Ensure Your Presentation Complements - Not Competes With - Your Message

When you want to deliver your message, make sure you're thinking of the entire presentation. It's not just the message that matters, but the packaging around it counts as well.

This message was reinforced recently as I sat in the barber's chair. Some local radio station was playing in the background. All of the sudden, some light, calliope-esque music started playing; the commercial announcer affected the standard, light-hearted-banter voice; and a message about how easy it is to check for a disease came on.

The intent was to demystify and assure listeners how simple and easy the process was, how effective early detection could be, and to remove fear from the equation.

Now, you don't want a positive message to be lost in a dour, imminent-doom style of presentation. Unfortunately, that pendulum swung way too far to the "Hey kids, checking for disease is cool!" side.

In the end, it takes away from the effectiveness of the message -- and that's the last thing you want your presentation to do. Your ambient noise -- whether it's visual or audible -- should augment and support the message. It should not overwhelm or distract.

Simply put, if your listener is thinking about an element that's not the message, your presentation of that message has failed.

Whether you're doing a website, a print piece, or a TV/radio/online visual presentation, you need to pay attention to the ambient noise.

Visual Elements

Fonts

Find a font that's appropriate to your message and your audience. There's a wealth of choices between Comic Sans and Times New Roman. In essence, make sure the text matches the text.

And make sure they're legible. The fine print is fine if you don't really want people to see that message first and foremost. But if it's key terminology, messaging, or calls to action, they better be legible!

Images

The old adage states that a picture is worth a thousand words. You have to determine what those words are going to be -- and make sure they're not reading something that counters your intent.

It's a fine line to tread in many ways. You've probably noticed it in staged group shots. Everyone wants to show how diverse they are (or purport to be), but the division between inclusion and what can be perceived as tokenism is easy to cross.

Symbolic representation is important to your messaging, but make sure you consider juxtaposition. Is your image impacted by the other images or text around it? Does it match the message, or can it be misconstrued?

Colour

Do the colours complement your branding? Are they overwhelming your messaging? And, especially on-line, are they meeting your WCAG 2.0 contrast levels?

Again, there's a fine line between using colours that stand out and using colours that actively repel your intended audience.

Audio

Music

Does the track match the message? As mentioned in that earlier piece, the music was more suited for conveying kids around a merry-go-round than conveying an important medical message.

Do you use a musical score or a song? Classical or contemporary? Listen to the entirety of your presentation to see if it works. If something is off, listen each element of your presentation as an individual component to see where the disconnect is.

And, as an aside, make sure you know what the song's about. I still chuckle to myself about how Iggy Pop's Lust for Life, a song about heroin use amongst other things, was used by a cruise line in a lightweight, feel-good commercial.

Voice

How someone says something can have a huge impact on how the message is perceived. Do you go for a booming bass or a flighty falsetto? Do you want to convey authority, conviviality, friendliness, or professional detachment?

It really is all in how you say it?

Ambient Noise

It should be just that -- ambient. It's an accent, not the main focus.

This is especially challenging for lower-budget productions. If you're preparing in-house YouTube-style videos, make sure your audio is appropriate. Filming in outdoor locations or crowded areas can make it tough for the viewer to hear the message over ancillary distractions. If you're going to do video, do your best to do it right.

Oh, and listen carefully to what's being said in the background. That f-bomb someone dropped in the other room may be unfortunately audible when played back.

Now we turn it over to you. How do you ensure your presentation is complementing, not competing with, your message? And do you have any examples of commercials or business presentations that have succeeded (or failed miserably) in its attempt?

Comments are open!