For some, seeing is believing. How will you show your audience your main points?

Did you know that the eye can comprehend at a rate much faster than a speaker can talk? This means that a visual image can be comprehended much faster than spoken words. Consider the amount of information found on some websites including major newspapers (U.S. Today) , e-commerce (Amazon) and the U.S. Congress (Thomas).

If using handouts, pack them full of relevant and interesting information including resources and explanations that can be referenced after your talk is done. To see some good designs, look at the organizational patterns of maps which convey a great deal of information in very little space. In addition, the information is developed to see relationships between and among many variables.

Take a look at some great maps from National Geographic at http://www.nationalgeographic.com/maps/. The site includes extensive searches and allows you to choose world maps, country and region maps, history and nature maps, even space maps.

The media of presentation aids include

• handouts
• slides, transparencies, video clips
• models and props
• chalkboards, whiteboards, flip charts and chartboards
• people

Will you use a computer-generated presentation like Power Point? Computer presentation software allows you to print out a copy of your slides, your outline, and handouts of your presentation.

Computer slide shows can add interest and clarity to a talk if designed and displayed well. When slides are not well designed or used, your audience may find that it suffers, "death by PowerPoint."

When it comes to displaying (or projecting) visual aids, think BIG, bold and brief.

To learn more about using presentational aids including Microsoft's PowerPoint, Corel's Presentations or Sun's StarOffice, check out Presentations.com. Here you can check out new software, the latest trends, and available technology. Learn more about presenting information visually by consulting Edward Tufte's site, http://www.edwardtufte.com/tufte/. Dr. Tufte offers cautionary words about using PowerPoint in making presentations. He suggests that PowerPoint encourages lazy, surface-level thinking. Check out his provocative essays and writings on the subject. Start by clicking on “PowerPoint Essay” near top of homepage.