Your audience is looking for insights and a deeper understanding of the topic you are presenting- it is the reason you are speaking. Insights take many forms including opinions, beliefs, theories, descriptions, facts, definitions, inferences, evidence and claims, to name just a few.
The Cambridge Dictionary defines a Claim as ‘to say that something is true or is a fact, although you cannot prove it and other people might not believe it’. Think carefully if you rely on claims alone as research has proven that statistical facts are the most powerful when combined within a great story. In their 2009 Communications Research Reports Journal, Allen & Preiss find that combining narrative and statistical evidence is more persuasive than using either narrative or statistical evidence alone.
Consider also the source of the statistics you intend to use. The source plays a crucial role in establishing credibility, so whenever possible use facts and statistics from credible sources such as government statisticians, universities and scholarly articles.
To have maximum impact, tell your story with highly reliable evidence and embed statistics in an engaging introduction with an easy to recall presentation structure.
