Oregon State Bar Bulletin — JANUARY 2003
| LEGAL PRACTICE TIPS |
20 rules to apply when making presentations
By David J. Dempsey
Believe nothing of what you hear and
only half of what you see.
—Proverb
Visual aids are very beneficial, but they have drawbacks: they may be inappropriate for a particular audience or setting; they may appear cluttered, confusing or unprofessional; or the speaker may not have mastered the crucial techniques of using visual aids effectively.
Follow the guidelines discussed below when creating and using a visual aid. Plan for the unexpected, because if anything can go wrong with a visual aid during a presentation, it usually will.
1. Ensure that the visual aid is visible.
Far too frequently, visual aids are hard to see.
The lettering or the graphs are so small that even the
speaker standing right next to the visual aid strains
to read them. Other times, the speaker displays an object
that is difficult to see. Make your visual aid visible
from every vantage point, and if you cannot, either
use a different visual aid or none at all.
2. Design the aid with an audience
and room focus.
Understand the room setup beforehand, including
the size of the audience, how the seating will be arranged
and the distance from where you will speak to the farthest
point where an audience member will be sitting … and
all other details essential to the effective use of
a visual aid. You will be unable to select or create
the proper visual aid without this vital information.
3. Highlight only key concepts.
Speakers frequently attempt to use a visual aid
to present every point in their presentations, and that
can result in confusion and clutter. Focus on the key
points that you want to reinforce with an audience or
a jury. Use numbering, lettering or bulleting to facilitate
easy understanding of the visual aid. Limit the number
of lines per page, as too many lines make a visual aid
difficult to read.
When the eyes say one thing, and the
tongue another, a practiced man relies on the language
of the first.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
4. Design horizontally.
Your audience members are accustomed to reading
material horizontally across the page from left to right,
not vertically from top to bottom. You should, therefore,
design your visual aid so that as you reveal a point,
the audience will begin to review it on the left side
of the page and read to the right side of the page.
5. Limit the number of visual aids.
If you use multiple visual aids, their impact may
be diminished. Use one or two clear, concise visual
aids, and you will be far more likely to leave a lasting
impression with your audience members or jurors.
6. Select appropriate lettering and
fonts.
Use crisp, easy-to-read lettering, and use no more
than two font styles per page. Artistic, cursive text
is frequently illegible. The size of the lettering will
be dictated by the size of the audience. A visual aid
that may be appropriate for a courtroom setting, where
only 12 people will view it in close proximity, may
be useless at a luncheon meeting with 100 people. If
your handwriting is hard to read, consider enlisting
a member of the audience or a paralegal to assist you.
Using an assistant will also help you maintain your
focus on the audience.
7. Use vibrant colors.
Audiences today are accustomed to vivid colors and
striking images as a result of their exposure to television,
movies and the Internet. A colorful visual aid has more
impact than one that is black and white. You can use
colors to highlight key points, to focus an audience’s
attention, and to show contrasts. However, too many
colors become distracting, so use no more than two or
three colors per visual aid.
8. Cautiously embrace technology.
The elaborate multimedia and computer-aided visual
aids available to speakers today are incredible. When
they work and are used correctly, they can amaze an
audience. But they have several disadvantages, not the
least of which is that they frequently do not work.
When a visual aid involves technology, the likelihood
of problems increases significantly. You must be extremely
comfortable with computer electronics and know how to
set up your system and resolve the inevitable problems
that arise, including devising an alternate plan. Master
this technology before attempting to use it with an
audience so that using it seems effortless. In addition,
do not allow your message to be overwhelmed by the wizardry
of computer technology.
9. Use only professional visual aids.
If you do not have the time, the resources or the
expertise to create visual aids that are professional
in appearance, retain the services of someone who is
capable of doing so — or do not use a visual aid. A
visual aid that is created in a sloppy fashion damages
your professional image.
10. Practice your presentation using
the visual aid.
Both inexperienced and professional speakers have
had presentations undermined by unexpected problems
with their visual aids. Practice your presentation with
the visual aid so that you can use it effortlessly in
front of the audience or jury. Practice flipping the
pages, revealing information, writing on the transparencies
or white board and changing slides. Use the visual aid
exactly as you intend to use it during the presentation
in order to become entirely comfortable with it.
11. Practice in the room where you
will speak.
While it is not always feasible, your confidence
will be greatly enhanced if you are able to practice
using the visual aid in the room where you will make
your presentation. For example, if you practice your
opening statement or closing argument in the courtroom
where the case will be tried, you can move about the
room and view the visual aid from the jury box, the
witness stand or the judge’s bench. Determine whether
there is any glare; whether the visual aid is visible
from every angle to the jury, the judge and the witness;
and whether the electrical sockets are accessible.
My task is, before all, to make you
see.
—Joseph Conrad
12. Arrange your accessories.
For every presentation, you should create a checklist
of all the additional accessories you will need to use
the visual aid. Your checklist should include items
such as nonpermanent markers, masking tape, pointers,
extension cords and even additional light bulbs for
your overhead projector. Decide where you will place
your visual aid accessories when you speak. If you are
using a pen, a marker, a laser pointer, a remote control
or another instrument during the presentation, use it
and then set it down immediately when you are finished.
Do not twirl it, bounce it, spin it, wring it or use
it in any other manner that will distract the audience
members or jurors.
13. Arrange for transportation of the
visual aid.
Before the day of the presentation, arrange how
your visual aid will be transported. You should not
be concerned about having to lug a heavy or cumbersome
visual aid around the building right before you speak
or be stressed over whether or not your visual aid will
arrive on time. Investigate the room where you will
be presenting. Can you set up the visual aid well before
the audience or jury begins to filter into the room?
Will it be necessary to retain the help of an assistant
from your office, the courtroom or a local college to
help you with transporting and setting up the aid? Answer
these questions early to eliminate last-minute scrambling.
14. Protect the visual aid.
If the visual aid is a photograph, poster or chart,
make sure that it is kept in a location that is dry
and flat so it is not damaged. One speaker spent an
entire speech using one hand to hold down a poster that
was constantly rolling up because it had been stored
in a tube for two weeks before the presentation. He
was tethered to the visual aid, unable to move about
or gesture at will. These are challenges you should
avoid.
Ideally, have your visual aid in place, tested and ready to go before the audience arrives; otherwise, be prepared to set up quickly when it is time for your presentation. The audience is immediately forming conclusions about you – even before you begin to speak – so it is important to appear well prepared and confident, not flustered and disheveled.
15. Focus on the audience, not the
visual aid.
A visual aid should strengthen the message but never
become the focus of a presentation. Unfortunately, we
often become mesmerized with our visual aids, staring
at them instead of connecting with the audience. Just
as speakers often talk to their notes, many talk to
their visual aids. Your focus should be on the audience.
16. Reveal only when ready.
Do not display any part of your visual aid until
you are prepared to do so. Showing all five points of
your presentation on the overhead projector before you
begin to speak diminishes the impact, eliminates suspense
and may cause the audience members to lose interest
in your message. Control the timing and flow of your
presentation to hold the audience’s attention.
17. Use the visual aid Instead of notes.
Your visual aid can serve as an excellent substitute
for notes. You can quickly refer to the visual aid to
prompt yourself in the presentation and ensure that
your presentation flows in the manner you planned. This
will allow you to move away from the lectern, which
will result in a more natural, conversational presentation.
18. Point or gesture to the visual
aid with the closest hand.
Since your audience members are accustomed to reading
from left to right, stand to the left side of the visual
aid, and point or gesture toward it with your left hand.
Do not position yourself or point to the visual aid
in any manner that will cause you to turn your back
on the audience.
19. Allow the audience members or jurors
to study the visual aid.
Before removing a visual aid or moving ahead in
the presentation, observe the audience members or jurors.
Are they studying the visual aid? Are they taking notes?
Is the material depicted on the visual aid so complex
that it deserves extra time? Remember that what is very
familiar to you (because of your detailed preparation)
may be foreign and confusing to members of your audience
or jury. Allow enough time for them to study and absorb
the message of the visual aid.
20. Remove the visual aid when the
point has been made.
When you are finished referring to a visual aid
remove it — turn off the projector, darken the screen
or flip the chart. If you do not do this, the audience
will often continue to focus on the visual aid and the
point you have already made rather than your next point.
This is especially true if the visual aid is vibrant
and captivating.
Expert presenters agree that visual aids are an enormously powerful vehicle to drive home your points, but using them effectively requires patience and practice. When the success of your presentation depends on the effective use of a visual aid, leave nothing to chance. Early, detailed and careful preparation will help ensure that the visual aid is your ally in front of every jury and audience.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David J. Dempsey is a practicing trial attorney and
a general partner in the Atlanta, Ga., firm of Coleman
& Dempsey. He is also an adjunct professor teaching
public speaking at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta
and an award-winning speaker. This article has been
excerpted from 'Legally Speaking: 40 Powerful Presentation
Principles Lawyers Need to Know,' by David J. Dempsey,
J.D. For more information about the book or additional
public speaking tips, visit www. legallyspeakingonline.com.
© 2003 David J. Dempsey