Use stories in PowerPoint presentations to help audiences remember your message….
Little Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks, Hansel & Gretel are all childhood stories we remember well. We may not have heard these stories for years, yet we can still remember the general storyline. So let’s apply using stories in PowerPoint to make our presentations just as memorable. Even years later!
Well… whilst our content may not be as fairytale, we can still mimic the structure of these stories to make our presentations easier to grasp, follow and remember.
Tell a story with your presentation – blog illustration
We grew up reading stories. The classic structure of beginning, middle and end is embedded in our mental DNA.
At the beginning: set the scene and meet the main characters.
In the middle: problems arise, drama ensues and solutions found.
At the end: a summing up and sense of resolution.
Structure your PowerPoint presentations like a story and your audience is more likely to follow, understand and remember your message – and they’re more likely to enjoy it too!
So begin by setting up all the key story elements, including the main characters, the issue(s) and desired outcome. Don’t forget to make it very clear why the story is relevant to your audience (the beginning), raise and resolve all the issues one at a time (the middle), and resolve everything to summarise and wrap up concisely and clearly (the end). This will serve to reinforce your key points and also bring a sense of clarity and completeness to the overall story.
Use this familiar structure and you will be helping your audience to follow and remember your presentation. Stories in PowerPoint shouldn’t be overlooked!
Read Part 2: Stories in presentations here…
Read this article: How to Use Strategic Storytelling in Business Presentations
