How do people really feel about presentations, both listening to them and delivering them? We could venture some guesses. You could too. But what if we could go beyond informed guesses to actual presentation statistics?
You’ve probably heard of Prezi, one of the major presentation design programs. Recently, Prezi teamed up with Harris Poll and executive coach Carmine Gallow to find out how people feel about presentations in the workplace. Together they surveyed over 2 thousand people in the United States. Gallow looks at some of the gathered statistics in an article for Forbes. And Prezi covers them in their blog.
Today, we want to dig further into those survey findings. We’ll cover 4 specific presentation statistics from that research to see what these numbers can tell us about public perception around workplace presentations.
Presentation Statistic 1: “20% of respondents said they would do almost anything to avoid giving a presentation.”
That’s 1 in 5 people who are strongly opposed to having to give a presentation at work. The survey goes on to show that this includes “pretending to be sick or asking a colleague to give the presentation.” We get it. Fear of public speaking is prevalent, and we work hard to help people overcome it. You can check out our handbook to fighting stage fright here. If you want more personalized help, consider working with one of our presentation coaches. They can help move you out of that 20%.
Presentation Statistic 2: “70% of employed Americans who give presentations agree that presentation skills are critical to their success at work.”
A vast majority of employees associate workplace success with strong presentation skills. This statistic tracks with the large body of research that shows employers are interested in hiring people who have strong communication skills. The desire for people who can present their ideas in a compelling and clear manner isn’t a trend. That’s not going away any time soon.
The survey is missing one statistic that we’d be really interested in knowing. How many of those 70% who think presentation skills are highly correlated with workplace success actually do something to improve? We would venture that number is pretty low. But it doesn’t have to be. By hiring a presentation design agency like Ethos3, you can take your presentation skills to the next level, bolstering your chances for success at work. Here’s our list of some of the best presentation design agencies out there.
Presentation Statistic 3: “46% of respondents admit that they’ve been distracted during a co-worker’s presentation.”
Audience members get distracted for many reasons. Just to name a few: boring presentation style, content that’s not relevant, personal reasons like being tired or hungry, technology interferences, upcoming responsibilities, etc. The survey participants specifically said that “instead of watching the presentation they often do the following tasks: send text messages, answer email, surf the Internet, check social media, or fall asleep.”
You can learn more about modern day attention spans here. But we’ll give you the gist. Presenters of today are fighting steeper battles of inattention due to the technology audience members can access during the presentation. One of the best ways to combat that is to make sure your presentations have stellar content and stunning visuals. And one of the best ways to do that, is to collaborate with the experts. (We’d love to help.)
Presentation Statistic 4: “75% of those who give presentations say they would like to be better at presenting.”
We saved this statistic for last because it aligns with what we do at Ethos3. It’s our job to serve people just like you. People who need presentation slides designed by experts. Or people who simply want to get better at presenting. We’ve uncovered the formula behind great presentations. And we share that with our clients in a 3-part strategy: content, design, and delivery. We’ll help you craft the content of your presentation to maximize the impact of each idea. We’ll create slides that look incredible, flow visually, and tell the story you need told. Then, we’ll help you deliver with excellence through our custom training program, where we’ll equip you with the tools needed to knock your presentation out of the park.
Where do you place yourself in each of these presentation statistics? Are you one of the 20% doing all you can to avoid having to give a presentation? Are you in agreement with the 70% who link strong presentation skills to workplace success? Could you be one of the 46% struggling to pay attention during others’ presentations? Are you one of the 75% who are looking to improve your presentation skills?
No matter where you fall in these numbers, Ethos3 can help. Get in touch with us now to find out more.