The article below from Bridged Design offers some great insight into what makes a presentation memorable and more effective. Here are some of the highlights:
- Most people learn visually, and most people also make up their minds upon their first impression
- You only have one shot at making a first impression
- An effective presentation is not only factual, it is memorable
- Graphics should tell a visual story, rather than bombard the viewer with information. A story, has a better chance that the information being perceived, will be retained for the long-term
Litigation Graphics: The next best thing to “inception” – from Bridged Design
“My Mind’s Playin’ Tricks On Me…”
Our memories are incredibly unreliable. All it takes is a person of authority, a lawyer for instance, to mention a particular object’s appearance during an incident, and the witness may believe he saw this object when, in reality, he didn’t. Similarly, verb choice plays a role in the way people recall information. If asked to remember the speed two cars contacted one another, a witness may remember it at a slower speed. Now make the simple change of replacing the verb “contacted” with “smashed” and suddenly the memory of the incident is altered to recall it as if Vin Diesel were in the driver’s seat. When you’re presenting a case to a judge or jury, your presentation must not only be factual, it must be memorable. This is where we come in. No, we’ve not quite mastered the practice of Inception, but we have the next best thing.
Our litigation graphics rely on the classic information-processing model, engaging the sensory memory for retention in the short and long-term memory. Sensory information, such as visuals, are only held for a brief time before vanishing. If those visuals are presented meaningfully and as a pattern, however, the information is perceived rather than simply seen. And without retention, sight is overrated — just ask Lady Justice.
The Cognitive Bias
A litigator’s intricate argument falls on deaf ears when presented orally and without visual aids to foster information retention. According to the primacy effect, memory recall fails after the first three items in a list, while with the recency effect, memory picks up during the last few items. These dual effects are forms of cognitive bias, which can often lead to perceptual distortion and inaccurate memory recall. Graphics, then, should tell a visual story, rather than bombard the viewer with information. If there is a story, there is a better chance of the information being perceived, where it can then travel into the short-term memory for further processing into the long-term.
Most people learn visually, and most people also make up their minds upon their first impression—which you only have one shot at making. Engaging an audience with their central method of learning is crucial to painting the first impression in a good light. The devil is in the details; and when your entire case is hanging in the balance, you’re always just one aesthetic choice away from losing big. Don’t ask us, ask Samsung.
Bridged Design offers clear, informative and coherent litigation graphics that assist you in making your case—but more importantly, making sure that your case is remembered how you want it to be. To view some examples of our work, visit our Portfolio.
References:
A2LC: http://www.a2lc.com/blog/bid/58997/demonstrative-evidence-storytelling-lessons-from-apple-v-samsung
Berstein, D.A, Nash, P.W. (2008). Essentials of Psychology, 4th Ed. Boston. Houghton Mifflin Company.