the Value of Presentation aids 14.1 291
types of presentation aids that we will discuss. Some of these, such as movies
and videos, call on sound as well as sight to help you make your point. In this
chapter, we look at presentation aids as an important communication tool, and
we examine several kinds of aids. Toward the end of the chapter, we suggest
guidelines for using presentation aids in your speeches.The Value of Presentation Aids
14.1 Discuss five ways in which presentation aids help communicate ideas
to an audience.
When you are first required to give a speech using presentation aids, you may
wonder, “How can I use presentation aids in an informative or persuasive
speech? Those kinds of speeches don’t lend themselves to visual images.” As
it happens, almost any speech can benefit from presentation aids. A speech for
which you are expected to use presentation aids is not as different from other
types of speeches as you might at first think. Your general objective is still to in-
form, persuade, or entertain. The key difference is that you will use supporting
material that can be seen, rather than only heard, by an audience.
Today’s listeners expect visual support. Presentation aids help your audi-
ence understand and remember your message, and they help you communicate
the organization of ideas, gain and maintain attention, and illustrate a sequence of
events or procedures.^1
• Presentation aids enhance understanding. Of your five senses, you learn more
from sight than from all the others combined. In fact, it has been estimated
that more than 80 percent of all information comes to you through sight.^2
To many people, seeing is believing. We are a visually oriented society. For
example, most of us learn the news by seeing it presented on TV or the In-
ternet. Because your audience is accustomed to visual reinforcement, it is
wise to consider how you can increase their understanding of your speech
by using presentation aids.
• Presentation aids enhance memory. Your audience will not only have an im-
proved understanding of your speech, but they will also better remember
what you say as a result of visual reinforcement.^3 There is evidence that
high-tech presentation aids enhance learning.^4 Researchers estimate that we
remember 10 percent of what we read, 20 percent of what we hear, 30 percent
of what we see, and 50 percent of what we simultaneously hear and see. For
example, in your speech about the languages spoken in Africa, your audi-
ence is more likely to remember words in Arabic, Swahili, and Hausa if you
display the words visually rather than just speaking them.
• Presentation aids help listeners organize ideas. Most listeners need help under-
standing the structure of a speech. Even if you clearly lay out your major14.1
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