Creating Value With Stories – The Art of Storytelling in Modern Presentations

We have shared about the virtues of story-telling before and how you can craft a compelling story for use (see our blog post here!). We know, however, that story-telling, while a compelling tool, can be a perplexing method to wield. Worse still, you may have encountered sceptical clients or management members who still view story-telling as more suited for ‘informal’ or low-stakes speaking settings. Some may also see stories as a ‘fluff’ tool that distracts the audience from the core message or substantive points.

We have long believed that stories are powerful tools that complement (and even enhance!) your speech message. Stories can create impact by emphasising a core deliverable; they can create persuasive value when giving your audience that added push. You may have read about the Significant Objects experiment by Rob Walker and Joshua Glenn that demonstrated the effect of stories in increasing an item’s value. All these aside, however, a story can only work if utilised with purpose and care. This is the common challenge modern presenters face in incorporating a narrative element into their business presentations.

Today, let us share three roles your stories can play to help you in adding that narrative value to your presentation!

Role #1: A Story as a Learning Point

Your story can act as a powerful, forward-looking learning point for the audience. Think of it as a traditional folktale: your story can help your audience decide what the best path is forward for them. A learning point is more than just a lesson; it needs to have a directed purpose (or a point) for your audience. This means that to be effective, a learning point must be relevant, precise, and relatable – if your audience is not listening, they are not learning!

To use a story as a learning point, pick out appropriate speech or presentation settings where the goal is for your audience to understand or pick up something new. For example, an informative sharing about a new proposal at work need not be a bore. Instead, open with a short anecdote about the motivations behind the proposal or conclude with an inspiring tale on how the same proposal can help the audience in their work. Your story is more than a fluff piece; they help ensure your audience can accurately understand your core message.

*** Your audience be like… ***

Role #2: A Story as a Relatable Statistic

For an informative or technical speech, you may run into the common tendency of using statistics or charts to underline your message. This can consist of PowerPoint slides that are packed with tables and charts or a script filled with jargon and technical terms. In such a setting where the audience’s understanding is the objective, sticking to this common tendency may sound the death knell for their attention span.

A story can be used to emphasise and clarify a key statistic or a technical term/process. They act as illustrations for the conceptual or difficult point you are trying to deliver. For example, if your aim is to show an alarming increase in a specific error, start with a short anecdote (within 1 to 2 min) about the effect of this error on a user. Your stories mirror the actual, lived experience of your audience members and invite them to visualise the impact of your core message!

Role#3: A Story as a Cautionary Tale

Beyond a learning point, a short story can act as a cautionary tale for your audience – we call this the FOMO moment (Fear Of Missing Out). What will your audience miss out on if they do not take up your idea or proposal? Instead of listing the downsides of rejecting the proposal, a story can represent the ‘beautiful world’ they will “miss out” on if they choose to remain in their current mindset or habit. Make your story the engine for your audience’s growth!

To start crafting your cautionary tale, set out the key messages for your speech. Ask yourself: what will the audience members miss out on if they do not join you in this message? From there, select a suitable narrative for your presentation. Another method is to place yourself as the main character – if you are proposing the idea, you would know the problem or difficulty you were trying to solve in the first place. Show your audience that the problem/difficulty will continue unless they join you – use your story to illustrate that caution!

Turn Your “Once Upon a Time” into a “Forever and Ever”

Stories are more than just your “once upon a time” fairy-tales – if done right, they can help you reach a beautiful “forever and ever” … for your main message! Crafting a story is not easy, and you may need to re-visit the drawing board, even for a 1-2 min anecdote to add to your speaking or presentation toolkit. We know, however, that the effort will pay off in ensuring you deliver value to your audience – try out the three story roles above and achieve this goal!

To supplement your presentations/ briefings/ meetings- WATCH our YouTube video on: “How To Give Briefings/ Meetings Effectively & Naturally”

By The Way…

If you are keen to take your public speaking skills & presentation skills (either business/corporate presentation / kids in-class presentation) to the next level so that you may communicate and deliver speeches with greater flair and charisma, feel free to check out our public speaking/ presentation skills course for adults and public speaking course for children below!

For more about our (weekly group classes) Public Speaking/ Presentation Skills Course for Adults :

https://publicspeakingacademy.com.sg/courses-and-programs/group-classes-for-adults/

If you are looking for a 2-day intensive public speaking/ presentation skills course for adults instead (for our adult learners who can’t do weekends), learn more about our presentation skills training course here: https://publicspeakingacademy.com.sg/presentation-skills-training-course-by-world-champion/

If you are looking for Public Speaking/ Presentation Courses for Kids / Children:

https://publicspeakingacademy.com.sg/group-classes-students-age-9-18/

If you are a human resources manager/ business owner in your company…

We want to help you bring out the best in your team, organization, and company. Public speaking and communication skills for the workplace, such as persuasion, remain a priority for most corporate training out there. We believe in staying ahead of the curve in sharing the contemporary communication skills to help you and your team remain relevant, competitive and nimble. Through our customized corporate training programmes, your team will benefit from an in-depth, hands-on, and potential-maximising public speaking & presentation skills training programme!

Feel free to reach out to us to curate your own public speaking corporate training programme for your team, company, or organization! Let us help you develop them into highly effective public speakers at work, empowered with effective presentation skills & storytelling skills – them giving speeches with charisma, influence and impact is something you can look forward to!

For effective presentation skills training Singapore & public speaking training for corporates/ employees: https://publicspeakingacademy.com.sg/corporate-public-speaking-training-workshop/