• Premium
• E-Books
• Presentation Booster – The Power of Neuro-Presentation
• by Dipl.-Wirtsch.-Inf. Matthias Garten

Presentation Booster: Harnessing Neuro-Presentation

How to Quickly Create Powerful Presentations

“The bait must taste good to the fish, not the fisherman” is a quote often cited in relation to presentations. Translated, it means that a presentation must be aligned to its target audience to achieve maximum impact. When you consider that presentation skills are now key competencies in management and reflect how many decisions in senior leadership, sales, marketing, business development, and other fields hinge on presentation success, it becomes obvious how crucial it is to orient your talk effectively to the audience. Based on that, you can determine most other “parameters” of the presentation—like the content, media design, location, personal style, rhetoric, body language, voice, and so on.

Since 1993, I have been deeply involved in the topic of presentations, reading numerous books on it, and writing a few myself. It was apparent that no one had previously linked information delivery in presentations to neuroscience.

Modern imaging techniques have provided evidence showing which areas of the brain activate during particular cognitive processes or emotions. These findings attract growing interest in business—for instance, in marketing or advertising—to see which parts of the brain are stimulated by certain logos or products and to find potential “buy buttons.” What sorts of cars appeal to men or women? Which triggers in the brain lead to joy, motivation, or excitement?

However, neuroscience insights alone don’t suffice to build a practical model for crafting presentations. Hence I integrated knowledge from NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) and MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator), which enabled me to produce initial presentations far more impactful than I had a few years earlier.

I’ve consolidated my experience and expertise in what I call the “Presentation-Booster Method,” which I’ll outline here. “Booster” implies an amplifier: Presentations created with this method can be 30–100% more powerful than conventional ones.

The method has three advantages over the traditional way of making presentations:

1. Less preparation time.
Thanks to a structured approach and a modular system, preparing a presentation will take less time.

2. More persuasive presentations.
You’ll reach your audience far more easily and convincingly by focusing on the benefits, arguments, and proofs that resonate with them, spurring them to take the desired action.

3. Better presentation quality.
Quality increases because you’ll have more time to refine details, plus the modular system gives you extra support.

You can apply this method in sales presentations (to persuade clients faster and more easily), marketing (with persuasive marketing pitches), fairs (to attract new customers), senior leadership (to better address employees), and so on. Let the following ideas inspire you and raise your awareness of this topic.

1. The Structure of the Presentation-Booster Method

Like any good presentation, start with an analysis—set goals, clarify constraints, etc. Then proceed with the following steps. To illustrate, let me draw a parallel to building a house, giving a simple overview.

First, you need a blueprint. In our model, that’s the so-called “MotivChart,” which lets you categorize your audience easily and then steer the rest precisely.

Once the plan is set, you start building. The “shell” (or “framework”) is the equivalent of the structure for your talk. Here, we use what we call StructureCharts (explained below).

Next, you “build out” and decorate the house—just like you enhance your talk with designs, shapes, colors. We call these DesignCharts.

Finally, no house is complete without fitting landscaping. You might install a pool, a grill, or simply a lawn. Similarly, for your presentation, you’ll have extra “parameters,” or what we call FrameCharts: the venue, light environment, screen, and so forth.

The process goes: analyze the target audience with the MotivChart. Once you know who you’re addressing, structure, design, and frame flow logically.

2. The MotivChart

The MotivChart was inspired by the LimbicColor® Model¹ and the LimbicMap®. Neuroscience shows that hormones significantly influence our decisions, leading to certain values and motives. A clear example is testosterone—people with high testosterone tend to be more aggressive or geared towards dominance and power. We reflect each hormone in the Presentation-Booster framework to identify the underlying motives and values.

Using it, you categorize your listeners into four types: Dominance (red), Stimulation (yellow), Harmony (green), Discipline (blue). Each type has different motivations and values—they think, act, feel, and decide differently.

For instance, corporate roles often require specific strengths, as shown in the figure (not displayed here, but presumably referencing how leadership might need a high “red” factor for decision-making, marketing might need “yellow” creativity, etc.). But in practice, you must identify which personalities are actually in your audience—especially relevant in smaller presentations (3–4 attendees). You can spot character types through language, body language, behavior, appearance, clothes, etc. Observing them or asking about their preferences reveals how they decide. If multiple personality types attend, focus on the key decision-maker.

So for a sales pitch in front of a group, gather info on the decision-maker and tailor your presentation to them. If that person is “red” and dominant, use a “red” presentation. If they’re more data-oriented or “blue,” show them a “blue” one. Obviously, that will be much more convincing and effective than a broad, one-size-fits-all approach.

For a large audience, primarily consider the segment who matters most to your goal or those who hold the decision power. Once you figure out the audience’s type (during the conceptual phase), move on to the next step—structuring your presentation.

3. The Structure or StructureCharts

The StructureCharts are various individual charts (as shown in an accompanying diagram, presumably). To understand how they work, let’s check the “AufbauChart,” or “ConstructionChart.” You’ll see the four sectors again—red, yellow, green, blue. If your main viewer is a “red” type, you might use the Five-Sentence Technique (Aristotle) for structuring. For “yellow,” try the 2-Plot technique, for “green,” storytelling, for “blue,” the Pyramid Principle.

By picking the right approach for that audience, you match their thinking and preferences. They follow your talk more smoothly, feel comfortable, and end up behaving as you wish.

The other StructureCharts:

Chart	Description
WortChart (WordChart)	Which words have how much “value” to the target audience
InhaltChart (ContentChart)	Which content the audience wants to hear/see
Vorteil/NachteilChart (Pro/Con Chart)	What the audience perceives as an advantage or disadvantage
NutzenChart (BenefitChart)	Which benefits the audience wants to hear/see
ArgumentationsChart (ArgumentationChart)	The logic of your arguments in the presentation
DidaktikChart (DidacticsChart)	The educational approach the audience needs to fully understand and retain the information

By the end of the StructureChart phase, you should have established the structure and content, enabling you to begin designing a multimedia or analog presentation.

4. The Design or DesignCharts

Using the DesignCharts, you align layout, shapes, colors, etc., with your audience. For instance, you might have a “FormenChart” (ShapesChart) or a “FarbChart” (ColorChart). The rest of the DesignCharts describe each type’s preferences concerning:

Chart	Description
LayoutChart	Which slide layout and arrangement does the audience prefer?
SchriftenChart (FontsChart)	Which fonts to choose?
BilderChart (ImagesChart)	What image style, how they’re photographed, which framing, etc. resonates with the audience?
DiagrammChart (Charts & Graphs)	Which chart style is suitable, how much detail, which table type, etc.?
EffektChart (EffectsChart)	What animations and transitions suit that audience?

5. The Frame or FrameCharts

The FrameCharts tell you which setting and parameters will make the most impression on your target group. Some elements, like which medium you use, are easy to control. Others—room shape, lighting, etc.—are less flexible. If possible, tweak them for an ideal environment, or make minor changes that could yield strong improvements.

For example, the “LeinwandChart” (ScreenChart) might indicate that a “red” dominant type wants a premium display, a “yellow” type wants a high-tech whiteboard, a “green” type is fine with a basic, slightly crooked overhead screen, and a “blue” type wants a neat, manually retractable screen to conserve electricity.

Chart	Description
RaumChart (RoomChart)	Which room is ideal? Considering size, furnishings, location, etc.
MedienChart (MediaChart)	Better to use PowerPoint, Keynote, Flipchart, or nothing at all?
FlipChart	What to keep in mind when using Flipcharts?
TechnikChart (TechChart)	Does the audience need plenty of technology or prefer minimal?
AtmosphärenChart (AtmosphereChart)	What environment or mood best suits them?
LichtChart (LightingChart)	Darkened room, softly lit, etc.?

6. Conclusion

The Presentation-Booster Method provides a structured workflow and a set of modules to expedite creation. It helps you build more compelling, audience-targeted presentations quickly and effectively—meeting the crowd right where they stand.

Starting from classic analysis (goals, constraints, etc.) through the MotivChart, then StructureCharts, DesignCharts, and FrameCharts, you can assemble a solid, high-impact presentation in less time. Ultimately, it’s all about matching the audience’s reference system to meet your presentation objective. Since that normally consumes a lot of prep time, the Presentation-Booster Method is an ideal solution.

If you have questions, ideas, or feedback, or want to attend a talk or seminar on this topic, visit www.presentation-booster.de, email me at kontakt@smavicon.de, or find me on XING/FACEBOOK. — Best regards, Matthias Garten