Background
Douglas R. Vogel is a professor and chair of Information Systems at the City University of Hong Kong. He is recognized worldwide for his research in areas like group support systems, MIS and collaborative information systems. Although most Presentation Professionals would not know Vogel by name, he has played a key role in developing our understanding of how visuals support persuasion in a presentation setting. Read the rest of this entry »

Without a doubt the most often quoted presentation related research is the 1981 3M/Wharton study. The second most frequently quoted research is the 1986 University of Minnesota/3M study. The purpose of this Presentation Facts article, and the one that will follow it, will be to provide brief overviews of these two studies.
What does this oft quoted but little understood research really say… and how does it relate to us today? Read the rest of this entry »

How many times have you heard some version of the following?

“It’s estimated that we retain only 10% of what we hear. But by adding visual aids, the retention rate zooms to 50%.”
An internet search will lead you to dozens of different versions of this “statistic.” I quickly found this quote (or a version of it) used over a hundred times on presentation and education related Websites, and not once was any kind of reference provided that might hint at the source of the “data.” The 10% of what we hear numbers are usually given as fact and rarely even include the “it’s estimated” of my example. So is this oft quoted information a true Presentation Fact? Read the rest of this entry »