to recover from this is to directly interact with your audience and strive for a high rate of participation.

For example, you can make them vote on subject comparisons, stand up for some reason, or conduct a short quiz.

To make this more interesting, you can add links to your presentation —either between slides, on the middle image of the presentation, or elements.

This way, when they choose and answer, something happens. Creating a unique slideshow can help you keep your audience attentive and create longer viewing times for your audience.

Transitions And Animations

You either love transitions, or you hate them. There’s no in-between. The safest route is to go all static and grab attention through colors, textures, and so forth.

This way, nobody gets distracted, and we all remember something at the end of your presentation.

However, if you want some pizzaz on your slides, you can use animations and transitions to become memorable.

However, keep them consistent and don’t get too excited . Not every element on your slide has to move. Use motion as an emphasis, not as a distraction.

Have An Interesting Cover Style 😍

The cover slide should be the one to grab your public’s attention and curiosity. It should say something about the subject but still be mysterious.

You can think of it as a movie trailer—you give people a taste of what’s to come, but without spoiling the whole thing. These slides are your chance to be creative and inventive. You can’t afford to be boring on this one.

Here, you should draw inspiration from an art-inspired presentation. However, as with any part of your art-inspired presentation — don’t go overboard.

Using too many elements or too many colors can put your whole slide deck in a bad light.

Reserve A Couple Of Slides At The End To Summarize Your Main Points

By doing this, you emphasize them and make sure that they will be remembered.

You don’t have to go through everything once more — just some keywords to jolt the memory of your public.

However, be careful. If your presentation is already quite lengthy— you might want to skip this one or make it short. If your speech is too long, the only thing your public will want is to escape and go home as fast as possible.

Accordingly, the attention span and the desired viewing times of the audience will be low.

It might sound easy, but building a visually compelling presentation is not that simple. There are a lot of factors and small details that can either make or break your whole work.

For example—using colors, but too many of them, a pair of images, but making sure the picture conditions are great, using the right type of font, but at the wrong sizes, and so forth.

However, if you check all the points made in the article—and maybe do a little research and analysis on your own , you’ll be just fine, and your feedback will surely be positive. Most rules are basic common sense for anyone who has seen a presentation before.

The most important thing here is to feel comfortable with your presentation in a way that it seems as though you have background knowledge on the subject.

If you’re happy about it—and passionate about the subject you’re talking about, then you can’t go wrong. Feelings are contagious, so your audience will sense your happiness.

If you find yourself pressed for time or lacking the necessary expertise to create a visually stunning presentation, you can explore options such as SketchBubble to access professionally designed PowerPoint templates that you can download.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Subscribe to be notified of new content on marketsplash..

Presentations that move audiences

Refine, enhance, and tailor your content quicker than ever before.

Prezi is good for business

Keep teams engaged and customers asking for more

Prezi is smart for education

Make lessons more exciting and easier to remember

Millions of people — from students to CEOs — use Prezi to grab attention, stand out, and capture imaginations

The most engaging presentations happen on Prezi

Create with confidence

Professionally designed templates.

Choose from hundreds of modern, beautifully made templates.

Millions of reusable presentations

Focus on your own creativity and build off, remix, and reuse presentations from our extensive content library.

Real creative freedom

Open canvas.

Create, organize, and move freely on an open canvas. Create seamless presentations without the restrictions of linear slides.

Ready-made asset libraries

Choose from millions of images, stickers, GIFs, and icons from Unsplash and Giphy.

A presentation that works for you

Present in-person.

Have the confidence to deliver a memorable presentation with presenter notes and downloadable presentations.

Present over video conference

Keep your audience engaged by putting yourself in the center of your presentation.

Your own ideas, ready to present faster

Prezi AI is your new creative partner. Save time, amplify your ideas, and elevate your presentations.

The specialists on visual storytelling since 2009

From TED talks to classrooms. In every country across the world. Prezi has been a trusted presentation partner for over 15 years.

*independent Harvard study of Prezi vs. PowerPoint

See why our customers love us

Prezi is consistently awarded and ranks as the G2 leader across industries based on hundreds of glowing customer reviews.

Prezi powers the best presenters to do their best presentations

Videography & Photography on demand

10 reasons why you need good presentation visuals Getting your message across with the best visual content

Presentation visuals are one of the most compelling parts of a presentation. Some presenters underestimate the importance of a visual presentation and decide to only speak, or use text slides to back up what they’re saying.

This is a huge mistake – effective visual presentations can have a massive positive impact on your viewers. Almost all information transmitted to the brain is visual (see below), which underlines the effectiveness of visuals in a good presentation.

Here, we will go over the top 10 benefits of using visual content to help you deliver an engaging and memorable presentation.

1. Visuals save you time in preparing your presentation

We understand that creating a great presentation is a demanding and time-consuming process! Why spend hours transcribing your notes onto a PowerPoint presentation when you could use effective visuals that communicate your message better and save you a lot of preparation time? Besides, it’s unlikely audience members will be trying to read a lot of text as they will be focussing on what you are saying. And if they are reading large text slides, they will your speaking. Visuals make it easy for your listeners to follow along and hear you at the same time.

2. Visuals make your presentation more interesting

Everyone has had a bad presentation experience, and it might be said that we’re all suffering from PowerPoint presentation fatigue, to an extent. To avoid casting your audience’s mind back to the experience of fighting to stay awake in a particularly dry university lecture, use photography and video content to keep them hooked. Visuals used correctly can make your presentation a lively and engaging affair.

3. Visuals grab the audience’s attention

The bottom line is, visuals are more likely to grab your audience’s attention. Presentations can be difficult to follow, especially when the information being presented is unfamiliar or challenging. According to the Visual Teaching Alliance , visuals transmit information faster than spoken or written words; we can get the sense of a visual scene in less than 1/10 of a second, and visuals are processed 60,000 times faster in the brain than text. With people processing images at lightning speed, it is a mistake to miss out on visuals in your presentation.

4. Visuals help the audience to understand your presentation

Not only is visual content attention-grabbing, but it is a powerful tool for helping your audience to understand your content. The majority of us are visual learners. According to Forbes, 65% of us are visual learners . Considering that much of public speaking is conjuring an image in the audience’s mind by painting a picture with your words – why not cut out the middle man, and use a literal image? Visuals are much more likely to be effective in communicating your message, given that 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual .

5. The audience is more likely to remember the content with visuals

The average person only remembers about a fifth of what they hear, and visual aids can improve learning by 400% . Furthermore, a study conducted by Georgia State University found that imagery is an effective way to enhance memory . If you want your audience to remember your presentation once it’s finished, use visual content to embed the information in their mind.

6. Visuals make you an effective communicator

Not everyone is skilled in the art of oratory and that’s okay. You don’t need to have elocution lessons to deliver the perfect presentation. Public speaking is just one element of presentations. as we have already seen, visual content is incredibly important in helping you deliver your speech. If public speaking isn’t your best asset, we have some good news for you. Photographs, infographics, and videos can all be used to help deliver your message and make an engaging and informative presentation.

7. Visuals can be emotive

Sometimes you can describe an emotive scene to someone, and they can acknowledge the emotions but they don’t feel them. Seeing an image is much more evocative than hearing someone describe it. Sometimes, the emotions just don’t register until you can see them with your own eyes. If you want to get your audience to feel something, use photos and videos to make your audience members feel happy, excited, amused, empathetic, sad, or inspired.

8. Visual presentations are more inclusive

Many presenters fall into the trap of assuming everyone in the audience thinks in the same way. When we assume everyone thinks the same way as us, we are discounting the fact that audiences are linguistically diverse, culturally diverse, and neuro-diverse. Because not everyone operates at the same level of comprehension, some of your speech is likely to go over the heads of members of your audience. To help deliver a useful and engaging presentation for everyone, use effective visuals which are more likely to get through to them.

9. Impressive visuals increase your credibility

Using polished, well-constructed photos, videos and infographics is a sure-fire way to increase your credibility. Linking to someone else’s YouTube video or using a generic stock photo doesn’t rouse the same admiration and respect as using your custom-made visual content. Professionally made visuals upgrade the overall look and feel of your presentation as well as sending a message of professionalism and trustworthiness in you and your brand. 

10. Unique visuals make your presentation stand out

If you want to deliver a truly memorable and unique presentation you cannot use the same tired formula. One of the best ways to enhance your presentation to an outstanding quality is to use unique visuals. Custom photography and videography allow you complete creative control over your presentation, which means it will be unique to you and your cause. For maximum personalisation, create your visual content the way you see fit.

We hope you enjoyed our top 10 reasons why you need good presentation visuals!

Splento has experienced experts in visual content; get in touch today if you require any visual content creation , or even if you just have a query.

Contact Splento if you are in need of:

Event Photography and Videography

Professional Headshots

eCommerce Photography and Videography

Navigating Event Photography Trends in 2024: What’s In and What’s Out Explore some of the top event photography trends. Learn some valuable tips for improving your event photography services to offer better client experiences

5 reasons why you should book a photoshoot learn how professional photography captures precious memories, boosts confidence, enhances branding, strengthens bonds, and offers artistic expression.

This will close in 0 seconds

Newsletters

Publications.

• County Offices
• Distance Ed
• Staff Directory

• 4-H Forestry
• Youth Livestock
• Youth Poultry
• 4-H Shooting Sports
• Health and Wellness
• Ambassador Program
• Collegiate 4-H
• Disaster Response-Youth
• Keys to the Community
• SAFETY Ambassador Program
• Join 4-H Robotics Club
• Support 4-H
• Wildlife Youth Education
• Youth Horse
• Youth Projects
• Bost Conference Center
• County Extension Offices
• Centers and Institutes
• Comprehensive Department Heads
• Research and Extension Center Heads
• Regional Extension Coordinators
• Extension Administrative Council
• Extension Leadership Council
• Extension Matters Magazine
• Program and Staff Development
• Research and Extension Centers
• Undergraduate Apprenticeship Program
• Agricultural Economics
• Catfish Marketing
• Catfish Water Quality
• Harvesting, Loading, and Transport
• Nutrition, Feeds, and Feeding
• Freshwater Prawns
• Hybrid Striped Bass
• Production Phases and Systems
• Christmas Trees
• Commercial Fruit and Nuts
• Green Industry
• Greenhouse Tomatoes
• Nursery Safety Videos
• Organic Fruit and Vegetables
• Other Vegetables
• Peas and Beans
• Tomato Pepper and Eggplant
• Watermelon Cantaloupe and Cucumber
• Mississippi Boll Weevil Management Corporation
• Insects-Crop Pests
• Master Irrigator
• Plant Diseases
• Sweet Potatoes
• Watermelons
• Weed Control for Crops
• Agri-business
• Growing Your Brand
• Agricultural Engineering
• Biotechnology
• Farm Safety
• Remote Sensing Technology
• Women for Agriculture
• Spray Drones
• Pre-Planting
• Crop Growth Stages
• End of Growing Season
• Safety and Regulations
• Sciences of Remote Sensing
• Types of UAS
• Fertilizers - Forages
• Insects-Forage Pests
• Management - Forages
• Weed Control for Forages
• Animal Health
• Beef Calendar
• Beef Publications
• Cattle Business in Mississippi Articles
• Apiculture: Honey Bee Health
• Goats and Sheep
• Small Animals
• Culinary Tourism
• Farmers Markets
• Local Food System Economies
• Marketing and Business Planning
• Specialty Crop Production
• Pesticide Applicator Certification
• Mississippi Land Resource Areas
• Soil Acidity
• Soil Fertility
• Soil Health
• Soil Testing
• About TCALP
• Advisory Council
• Contact TCALP
• Current Class
• TCALP Frequently Asked Questions
• 2020 Census
• County Elected Office
• Decision to Run
• Campaign Finance
• Voter and Election Information
• Contacts & Resources
• Oil and Gas
• Disaster Response
• Economic Development
• Extension Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy
• Junior Master Wellness Volunteer
• MS Volunteer Leaders Association
• Master Clothing Volunteers
• Master Gardener
• Mississippi Homemaker Volunteers
• Public Water System Assistance Program
• Rural Development
• Small Business
• MSU Extension Head Start
• Nurturing Homes Initiative
• Mississippi Child Care Resource and Referral
• Equine Assisted Therapy Programs
• Family Dynamics
• Basic Money Management
• Disaster Relief
• Estate and Financial Planning
• Fraud and Identity Theft
• Housing and Homebuyer
• Volunteer Money Mentors
• Youth Financial Literacy
• Creating Healthy Indoor Childcare Environments
• Produce Safety
• AIM for CHangE
• Colon Cancer Screening
• Dining with Diabetes
• Growing Well
• Nutrition and Wellness
• Prescription Opioid Misuse
• Mental Health First Aid
• Farm Stress
• Rural Health
• Forage Pests
• Household Insects
• Human Pests
• Insect Identification
• Insects Vegetable Gardens
• Ornamental Plants
• Cut Flowers and Houseplants
• Floral Design
• Flower Gardens
• Gardening Through the Seasons Video
• Herb Gardens
• Insects-Home Lawns
• Insects-Ornamental Plants
• Healthy Soils and Water
• Landscape Management
• Landscape and Garden Design
• Plants and Wildlife
• Landscape Resources
• Mississippi Landscape Gallery
• Professionals Corner
• Diversity of Plants
• Energy Savings
• Healthy Soils
• Healthy Water Practices
• Integrated Pest Control
• Places for Wildlife
• Fruit and Nut Disease Calendar
• Fruit and Nut Disease Publications
• Fruit and Nut Disease Updates
• Plant Disease and Nematode Diagnostic Services
• Vegetable Disease Calendar
• Vegetable Disease Publications
• Vegetable Disease Updates
• The Story of Plants and People
• Turfgrass and Lawn Management
• Vegetable Gardens
• Weed Control for Lawn and Garden
• Youth Gardening
• Construction
• Pond and Lake Water Quality
• Fish Management
• Weed Control
• Carbon Credits
• Disaster Recovery
• Forest Ecology
• Forestry Impacts
• Timber Prices
• Agroforestry
• Beginning Forestry
• Forest Pests
• Longleaf Pine
• Pine Straw Mulch Production
• Regeneration
• Forest Soils
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Timber Harvest
• Urban and Community Forestry
• Invasive Plants
• Seafood Economics
• Seafood Harvesting and Processing
• Waste Management
• Mississippi Water Stewards
• Mississippi Well Owner Network
• Rural Water Association
• Water Quality
• Water Weeds
• Chronic Wasting Disease
• Northern Bobwhite Quail
• Nuisance Wildlife and Damage Management
• Operation HOG
• Urban and Backyard Wildlife
• White-Tailed Deer
• Wildlife Economics and Enterprises
• Manufacturers
• Testing Abilities
• Treatment and Preservation
• Wood Identification
• Wood Pellets
• Wood Utilization
• Registration Portal

You are here

Visual presentation, what is a 4-h visual presentation.

A visual presentation is a teaching method used to communicate an idea. Charts, flannel boards, flash cards, slides, models, photography, or chalkboards are aids that can be used A visual presentation can sell an audience on the importance of an idea. A visual presentation includes demonstrations and illustrated talks.

Visual presentations can be a Method Demonstration or Illustrated Talk. Method demonstrations and illustrated talks are planned presentations in which a 4-H member teaches information related to a project or activity. Simply, there are ways of sharing useful information and of showing and telling others how to make or do something.

Through demonstrations and talks, 4-H members have the opportunity to:

• Work on something they like and in which they have an interest.
• Gain new knowledge and learn about a specific subject.
• Learn to plan and organize their thoughts so they can express themselves more clearly.
• Emphasize the major points of a presentation through the use of visuals or examples.
• Develop good judgment, speech and actions before an audience.
• Listen to the opinions of others.
• Teach and show others improved methods and practices learned through 4-H, thus performing a service to the community.

SPECIAL RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR VISUAL PRESENTATION EVENTS

GENERAL RULES:

• A member may compete in only one visual presentation contest.
• Visual presentations should be given by one individual only.
• The visual presentation contest should begin on a community basis.
• The contestant must arrange for equipment and materials needed for the presentation. The specialist will furnish a table and an easel. (Note: Should a 4-H’er choose to utilize PowerPoint or other computer program, that 4-H’er must have back-up presentation in the event of malfunction. Agents must check with contest coordinator about PowerPoint equipment being provided for 4-H’ers use prior to the event).
• The contestant shall bring to the contest: a. 4-H Contest Entry and Score Form 166 (typed) b. Pencil Refer to specific contest area for other material needed.
• The participants will be judged utilizing the visual presentation score sheets: (F-334 & F-334A).
• Ten and 11-year-olds will give a visual presentation and be judged blue, red, and white. All blue ribbon winners will receive awards.
• Twelve and 13-year-olds and senior visual presentation contestants will be placed in order of ranking (1, 2, 3, etc.). Ribbons will be awarded to all contestants. Awards will be given to the top three places. (Exception: No awards will be given for white ribbons.)
• The junior county winners are eligible to participate in the district 4-H Project Achievement Day contest.
• The senior county winners are eligible to participate in the state contest.
• A county may enter a total of three contestants in each contest category where individual participation is allowed and in each visual presentation contest, including the "Other Projects" contest.
• 4-H Visual Presentation less than 3 minutes in length and those exceeding 10 minutes will be penalized.
• In the event of a tie for 1st, 2nd or 3rd place, the score made on the "Presentation Section," will be used to break the tie. If a tie still persists, the contestants will make a second presentation.
• Posters and other visuals used in a 4-H Visual Presentation should be prepared by the 4-H member giving the presentation.
• "OTHER PROJECTS" visual presentations include the projects: citizenship, leadership, leisure education, poultry, and any others not listed on the enrollment card, such as aerospace, weather and geology. NOTE: A penalty of 10 points will be placed on visual presentations entered in the “OTHER PROJECTS” category if that visual presentation could have been entered in a specific project area contest. Senior 4-H members are not eligible to give a visual presentation in small engine, computer and electric. Refer to the miscellaneous area for contest that includes senior computer, electric energy and small engines.
• Plant and soil science includes: plant pathology and field crops such as cotton, corn, soybeans, pastures, and other general plants and soils topics.
• Gardening and horticulture includes flower and vegetable gardening, truck crops, orchard, and landscaping.
• Conservation includes: Forestry, wildlife, soil and water conservation.
• Engineering for seniors includes: Bicycle, safety, and all petroleum power vehicles, such as automobiles, tractors, and lawnmowers.
• Engineering for Juniors ages 10-11 and ages 12-13 includes: Electric, safety, bicycle, and all petroleum power vehicles, such as automobiles, tractors, lawnmowers, three- wheelers, etc.
• Refer to "How to Do a Visual Presentation", Publication 1096, for instructions on writing and presenting visual presentations.
• Eight- and 9-year-olds are not eligible to enter the District Visual Presentation Contest.
• Senior horse individual and Team demonstration contests will be between 10-15 minutes long to correspond with the Mississippi 4-H Horse Show Rules and Regulations. For Senior Horse Public Speaking, speeches should be 7-10 minutes in length. Junior horse visual demonstration contest will be between 5-10 minutes long. For Junior Horse Public Speaking, speeches should be 3-5 minutes in length.

Visual Presentation Contest With Age Categories

4-H Bread Project: Fun with Quick Breads

Ekokids: schoolyard nature guides, 4-h agronomy bowl: contest rules and regulations, 4-h insect identification study guide for junior 4-h'ers, 4-h insect identification contest: study guide for senior 4-h'ers.

Sign up by May 22 for 4-H Camp Explore

Junior 4-H members are invited to a four-day residential 4-H Camp Explore in mid-June at Holmes Community College in Goodman. The June 10-13 camp is designed for 4-H members ages 8-13 years old. The cost to attend is $225, and registration must be made by May 22.

4-H livestock specialist earns awards, board term

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Dean Jousan helps the Mississippi Cattlemen’s Association select the annual winner of its Paul F.

Collaboration makes Choctaw Preview Day a success

STARKVILLE, Miss.

March 2024 - 4-H Animal Lines

October 2023 - 4-h animal lines, august 2023 - 4-h animal lines, july 2023 - 4-h animal lines, march 2023 - 4-h animal lines, contact your county office, book navigation.

• Wildlife Habitat Education Program (WHEP)

Related Material

Upcoming events.

Preparation of a scientific presentation

Vorbereitung eines wissenschaftlichen Vortrags

• AGA-Komitee-Hefte
• Open access
• Published: 28 May 2024

Cite this article

You have full access to this open access article

• Daniel Günther 1 , 2 &

AGA Research Committee

This article provides a guide to creating a scientific presentation. It outlines the tasks a presenter has to perform before creating a presentation, gives tips for preparing a successful presentation, and provides techniques the presenter can use when giving the presentation. When preparing a presentation, the speaker must consider the aim of the presentation and the audience. Therefore, this article provides tips regarding layout, speaking time, language, citation style, structure, and how to increase the audience’s attention. Through a clear structure, visual support, and interaction with the audience, the presenter can convince the audience and successfully convey his scientific message. Finally, a checklist is provided to help researchers with finalizing their presentations.

Zusammenfassung

Der vorliegende Beitrag bietet eine Anleitung zum Erstellen einer wissenschaftlichen Präsentation. Wichtige Punkte werden darin beschrieben, die vor der Erstellung einer Präsentation beachtet werden sollten, und Tipps für eine erfolgreichen Präsentation gegeben sowie Techniken genannt, die während der Präsentation auf der Bühne verwenden werden können. Entscheidend ist eine gründliche Planung unter Berücksichtigung der Präsentationsziele und der Zielgruppenzusammensetzung. Daher wird auf Layout, Redezeit, Sprache, Zitierstil und Strukturierung eingegangen, und es werden Techniken beschrieben, um die Aufmerksamkeit des Publikums während einer Präsentation zu steigern. Durch eine klare Struktur, visuelle Unterstützung und Interaktion mit dem Publikum kann der Vortragende das Publikum überzeugen und seine wissenschaftliche Botschaft erfolgreich vermitteln. Abschließend wird eine Checkliste bereitgestellt, die Forschern bei der Fertigstellung ihrer Präsentationen helfen soll.

Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.

Introduction

The purpose of this article is to provide a guide to creating a scientific presentation. This guide offers both universally applicable content that should be adhered to as well as opportunities to reflect the presenterʼs style. These points can be considered as suggestions and may be adapted to the speaker’s own style, because two of the most important factors for a successful presentation are authenticity and individuality.

Before creating the presentation

Before even beginning to start work on the first slide or create the first sentence, you should first ask yourself the following questions:

Who assigned the presentation to me, and what do they want to achieve with it?

Who is the target audience? Are they fellow professionals, experts in the field, or a broad audience? Understanding the audience is crucial to adapting the content and language level of the presentation.

How many people will be listening?

What is the appropriate presentation style? Interactive or more unidirectional?

What should be achieved with the presentation? Should new research findings be presented, should an overview of the literature on a specific topic be provided, or should a particular surgical technique or approach be demonstrated?

Predecessors and successors

Familiarize yourself with the event’s program; no listener likes to hear the same introduction multiple times. Although deliberate repetition can be used to reinforce important points, you should try to align your presentation with those of other speakers.

In-person or online?

It makes a difference whether the audience is sitting in person in front of you or watching from a screen in their own environment. When the presentation is virtual, direct feedback through facial expressions is not available, and techniques that increase engagement may be more challenging to apply or not tested for success. Especially in online presentations, the integration of poll questions at various points in the presentation can be useful to keep the audience active and attentive.

Presenter mode

Presenter mode can be helpful for accessing notes during the presentation. If you plan to use this, it is important to inquire in advance whether the event’s media department supports this mode or not. However, reading a pre-written script in presenter mode usually appears rehearsed and takes away from the presentation’s individuality and spontaneity.

Creating the presentation

Speaking time.

In most cases, the speaking time is clearly specified. A good presentation is one in which you stay within the allocated speaking time and do not deviate significantly from it. Achieving this precision requires some experience but can be planned to some extent. A good rule of thumb is to allow an average of about 30 s per slide. This means that a presentation intended to fill 10 min should contain approximately 20 slides. Practicing the presentation beforehand can help you get a feeling for the right timing.

Even if there is no exact time limit, it is important to consider what a reasonable duration is for the audience. The oft-cited claim that the attention span of learners is 15 min and rapidly declines thereafter has not been scientifically proven. Our attention is based on automatic, unconscious processes. Every 125 to 250 milliseconds, our attention oscillates from highly focused to unfocused and back [ 1 ]. Therefore, it helps to engage the audience’s attention through various methods, which will be described later in the article.

A consistent layout for the slides should be chosen. It is important to familiarize yourself with the event’s guidelines. Some organizers may require a 4:3 slide format, while others nowadays prefer a widescreen 16:9 format.

Just as it is when creating a manuscript, it is also important to provide proper citations in a presentation. This can be done directly beneath an image or quoted portion of text, or at the bottom of the slide. An adequate format includes the first author, journal, and publication year (e.g., Günther et al. AGA-Themenheft 2023).

Uniform language

The presentation should be conducted in the language of the conference or event. Mixing, for example, English and German slides, appears unprofessional and should be avoided.

One topic per slide

A well-organized and focused presentation only covers one topic per slide. The slide should contain only what is essential for the audience to understand the topic. If you are confident in the content of your presentation and your speaking ability, it may be enough to have a single image or diagram on a slide and explain its content. If you are not so confident, it may be helpful to write down important keywords on the slide. However, listing full sentences should be avoided. Figure  1 a, b show corresponding examples.

Positive example of slide design with a single image and important keywords ( a ), and a negative example of slide design with consecutive full sentences without visual appeal ( b )

Structuring

Before you start your presentation, a brief thankyou note to the chairs/moderators and the audience is good practice. Any conflicts of interest should be communicated openly and clearly directly after the title slide.

Subsequently, a clear and logical structure is the key to a successful presentation. A typical structure includes the following sections:

Introduction : The introduction introduces the topic and explains the significance of the research. Ideally, it arouses the audience’s curiosity and helps individuals understand the relevance of the work.

Research question or hypothesis : The main question and/or hypothesis that the research aims to address should be formulated. This helps the audience understand the context of the presentation.

Methods : Briefly describe the research methods and techniques applied. This allows the audience to better assess the results.

Results : Research findings should be presented clearly and comprehensibly. Diagrams, tables, or graphics can be used to visualize the data.

Discussion : Interpret the results and answer the research question or hypothesis. Discuss possible implications and impacts of the research.

Conclusion/conclusions : These should be based on the research findings and re-emphasize the significance of the work.

If you want to present diagrams or graphics, it is important to label them correctly. This includes labeling the axes with their respective units (e.g., age of patients in years), indicating standard deviations, significance levels (e.g., p  < 0.05), and the number of objects examined (e.g., N  = 100).

Attention techniques

To increase the audience’s attention during a presentation, various techniques and strategies can be employed:

Arouse interest : Start with a brief anecdote that piques the audience’s interest and establishes a personal connection.

Use visual aids : Well-designed visual elements such as images, charts, graphics, or videos can support statements and help present information attractively. While support from visual elements is important, it should not be overdone. Use legible fonts and colors. Diagrams and graphics should be simple and precise for easy audience comprehension.

Vary media and formats : Presentation media and formats can be changed to maintain audience attention. For example, videos or small live demonstrations can be integrated.

Interact with the audience : Asking the audience questions, conducting brief surveys, or requesting feedback increases interaction, encourages active participation, and keeps attention high. Directly addressing an audience member can be effective if you are confident that it won’t embarrass them. Asking a friendly expert in the audience for their opinion on the topic can be an option and can increase interaction.

Incorporate changes in speed : Varying speaking speed and volume can highlight specific points and control audience attention.

Use irony or humor : Appropriately used humor can relax the audience and keep them attentive. However, humor should be suitable and culturally sensitive. This is especially important in international presentations to avoid an unintended effect.

Storytelling techniques : The presentation should be structured with a clear narrative to help the audience follow.

Emphasize the utility and relevance : The presentation’s importance to the audience should be highlighted. Explain the practical or clinical applicability of the research or ideas.

Use rhetorical questions : Rhetorical questions can make the audience contemplate the topic.

Movement and gestures : Space and gestures can be used to underscore statements and make the presentation more dynamic. Excessive movement that could distract from the content should be avoided.

Energy and enthusiasm : Enthusiastic presenters with passion and energy for the topic can engage the audience more effectively.

Concise and clear language : Clear and easily understandable language should be used to convey the presentation’s content clearly.

Closing slide

A closing slide can express gratitude to the research team or provide a preview of an upcoming event. If you choose not to do this, you can use this slide to thank the audience and indicate your availability for questions.

Questions/discussion

You should be prepared to answer questions from the audience adequately. Openness to discussions and willingness to take questions are crucial parts of a good presentation. As mentioned in the “Speaking time” section, practicing the presentation in advance can help. Conducting this practice in front of a test audience, such as during lab meetings or doctoral/research colloquia, can help you improve the presentation based on the audience’s feedback or gain a good sense of the questions that may arise in the audience. Even seemingly simple questions should be answered in a friendly manner, as not everyone in the audience is as familiar with the topic as the presenter.

Practice presentation

Good preparation is essential. A practice presentation in front of an appropriate audience helps identify potential weaknesses and build self-confidence for the actual presentation. A confident and composed demeanor during the presentation is important, and arrogance should be avoided. Pay attention to clear pronunciation and appropriate body language. A calm demeanor conveys to the audience that you are knowledgeable on the topic.

A well-prepared scientific presentation is the key to effectively communicating research findings. Through a clear structure, visual support, and interaction with the audience, you can convince the audience and successfully convey your scientific message.

Checklist before concluding the presentation

Do I know my audience, the organizers, and my predecessors and successors, and am I familiar with the event’s program?

Am I staying within the allotted speaking time?

Is the layout in line with the guidelines, are all sources correctly cited, and is a consistent language used?

Are the slides well-structured and focused?

Is the structure maintained, and does a clear narrative run through the presentation?

Are all graphics and diagrams correctly labeled?

Am I prepared to answer questions from the audience, and do I feel confident in my presentation role?

Fiebelkorn IC, Pinsk MA, Kastner S (2018) A Dynamic Interplay within the Frontoparietal Network Underlies Rhythmic Spatial Attention. Neuron 99(4):842–853

Article   CAS   PubMed   PubMed Central   Google Scholar  

Download references

Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Trauma Surgery, and Sports Medicine, Cologne Merheim Medical Center, Ostmerheimer Str. 200, 51109, Cologne, Germany

Daniel Günther

Witten/Herdecke University, Witten, Germany

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Daniel Günther .

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest.

D. Günther and the AGA Research Committee declare that they have no competing interests.

For this article no studies with human participants or animals were performed by any of the authors. All studies mentioned were in accordance with the ethical standards indicated in each case.

Additional information

D. Günther, Köln

E. Herbst, Münster

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Scan QR code & read article online

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Günther, D., AGA Research Committee. Preparation of a scientific presentation. Arthroskopie (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00142-024-00683-w

Download citation

Accepted : 15 April 2024

Published : 28 May 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s00142-024-00683-w

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Body language
• Communication

Schlüsselwörter

• Wissenschaft
• Körpersprache
• Kommunikation
• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

• View all journals
• My Account Login
• Explore content
• About the journal
• Publish with us
• Sign up for alerts
• Open access
• Published: 21 May 2024

Exploring textual–visual strategies in internet-based light food advertising: a study of Taobao advertisements in China

• Qian Yong   ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0003-1905-9096 1 &
• Xiaoqin Rao 2  

Humanities and Social Sciences Communications volume  11 , Article number:  645 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

• Language and linguistics

Amidst global health concerns such as COVID-19 and rising obesity rates, the connection between food choices, societal well-being, and cultural shifts has gained attention. In China, the rise of “light food” consumption on platforms like Taobao reflects a growing trend towards health-conscious dietary preferences. With a dataset comprising 633 images and 45,817 words, condensed into 50 images for analysis, this research aims to understand how these advertisements influence perceptions of healthiness and desirability, and whether there is a discrepancy between advertised health benefits and actual nutritional content. This study delves into the advertising strategies employed for light food products on the Taobao platform in China, utilizing a Textual–Visual Thematic Analysis (TVTA) framework. Noteworthy findings include: (1) Internet-based light food advertising adopts a dual textual and visual approach. (2) Identification of prevalent multimodal devices, such as medium shots, varied camera angles, vibrant colors, and large size. (3) Uncovering inconsistencies in presentation that may pose potential consumer misperceptions. These discoveries underscore the nuanced landscape of light food advertising, offering valuable insights for both academia and industry.

Similar content being viewed by others

COBRAs and virality: viral campaign values on consumer behaviour

Comparing the influence of visual information and the perceived intelligence of voice assistants when shopping for sustainable clothing online

Can foodporn prime healthy eating? Thinking beyond digital gazing and satiety

Introduction.

The twenty-first century, the age of information, has witnessed stupendous growth in mass media, multimedia and multimodal communications sweeping across the world. And focusing on a single language mode seems incongruous in our technical age, girdled with semiotic modes to meet diverse communicative needs. “Advertising is perhaps the most remarkable mass medium of our age” (Baudrillard, 1998 , p. 125). The prosperity of it has also reverberated and even changed people’s understanding of health and beauty. Some scholars have recognized that food advertisements can influence people’s perception of healthiness and preference for foods and habits of diet (Seale, 2002 ; Gunter, 2016 ; Eriksson and Machin, 2020 ), such as genetically modified foods (Roe and Teisl, 2007 ), organic foods (Kareklas et al., 2014 ), food targeting on adults (Vukmirovic, 2015 ; Fang, 2022 ) and children (Story and French, 2004 ; Hawkes, 2005 ; Livingstone, 2006 ; Moore and Rideout, 2007 ; Gunter, 2016 ).

The well-being of individuals is a clear indicator of a country’s success and there is now a significant focus on maintaining good health due to the increasing spread of infectious diseases like COVID-19 and illnesses related to obesity worldwide. For a while now, there has been a debate about how food can impact society, with its effects being reflected in areas such as politics, economy, cultural diversity, and human health (Pilcher, 2017 ). That’s why the issue of a healthy diet has gained a high political profile in many countries (Slavin, 2015 ), such as “Healthy China 2030 Initiatives” in China. In recent times, there has been a strong emphasis on the consumption of nutritious food, as it is believed to improve health and aid in weight loss (Chen and Eriksson, 2019 ; Eriksson and Machin, 2020 ; Ho, 2020 ; Montefrio and Wilk, 2020 ; Machin and Chen, 2023 ). At the same time, the rise of the obsession with a “thin culture” also entices more people to join the groups for weight loss and fitness. Reducing calorie intake effortlessly through diet has also become one of the sought-after methods to get in shape. Against the backdrop that food, health and beauty are closely entwined, people aspire after the way to a healthy diet and, in turn, get the perfect shape at a seemingly low cost. This trend is particularly apparent in China, where there is a growing interest in “light food” that promotes the idea of becoming a better person through healthy eating (Fang, 2022 ). And online shopping platforms are honeycombed with advertising hype about what is sold as “healthy” and “good.” This kind of food has emerged with new characteristics in China, which can reflect value and beliefs preferred in contemporary society.

This study focuses on advertising for light food products on the Amazon-like Taobao platform in China in response to the growing popularity of these products, the increasing emphasis on achieving an ideal body shape through diet, and the influential status of Taobao platform. It attempts to investigate light food advertising in a framework of Textual–Visual Thematic Analysis (TVTA) to collaboratively analyze the textual and visual data in the study.

About the framing: TVTA

Essentially, in today’s world of advanced technology and various forms of communication, relying solely on single-mode discourse analysis is inadequate. Multimodal discourses, such as images, videos, and gestures, are crucial for conveying information, participating in social activities, constructing knowledge, and understanding reality. One key author who has contributed to this area is Kress and van Leeuwen ( 1996 , 2001 , 2006 ), who develop the classic theory of Visual Grammar (VG) and highlights the different modes of communication through representational meaning, interactive meaning and compositional meaning. Despite of its groundbreaking achievements in the field of multimodality analysis (MDA), it is still devoid of adequate exploration of intentions behind the visual designation. On this basis, recent years have seen a critical turn from MDA to Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA) to further explain the intention behind semiotic resources chosen to convey meaning (Machin and Mayr, 2012 ; Machin, 2013 ; Hart, 2016 ; Pan and Zheng, 2018 ; Tian and Pan, 2018 ). Machin and Mayr ( 2012 , p. 6–10) first proposed the notion of it: “Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA)” that offers a set of tools for the study of visual choices and their features just like the way Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) does on lexical and grammatical choices textually . The ultimate agenda of it is to identify and unveil buried ideologies and power relations (Machin, 2013 ; Abousnnouga and Machin, 2013 ; Machin, 2016 ; Tian and Pan, 2018 ) under the guise of seemingly natural, normal or neutral discourse choices like photographs, images, diagrams, graphics and other visual aids through a detailed description. Some attempts of application emerge, such as studies teasing apart basic theoretical concepts and scope of study (Machin and Mayr, 2012 ; Machin, 2013 ; Ledin and Machin, 2015 ; Machin, 2016 ; Ledin and Machin, 2018 ) and various targets explorations of media representations of crime (Mayr and Machin, 2012 ), war monuments (Abousnnouga and Machin, 2013 ) and food commercials about moral eating (Chen and Eriksson, 2019 ; Eriksson and Machin, 2020 ), cultural contexts in the Asia Pacific nations (Montefrio and Wilk, 2020 ) and cosmopolitan locavorism in Hongkong (Ho, 2020 ). At this point, the majority of them understood that examining cultural phenomena requires consideration of both visual and textual elements. However, they only applied textual analysis to their visual research or focused on them in a disproportional manner. In essence, they have yet to integrate both visual and textual analysis.

As a specific application of MDA, TVTA is more concerned with identifying and interpreting specific themes and meanings that are conveyed through different modes of textual and visual arrangements that contribute to their construction. According to Braun and Clarke ( 2006 ), textual visual thematic analysis involves the systematic coding and categorization of data into themes, which are then interpreted in relation to the research questions and existing literature. Numerous researchers have employed TVTA in diverse settings, including a psychological investigation by Trombet and Cox ( 2022 ), feedback provision in design studio by Mayson et al. ( 2009 ), and examination of German news coverage of COVID-19 by Xu et al. ( 2022 ). As for visual part, visual grammar proposed by Kress and van Leeuwen ( 1996 , 2006 ) is in the center of discussion. It is concerned about representational meaning, interactive meaning and compositional meaning.

Despite its usefulness, TVTA has some limitations that researchers should be aware of. One limitation is the subjectivity of interpretation which can lead to different interpretations of the same data. Considering the potential risk, we choose to assess the light food advertisements in a structured manner involving qualitative and quantitative analysis. Based on the coded data in Nvivo 12 Plus, the co-occurrence matrix of keywords and visual coding would be depicted in Gephi 0.10.1 to reveal the connections and intentions reflected in light food advertising.

This article addresses the gap in the scholarship by exploring the TVTA devices used in taobao platform to frame the inner association between textual keywords and coding of images with the aid of Social Network Analysis (SNA), to better present the collocation preferences and internal connections contributing to the building of light food image. More specifically, the research questions that guide the present analysis are:

RQ1: What are the most salient visual features of light food advertising on the Taobao platform?

RQ2: What are the predominant textual features observed in light food advertising on the Taobao platform?

RQ3: How do the visual and textual elements of these advertisements interact to construct the image of light foods on Taobao?

“Light food” means differently to people in countries with different cultural backgrounds and national conditions. In China, we believe that it can be perceived as a new food type online associated with healthy connotations. It refers to an industrial product featuring small amounts, low energy, low calories, low fat, sugar-free, and other similar health-friendly qualities termed “light food labels,” which claims to alleviate people’s intake burden without nutrition loss. It caters to people who want to keep fit or lose weight through diet swiftly and painlessly. Typical products of this kind are food replacing regular meals, sauces, snacks and beverages with “light food labels,” satisfying people’s needs in different stages of health maintenance and beauty attainment. This study focuses on products that replace regular meals on the Taobao platform, which are the most important members of light food and major products purchased by people in the pursuit of perfect shape. These products include five major types: chicken breast, whole wheat bread, meal replacement shakes or porridge, and soba noodles.

This study employs both qualitative and quantitative research methods to examine light food advertisements on Taobao. Qualitative analysis focuses on interpreting text features through keywords, as well as identifying visual arrangements and generating meaning through VG. Quantitative analysis serves as a complementary tool to provide descriptive statistics on the frequency and distribution of meaning across representational, interactive, and compositional aspects. SNA is also used to visualize the co-occurrence matrix of keywords and visual coding to demonstrate the internal connections among different elements. The co-occurrence matrix is used to visualize the relationships between actors, where the keywords that appear simultaneously tend to have some relevance. The more frequently the keywords appear together, the larger their area of representation and the thicker the line linking keywords will be. Data aside from the line denotes the co-occurrence times among keywords. To systematically evaluate light food advertisements, Nvivo 12 Plus and Gephi 0.10.1 were chosen as analysis tools, as depicted in Figs. 1 and 2 . This paper mainly uses Nvivo 12 Plus to code PDF images and export coding co-occurrence data, preparing for the later production of coding co-occurrence matrix. Gephi 0.10.1, an exploration and visualization software widely used in Social Network Analysis, helps identify patterns and connections in network structures. Word co-occurrence matrix is commonly used to visualize relationships between elements that appear simultaneously. In this study, the co-occurrence table of keywords and visual coding will be visualized in Gephi 0.10.1 to unveil connections and intentions reflected in light food advertising.

This figure shows the interface of Nvivo 12 Plus, which is the tool used for image coding of long images through Visual Grammar. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

This figure shows the interface of Gephi 0.10.1., which is the tool used for generating keywords and visual coding co-occurrence matrix to display the internal connections visually. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

Data collection

This study follows a specific process for selecting its data. The top 10 selling products in five light food categories on Taobao are chosen, and any repetitive products from the same brand with different prices are removed, resulting in 50 advertisements with a total of 633 images. To ensure representative samples, the chosen brands should exclusively sell light food products. Sales rankings from June 2022 to September 2022 are used to select the top 10 products from each category for three consecutive months, resulting in 150 advertisements. The final research samples of 50 advertisements are chosen from recurring products in each category. The research procedures involve collecting the top 10 products in each category, removing irrelevant images, and combining the remaining 633 images.

The data collection described in Fig. 3 involves several steps. Initially, the top 10 light food products in each category are collected and downloaded in bulk to form the original research focus, consisting of 50 advertisements and a total of 765 scattered images. Following this, irrelevant images such as shipping announcements and nutrition facts are removed, resulting in 633 remaining images that are combined into 50 longer images for ease of management and numbered 1–50. Image character recognition is then performed to obtain a small corpus for text analysis, with expressions uniformly transcribed into Chinese to maintain consistency. The resulting 45,817 words are analyzed through keywords and all advertising is converted to PDF for VG coding through Nvivo 12 Plus. The frequency and distribution of three meta-functions in visual analysis are calculated and listed in tables with detailed interpretation, and the keywords and visual coding co-occurrence are visualized by Gephi 0.10.1 to examine their connections and preferences.

This figure shows the whole procedures of how data is collected and analyzed in detail, including tools adopted in each step. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

Results and discussions

Textual–visual thematic analysis, representational meaning: narrative and conceptual.

The following text discusses Kress and van Leeuwen’s ( 2006 ) framework of representational meaning in visual communication, highlighting two main types: narrative representation and conceptual presentation. It explains that narrative representation focuses on dynamic events and actions, while conceptual presentation emphasizes stable and timeless essences. The key distinguishing factor is the presence of invisible oblique lines denoting direction. The narrative type involves dynamic processes like action, reaction, verbal, and mental processes, while the conceptual type encompasses classification, analytical, and symbolic processes. The analysis also delves into the roles and characteristics of these processes in advertising, emphasizing their influence on viewer perception and understanding. In the present study, this process is commonly used to display detailed information, mainly structured process, and specific features explained in the graph, largely unstructured process, of the products. Speaking of symbolic process, it explains one participant which is largely abstract or general in terms of the other which is specific. The roles involved in this process are carrier, participant whose meaning is established, and symbolic attributes who represents the meaning itself.

Our data in Table 1 reveal that conceptual representation is more prevalent than narrative representation, indicating that marketers of light food products prefer to use this approach for conveying information and promoting their products. In terms of narrative representation, action process is the most commonly used (28.91%), followed by reactional process (11.69%) and verbal process (2.21%). When it comes to conceptual representation, classification process is touched on in 224 images, accounting for 35.39%. Moreover, the most frequently used process types are analytical process and symbolic process, which make up 83.25% and 71.09%, respectively.

Light food advertising utilizes different types of narrative representations to build a positive brand image and appeal to consumers. The focus on interaction between people and raw materials, as well as the naturalness and good quality of the product, is emphasized through transactional process. The dilemmas of body shape faced by people are also addressed to build a relatable brand image. Rigorousness and attention to detail are conveyed through reactional process, while the positive outcomes after eating the product are shown through action process. Verbal process is used to convince people of the product’s popularity through objective reviews from customers.

The process of generating meaning can be broken down into three types: classification, analytical, and symbolic. Classification involves grouping participants based on their status and class, with overt and covert taxonomy being the two sub-types. In advertising, covert taxonomy is commonly used to display product options. To sell e-commerce food products effectively, a classificational process is used to group flavors and ingredients, an analytical process is used to highlight specific product attributes, such as low GI, and a symbolic process is used to emphasize the products’ professionalism and credentials. The primary objective is to provide detailed information and promote sales by objectifying abstract features through symbolic representation.

Interactive meaning: contact, social distance, perspective, and modality

In Kress and van Leeuwen’s ( 2006 ) framework, representational meaning involves the relationship among participants within the image world, while interactive meaning extends to the physical world, emphasizing interactions between represented participants and viewers. Contact assesses gaze vector presence, demanding or offering engagement. Social distance is portrayed through the size of the frame, indicating closeness or alienation. Perspectives relate to angles, conveying involvement or detachment (horizontal) and power dynamics (vertical). Modality, categorized by degree, assesses image truthfulness based on color, depth, and illumination. Specific examples include contact through eyelines, social distance through frame size, and perspectives through angle selection, all influencing viewer perceptions. Our data in Table 2 show the different preferences of strategies employed. The offer act is used the most (94.47%), while the demand act is used less (5.53%). Medium shot is the most popular shot (78.83%), followed by close-up (17.69%) and long shot (4.90%). Frontal angle is used more often than oblique angle (63.35% vs. 37.28%). High angle and eye to eye angle are commonly used to convey equality. High modality (82.46%) is the most used to demonstrate product truthfulness. Overall, e-commerce food advertising prioritizes presenting detailed information and selling points through interactive means that actively involve customers and objectively convey product features.

Generally, eye contact from human, animal or personification objects may influence people’s perspective aligned with the theme of the images. And without eye contact with human or quasi-human, descriptions of goods tend to be more objective and customers may have more freedom in decision-making. Social distance like close-up shots showcase the natural characteristics of food. Medium shots are commonly used in online food advertising, creating a comfortable distance and providing a holistic view. Long shots represent a respectful public distance, emphasizing the product’s integration with society. This weakens its individuality and promotes its role in society, making it a symbol of the product’s social attribute.

According to Kress and van Leeuwen ( 2006 ), horizontal lines are used in the display to convey a sense of stillness or create a sense of movement. The frontal perspective creates a sense of immediacy or comparison and may also be intended to highlight a product’s features or benefits. An oblique perspective creates a sense of depth or dimension, as well as mystery or intrigue, and may present a product in a unique way. A high perspective is meant to present a product in a noble or ambitious manner, or to convey a sense of superiority or importance. The personal perspective creates a sense of intimacy or empathy, or presents the product in a way that you can identify with. A low perspective creates a sense of authority or power, or dramatically displays a product. In perspective, the frequent combination of high angles and front angles is beneficial for producers who educate people about new concepts, flavors, functions, etc. The joint effort of the high angle and the oblique angle aims to highlight the uniqueness of the product. The low angle is ignored in an online food ad with text placements and an eye-catching image.

According to Kress and van Leeuwen ( 2006 ), modality, a term used in functional grammar, is used to describe the credibility of images. The construction of naturalistic modality depends on factors such as color, depth, illumination, and details. Higher modality makes an image more credible. Therefore, the primary modality used in pictures is high, but middle or low modality may be used for special announcements. The attested cases of low modality can create a sense of mystery and curiosity.

Compositional meaning: information value, salience, and framing

Compositional meaning, as outlined by Kress and van Leeuwen ( 2006 ) and linked to the textual function in language, focuses on how images are organized within the visual realm. Information value dictates the distribution of information in images, with the top conveying ideal information, the bottom presenting real information, the left providing given information, the right introducing new information, and the center highlighting important information, while the margin contains unimportant information. Salience, representing information emphasis, captures the viewer’s attention through elements like color, size, position, and brightness. Framing, revealing the connection and disconnection of visual elements, employs techniques such as lines, empty spaces, color differentiation, and image outlines. In essence, compositional meaning aims to reveal intricate and structured frameworks for constructing images.

van Leeuwen ( 2005 , 2008 ) provided insight into compositional meaning by showing how visual elements are arranged in images. As shown in Table 3 , the position of elements is important for information value, with top-bottom being the most frequently used (90.21%). Color and size are the most common methods used to emphasize specific elements, while position and brightness are less important. Color differentiation is frequently used for framing (88.31%), followed by image outlines and empty spaces.

The detailed collocations in compositional meaning are as follows. In terms of information value, top-bottom and left-right are perfect matches which cater to the reading habits in the age of portrait screen and image-reading. Special attention should be paid to the common phenomenon contrary to what had been found by Kress and van Leeuwen ( 2006 ) that the left side represents new information, and the right side the given information. As for salience, color and size are two substantial methods to make certain element stand out, causing a strong visual punch to grab people’s attention. At last, a strongly framed example representing disconnection enjoys popularity, enabling people to navigate and distinguish different information swiftly and accurately.

Textual keywords and co-occurrence matrix

In this session, the focus will be on the analysis of the text in 50 light food advertisements found on the Taobao platform. The analysis will include examining the frequency of keywords used as in Table 4 , as well as the collocation preferences of these words. In total, the analysis will consider 45,817 words. A word cloud in Fig. 4 displaying frequently used keywords is created to quickly and directly comprehend the emphasis of vocabulary in light food advertisements. The size of the words represents their frequency within the text. The most prominent words, such as “kcal,” “calorie,” “satiety,” “nutrition,” “protein,” and “content,” suggest that light food is associated with nutritious content, high protein, and reduced calorie intake for weight loss. However, this poses a dilemma for people, as reducing calorie intake may require less food ingestion or meal skipping, while consuming high-nutritional food may result in unwanted weight gain. Light food products offer a solution to this conflict, promising both nutrition and weight loss. The top 20 keywords focus on various positive descriptions of light food. The co-occurrence matrix is explored through SNA to uncover the underlying narrative logic behind keyword collocation preferences.

This figure shows the keywords cloud of light food advertising through Python. The larger the words, the more salient and important the words are, which can show the value emphasis of the light food advertising. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

To further analyze the internal narrative logic in the persuasion process, a keyword co-occurrence matrix is created using Gephi 0.10.1 based on the previously generated keywords. In Fig. 5 , the central part of the figure contains several words with higher prominence and larger icons, such as “calorie,” “kcal,” “China,” “data,” “nutrition,” “satiety,” “ingestion,” “content,” and “protein.” These co-occurrences can reveal the preferred word choices in marketing and the promotional tactics used to deepen customer recognition and gain their affection. The thicker the line between the keywords, the higher the relevance of the keywords. Therefore, we focus on analyzing the co-occurrence of the most prominent keywords. Based on their semantic meaning, the co-occurrence clusters are categorized into three main types: reducing calorie ingestion, nutrition and satiety, and citing the source of data as in Fig. 5 .

This figure shows the co-occurrence matrix of keywords generated before, indicating the internal connections among keywords. The thicker the lines between the keywords, the higher relevance of the keywords have. According to their semantic meaning, clusters of co-occurrence are classified into three main types: decreasing calorie ingestion, nutrition and satiety and source of data citation. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

To begin with, co-occurrence among “kcal,” “calorie,” and “ingestion” provides the possibility of effectively decreasing calorie intake. The primary concern for people is the concept of “calorie,” which is strongly linked to the growth of fat and causes anxiety for those pursuing beauty. The usage of “kcal,” “calorie, and “ingestion” form a triangle, with “kcal” being the unit for calculating calorie intake. This triangle demonstrates a high correlation between the three keywords, with “kcal” and “calorie” appearing together 78 times, “calorie” and “ingestion” 42 times, and “kcal” and “ingestion” 29 times. Advertisers intentionally compare “light food” with “regular meals,” typically referring to the calorie intake of an adult woman, to showcase the positive effects of their products. The explanation of calorie consumption often uses the term “minute” to make it more specific, as exercising is viewed as a time-consuming and grueling process. Additionally, the term “apple” is frequently used to indicate the low calorie of light food and promote healthy implications. It seems that it can save people from sweaty and energy-consuming exercise, and the only muscles that people need to exercise are the ones around their mouth; then, health and good shape will embrace them.

Secondly, the claim of low-calorie intake alone is insufficient to persuade individuals to purchase these products. “Nutrition” and “satiety” are two keywords to further prove the working mechanism of health maintenance and effortless weight loss, convincing people that they are making sensible food choices. “Satiety” eliminates the concern of being underfed, while “nutrition” promotes a healthy diet. The high “content” of “dietary fiber” and “protein” is emphasized, as they are crucial for human health. Protein is considered the primary material basis of the human body, while dietary fiber promotes intestinal absorption, weight control, and the elimination of metabolic waste. In addition, advertisers often compare the satiety duration of light food products with other foods without stating adequate amount, using the time unit “hours” to specify the product’s quality.

Finally, reference to authority can meet the pressing need to offer reliability and credibility to advertising rhetoric, making it free from suspicion of fabrication. Most of the “sources,” “references” or “citations” for “calculation” about data on calories, satiety length, nutritional content and explanation of calories come from Chinese Food Composition Table Standard Edition (29 times), a book focusing on analyzing food composition and summarizing food composition data, and Chinese Dietary Guidelines for Residents (16 times), a book giving advice on dietary choices based on scientific principles and dietary habits, compiled by the Chinese Nutrition Society. The use of numbers and data in advertising is widely accepted even without further supportive and authoritative evidence, as they are associated with science and rigor. However, the references to authoritative sources are often presented in small print and subtle colors, as the reference to authority is not a necessary condition for light food advertising to be credible. Additionally, the phrase “for reference only” is commonly used when the data comes from unverified sources, and the results may fluctuate or deviate.

In conclusion, keywords with high frequency leave a positive impression of light food. As for the keywords co-occurrence matrix, it displays the internal narrative logic of light food advertising, from possibility, working mechanism to reliability in health maintenance and effortless weight loss.

Visual co-occurrence matrix

The co-occurrence matrix graph between the three types of meaning (representational, interactive, and compositional) is shown in Figs. 6 – 8 . The analytical and symbolic processes are closely related to both interactive and compositional meanings, forming the most densely distributed area. Top–bottom, size, color, outline of images, and color differentiation are commonly used in compositional meaning, while offer act, medium shot, frontal angle, high angle, and high modality are frequently used in interactive meaning. These elements coexist and form the most densely distributed area in the graph. The whole co-occurrence matrix of the three, namely, representational meaning (red), interactive meaning (green) and compositional meaning (blue), can be perceived in Fig. 9 . It is easy to find that all the coding with the highest proportion of co-occurrence nearly commensurate to the elements with the highest percentage in three dimensions of VG, respectively, embodying different focus in each layer.

This figure is produced based on visual coding co-occurrence data in Nvivo12 Plus through Gephi 0.10.1. It shows the co-occurrence matrix of visual coding between representational meaning (red) and interactive meaning (green) in terms of visual grammar. The thicker the lines between the coding, the higher relevance of the coding has. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

This figure is produced based on visual coding co-occurrence data in Nvivo12 Plus through Gephi 0.10.1. It shows the co-occurrence matrix of visual coding between representational meaning (red) and compositional meaning (blue) in terms of visual grammar. The thicker the lines between the coding, the higher relevance of the coding has. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

Visual Co-occurrence Matrix II. This figure is produced based on visual coding co-occurrence data in Nvivo12 Plus through Gephi 0.10.1. It shows the co-occurrence matrix of visual coding between compositional meaning (blue) and interactive meaning (green) in terms of visual grammar. The thicker the lines between the coding, the higher relevance of the coding has. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

This figure is produced based on visual coding co-occurrence data in Nvivo12 Plus through Gephi 0.10.1. It shows the co-occurrence matrix of three meanings, namely, representational meaning (red), interactive meaning (green) and compositional meaning (blue) in terms of visual grammar. It concludes that the coding with the highest proportion of co-occurrence is nearly commensurate to the elements with the highest frequency in each dimension of visual grammar. This figure is created by Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao and is not covered by the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Copyright Qian Yong, Xiaoqin Rao, all rights reserved.

If we take the data as a whole unit in the visual arrangement in light food advertising, there are some inevitable contradictions in image arrangements. On the one hand, it conveys that light food advertising is relatively so objective that customers are given full freedom, decision-making power and the ideal advertiser-customer relationship, to purchase, free from manipulation and control. It can be seen from the adoptions of conceptual representation , specifically through analytical process and symbolic process which are to present relatively stable essence as structure and specific abstract features of light food, and offer act displaying information only, leaving judgment to buyers. On the other hand, however, it is also seductive in influencing people’s purchase. The comfortable distance created by medium shot , persuasive involvement through frontal angle , the superior status of customers given by high angle and attractive truthfulness of food has created perfect hothouses to allure people to jump into the pool of consumption, accompanied by top-bottom adapting to contemporary reading habits and marketing tactics online, visual punch that is hard to ignore by bigger size and brighter color, information bombarded achieved by outline of images and color differentiation in framing . To put it simply, the image layout of light food advertising is contradictory and indefinite superficially, but the manipulative intentions behind the promotion are consistent and definite in the physical world, to influence or even control people’s notion and purchase of light food implicitly. In addition, claiming noninterference with consumers’ judgment in purchasing, intervention and manipulation can be seen in other aspects. Through the configuration of visual elements, advertisers convey that negative situation that plague people can be appeased by light food. For example, light food can bring you companionship at midnight under the “996” work regime, allow you to sleep for half an hour more in society afflicted by rat race, save you from unsanitary takeout food by cook a good meal quickly and help you say goodbye to body anxiety and embrace a self-disciplined life. It provides people with the illusion of that light food on their hands, and problems die out. And changing people’s awful lives is the major mission of light food products. Finally, the image of it is becoming increasingly mysterious and even sacred.

Contradictions between visual and textual information

One of the main contradictions between visual and textual information in light food advertising is the use of manipulative visuals to lure the consumers, while the textual information claims that the food is healthy and nutritious. For instance, an advertisement for a light salad may show a picture of a small plate with fresh vegetables and herbs, while the text may state that the salad is low in calories and fat-free. However, the salad dressing may contain high amounts of sugar and sodium, which are not disclosed in the visual representation. Another example is the use of exaggerated portion sizes in advertisements for light foods. For instance, a cereal brand may depict a large bowl of cereal overflowing with fresh fruit, while claiming on the packaging that the serving size is just half a cup. This can be misleading to consumers who may assume that they can eat as much as they want without consuming too many calories. Additionally, some light food advertisements may use language that implies health benefits that are not supported by scientific evidence. For example, a beverage brand may claim that their product is “detoxifying” or “cleansing,” despite there being no evidence to support these claims. The use of such language can create a false impression that the product is healthier than it actually is.

Another contradiction is the use of ambiguous terms in the textual information, which can mislead the consumers. Light food advertising often uses ambiguous terms in their textual information, such as “low-fat” or “reduced-calorie,” which may not necessarily mean that the food is healthy. These terms can be misleading, especially when accompanied by visuals that depict the food as indulgent or decadent.

Moreover, some light food advertisements may use misleading visuals to promote a healthy or ethical image, while the text may not provide any concrete information regarding the ingredients or production methods. For instance, an advertisement for a plant-based burger may show a picture of a happy cow in a green field, while the text may not specify whether the burger is made with organic or genetically modified soybeans. Another example of misleading visuals in light food advertising is the use of bright, colorful packaging and attractive images of fruits and vegetables, even if the product contains only a small amount of these ingredients. This can create the perception that the product is healthy and nutritious, when in fact it may contain high levels of sugar, salt, and artificial ingredients.

RQ1: What are the most salient visual features of light food advertising on the Taobao platform? Light food advertisers prefer to employ the conceptual process of information transmission and product promotion. Medium shot (78.83%) taking the role of the practical attribute is favored most to create an ideal distance between the image and viewers. Frontal angle (63.35%) horizontally and high angle (54.98%) vertically are more frequently adopted to get the customer involved and make them feel the controlling power over products associated with new concept, flavors and functions. Brightest color (95.42%) and bigger size (91.31%) are two substantial methods to make certain element to stand out.

The characteristics of the text in light food advertising are as follows: frequently used keywords have a positive impact, the co-occurrence of certain keywords reveals the logic behind the narrative, reference clusters provide reliability, and borrowing from other discourses can grab attention and decrease promotional tone. Companies are presented as helpful friends who guide individuals towards better health and self-discipline. However, the use of data and numbers may be used without clear evidence as people seek quick and incomplete information in the current fast-paced world. It appears that providing half-answers can satisfy people’s thirst for information.

The visual co-occurrence matrix reflects the irreconcilable contradiction between the purchasing freedom offered to customers and the actual manipulation of food choices in the physical world. On the one hand, light food advertising claims that customers are given full freedom in the decision-making process of purchase, free from manipulation and control through analytical process, symbolic process and offer act. On the other hand, however, there are perfect hothouses to subtly allure people to jump into the pool of consumption through medium shot, horizontally frontal angle, high modality, vertically high angle, top-bottom, bigger size and brighter color and color differentiation. The seemly contradiction is also reflected between image and the text. Some light food advertising may rely heavily on eye-catching and manipulative visuals, such as packaging designs that feature vibrant colors or exaggerated serving sizes. In the absence of concrete textual information, consumers may be lured into thinking that the product is healthier or more nutritious than it actually is. This can be particularly problematic for individuals who are trying to maintain a healthy diet or have specific health conditions that require them to limit certain nutrients.

In summary, light food advertising creates a world where getting in shape healthily is idealized through the use of effect-related keywords and supported evidence. However, the contradictory layout of visual images veil their intentions to influence people’s concept of health. Light food is a covert slimming product that promotes “skinny beauty” under the guise of health and nutrition advertising blitz. It equates “thin culture” with maintaining health, obtaining nutrition and gaining self-improvement. And a perverse social atmosphere of “fussy weight calculation” pervades society. And it can also convince people that becoming thin and beautiful is not only a social responsibility but also can make the world a better place. The information, whether presented through words or images, has deviated from its original strictness in order to promote the benefits of light food without providing sufficient proof. In today’s fragmented world, people are growing more impatience with discerning the truth and seeking answers. The proliferation of textual and visual information has resulted in a trend where people tend to rely on incomplete and prompt responses rather than seeking a thorough understanding of the matter at hand. With regard to customers, textual and visual analysis of light food advertising can avail customers of having a better understanding of the features of the products and help them find information they want to know promptly. Besides, this study can also guide people to have a reasonable view of light food products, establish judicious notions of health and shape, make sensible food choices online and prevent consumption traps and stupid taxes. There are also some limitations needed to be improved. First, the research scope and objectivity are not enough. Due to the limited time, space and energy, only 50 light food advertisements replacing a regular meal, total 633 images, are collected to be analyzed in detail with one co-worker in the process of coding, which means a certain degree of subjectivity will be unavoidable. Second, the research content and method are not rich enough. Therefore, the scope of research can be extended to include more light food types such as beverage, snacks or energy-filling products to make the results more comprehensive and convincing. And the target selection process should be more rigorous enough to guarantee the accuracy and representation such as concentrating on the brands with large numbers of followers. And it would be better to invite more participants in the process of coding to increase the objectivity and reliability of the results. In order to draw a more representative conclusion, further studies can be done to evaluate other semiotic modes as color, sound, video and interaction between text-image links with the help of software, methods and theories from other disciplines such as psychology and communications.

Data availability

The datasets analyzed during the current study are available in the Dataverse repository: https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/FWGKTE .

Abousnnouga G, Machin D (2013) The language of war monuments. Bloomsbury, London

Google Scholar  

Baudrillard J (1998) Consumer society: myths and structures. Sage Publications, London

Book   Google Scholar  

Braun V, Clarke V (2006) Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qual Res Psychol 3(2):77–101

Article   Google Scholar  

Chen A, Eriksson G (2019) The making of healthy and moral snacks: a multimodal critical discourse analysis of corporate storytelling. Discourse Context Media 32:1–10

Eriksson G, Machin D (2020) Discourses of ‘good food’: the commercialisation of healthy and ethical eating. Discourse Context Media 33:1–7

Fang ZY (2022) The health myth of “sugar-free and calories-free”- a critical discourse analysis based on light food advertising. N Res 5:49–55

Gunter B (2016) Food advertising: nature, impact and regulation. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

Hart C (2016) The visual basis of linguistic meaning and its implications for critical discourse analysis: integrating cognitive linguistic and multimodal methods. Discourse Soc 27(3):335–350

Hawkes C (2005) Self-regulation of food advertising. What it can, could and cannot do to discourage unhealthy eating habits among children. Nutr Bull 30(4):374–382

Ho H (2020) Cosmopolitan locavorism: global local-food movements in postcolonial Hong Kong. Food Cult Soc 23(2):137–154

Article   MathSciNet   Google Scholar  

Kareklas I, Carlson JR, Muehling DD (2014) “I eat organic for my benefit and yours”: egoistic and altruistic considerations for purchasing organic food and their implications for advertising strategists. J Advertising 43(1):18–32

Kress G, van Leeuwen T (1996) Reading images: the grammar of visual design. Routledge, London

Kress G, van Leeuwen T (2001) Multimodal discourse: the modes and media of contemporary communication. Bloomsbury, London

Kress G, van Leeuwen T (2006) Reading images: the grammar of visual design, 2nd edn. Routledge, London

Ledin P, Machin D (2018) Doing visual analysis: from theory to practice. Sage, London

Ledin P, Machin D (2015) How lists, bullet points and tables recontextualize social practice: a multimodal study of management language in Swedish universities. Crit Discourse Stud 12(4):463–481

Livingstone S (2006) Does TV advertising make children fat? What the evidence tells us. Public Policy Res 13(1):54–61

Machin D, Mayr A (2012) How to do critical discourse analysis: a multimodal introduction. Sage, London

Machin D (2013) What is multimodal critical discourse studies? Crit Discourse Stud 10(4):347–355

Machin D (2016) The need for a social and affordance-driven multimodal critical discourse studies. Discourse Soc 27(3):322–334

Machin D, Chen A (2023) Designing food packaging to present healthy and ethical diets to the New Chinese middle classes. Food Cult Soc 26:79–101

Mayr A, Machin D (2012) The language of crime and deviance. Bloomsbury, London

Mayson S, Harpe B, Mason T (2009) Exploring the use of digital textual, visual and audio feedback in design studio. Assessment in different dimensions conference proceedings. RMIT University, Melbourne

Montefrio MJ, Wilk R (2020) Transecting ‘healthy’ and ‘sustainable’ food in the Asia Pacific. Food Cult Soc 23(2):102–116

Moore E, Rideout V (2007) The online marketing of food to children: is it just fun and games? J Public Policy Mark 26(2):202–220

Pan YY, Zheng ZH (2018) On the criticality of multimodal discourse analysis. J Tianjin Foreign Stud Univ 25(2):78–87

Pilcher J (2017) Food in world history. Routledge, London

Roe B, Teisl MF (2007) Genetically modified food labeling: the impact of message and messenger on consumer perceptions of labels and products. Food Policy 32(1):49–66

Seale C (2002) Media and health. Sage, London

Slavin JL (2015) The challenges of nutrition policy-making. Nutr J 14:15–21

Article   PubMed   PubMed Central   Google Scholar  

Story M, French S (2004) Food advertising and marketing directed at children and adolescents in the US. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 1(1):1–17

Tian HL, Pan YY (2018) From meaning to intention: new development of multimodal discourse analysis to multimodal critical discourse analysis. Shandong Foreign Lang Teach 39(01):23–33

Trombeta G, Cox S (2022) The textual-visual thematic analysis: a framework to analyze the conjunction and interaction of visual and textual data. Qual Rep 27(6):1557–1574

van Leeuwen T (2005) Introducing social semiotics. Routledge, London

van Leeuwen T (2008) New forms of writing, new visual competencies. Vis. Stud. 23(2):130–135

Vukmirovic M (2015) The effects of food advertising on food-related behaviors and perceptions in adults: a review. Food Res Int 75:13–19

Article   PubMed   Google Scholar  

Xu Y, Yu J, Löffelholz M (2022) Portraying the pandemic: analysis of textual-visual frames in German news coverage of COVID-19 on Twitter. Journal Pract 6(2):858–878

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Funding for Educational Sciences Education Science Planning Project of the Ministry of Education, under Grant “Advanced Logic and Innovative Models in National Education for Students from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan” (Project No: DIZ230523).

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Jinan University, Guangzhou, China

Tianhe Middle School, Guangzhou, China

Xiaoqin Rao

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Contributions

Qian Yong played a pivotal role in the conceptualization and drafting of the entire manuscript. Xiaoqin Rao made substantial contributions to the research by taking charge of data organization and software coding. Both authors, Qian Yong and Xiaoqin Rao, actively participated in the collaborative process of conceptualizing the article.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Qian Yong .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethical approval

This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors.

Informed consent

Additional information.

Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Yong, Q., Rao, X. Exploring textual–visual strategies in internet-based light food advertising: a study of Taobao advertisements in China. Humanit Soc Sci Commun 11 , 645 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03087-1

Download citation

Received : 09 August 2023

Accepted : 22 April 2024

Published : 21 May 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03087-1

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

Quick links

• Explore articles by subject
• Guide to authors
• Editorial policies

Visual Resources

The Department of Art & Archaeology, Princeton University

Visual Resources Update May 2024

Just a reminder that faculty needing publication images are invited to fill out   this survey . We are anticipating image needs and will be checking in at points during the year.

Questions for Kristina Zielke: how do old photographs offer new ideas?

Kristina Zielke is a visiting graduate student in A&A from the Freie Universität Berlin.

What brought you to Visual Resources/how did you hear about us?

My supervisor first mentioned Visual Resources during a brief tour of Green Hall. A few weeks later, a friend and colleague told me again about his good experience at Visual Resources and recommended to look for archival material on Olympia.

What were you expecting from the visit? Was it what you expected or different?

As I had already studied the archival material on Olympia in Berlin, Athens and also Olympia, I did not initially have particularly high expectations of finding something unknown to me. As I am working on the boundaries and limitations of Olympia from a longue dureé perspective, I already knew that free-standing walls were usually overlooked by excavators or tourists. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find photographs of Prof. Richard Stillwell as a former Professor at Princeton, who obviously shared my soft spot for walls and documented them. This was a happy coincidence for my research question. As research of ancient walls (whether fortification or otherwise) have received more attention in recent years, Prof. Stillwell’s collection of walls forms an important collection for comparative studies.

Was it helpful to your research? How?

The visit to Visual Resources was very helpful for my work. Thanks to R. Stillwell’s photographs, images of various walls and water channels have been preserved, which can no longer be seen today as the walking level has been raised to improve accessibility for tourists. In addition, some photographs show wall structures that are now in a poor state of preservation and thus reflect the condition shortly after being excavated. This helps significantly to get a picture of their before being exposed to almost 150 years of weathering. I also came across a photo that shows a specific wall in Olympia down to its foundation, which underlined my thesis on the walls origin and it’s dating.

What is your experience using (and working in) archaeological archives or photographic archives? How do they feature in your research?

Since the excavations in Olympia took place at a time when photographs were very expensive and time-consuming, my work is largely dependent on archives. Particularly in the case of archaeological sites that have a longer modern history due to early excavations, reports or photographs are often the only source of information about the in situ state. Archaeological sites are not frozen in time after being excavated. The monuments are exposed to the weather, natural disasters, as well as humans and animals. Additionally, the desire to make the sites attractive for tourism requires certain measures of accessibility and preservation. The first major excavation in Olympia took place in 1875-1881, since then the terrain changed considerably. Paths were installed for tourist accessibility, and, in the process, numerous disruptive structures were removed, the walking level was raised, restorations were carried out. By comparing photographs over the course of time can therefore be essential for building research.

Can you describe the relationship (similarities, differences, etc.) between archival research and excavation? How, in your mind, can the two research practices support each other?

All fieldwork is based on thorough and objective documentation. Every excavation is a destruction of otherwise untouched ground as the excavated soil can never be reversed. Therefore, the archival studies are oftentimes a prerequisite for starting fieldwork, to ensure that an excavation has not already taken place at the selected site in earlier times. Sometimes trenches get filled in again after the work was completed in order to ensure the preservation of certain the structures. In this case, the documentation of the finds that are no longer visible (e.g. reports, excavation diaries, drawings, photos) are essential to research and may offer the possibility of new interpretations in later times, if more knowledge about a certain topic could be gained.

Thank you, Kristina for visiting and sharing your work. If anyone is interested in the historic photograph collection please reach out to [email protected] or [email protected] .

Digital Methods in Ancient History

This past semester, Leigh Lieberman co-taught a course with Caroline Cheung called The Science of Roman History (CLA 247). Roman history courses usually cover the grand narratives based on the more traditional, literary evidence. Usually these courses leave no room for discussing how knowledge is created and the new and different methods for studying ancient history. This course instead looked at different questions to shed light on fruitful collaborations between scholars from different fields, prompting students to engage with STEM and digital humanities methods as we considered historical questions. Through different case studies and hands-on activities, students learned how different scientific, technological, and computational methods help us employ a multi-disciplinary approach to learning about the ancient past.

Throughout the semester, students focused their efforts on an object from The Princeton University Art Museum or Firestone Special Collections; their final projects outlined various scientific analyses that one could pursue to learn more about that object (i.e.: XRF, isotope analysis, statistical study, spatial study, etc.). These final projects were transformed, using ESRI’s ArcGIS StoryMaps, into a collaborative, multi-modal publication, giving the students an opportunity to gain some experience writing for public audiences.

Presentation of the 1929 Mount Athos Film at the Icon Museum and Study Center, Clinton MA

On Saturday, June 8th, at 1pm Julia Gearhart will be presenting at the Icon Museum and Study Center in Clinton Massachusetts thanks to the invitation of A&A alum and now museum curator, Justin Willson. Julia will be screening the 1929 film footage of Mount Athos that was discovered in the department in 2017  as part of a double matinee with Argyris Liapis’s documentary: Athos, the World’s Brightest Peak , winner of the Astron Award (Audience Favorite) at the 18th San Francisco Greek Film Festival in 2021.

The monthly update will be taking a break during the summer – see you in August!

Share this:.

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

The Bartlett School of Architecture

• Exhibitions
• Publications
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Disguise Media Server Presentation: Industry Leading Solutions for Visual Experiences

28 May 2024, 5:00 pm–6:00 pm

An industry talk from visual experience platform Disguise, discussing their projects at the intersection of media, entertainment and technology, and the trends shaping these sectors.

This event is free.

Event Information

Availability.

We are in a new era of visual experiences. Disguise is a Emmy award-winning media/tech company whose technology platform delivers culturally impactful and large scaled immersive shows, productions and experiences. The company has worked on events from U2 at the Sphere, Taylor Swift and Beyoncé’s global tours, Coachella and Glastonbury main stages, and has over 400 virtual production studios globally delivering content for Apple, Warner Bros Discovery, Disney and Netflix and the largest immersive attractions and entertainment experiences.

In this industry talk, discover more about the company, its technology platform and groundbreaking projects and also hear more about the key macro and industry trends that are shaping the media, entertainment & technology sectors right now, from generative AI to spatial computing and the creator economy.

The event will feature talks from Alex Wills (Chief Experience Officer) and Roman Seling (Commercial Manager, Cloud, Platform and Software), with a short Q&A session at the end.

This event is open to all Bartlett students and staff.

Image: Disguise

Home » Blog » SEBI Unveils New Guidelines Mandating Audio-Visual Presentations for Public Issue Disclosures

SEBI Unveils New Guidelines Mandating Audio-Visual Presentations for Public Issue Disclosures

• Blog | News | Company Law |
• < 1 minute
• Last Updated on 28 May, 2024

Recent Posts

Blog, Weekly Round-up

Weekly Round-up on Tax and Corporate Laws | 20th to 24th May 2024

Blog, Advisory, Company Law

[Analysis] SEBI’s Proposal to Enhance the AIF Valuation Framework

Latest from taxmann.

Circular No SEBI/HO/CFD/CFD-TPD-1/P/CIR/2024/55 , Dated: 24.05.2024

SEBI has announced new guidelines for presenting public issue disclosures for investors through audio-visual (AV) means. These guidelines are voluntary from July 1, 2024, and mandatory from October 1, 2024. The content of the AV shall be factual, non-repetitive, and non-promotional. These presentations must be made available in both English and Hindi, and the AV’s web link shall be made available on the websites of the Stock Exchanges and the Lead Managers to the issue.

Disclaimer: The content/information published on the website is only for general information of the user and shall not be construed as legal advice. While the Taxmann has exercised reasonable efforts to ensure the veracity of information/content published, Taxmann shall be under no liability in any manner whatsoever for incorrect information, if any.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

PREVIOUS POST

To subscribe to our weekly newsletter please log in/register on Taxmann.com

Latest books.

R.K. Jain's Customs Tariff of India | Set of 2 Volumes

R.K. Jain's Customs Law Manual | 2023-24 | Set of 2 Volumes

R.K. Jain's GST Law Manual | 2023-24

R.K. Jain's GST Tariff of India | 2023-24

Everything on Tax and Corporate Laws of India

Everything you need on Tax & Corporate Laws. Authentic Databases, Books, Journals, Practice Modules, Exam Platforms, and More.

• Express Delivery | Secured Payment
• Free Shipping in India on order(s) above ₹500
• Missed call number +91 8688939939
• Virtual Books & Journals
• About Company
• Media Coverage
• Budget 2022-23
• Business & Support
• Sell with Taxmann
• Locate Dealers
• Locate Representatives
• CD Key Activation
• Privacy Policy
• Return Policy
• Payment Terms