pre ....

enting in english

2.6

exploiting

visuals

Cause, Effect and Purpose

As a presenter, your job is not just to present facts, but also to explain the reasons behind the facts and their likely causes and effects. English has a lot of expressions which are used to link cause, effect and purpose, but these are mostly used in written reports. The language used in presentations is often much simpler. Compare the following: REPORT TOM was introduced in order to increase efficiency. The introduction of TOM led to a 20% increase in efficiency. ThE~}9~ increase in efficiency was a result of the introduction of TOM. PRESENTATION We introduced TOM to increase efficiency. We introduced TOM and efficiency increased bY,20%. Efficiency increased by 20~o because we introduced TOM.,

Notice also how noun phrases (the introduction of TOM, a 20% increase in efficiency) are more common in reports, and verb phrases (we introduced TOM, efficiency increased by 20%) are more common in s~eech.

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TASK 1
Look at the following extracts from a report. Change them into what you might say in a presentation, using and, because and to. Remember to change noun phrases into verb phrases where possible. The first words are given: 1. TV coverage of the launch led to a significant increase in customer response tate. The launch 2. There has been a dramatic fall in operating costs as a result of last year's efforts. Operating costs 3. Product modifications may be needed in order to remain internationally competitive. . .

We
4. Market entry was successful due to our competitive pricing strategy.

We
5. Investment was increased so as to take advantage of the upturn in the economy.

We
6. The slowdown in growth was caused by a loss of corporate confidence. Growth .

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