In This Episode
Why do so many research decks end up as 80-slide encyclopedias that nobody actually reads? Chuck and Maggie tackle the classic tension between wanting to show off all the hard work that went into a study and giving busy stakeholders a story they’ll actually remember. They compare how different backgrounds shape that instinct, discussing how academic training pushes people to over-explain every footnote, while advertising experience trains you to grab attention in 30 seconds flat.
From there, Chuck and Maggie dive into five straightforward ways to cut through the data clutter. They talk through why locking down a single “essential question” with stakeholders before a project even starts can save weeks of misalignment later on. They also call out the bad habit of giving every single survey question its own dedicated slide, making a strong case for trimming decks down to a crisp 25 or 30 slides. Listen as they unpack how researchers can step up as true consultants, whether that’s tailoring decks for specific rooms, creating a single visual “money slide,” or throwing out bold recommendations just to get a good business discussion started.
Key Takeaways
- Define the Essential Question Upfront: Placing a single slide at the start of a project, defining the central question everyone agreed to answer, can keep teams aligned. Getting stakeholder agreement early prevents situations where different departments walk into the final presentation expecting completely different outcomes.
- Learn to Be a Fierce Editor: Just because a question was included in a survey does not mean it deserves a page in the final presentation deck. Trimming a report down to 25 or 30 slides forces the analyst to focus on facts that directly address the core business problem rather than filling space.
- Tailor Content to Your Audience: Delivering a single, massive presentation to every department across an organization rarely works. Pulling out a small selection of slides tailored specifically to a product team or leadership group generates far better engagement and respects everyone’s time.
- Think Like a Consultant: Researchers can be hesitant to recommend specific next steps out of fear that their ideas might be challenged. However, suggesting clear actions, even ones that spur debate, helps move a research project from simple data reporting into active business strategy.
- Make It Visual: Create a single “money slide” that captures the core takeaway of an entire study. Summarizing a complex project visually on one page demonstrates a much deeper command of the overall narrative.
Quotes
“If you can’t at the end of six weeks or 12 weeks or whatever it’s been, turn around and say ‘this is why we did this, and this is the most important thing we learned,’ then you could make an argument that everything else has been for naught.” – Chuck Murphy
“You know the data better than anyone, so you can highlight the points that make the most sense to tell in answering your essential question… it’s picking the facts that are most relevant to the story you’re telling.” – Maggie Bright
“If you can have someone tell you the three most important things and then draw a picture of it, that shows command of the data and the story better than anything else.” – Maggie Bright
Resources