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Slides Aren’t the Point
Most people think presentations are about slides. Cleaner fonts. Better charts. Pretty polish.
But slides are just props. Presentations aren’t about slides, they’re about persuasion.
When done well, a presentation isn’t a collection of visuals. It’s a moment of influence. A chance to move people from skepticism to belief, from “maybe” to “yes.”
That’s why I stopped designing “pretty slides” years ago. I started designing persuasion.
The Problem: Why Most Decks Fail
You know the decks I mean:
- Walls of text nobody reads.
- Charts copied from spreadsheets.
- Stock photos that mean nothing.
- Speakers reading slides word for word.
It’s not just boring. It’s ineffective.
The research is brutal:
- According to Prezi’s 2020 survey, 79% of people say most presentations are boring.
- Neuroscience shows that audiences retain only 10% of information from text-heavy presentations, compared to 65% when paired with storytelling visuals.
- Harvard research on persuasion found that logical arguments alone convince only 25% of audiences, emotion + narrative multiplies the effect.
In other words: most decks don’t just fail aesthetically. They fail to persuade.
Personal Anecdote: Echo Society
One of my favorite moments came working with Echo Society, a group of composers and artists redefining music experiences in Los Angeles.
They asked for a presentation deck to pitch partnerships. The temptation was to show technical details: bios, instrumentation, logistics.
Instead, I reframed the deck as an experience. I used visuals that captured the feeling of an Echo Society performance, the light, the atmosphere, the immersion. I built the deck like a crescendo: opening soft, building tension, exploding into impact.
The result? The deck didn’t just explain Echo Society. It made people feel Echo Society. And feelings persuade faster than facts.
Personal Anecdote: Philips Healthcare
Another time, working with Philips Healthcare, the stakes were different. Complex products. Technical audiences. Compliance constraints.
Here, persuasion meant clarity. I stripped jargon down to human impact: not “advanced imaging technology,” but “helping doctors see what they couldn’t see before.” I used clean visuals, yes, but always anchored in patient stories.
The result? Instead of being just another corporate deck, it became a persuasive tool that aligned executives and frontline staff.
That’s the art: adjusting persuasion to context, but never losing sight of the real goal, moving hearts and minds.
Framework: Presentation as Persuasion
Here’s the framework I now use for every deck:
Define the Shift.
What do you want the audience to believe or do at the end?
Build a Story Arc.
Problem → Tension → Breakthrough → Payoff.
Use Visual Metaphors.
One image = 1,000 words. Choose images that carry weight.
Design for Memory.
Anchor key points with bold visuals and repetition.
Rehearse Emotion.
Slides are secondary. Delivery is persuasion.
Because a deck isn’t judged by how it looks on your screen. It’s judged by what people remember after the room empties.
Data: Why Story Wins
The science makes it clear:
- Stanford researchers found that stories are remembered 22x more than facts.
- The Nielsen Norman Group reports that visual storytelling increases comprehension by 89%.
- Psychology Today shows that persuasion increases when information is paired with emotion, not logic alone.
In short: decks that just “inform” fail. Decks that tell stories persuade.
ADHD and Presenting Differently
For me, ADHD changed the game.
Linear, text-heavy decks bore me. My brain can’t stay in a bullet-point trance. But give me a stage, a story arc, and visuals that resonate? Suddenly, I’m alive.
- ADHD hyperfocus kicks in when the narrative matters.
- Pattern recognition helps me see story arcs where others see data dumps.
- Rejection sensitivity makes me obsess about how the audience feels, which, ironically, makes my decks more persuasive.
ADHD isn’t a weakness here. It’s why I can transform slides into stories.
Actionable Takeaways
If you want to make your presentations persuasive, not forgettable:
Start With the Shift.
Write the belief or action you want on the last slide first.
Cut 50%.
If it doesn’t serve persuasion, delete it.
Add a Story Arc.
Use tension, contrast, and release, just like film.
Use One Image Per Idea.
Ditch stock clutter. Find images that hit emotionally.
Rehearse for Connection.
The audience remembers you, not the slides.
Conclusion: Beyond Slides
Presentations aren’t about slides. They’re about persuasion.
Pretty slides get applause. Persuasive presentations change decisions.
So the next time you build a deck, don’t ask, “Does this look good?” Ask, “Will this move them?”
Because the real art of presentation isn’t design. It’s persuasion.
