creating effective presentations in powerpoint

That said, you can still use fun and eccentric fonts — in moderation. Offsetting a fun font or large letters with something more professional can create an engaging presentation.

Above all, be sure you're consistent so your presentation looks the same throughout each slide. That way, your audience doesn't become distracted by too many disparate fonts. Check out this example from HubSpot’s company profile templates:

Interested in this presentation template? Download it for free here.

5. Make sure all of your objects are properly aligned.

Having properly aligned objects on your slide is the key to making it look polished and professional. You can manually try to line up your images ... but we all know how that typically works out. You're trying to make sure all of your objects hang out in the middle of your slide, but when you drag them there, it still doesn't look quite right. Get rid of your guessing game and let PowerPoint work its magic with this trick.

Here’s how to align multiple objects:

• Select all objects by holding down Shift and clicking on all of them.
• Select Arrange in the top options bar, then choose Align or Distribute .
• Choose the type of alignment you'd like.

Here’s how to align objects to the slide:

• Select Align to Slide .
• Select Arrange in the top options bar again, then choose Align or Distribute .

6. Use "Format Object" to better control your objects' designs.

Format menus allow you to do fine adjustments that otherwise seem impossible. To do this, right-click on an object and select the Format Object option. Here, you can fine-tune shadows, adjust shape measurements, create reflections, and much more. The menu that will pop up looks like this:

Although the main options can be found on PowerPoint’s format toolbars, look for complete control in the format window menu. Other examples of options available include:

• Adjusting text inside a shape.
• Creating a natural perspective shadow behind an object.
• Recoloring photos manually and with automatic options.

7. Take advantage of PowerPoint's shapes.

Many users don’t realize how flexible PowerPoint’s shape tools have become. In combination with the expanded format options released by Microsoft, the potential for good design with shapes is readily available. PowerPoint provides the user with a bunch of great shape options beyond the traditional rectangle, oval, and rounded rectangle patterns.

Today’s shapes include a highly functional Smart Shapes function, which enables you to create diagrams and flow charts in no time. These tools are especially valuable when you consider that PowerPoint is a visual medium. Paragraphing and bullet lists are boring — you can use shapes to help express your message more clearly.

8. Create custom shapes.

When you create a shape, right click and press Edit Points . By editing points, you can create custom shapes that fit your specific need. For instance, you can reshape arrows to fit the dimensions you like.

Another option is to combine two shapes together. To do so, select the two shapes you’d like to work with, then click Shape Format in the top ribbon. Tap Merge Shapes .

You’ll see a variety of options.

• Combine creates a custom shape that has overlapping portions of the two previous shapes cut out.
• Union makes one completely merged shape.
• Intersect builds a shape of only the overlapping sections of the two previous shapes.
• Subtract cuts out the overlapping portion of one shape from the other.
• Fragment will split your shape into different parts depending on where they overlap.

By using these tools rather than trying to edit points precisely, you can create accurately measured custom shapes.

9. Crop images into custom shapes.

Besides creating custom shapes in your presentation, you can also use PowerPoint to crop existing images into new shapes. Here's how you do that:

• Click on the image and select Picture Format in the options bar.
• Choose Crop , then Crop to Shape , and then choose your desired shape. Ta-da! Custom-shaped photos.

10. Present websites within PowerPoint.

Tradition says that if you want to show a website in a PowerPoint, you should just create a link to the page and prompt a browser to open. For PC users, there’s a better option.

Third party software that integrates fully into PowerPoint’s developer tab can be used to embed a website directly into your PowerPoint using a normal HTML iframe. One of the best tools is LiveWeb , a third-party software that you can install on your PowerPoint program.

By using LiveWeb, you don’t have to interrupt your PowerPoint, and your presentation will remain fluid and natural. Whether you embed a whole webpage or just a YouTube video, this can be a high-quality third party improvement. To install the add-on, simple head to the LiveWeb website and follow the instructions.

Unfortunately, Mac users don’t have a similar option. A good second choice is to take screenshots of the website, link in through a browser, or embed media (such as a YouTube video) by downloading it directly to your computer.

11. Try Using GIFs.

GIFs are looped animated images used to communicate a mood, idea, information, and much more. Users add GIFs to PowerPoints to be funny or quickly demo a process. It's easy to add GIFs to your slides. To do so, simply follow these steps:

• Download and save the GIF you want.
• Go to the slide you want the GIF on.
• Go to the Home tab, and click either Insert or Picture .
• From the Picture drop-down menu, choose Picture from File .
• Navigate to where you saved your GIF and select it. Then, choose Insert .
• It will play automatically the moment you insert it.

PowerPoint Process

12. keep it simple..

PowerPoint is an excellent tool to support your presentation with visual information, graphics, and supplemental points. This means that your PowerPoint should not be your entire presentation. Your slides — no matter how creative and beautiful — shouldn't be the star of the show. Keep your text and images clear and concise, using them only to supplement your message and authority.

If your slides have dense and cluttered information, it will both distract your audience and make it much more likely that you will lose their attention. Nothing in your slides should be superfluous! Keep your presentation persuasive by keeping it clean. There are a few ways to do this:

• Limit bullet points and text.
• Avoid paragraphs and long quotes.
• Maintain "white space" or "negative space".
• Keep percentages, graphs, and data super basic.

13. Embed your font files.

One constant problem presenters have with PowerPoint is that fonts seem to change when presenters move from one computer to another. In reality, the fonts are not changing — the presentation computer just doesn’t have the same font files installed . If you’re using a PC and presenting on a PC, then there is a smooth workaround for this issue.

Here’s the trick: When you save your PowerPoint file (only on a PC), you should click File , then Options, then open up the Save tab. Then, select the Embed fonts in the file check box under Preserve fidelity when sharing this presentation . Now, your presentation will keep the font file and your fonts will not change when you move computers.

The macOS PowerPoint version has a similar function. To embed your fonts on a Mac, do the following:

• Open up your presentation.
• On the top bar, click PowerPoint , then click Preferences .
• Under Output and Sharing , click Save .
• Under Font Embedding , click Embed fonts in the file.

14. Save your slides as a PDF file for backup purposes.

If you’re still scared of your presentation showing up differently when it’s time to present, you should create a PDF version just in case. This is a good option if you’ll be presenting on a different computer. If you also run into an issue where the presenting computer doesn’t have PowerPoint installed, you can also use the system viewer to open up the PDF. No laptop will ever give you trouble with this file type.

The only caveat is that your GIFs, animations, and transitions won’t transfer over. But since the PDF will only work as a backup, not as your primary copy, this should be okay.

To save your presentation as a PDF file, take the following steps:

• Go to File , then click Save as …
• In the pop-up window, click File Format.
• A drop-down menu will appear. Select PDF .
• Click Export .

You can also go to File , then Export , then select PDF from the file format menu.

15. Embed multimedia.

PowerPoint allows you to either link to video/audio files externally or to embed the media directly in your presentation. You should embed these files if you can, but if you use a Mac, you cannot actually embed the video (see note below). For PCs, two great reasons for embedding are:

• Embedding allows you to play media directly in your presentation. It will look much more professional than switching between windows.
• Embedding also means that the file stays within the PowerPoint presentation, so it should play normally without extra work (except on a Mac).

Note: macOS users of PowerPoint should be extra careful about using multimedia files.

If you use PowerPoint for Mac, then you will always need to bring the video and/or audio file with you in the same folder as the PowerPoint presentation. It’s best to only insert video or audio files once the presentation and the containing folder have been saved on a portable drive in their permanent folder. Also, if the presentation will be played on a Windows computer, then Mac users need to make sure their multimedia files are in WMV format. This tip gets a bit complicated, so if you want to use PowerPoint effectively, consider using the same operating system for designing and presenting, no matter what.

16. Bring your own hardware.

Between operating systems, PowerPoint is still a bit jumpy. Even between differing PPT versions, things can change. One way to fix these problems is to make sure that you have the right hardware — so just bring along your own laptop when you're presenting.

If you’re super concerned about the different systems you might have to use, then upload your PowerPoint presentation into Google Slides as a backup option. Google Slides is a cloud-based presentation software that will show up the same way on all operating systems. The only thing you need is an internet connection and a browser.

To import your PowerPoint presentation into Google Slides, take the following steps:

• Navigate to slides.google.com . Make sure you’re signed in to a Google account, preferably your own.
• Under Start a new presentation , click the empty box with a plus sign. This will open up a blank presentation.
• Go to File , then Import slides .
• A dialog box will come up. Tap Upload , then click Select a file from your device .
• Select your presentation and click Open .
• Select the slides you’d like to import. If you want to import all of them, click All in the upper right-hand corner of the dialog box.
• Click Import slides.

When I tested this out, Google Slides imported everything perfectly, including a shape whose points I had manipulated. This is a good backup option to have if you’ll be presenting across different operating systems.

17. Use Presenter View.

In most presentation situations, there will be both a presenter’s screen and the main projected display for your presentation. PowerPoint has a great tool called Presenter View, which can be found in the Slide Show tab of PowerPoint. Included in the Presenter View is an area for notes, a timer/clock, and a presentation display.

For many presenters, this tool can help unify their spoken presentation and their visual aid. You never want to make the PowerPoint seem like a stack of notes that you’re reading off of. Use the Presenter View option to help create a more natural presentation.

Pro Tip: At the start of the presentation, you should also hit CTRL + H to make the cursor disappear. Hitting the "A" key will bring it back if you need it!

Your Next Great PowerPoint Presentation Starts Here

With style, design, and presentation processes under your belt, you can do a lot more with PowerPoint than just presentations for your clients. PowerPoint and similar slide applications are flexible tools that should not be forgotten. With a great template, you can be on your way to creating presentations that wow your audience.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in September 2013 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Don't forget to share this post!

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Home Blog Presentation Ideas 23 PowerPoint Presentation Tips for Creating Engaging and Interactive Presentations

23 PowerPoint Presentation Tips for Creating Engaging and Interactive Presentations

PowerPoint presentations are not usually known for being engaging or interactive. That’s often because most people treat their slides as if they are notes to read off  and not a tool to help empower their message.

Your presentation slides are there to help bring to life the story you are telling. They are there to provide visuals and empower your speech.

So how do you go about avoiding a presentation “snoozefest” and instead ensure you have an engaging and interactive presentation?  By making sure that you use your slides to help YOU tell your story, instead of using them as note cards to read off of.

The key thing to remember is that your presentation is there to compliment your speech, not be its focus.

In this article, we will review several presentation tips and tricks on how to become a storytelling powerhouse by building a powerful and engaging PowerPoint presentation.

Start with writing your speech outline, not with putting together slides

Use more images and less text, use high-quality images, keep the focus on you and your presentation, not the powerpoint, your presentation should be legible from anywhere in the room, use a consistent presentation design, one topic per slide, avoid information overwhelm by using the “rule of three”.

• Display one bullet at a time

Avoid unnecessary animations

• Only add content that supports your main points

Do not use PowerPoint as a teleprompter

• Never Give Out Copies of the Presentation

Re-focus the attention on you by fading into blackness

Change the tone of your voice when presenting, host an expert discussion panel, ask questions, embed videos, use live polling to get instant feedback and engage the audience.

• He kept his slides uncluttered and always strived for simplicity
• He was known to use large font size, the bigger, the better.
• He found made the complex sound simple.

He was known to practice, practice, and keep on practicing.

Summary – how to make your presentation engaging & interactive, fundamental rules to build powerful & engaging presentation slides.

Before we go into tips and tricks on how to add flair to your presentations and create effective presentations, it’s essential to get the fundamentals of your presentation right.

Your PowerPoint presentation is there to compliment your message, and the story you are telling. Before you can even put together slides, you need to identify the goal of your speech, and the key takeaways you want your audience to remember.

YOU and your speech are the focus of this presentation, not the slides – use your PowerPoint to complement your story.

Keep in mind that your slides are there to add to your speech, not distract from it.  Using too much text in your slides can be distracting and confusing to your audience. Instead, use a relevant picture with minimal text, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

This slide is not unusual, but is not a visual aid, it is more like an “eye chart”.

Aim for something simpler, easy to remember and concise, like the slides below.

Keep in mind your audience when designing your presentation, their background and aesthetics sense. You will want to avoid the default clip art and cheesy graphics on your slides.

While presenting make sure to control the presentation and the room by walking around, drawing attention to you and what you are saying.  You should occasionally stand still when referencing a slide, but never turn your back to your audience to read your slide.

You and your speech are the presentations; the slides are just there to aid you.

Most season presenters don’t use anything less than twenty-eight point font size, and even Steve Jobs was known to use nothing smaller than forty-point text fonts.

If you can’t comfortably fit all the text on your slide using 28 font size than you’re trying to say and cram too much into the slide, remember tip #1.4 – Use relevant images instead and accompany it with bullets.

Best Practice PowerPoint Presentation Tips

The job of your presentation is to help convey information as efficiently and clearly as possible. By keeping the theme and design consistent, you’re allowing the information and pictures to stand out.

However, by varying the design from slide to slide, you will be causing confusion and distraction from the focus, which is you and the information to be conveyed on the slide.

Technology can also help us in creating a consistent presentation design just by picking a topic and selecting a sample template style. This is possible thanks to the SlideModel’s AI slideshow maker .

Each slide should try to represent one topic or talking point. The goal is to keep the attention focused on your speech, and by using one slide per talking point, you make it easy for you to prepare, as well as easy for your audience to follow along with your speech.

Sometimes when creating our presentation, we can often get in our heads and try to over-explain. A simple way to avoid this is to follow the “ Rule of Three ,” a concept coined by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle.

The idea is to stick to only 3 main ideas that will help deliver your point.  Each of the ideas can be further broken into 3 parts to explain further. The best modern example of this “Rule of Three” can be derived from the great Apple presentations given by Steve Jobs – they were always structured around the “Rule of Three.”

Display one sentence at a time

If you are planning to include text in your slides, try to avoid bullet lists, and use one slide per sentence. Be short and concise. This best practice focuses on the idea that simple messages are easy to retain in memory. Also, each slide can follow your storytelling path, introducing the audience to each concept while you speak, instead of listing everything beforehand.

Presentation Blunders To Avoid

In reality, there is no need for animations or transitions in your slides.

It’s great to know how to turn your text into fires or how to create a transition with sparkle effects, but the reality is the focus should be on the message. Using basic or no transitions lets the content of your presentation stand out, rather than the graphics.

If you plan to use animations, make sure to use modern and professional animations that helps the audience follow the story you are telling, for example when explaining time series or changing events over time.

Only add engaging content that supports your main points

You might have a great chart, picture or even phrase you want to add, but when creating every slide, it’s crucial to ask yourself the following question.

“Does this slide help support my main point?”

If the answer is no, then remove it.  Remember, less is more.

A common crutch for rookie presenters is to use slides as their teleprompter.

First of all, you shouldn’t have that much text on your slides. If you have to read off something, prepare some index cards that fit in your hand but at all costs do not turn your back on your audience and read off of your PowerPoint.  The moment you do that, you make the presentation the focus, and lose the audience as the presenter.

Avoid Giving Out Copies of the Presentation

At least not before you deliver a killer presentation; providing copies of your presentation gives your audience a possible distraction where they can flip through the copy and ignore what you are saying.

It’s also easy for them to take your slides out of context without understanding the meaning behind each slide.  It’s OK to give a copy of the presentation, but generally it is better to give the copies AFTER you have delivered your speech. If you decide to share a copy of your presentation, the best way to do it is by  generating a QR code  for it and placing it at the end of your presentation. Those who want a copy can simply scan and download it onto their phones.

Tips To Making Your Presentation More Engaging

The point of your presentation is to help deliver a message.

When expanding on a particularly important topic that requires a lengthy explanation it’s best to fade the slide into black.  This removes any distraction from the screen and re-focuses it on you, the present speaker. Some presentation devices have a built-in black screen button, but if they don’t, you can always prepare for this by adding a black side to your presentation at the right moment.

“It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.”

Part of making your presentation engaging is to use all the tools at your disposal to get your point across. Changing the inflection and tone of your voice as you present helps make the content and the points more memorable and engaging.

One easy and powerful way to make your presentation interactive is experts to discuss a particular topic during your presentation. This helps create a more engaging presentation and gives you the ability to facilitate and lead a discussion around your topic.

It’s best to prepare some questions for your panel but to also field questions from the audience in a question and answer format.

How To Make Your Presentation More Interactive

What happens if I ask you to think about a pink elephant?  You probably briefly think about a pink elephant, right?

Asking questions when presenting helps engage the audience, and arouse interest and curiosity.  It also has the added benefit of making people pay closer attention, in case they get called on.

So don’t be afraid to ask questions, even if rhetorical; asking a question engages a different part of our brain. It causes us to reflect rather than merely take in the information one way. So ask many of them.

Asking questions can also be an excellent way to build suspense for the next slide.

(Steve Jobs was known to ask questions during his presentations, in this slide he built suspense by asking the audience “Is there space for a device between a cell phone and a laptop?” before revealing the iPad) Source: MacWorld SF 2018

Remember the point of your presentation is to get a message across and although you are the presenter, it is completely fine to use video in your PowerPoint to enhance your presentation.  A relevant video can give you some breathing time to prepare the next slides while equally informing the audience on a particular point.

CAUTION: Be sure to test the video beforehand, and that your audience can hear it in the room.

A trending engagement tool among presenters is to use a live polling tool to allow the audience to participate and collect immediate feedback.

Using a live polling tool is a fun and interactive way to engage your audience in real-time and allow them to participate in part of your presentation.

Google Slides has a built-in Q&A feature that allows presenters to make the slide deck more interactive by providing answers to the audience’s questions. By using the Q&A feature in Google Slides, presenters can start a live Q&A session and people can ask questions directly from their devices including mobile and smartphones.

Key Takeaways from one of the best presenters, Steve Jobs

He kept his slides uncluttered and always strove for simplicity.

In this slide, you can easily see he is talking about the battery life, and it uses a simple image and a few words. Learning from Jobs, you can also make a great presentation too. Focus on the core benefit of your product and incorporate great visuals.

Source: Macworld 2008

SlideModel.com can help to reproduce high-impact slides like these, keeping your audience engagement.

He was known to use large font sizes, the bigger, the better

A big font makes it hard to miss the message on the slide, and allows the audience to focus on the presenter while clearing the understanding what the point of the slide is.

He found made the complex sound simple

When explaining a list of features, he used a simple image and lines or simple tables to provide visual cues to his talking points.

(This particular slide is referencing the iMac features)

What made Steve Jobs the master of presentation, was the ritual of practicing with his team, and this is simple yet often overlooked by many presenters.  It’s easy to get caught in the trap of thinking you don’t need to practice because you know the material so well.

While all these tips will help you create a truly powerful presentation , it can only achieve if applied correctly.

It’s important to remember when trying to deliver an amazing experience, you should be thoroughly prepared. This way, you can elevate your content presentation, convey your message effectively and captivate your audience.

This includes having your research cited, your presentation rehearsed.  Don’t just rehearse your slides, also take time to practice your delivery, and your tone.  The more you rehearse, the more relaxed you will be when delivering. The more confident you will feel.

While we can’t help you with the practice of your next presentation, we can help you by making sure you look good, and that you have a great design and cohesiveness.

You focus on the message and content; we’ll focus on making you look good.

Have a tip you would like to include?  Be sure to mention it in the comments!

Like this article? Please share

Audience, Engaging, Feedback, Interactive, Poll, Rule of Three, Steve Jobs Filed under Presentation Ideas

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2 Responses to “23 PowerPoint Presentation Tips for Creating Engaging and Interactive Presentations”

Very great advices!

Greetings ! A compact composed communication for the host to have an impact -VOICE

Thank You ?

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Center for Teaching

Making better powerpoint presentations.

Print Version

Baddeley and Hitch’s model of working memory.

Research about student preferences for powerpoint, resources for making better powerpoint presentations, bibliography.

We have all experienced the pain of a bad PowerPoint presentation. And even though we promise ourselves never to make the same mistakes, we can still fall prey to common design pitfalls.  The good news is that your PowerPoint presentation doesn’t have to be ordinary. By keeping in mind a few guidelines, your classroom presentations can stand above the crowd!

“It is easy to dismiss design – to relegate it to mere ornament, the prettifying of places and objects to disguise their banality. But that is a serious misunderstanding of what design is and why it matters.” Daniel Pink

One framework that can be useful when making design decisions about your PowerPoint slide design is Baddeley and Hitch’s model of working memory .

As illustrated in the diagram above, the Central Executive coordinates the work of three systems by organizing the information we hear, see, and store into working memory.

The Phonological Loop deals with any auditory information. Students in a classroom are potentially listening to a variety of things: the instructor, questions from their peers, sound effects or audio from the PowerPoint presentation, and their own “inner voice.”

The Visuo-Spatial Sketchpad deals with information we see. This involves such aspects as form, color, size, space between objects, and their movement. For students this would include: the size and color of fonts, the relationship between images and text on the screen, the motion path of text animation and slide transitions, as well as any hand gestures, facial expressions, or classroom demonstrations made by the instructor.

The Episodic Buffer integrates the information across these sensory domains and communicates with long-term memory. All of these elements are being deposited into a holding tank called the “episodic buffer.” This buffer has a limited capacity and can become “overloaded” thereby, setting limits on how much information students can take in at once.

Laura Edelman and Kathleen Harring from Muhlenberg College , Allentown, Pennsylvania have developed an approach to PowerPoint design using Baddeley and Hitch’s model. During the course of their work, they conducted a survey of students at the college asking what they liked and didn’t like about their professor’s PowerPoint presentations. They discovered the following:

Characteristics students don’t like about professors’ PowerPoint slides

• Too many words on a slide
• Movement (slide transitions or word animations)
• Templates with too many colors

Characteristics students like like about professors’ PowerPoint slides

• Graphs increase understanding of content
• Bulleted lists help them organize ideas
• PowerPoint can help to structure lectures
• Verbal explanations of pictures/graphs help more than written clarifications

According to Edelman and Harring, some conclusions from the research at Muhlenberg are that students learn more when:

• material is presented in short phrases rather than full paragraphs.
• the professor talks about the information on the slide rather than having students read it on their own.
• relevant pictures are used. Irrelevant pictures decrease learning compared to PowerPoint slides with no picture
• they take notes (if the professor is not talking). But if the professor is lecturing, note-taking and listening decreased learning.
• they are given the PowerPoint slides before the class.

Advice from Edelman and Harring on leveraging the working memory with PowerPoint:

• Leverage the working memory by dividing the information between the visual and auditory modality.  Doing this reduces the likelihood of one system becoming overloaded. For instance, spoken words with pictures are better than pictures with text, as integrating an image and narration takes less cognitive effort than integrating an image and text.
• Minimize the opportunity for distraction by removing any irrelevant material such as music, sound effects, animations, and background images.
• Use simple cues to direct learners to important points or content. Using text size, bolding, italics, or placing content in a highlighted or shaded text box is all that is required to convey the significance of key ideas in your presentation.
• Don’t put every word you intend to speak on your PowerPoint slide. Instead, keep information displayed in short chunks that are easily read and comprehended.
• One of the mostly widely accessed websites about PowerPoint design is Garr Reynolds’ blog, Presentation Zen . In his blog entry:  “ What is Good PowerPoint Design? ” Reynolds explains how to keep the slide design simple, yet not simplistic, and includes a few slide examples that he has ‘made-over’ to demonstrate how to improve its readability and effectiveness. He also includes sample slides from his own presentation about PowerPoint slide design.
• Another presentation guru, David Paradi, author of “ The Visual Slide Revolution: Transforming Overloaded Text Slides into Persuasive Presentations ” maintains a video podcast series called “ Think Outside the Slide ” where he also demonstrates PowerPoint slide makeovers. Examples on this site are typically from the corporate perspective, but the process by which content decisions are made is still relevant for higher education. Paradi has also developed a five step method, called KWICK , that can be used as a simple guide when designing PowerPoint presentations.
• In the video clip below, Comedian Don McMillan talks about some of the common misuses of PowerPoint in his routine called “Life After Death by PowerPoint.”

• This article from The Chronicle of Higher Education highlights a blog moderated by Microsoft’s Doug Thomas that compiles practical PowerPoint advice gathered from presentation masters like Seth Godin , Guy Kawasaki , and Garr Reynolds .

Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story , by Jerry Weissman, Prentice Hall, 2006

Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery , by Garr Reynolds, New Riders Press, 2008

Solving the PowerPoint Predicament: using digital media for effective communication , by Tom Bunzel , Que, 2006

The Cognitive Style of Power Point , by Edward R. Tufte, Graphics Pr, 2003

The Visual Slide Revolution: Transforming Overloaded Text Slides into Persuasive Presentations , by Dave Paradi, Communications Skills Press, 2000

Why Most PowerPoint Presentations Suck: And How You Can Make Them Better , by Rick Altman, Harvest Books, 2007

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9 Tips for Making Beautiful PowerPoint Presentations

Ready to craft a beautiful powerpoint presentation these nine powerpoint layout ideas will help anyone create effective, compelling slides..

How many times have you sat through a poorly designed business presentation that was dull, cluttered, and distracting? Probably way too many. Even though we all loathe a boring presentation, when it comes time to make our own, do we really do any better?

The good news is you don’t have to be a professional designer to make professional presentations. We’ve put together a few simple guidelines you can follow to create a beautifully assembled deck.

We’ll walk you through some slide design tips, show you some tricks to maximize your PowerPoint skills, and give you everything you need to look really good next time you’re up in front of a crowd.

And, while PowerPoint remains one of the biggest names in presentation software, many of these design elements and principles work in Google Slides as well.

Let’s dive right in and make sure your audience isn’t yawning through your entire presentation.

1. Use Layout to Your Advantage

Layout is one of the most powerful visual elements in design, and it’s a simple, effective way to control the flow and visual hierarchy of information.

For example, most Western languages read left to right, top to bottom. Knowing this natural reading order, you can direct people’s eyes in a deliberate way to certain key parts of a slide that you want to emphasize.

You can also guide your audience with simple tweaks to the layout. Use text size and alternating fonts or colors to distinguish headlines from body text.

Placement also matters. There are many unorthodox ways to structure a slide, but most audience members will have to take a few beats to organize the information in their head—that’s precious time better spent listening to your delivery and retaining information.

Try to structure your slides more like this:

And not like this:

Layout is one of the trickier PowerPoint design concepts to master, which is why we have these free PowerPoint templates already laid out for you. Use them as a jumping off point for your own presentation, or use them wholesale!

Presentation templates can give you a huge leg up as you start working on your design.

2. No Sentences

This is one of the most critical slide design tips. Slides are simplified, visual notecards that capture and reinforce main ideas, not complete thoughts.

As the speaker, you should be delivering most of the content and information, not putting it all on the slides for everyone to read (and probably ignore). If your audience is reading your presentation instead of listening to you deliver it, your message has lost its effectiveness.

Pare down your core message and use keywords to convey it. Try to avoid complete sentences unless you’re quoting someone or something.

Stick with this:

And avoid this:

3. Follow the 6×6 Rule

One of the cardinal sins of a bad PowerPoint is cramming too many details and ideas on one slide, which makes it difficult for people to retain information. Leaving lots of “white space” on a slide helps people focus on your key points.

Try using the 6×6 rule to keep your content concise and clean looking. The 6×6 rule means a maximum of six bullet points per slide and six words per bullet. In fact, some people even say you should never have more than six words per slide!

Just watch out for “orphans” (when the last word of a sentence/phrase spills over to the next line). This looks cluttered. Either fit it onto one line or add another word to the second line.

Slides should never have this much information:

4. Keep the Colors Simple

Stick to simple light and dark colors and a defined color palette for visual consistency. Exceptionally bright text can cause eye fatigue, so use those colors sparingly. Dark text on a light background or light text on a dark background will work well. Also avoid intense gradients, which can make text hard to read.

If you’re presenting on behalf of your brand, check what your company’s brand guidelines are. Companies often have a primary brand color and a secondary brand color , and it’s a good idea to use them in your presentation to align with your company’s brand identity and style.

If you’re looking for color inspiration for your next presentation, check out our 101 Color Combinations , where you can browse tons of eye-catching color palettes curated by a pro. When you find the one you like, just type the corresponding color code into your presentation formatting tools.

Here are more of our favorite free color palettes for presentations:

• 10 Color Palettes to Nail Your Next Presentation
• 10 Energizing Sports Color Palettes for Branding and Marketing
• 10 Vintage Color Palettes Inspired by the Decades

No matter what color palette or combination you choose, you want to keep the colors of your PowerPoint presentation simple and easy to read, like this:

Stay away from color combinations like this:

5. Use Sans-Serif Fonts

Traditionally, serif fonts (Times New Roman, Garamond, Bookman) are best for printed pages, and sans-serif fonts (Helvetica, Tahoma, Verdana) are easier to read on screens.

These are always safe choices, but if you’d like to add some more typographic personality , try exploring our roundup of the internet’s best free fonts . You’ll find everything from classic serifs and sans serifs to sophisticated modern fonts and splashy display fonts. Just keep legibility top of mind when you’re making your pick.

Try to stick with one font, or choose two at the most. Fonts have very different personalities and emotional impacts, so make sure your font matches the tone, purpose, and content of your presentation.

6. Stick to 30pt Font or Larger

Many experts agree that your font size for a PowerPoint presentation should be at least 30pt. Sticking to this guideline ensures your text is readable. It also forces you, due to space limitations, to explain your message efficiently and include only the most important points. .

7. Avoid Overstyling the Text

Three of the easiest and most effective ways to draw attention to text are:

• A change in color

Our eyes are naturally drawn to things that stand out, but use these changes sparingly. Overstyling can make the slide look busy and distracting.

8. Choose the Right Images

The images you choose for your presentation are perhaps as important as the message. You want images that not only support the message, but also elevate it—a rare accomplishment in the often dry world of PowerPoint.

But, what is the right image? We’ll be honest. There’s no direct answer to this conceptual, almost mystical subject, but we can break down some strategies for approaching image selection that will help you curate your next presentation.

The ideal presentation images are:

• Inspirational

These may seem like vague qualities, but the general idea is to go beyond the literal. Think about the symbols in an image and the story they tell. Think about the colors and composition in an image and the distinct mood they set for your presentation.

With this approach, you can get creative in your hunt for relatable, authentic, and inspirational images. Here are some more handy guidelines for choosing great images.

Illustrative, Not Generic

So, the slide in question is about collaborating as a team. Naturally, you look for images of people meeting in a boardroom, right?

While it’s perfectly fine to go super literal, sometimes these images fall flat—what’s literal doesn’t necessarily connect to your audience emotionally. Will they really respond to generic images of people who aren’t them meeting in a boardroom?

In the absence of a photo of your actual team—or any other image that directly illustrates the subject at hand—look for images of convincing realism and humanity that capture the idea of your message.

Doing so connects with viewers, allowing them to connect with your message.

The image above can be interpreted in many ways. But, when we apply it to slide layout ideas about collaboration, the meaning is clear.

It doesn’t hurt that there’s a nice setting and good photography, to boot.

Supportive, Not Distracting

Now that we’ve told you to get creative with your image selection, the next lesson is to rein that in. While there are infinite choices of imagery out there, there’s a limit to what makes sense in your presentation.

Let’s say you’re giving an IT presentation to new employees. You might think that image of two dogs snuggling by a fire is relatable, authentic, and inspirational, but does it really say “data management” to your audience?

To find the best supporting images, try searching terms on the periphery of your actual message. You’ll find images that complement your message rather than distract from it.

In the IT presentation example, instead of “data connections” or another literal term, try the closely related “traffic” or “connectivity.” This will bring up images outside of tech, but relative to the idea of how things move.

Inspiring and Engaging

There’s a widespread misconception that business presentations are just about delivering information. Well, they’re not. In fact, a great presentation is inspirational. We don’t mean that your audience should be itching to paint a masterpiece when they’re done. In this case, inspiration is about engagement.

Is your audience asking themselves questions? Are they coming up with new ideas? Are they remembering key information to tap into later? You’ll drive a lot of this engagement with your actual delivery, but unexpected images can play a role, as well.

When you use more abstract or aspirational images, your audience will have room to make their own connections. This not only means they’re paying attention, but they’re also engaging with and retaining your message.

To find the right abstract or unconventional imagery, search terms related to the tone of the presentation. This may include images with different perspectives like overhead shots and aerials, long exposures taken over a period of time, nature photos , colorful markets , and so on.

The big idea here is akin to including an image of your adorable dog making a goofy face at the end of an earnings meeting. It leaves an audience with a good, human feeling after you just packed their brains with data.

Use that concept of pleasant surprise when you’re selecting images for your presentation.

9. Editing PowerPoint Images

Setting appropriate image resolution in powerpoint.

Though you can drag-and-drop images into PowerPoint, you can control the resolution displayed within the file. All of your PowerPoint slide layout ideas should get the same treatment to be equal in size.

Simply click File > Compress Pictures in the main application menu.

If your presentation file is big and will only be viewed online, you can take it down to On-screen , then check the Apply to: All pictures in this file , and rest assured the quality will be uniform.

This resolution is probably fine for proofing over email, but too low for your presentation layout ideas. For higher res in printed form, try the Print setting, which at 220 PPI is extremely good quality.

For large-screens such as projection, use the HD setting, since enlarging to that scale will show any deficiencies in resolution. Low resolution can not only distract from the message, but it looks low-quality and that reflects on the presenter.

If size is no issue for you, use High Fidelity (maximum PPI), and only reduce if the file size gives your computer problems.

The image quality really begins when you add the images to the presentation file. Use the highest quality images you can, then let PowerPoint scale the resolution down for you, reducing the excess when set to HD or lower.

Resizing, Editing, and Adding Effects to Images in PowerPoint

PowerPoint comes with an arsenal of tools to work with your images. When a picture is selected, the confusingly named Picture Format menu is activated in the top menu bar, and Format Picture is opened on the right side of the app window.

In the Format Picture menu (on the right) are four sections, and each of these sections expand to show their options by clicking the arrows by the name:

• Fill & Line (paint bucket icon): Contains options for the box’s colors, patterns, gradients, and background fills, along with options for its outline.
• Effects (pentagon icon): Contains Shadow, Reflection, Glow, Soft Edges, 3-D Format and Rotation, and Artistic Effects.
• Size & Properties (dimensional icon): Size, Position, and Text Box allow you to control the physical size and placement of the picture or text boxes.
• Picture (mountain icon): Picture Corrections, Colors, and Transparency give you control over how the image looks. Under Crop, you can change the size of the box containing the picture, instead of the entire picture itself as in Size & Properties above.

The menu at the top is more expansive, containing menu presets for Corrections, Color, Effects, Animation, and a lot more. This section is where you can crop more precisely than just choosing the dimensions from the Picture pane on the right.

Cropping Images in PowerPoint

The simple way to crop an image is to use the Picture pane under the Format Picture menu on the right side of the window. Use the Picture Position controls to move the picture inside its box, or use the Crop position controls to manipulate the box’s dimensions.

To exert more advanced control, or use special shapes, select the picture you want to crop, then click the Picture Format in the top menu to activate it.

Hit the Crop button, then use the controls on the picture’s box to size by eye. Or, click the arrow to show more options, including changing the shape of the box (for more creative looks) and using preset aspect ratios for a more uniform presentation of images.

The next time you design a PowerPoint presentation, remember that simplicity is key and less is more. By adopting these simple slide design tips, you’ll deliver a clear, powerful visual message to your audience.

If you want to go with a PowerPoint alternative instead, you can use Shutterstock Create to easily craft convincing, engaging, and informative presentations.

With many presentation template designs, you’ll be sure to find something that is a perfect fit for your next corporate presentation. You can download your designs as a .pdf file and import them into both PowerPoint and Google Slides presentation decks.

Take Your PowerPoint Presentation to the Next Level with Shutterstock Flex

Need authentic, eye-catching photography to form the foundation of your PowerPoint presentation? We’ve got you covered.

With Shutterstock Flex, you’ll have all-in-one access to our massive library, plus the FLEXibility you need to select the perfect mix of assets every time.

License this cover image via F8 studio and Ryan DeBerardinis .

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12 PowerPoint Tips to Make Your Slides More Effective

The design of your PowerPoint presentation is often underestimated. Everyone knows the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” but in PowerPoint land, it seems to be quite the contrary.

 “A thousand words are worth a single picture” would seem to be a more fitting slogan. Slides are often filled to the brim with text, which the presenter literally reads out loud. And that’s why PowerPoint has a reputation for being dusty and static. A missed opportunity!

A well-designed PowerPoint presentation can help deliver your message to the audience. We talked to PowerPoint expert Ferry Pereboom, who shared 1 2 PowerPoint tips and tricks to help you steer your presentation in the right direction. 

You can go through the following list to improve your entire presentation quickly with these tips. It’s a good idea to use it as a checklist to ensure that your slides are alright in three major aspects: text, design, and navigability. 

Now, let’s cover recommendations for each of these aspects in more detail.

Texts on slides support your oral presentation and aim to emphasize the key points. It’s common knowledge that using too much text on slides is a sure sign of a bad PowerPoint presentation.

 However, many speakers still try to cram a truckload of information into their slideshows. That makes it especially important to do a good job on the text aspect in the first place. 

1. Keep it short and to the point

As mentioned, one of the most important things to remember is that PowerPoint is a tool made to support your story. So, it’s wise to avoid putting the entire text on the screen, because your audience will prefer listening to, and not reading the things you plan to say. 

Instead, try to reduce the text, shorten your bullet points, and keep them short and sweet.  You can use the 5×5 rule as a reference: have up to 5 text lines on each slide, each of them with no more than 5 words per line.

Keeping your texts concise will help engage your audience and make them focus on you instead of the slides on the screen.

Pro tip : Optimize the use of white space – that’s what we call empty space, that’s devoid of any color, text, and other elements. Keeping it empty helps to direct the viewer’s gaze. 

In the realm of texts, you can bring a breath of fresh air to your slides by adding extra margins, splitting up long paragraphs, and generally trying to place objects in no more than half of the slide.  

2. Choose the appropriate font

Try to pick a classic font instead of a creative one. Choosing the wrong font can easily make your text unreadable to your audience. And besides, if the computer you are presenting on doesn’t have the font you used installed, PowerPoint will replace it with another one at random. 

Sans serif fonts like Verdana, Calibri, and Helvetica are all safe choices. These fonts are quite popular and available on all computers.

3. Enhance readability with the proper font size 

Generally, for more effective PowerPoint presentations, it’s always a good idea to make important lines of text and facts look bigger, bolder, and brighter than the others. Fonts can help with this as well. But picking the right font size can be difficult. 

On the one hand, your audience needs to be able to read the slide. And on the other hand, you don’t want your text to dominate the space, as you’d probably like to add some visuals to your slide as well. 

Still, there are quite precise font sizes that you can refer to in order to make good PowerPoint presentations. 

For headers, the minimum is around 20pt, while for the body you can have a minimum of 18pt. With these sizes, you can be assured your text will be legible in every situation. Learners will feel comfortable viewing your presentation on laptops, computers, tablets, TVs, and large screens.

Pro tip : You can manage the hierarchy of headings and subheadings on your slides with the Slide Master feature. Here you can also apply color schemes and a logo to any number of slides and achieve a consistent, unified look. 

Design 

Simple, yet brilliant design can enhance your message and facilitate communication. So, when you design your slides, try to find balance and remember that less is more. 

It’s always better to use 3 or a maximum of 4 colors that you know will combine well, instead of an entire palette, and align objects to establish symmetry. 

Below are a few more simple PowerPoint design tips that will help you create a good presentation.

4. Increase contrast

Besides the look and size of your font, it is important to take contrast into account to facilitate reading. It’s natural to use dark text on a light background, and vice versa. But if you’re using text on a photo, things can get a little more tricky. 

 It’s a good idea to either place a border or cast a shadow around the text to ensure that it’s readable. Or you can place text in one of the PowerPoint shapes. 

5. Use coloring wisely

Colors are often used to give the slide some ‘flair’ and manage attention. When picking colors, it’s important to keep your audience in mind and define the purpose of the actual presentation. 

For instance, it’s good to use vibrant colors in a presentation for a primary school. However, if you prepare your presentation for business professionals to deliver it in a formal setting, you’ll need to define your colors according to your target audience.

6. Select relevant, adequate visuals

When people are talking about a car, we often see that the first picture is taken from Google images, or even worse, that clip art is being used. 

This results in inconsistency because some images tend to be illustrations and drawings, making your presentation look unprofessional or simply ruining the viewer’s impression of it. 

To make your PowerPoint presentations effective, don’t use low-quality visual aid. Make sure you select good quality images that support your message.

7. Use mock-ups instead of screenshots and diagrams 

Diagrams, schemes, and screenshots usually don’t help your presentation. Although this information is usually quite important to your story, it can be excessive. 

 To turn the slides into a good PowerPoint presentation, it’s a good idea to combine the diagram, scheme, or screenshot with an image, such as an image of an iPad, laptop, digital projector, or computer.  

In the example below, you can see that the slide looks much tidier when an image is added.

8. Present data visually as much as possible

Whenever your presentation contains a lot of data, it might be easier to communicate this data by using visual formats instead of just using text. 

Graphs might give you the results you’re looking for. PowerPoint offers a wide variety of ‘doughnut’ charts, which are ideal for making comparisons.

For example, pick the doughnut graph to show your percentages in the middle of the graph. That way, your audience immediately understands your message.

9. Simplify your tables as much as possible

Tables are usually crammed with information and numbers. This causes a slide to look crowded and chaotic. In this case, it is important to make the tables as simple as possible.

 Delete unnecessary outlines, colors, and borders. Again, “keep it simple” and “less is more” are key phrases to keep in mind when designing tables.

Navigability

Navigability applies more to the way you deliver slides to the audience and manipulate the playback. However, you need to plan this in advance as well, and pay attention to transitions, notes, animation, and other aspects that will result in an effective slideshow and save you time. 

Here are a few essential PowerPoint tips for easy navigation in your presentation slides. 

10. Minimize the variety of transitions in your PowerPoint presentation 

After creating a PowerPoint slide show, people usually conclude that the presentation comes across as boring or static. So, they start to use transitions. Different transitions are then used to ‘breathe life’ into the presentation. 

However, this is not the way to go. PowerPoint offers the most diverse transitions, which are usually experienced as distracting and unsophisticated. A simple ‘fade’ effect to segue from slide to slide is sufficient.

11. Rely on Presenter View in PowerPoint

Presenter View can help you greatly when delivering your presentation to viewers. With this functionality, you don’t have to keep everything in your head or question your own presentation skills. 

When presenting to the audience with Presenter View activated, you’ll be able to see what’s on the next slide, keep track of the time, use a laser pointer and/or pen, and be able to see your speaker notes. 

You can also paste your script or lecture notes here and avoid making your slides text heavy.

12.  Provide an outline of the presentation

Giving an outline at the beginning of your presentation will help you start off on the right foot, especially if it’s long or you deliver it with other speakers.  It’s good form to include at least these three types of slides:

• Welcome slide .  Presenters typically place the title and description of the presentation and their credentials here. 
• Menu slide . You can place the contents of your presentation here to jump to the needed part quickly when needed (e.g., to refer to a particular idea during a Q&A session).
• Summary slide . This will summarize the ideas you’ve presented and will be of great help when you’re wrapping up your presentation.

Here are a few more effective tips to structure your presentation – check them out.

Unlock Learner Engagement with iSpring 

Over the years, PowerPoint presentations have made their way out of classrooms and conference rooms to different audiences and evolved into truly informational products that people download, study, and share. That’s why searching for the best PowerPoint presentation tips is as relevant as ever. 

If you rely heavily on PowerPoint in your work, you can improve your slides greatly with iSpring Suite – an authoring toolkit that works in Microsoft PowerPoint.

iSpring Suite can replace several design tools and PowerPoint add-ins at once. It provides hundreds of design templates, color schemes, and visual elements, allowing you to create compelling presentations and gain and maintain an audience’s attention. The software comes with Content Library, which offers access to over 89,000 slide templates, backgrounds, and characters.

In addition to the pre-designed characters, iSpring Suite also allows you to create your own unique ones. You can change their hairstyles, pick accessories, and choose clothing that matches your brand or storyline and resonates with your learners.

Since you already know how to use PowerPoint, it won’t take much time at all to master iSpring Suite and create an engaging presentation or a full-fledged online course. You can populate it with quizzes, interactions, web objects, quality audio narrations, and videos in a breeze.

Also read:   How to Convert PowerPoint to MP4 Video on Windows & macOS

With iSpring Suite, you can convert your slides into HTML5 format, so your audience can view them online, right in their browsers, with no downloading necessary.   You can also share your presentation as a YouTube video in a click. 

Try iSpring Suite and create a stellar presentation now!

FAQ on How to Make an Effective PPT Presentation 

People often look for some ready-made formulas of a great PowerPoint presentation on the Internet. We’ve found several of them for your quick reference. Feel free to use these rules along with our tried-and-true PowerPoint tips. 

What is the 5–5–5 rule in PowerPoint presentations? 

The 5-5-5 rule stands for having a maximum of 5 text lines on a slide with no more than 5 words in each, and up to only 5 slides in a row that use that format.  Apparently, this encourages creators to reflect on the way they’re making slides, be concise, and do so knowingly. 

What is the 5–second rule in PowerPoint?

The five-second rule prescribes that it should take no more than 5 seconds to grasp the idea of a slide.  You can ensure that this happens by using brief and clear text lines, and convincing design. 

What is the 10-20-30 rule in a presentation? 

The 10-20-30 rule is a fun rule that Guy Kawasaki, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, introduced after watching hundreds of exhausting presentations and pitches.  The rule says that a presentation should be strictly 10 slides and 20 minutes long, with a 30-point font size. Learn more about this rule and how it was devised on Kawasaki’s website . 

Which PowerPoint tips and tricks do you know? Which one is your favorite?  Feel free to share with us below!

About the author

Ferry Pereboom is co-founder of PPT Solutions, a design agency in the Netherlands.

The company specializes in developing inspiring PowerPoint presentations. PPT Solutions has approximately 1,500 clients, and 28 PowerPoint specialists, and delivers work to clients in about twelve countries around the globe. Ferry is mainly responsible for helping both new and existing clients overcome their presentation challenges.

Please check the website www.pptsolutions.nl  for more information on professional PowerPoint tips.

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Effective Business Presentations with Powerpoint

This course is part of Data Analysis and Presentation Skills: the PwC Approach Specialization

Taught in English

Some content may not be translated

Instructor: Alex Mannella

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• Data Analysis
• Communication
• Presentation Design
• Presentation

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There are 4 modules in this course

This course is all about presenting the story of the data, using PowerPoint. You'll learn how to structure a presentation, to include insights and supporting data. You'll also learn some design principles for effective visuals and slides. You'll gain skills for client-facing communication - including public speaking, executive presence and compelling storytelling. Finally, you'll be given a client profile, a business problem, and a set of basic Excel charts, which you'll need to turn into a presentation - which you'll deliver with iterative peer feedback.

This course was created by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP with an address at 300 Madison Avenue, New York, New York, 10017.

Preparing a Presentation

This course is about presenting the story of the data, using PowerPoint. You'll learn how to structure a presentation and how to include insights and supporting data. You'll also learn some design principles for creating effective PowerPoint slides with visuals displaying data. Though application based exercises, you'll gain foundational communication skills - including public speaking, professional presence and compelling storytelling. Finally, you'll be given a client profile, a business problem, and a set of basic Excel charts, that you will use to create a presentation. You’ll receive peer feedback that you can use to enhance future presentations. This course was created by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP with an address at 300 Madison Avenue, New York, New York, 10017

What's included

13 videos 5 readings 1 quiz 5 discussion prompts

13 videos • Total 47 minutes

• Welcome to Course 4 • 2 minutes • Preview module
• Welcome to Week 1 • 3 minutes
• The eight-step approach to prepare for a presentation • 3 minutes
• Step 1 - Know your audience and Step 2 - Know your purpose • 6 minutes
• Step 3 - Structure the body of your presentation • 7 minutes
• Step 4 - Plan how you will start your presentation • 3 minutes
• Step 5 - Plan how you will end your presentation • 2 minutes
• Step 6 - Prepare your visual aids • 3 minutes
• Step 7 - Anticipate the questions you may be asked • 6 minutes
• Step 8 - Practice your presentation • 3 minutes
• Presenting on short notice • 3 minutes
• Week 1 Closing • 1 minute
• A Message from our Chief People Officer at PwC • 0 minutes

5 readings • Total 50 minutes

• Course Overview and Syllabus • 10 minutes
• Meet the PwC Instructors • 10 minutes
• Case Study and Materials • 10 minutes
• Outlining and Wireframing • 10 minutes
• The eight-step approach to prepare for a presentation • 10 minutes

1 quiz • Total 30 minutes

• Week 1 Quiz • 30 minutes

5 discussion prompts • Total 50 minutes

• Meet Your Classmates • 10 minutes
• How do you get to know your audience? • 10 minutes
• When do you field questions during a presentation? • 10 minutes
• Preparing for a presentation on short notice • 10 minutes
• When is it appropriate to change the order of the eight-step approach? • 10 minutes

Communication styles

This week, we will be covering the different types of communications styles. You’ll start off by gaining an understanding of your personal professional presence and learn how to maximize it. You’ll learn about verbal and nonverbal communications, and strategies to enhance your questioning and listening skills. We will also discuss how differences in culture can impact how you communicate.

9 videos 1 reading 1 quiz 1 discussion prompt

9 videos • Total 67 minutes

• Introduction to Week 2 • 1 minute • Preview module
• Maximizing your professional presence • 12 minutes
• Communicating with confidence • 3 minutes
• Verbal communications • 5 minutes
• Non-verbal communications • 6 minutes
• Cultural Considerations in Communication • 7 minutes
• Culture and Presentations • 19 minutes
• Questioning and listening skills • 8 minutes
• Week 2 Closing • 1 minute

1 reading • Total 10 minutes

• Tip Sheet: Communicating with confidence • 10 minutes
• Week 2 Quiz • 30 minutes

1 discussion prompt • Total 10 minutes

• How do verbal and non-verbal communications impact your message? • 10 minutes

Creating effective slides using PowerPoint

This week, we're discussing how to create effective slides using PowerPoint. You’ll learn about the tools available within PowerPoint, how to structure your storyline, create storyboards, identify primary elements of slide design, display data and finalize your slide presentation. There is a peer review activity where you will apply the skills learned and create a storyboard. Finally, you will also get a chance to identify errors in a presentation to test your knowledge of standard industry practices.

9 videos 5 readings 2 quizzes 1 peer review 2 discussion prompts

9 videos • Total 49 minutes

• Introduction to Week 3 • 2 minutes • Preview module
• Introduction to PowerPoint (2013) • 13 minutes
• What type of deck should you use? • 3 minutes
• Structure your storyline • 9 minutes
• Creating a storyboard • 5 minutes
• Primary elements of slide design • 2 minutes
• Displaying data • 5 minutes
• Finalizing your deck • 6 minutes
• Week 3 Closing • 1 minute
• PowerPoint Practice Activity • 10 minutes
• Types of logic • 10 minutes
• Tip Sheet: Storyboarding • 10 minutes
• Slide writing guide • 10 minutes
• Tip Sheet: Displaying data • 10 minutes

2 quizzes • Total 60 minutes

• Identifying errors in a deck exercise • 30 minutes
• Week 3 Quiz • 30 minutes

1 peer review • Total 60 minutes

• Create a storyboard in PowerPoint • 60 minutes

2 discussion prompts • Total 20 minutes

• What other tools have you used to create a presentation? • 10 minutes
• What experiences do you have using cloud based presentation tools? • 10 minutes

Delivering a presentation

This week, you’re going to build and deliver a presentation to your peers, and receive feedback from them. You will create a presentation of about 10 slides, employing the guidelines and industry best practices that have been discussed in this course. You can use the presentation storyboard that you created last week, which your peers have reviewed and given you feedback on. Review what you’ve developed so far, and make changes or additions that you think will enhance the presentation. Once you’ve finalized your presentation, you will present it in a video using your smartphone or computer. Once you’re satisfied with the PowerPoint presentation and video, you will be submitting both for peer review. You can use this feedback for current and future presentations that you will make during your career.

2 videos 2 readings 1 quiz 1 peer review

2 videos • Total 4 minutes

• Introduction to Week 4 • 2 minutes • Preview module
• Week 4 and Course Wrap-Up • 1 minute

2 readings • Total 20 minutes

• Final course simulation • 10 minutes
• Best tips for recording your own video • 10 minutes
• Simulation Validation Quiz • 30 minutes
• Delivering your final presentation • 60 minutes

Instructor ratings

We asked all learners to give feedback on our instructors based on the quality of their teaching style.

With offices in 157 countries and more than 208,000 people, PwC is among the leading professional services networks in the world. Our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. We help organisations and individuals create the value they’re looking for, by delivering quality in assurance, tax and advisory services.

Recommended if you're interested in Business Essentials

Data Analysis and Presentation Skills: the PwC Approach

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1,059 reviews

Reviewed on Apr 25, 2020

Very Good Course, I have learnt many from this course, it's useful for my type of job. I have recommended to friends about this course.

Reviewed on Apr 10, 2017

The course instructs how to methodically build an effective presentation. There is very little technical dive-in into Powerpoint (unlike the 2 preceding courses on Excel).

Reviewed on Feb 21, 2018

Very useful although more 'soft skills' which are very important and often neglected. Very well presented and the information and projects are relevant.

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How to Make a “Good” Presentation “Great”

• Guy Kawasaki

Remember: Less is more.

A strong presentation is so much more than information pasted onto a series of slides with fancy backgrounds. Whether you’re pitching an idea, reporting market research, or sharing something else, a great presentation can give you a competitive advantage, and be a powerful tool when aiming to persuade, educate, or inspire others. Here are some unique elements that make a presentation stand out.

• Fonts: Sans Serif fonts such as Helvetica or Arial are preferred for their clean lines, which make them easy to digest at various sizes and distances. Limit the number of font styles to two: one for headings and another for body text, to avoid visual confusion or distractions.
• Colors: Colors can evoke emotions and highlight critical points, but their overuse can lead to a cluttered and confusing presentation. A limited palette of two to three main colors, complemented by a simple background, can help you draw attention to key elements without overwhelming the audience.
• Pictures: Pictures can communicate complex ideas quickly and memorably but choosing the right images is key. Images or pictures should be big (perhaps 20-25% of the page), bold, and have a clear purpose that complements the slide’s text.
• Layout: Don’t overcrowd your slides with too much information. When in doubt, adhere to the principle of simplicity, and aim for a clean and uncluttered layout with plenty of white space around text and images. Think phrases and bullets, not sentences.

As an intern or early career professional, chances are that you’ll be tasked with making or giving a presentation in the near future. Whether you’re pitching an idea, reporting market research, or sharing something else, a great presentation can give you a competitive advantage, and be a powerful tool when aiming to persuade, educate, or inspire others.

• Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist at Canva and was the former chief evangelist at Apple. Guy is the author of 16 books including Think Remarkable : 9 Paths to Transform Your Life and Make a Difference.

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Basic Things to Keep in Mind to Create an Effective Presentation in PowerPoint

Shaurya Bedi

Presentations are more than just a regular part of professional life - they're like art! Whether you're a business pro, educator, or public speaker, creating a top-notch presentation is a super important skill.

When it comes to presentations, PowerPoint is a total go-to. Its many effective features help you get creative and clear things.

Some presentations are like Game of Thrones - throwing too much information at the audience without clear direction or purpose. You know, when slides get all cluttered, text is overwhelming, and visuals are boring. It's not a great way to engage your audience.

A good presenter is your Tyrion Lannister, simplifying complex ideas, using visuals to illustrate key points, and keeping the audience engaged even in dense content.

But don't worry because we are here to teach you the steps to creating an effective presentation in PowerPoint. We'll teach you the fundamental skills and techniques to turn your ideas into visuals that impress your audience and stick in their minds.

Components of a good presentation

Knowing how to create an effective presentation in PowerPoint is much more than simply putting together slides and text. It's about skillfully weaving together storytelling, visuals, and engagement. By understanding these crucial elements, you can effectively deliver a message that will make a long-lasting impact. 

So, let's dive into the key components of a captivating presentation.

• Clear structure:  Start with a compelling introduction, ensure a logical progression of ideas, and end with a forceful conclusion. A well-organized structure serves as a guide for your readers, helping them navigate your message smoothly.
• Effective use of color and design:  Select a cohesive color palette and design structure that complements your message and branding. Ensure readability by harmonizing colors and employing design elements to guide focus and emphasize important information.
• Concise content:  Keep your text concise and powerful. Use bullet points, keywords, or short phrases to effectively convey your message. Steer clear of overwhelming your audience with long paragraphs or unnecessary information on slides.
• Engaging visuals : Incorporate visuals, such as images, graphs, and charts, to complement your content. Visual aids enhance understanding and make your presentation more interesting and memorable.
• Practice and delivery : Practice your presentation to ensure a smooth delivery. Pay close attention to your pace, tone, and body language to convey enthusiasm and confidence effectively.

Pro tips for creating the most effective presentations

Ensure visual consistency and simplicity 

Creating a visually impactful presentation requires consistency and simplicity. Consistency will give your slides a unified look and reinforce your message and brand. Use a coherent color palette, consistent fonts, and a standardized layout to maintain visual harmony. 

Simplicity involves decluttering your slides by avoiding excessive text or images. Embrace white space to allow your content to breathe and draw attention to the most important elements. 

Remember, simplicity doesn't mean sacrificing depth; it means conveying complex ideas.

Storytelling with structure 

Structure your presentation as a captivating story. Start with a powerful hook to grab attention, introduce the conflict or problem, and provide solutions or insights to resolve it. 

Make your audience the story's hero by making them relate to the challenges and find resonance in your proposed solutions. Use anecdotes, real-life examples, or case studies to add depth and relevance. 

Creating a narrative keeps your audience engaged and helps them remember the information. Embrace the effectiveness of a well-told story to deliver your message effectively.

Use multimedia 

Adding  multimedia elements to your presentation  can enhance engagement. Consider strategically embedding videos, animations, or audio clips to bring your points to life.

Remember to ensure these elements complement your narrative instead of being distracting. On top of that, incorporating interactivity is a total game-changer. 

You can introduce clickable links, quizzes, or live polls to actively involve your audience. This creates a participatory atmosphere, helps to keep their attention, and makes your presentation even more memorable.

Rehearsal and adaptability 

No matter how prepared you are, rehearsal is still a vital step. Practicing not only helps you improve your content and delivery, but it also helps you handle unexpected situations. 

Rehearsing familiarizes you with the flow of your presentation, making your delivery smoother and more confident. It's also important to anticipate any technical issues and prepare backup plans. 

Being flexible and ready to adapt shows your professionalism and preparedness, which earns the trust and attention of your audience.

Best Practices for Delivering Presentations

You can enhance your presentation delivery by consistently embracing and implementing the following effective strategies. Not only will this captivate and engage your audience, but it will also create a lasting impression long after your presentation.

Know your audience 

To make a presentation successful,  it's important to truly know your audience . Begin by thoroughly researching who they are - their demographics, interests, and knowledge level. This information will help you customize your content to meet their needs and expectations. 

Additionally, take the time to understand their challenges, worries, and what they hope to get out of your presentation. This insight will help you craft a message that resonates and relates to them. 

By adjusting how you speak, providing relatable examples, and setting the appropriate tone, you can establish a deep connection that will make your presentation truly impactful and unforgettable.

Confident body language and voice modulation

How you appear and communicate can have a powerful influence on how your audience receives your message. Y our body language  says a lot, so keep yourself open and make eye contact. 

Use intentional gestures to connect with your audience and exude confidence, which will grab their attention. It's equally vital to modulate your voice. 

Change your tone, pace, and volume to emphasize important points, show enthusiasm, and keep your audience interested. A lively presentation keeps people engaged and makes your message more persuasive.

Practice and don't memorize

Practicing is important, but it's also essential to avoid memorizing everything word for word. Instead of repeating a canned speech, grasp your presentation's main ideas and overall flow.

Practice until you feel at ease with the material to deliver it more naturally as if you were having a conversation. Practicing helps you fine-tune your content, prepare for possible challenges, and adjust how your audience reacts and asks questions. 

By taking this flexible approach, you can stay focused while adding a touch of spontaneity and authenticity to your presentation.

Engage through interaction 

Take your presentation up a notch by turning it into a lively conversation that involves your audience. How can you do this? Try sprinkling in open-ended questions, short activities, or discussions throughout your talk. 

Inviting your audience to share their perspectives creates a welcoming environment that keeps everyone interested. People tend to listen attentively, feel more included, and remember your message better when actively involved. 

Plus, you'll also get the chance to clarify any points and delve deeper into the topic. So, why not make your presentation a two-way street and enjoy the benefits of interaction?

Effective use of visual aids 

When using visual aids in your PowerPoint presentation, it's important to ensure they enhance rather than overshadow what you're saying. Slides can be a helpful way to provide visual cues or reinforce your main points, but be careful not to overload them with too much text or distracting animations. 

Remember, the focus should be on you and your message, not just the slides. To keep things clear and readable, follow the 10-20-30 rule:

• Limit your slides to 10.
• Keep your presentation within 20 minutes.
• Use a minimum font size of 30.

You'll create an understandable and engaging presentation by finding the right balance between visuals and verbal communication.

End with a clear call to action

Along with creating an effective presentation in PowerPoint introduction, the ending of your PowerPoint presentation is equally important. It's the perfect time to drive home your main points and make a lasting impression. 

Keep it short and sweet, highlighting the most important things you want your audience to remember. Don't forget to end with a clear call to action, like asking for feedback, sparking a discussion, or challenging your audience to use what they've learned. 

A strong closing reinforces your message and helps your audience know what to do next. It's all about ensuring your presentation has a lasting impact, even after everyone leaves the room.

Virtual Assistants for engaging presentations

A virtual assistant is a crucial asset when handling tasks from a distance. They support professionals in managing administrative, creative, and organizational duties.

When creating an effective PowerPoint presentation, a virtual assistant can greatly enhance various aspects, such as content, design, delivery, and overall effectiveness.

Here is how a VA can help you create engaging presentations:

• Content:  A virtual assistant is a great resource for creating a polished and effective presentation. They can help you organize your thoughts and ensure your ideas flow smoothly, ensuring a clear and concise message. They are also skilled at simplifying complex information so your audience can easily understand and remember key points. Furthermore, they can help you find impactful visuals that will enhance the overall narrative of your presentation.
• Design:  They can choose a neat and appropriate template matching the theme and purpose of the presentation. Their role is crucial in keeping the slides visually consistent and ensuring that fonts, colors, and layout are uniform. Moreover, they can improve readability by organizing the content effectively, optimizing the slide space, and using white space strategically. 
• Delivery:  They can boost fluency by giving you practice sessions, offering feedback, and helping you polish your presentation skills. Plus, they can suggest ways to captivate your audience by adding interactive elements to your slides or brainstorming fun ways to get them involved. Lastly, they can collaborate with you to create a powerful call to action that wraps up your presentation with impact.
• Other points:  Besides these core aspects, virtual assistants can collect feedback from test audiences or colleagues, offering valuable insights to enhance the presentation. They can also conduct research and gather online resources like articles, videos, or statistical data to enhance the content. Additionally, they can verify compatibility with various devices to guarantee accessibility and provide assistance with basic PowerPoint functions or help resolve technical difficulties.

Wishup: For Ultimate Business Presentations 

Wishup is a well-known platform that provides a wide range of virtual assistant services designed to meet the unique needs of businesses. One of our areas of expertise lies in delivering exceptional presentation creation services, guaranteeing precise financial management and accuracy for businesses of any size.

Here are some of the benefits of choosing us: 

Partner with Exceptional Talent

Work with the best 0.1% of highly skilled virtual assistant talent handpicked by Wishup, ensuring unrivaled proficiency and expertise in PowerPoint presentation creation.

Effortless Onboarding

Seamlessly integrate a virtual assistant into your team within a single day, streamlining the onboarding process for swift and efficient commencement of presentation tasks.

Training Budget Elimination

Experience the advantage of not requiring a separate training budget as Wishup's proficient virtual assistants possess the necessary skills, reducing onboarding time and expenses.

Replacement Policy Assurance

Enjoy our outstanding replacement policy, which guarantees quick and stress-free replacements. Rest easy knowing that your virtual assistant's performance is taken care of.

Risk-Free Trial Period

Test the capabilities of your virtual assistant with a 7-day risk-free trial, allowing you to assess their suitability for your bookkeeping needs without commitment.

Conclusion 

In conclusion, content, design, and delivery are essential for creating impactful presentations. Focus on creating clear and engaging content, using thoughtful design, and delivering your presentation dynamically to capture your audience's attention. By following these fundamental tips, you can significantly improve your PowerPoint skills. 

Wishup is here to support you on this journey, offering top-tier virtual assistant services. We can help you create seamless content, polish your design, and improve your presentation delivery. Contact us today for a free consultation , or email us at  [email protected]  to learn how our services can improve your presentation abilities.

FAQs: Creating An Effective Presentation In PowerPoint

How do you create a powerpoint presentation.

When creating a PowerPoint presentation, begin by outlining your content, choosing an appropriate design template, arranging slides logically, adding captivating visuals, practicing your delivery, and making improvements based on feedback.

What are the 5 steps involved in creating an effective presentation?

Creating an effective presentation involves five key steps:

• planning and outlining content
• designing visually appealing slides
• practicing delivery
• seeking feedback for improvements
• refining the presentation based on insights gained

What is effective presentation?

An effective presentation captivates its audience through a clear, engaging message, well-structured content, visually appealing design, and engaging delivery. It leaves a lasting impact and prompts action or understanding among the viewers.

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Creating Effective PowerPoint® Presentations

by Purdue Global Academic Success Center and Writing Center · Published February 4, 2014 · Updated February 3, 2014

A Resource to Share with Students

By Chrissine Rios, Writing Tutor

Microsoft® PowerPoint® is a tool for creating dynamic oral presentations. This tutorial introduces the elements of a PowerPoint® presentation and helps you get started by illustrating the steps for creating slides and the features that make a presentation effective.

ELEMENTS OF A POWERPOINT® PRESENTATION

If you have been assigned a PowerPoint® in addition to an essay or instead of an essay, here are the key similarities and differences between these two forms:

GETTING STARTED WITH SLIDES

Similar to drafting an essay, when creating a PowerPoint®, you need to define your topic and focus, determine your audience, and know your purpose–whether you are informing, educating, entertaining, or persuading.

Another essential step that takes as much time when creating a PowerPoint® as it does when writing an essay is to research your subject matter and prewrite your ideas.

A next step to fully prepare is to make an informal outline to organize your ideas and establish a clear beginning middle and end. With the groundwork complete and content prepared, you are ready to create Slide 1.

1.     New presentations begin with a title slide. Follow the directions given in the text placeholders beginning with “click to add title.”

2.      Then, in the next box, add your subtitle. You may also use this area to provide your name and the university name per APA guidelines or any other information required on your title slide.

3.      Since a PowerPoint® accompanies an oral presentation, you may want to add speaker notes in the notes pane to elaborate on the points on each slide.

Slide 1: Add title, subtitle, your name, your university name, and in the Notes pane, your speaker notes.

Slides 2, 3, 4…

1.    To insert another slide, right-click the thumbnail of the slide that you want the next slide to follow.

2.    On the drop-down menu, click “New Slide.”

3.    The new slide will open in a default layout. To use this layout, “click to add title,” and in the body placeholder, you can click to add text or select from the media options.

4.    To use another layout, open the  Slide Layout  task pane and select the layout that best suits your content.

5.    Continue inserting slides using the same steps as above, or insert a “Duplicate Slide” and replace the text or image to  maintain c onsistent title placement and formatting.

APA Citation Tips:

• Cite your research after the bullet point(s) that have the quoted, paraphrased, or summarized text.
• You can insert text boxes as needed and position them on the slide to add citations to images or charts from your research. Refer to the Insert menu on the PowerPoint® toolbar to use this feature.

DESIGNING AN EFFECTIVE PRESENTATION

PowerPoint® presentations are meant to be seen more than read. Their impact depends on their visual appeal, so you will want to apply design features. For the design to be effective, consider the following:

1. Apply a theme . Themes are design templates that establish the background, bullets, charts, SmartArt, and text style, as well as the position of the content placeholders. Slide layout options also remain available, and you can resize and reposition any object on a slide (except the stylistic patterns built into the themes).

Apply a theme.

2.  Use a consistent background such as one design template throughout. Only use a different background in the presentation to bring attention to one slide. 

Use a consistent background, color scheme, and font.

3. Use a consistent color scheme throughout of no more than three colors (or one design theme).   When selecting colors, avoid h ard-to-read extremes such as black text on a white background, which is blinding, or white text on a black background, which is like reading the inside of a box. 

4. Use one type of transition  between slides for consistency. 

5. Use the same  font throughout such as Arial, Times, Verdana, or Calibri. Use font sizes large enough to view from anywhere in the room. Avoid using font smaller than 24. 

6. Use visuals such as charts, images, and clipart to illustrate your content. However, do not add clipart simply to make a slide fancier or more colorful. 

Cartoonish clipart is unprofessional and distracting. In this example it also crowds the text, which itself is too frilly, dense, slanted, and small to read.

All elements of the slide must work together to be effective and have the intended impact on the audience.

APA Citation 

When using Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® clipart in your Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® presentation, you do not have to cite it according to APA.  If you use clipart or images from an on-line source, however, you will want to attribute the art to its source with a citation. In APA format, this citation format is the following: 

In-text, aligned with image: (Name of image creator, Year image was made)

Reference slide: Name of image creator, A. A. (Year image was made). Title of image. . Retrieved from http://…

Want to Learn More About PowerPoint? The Microsoft ® PowerPoint ® website has many tutorials to choose from: http://bit.ly/1cZWSY0

Download this tutorial as a pdf :  http://bit.ly/1dZirfZ

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Thanks for sharing this information! This is a terrific resource for my students in completing one of their course assignments. I’m definitely going to share! 🙂

Thank you, Terresa. We are so glad the blog helped. Chrissine always makes fabulous resources, and we will try to post more of them.

Thanks for your comment!

[…] to the resource, “Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations,” located in the Student Success Center, for additional guidance on completing this assignment in the appropriate […]

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6 Tips for Creating An Effective PowerPoint Presentation

by ELB Guest Author | Jul 6, 2017

The saying that all PowerPoint developers should keep in mind is, “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.” Almost all software development tools give you amazing features that allow you to create awesome content. But a presentation full of awesome features, animations, colors, and fonts doesn’t always make a good presentation. Here are 6 simple things that will improve your presentation and benefit your audience.

1. Font Size and Type:

When presenting keep in mind that your audience is a lot further away from the screen than you were while you were creating the presentation. So to make sure your audience can comprehend what is being presented, never insert text into your presentation that is smaller than 24pt.

Not only does font size help with comprehension, but font type plays a huge factor as well. As a general rule, never use any fonts with serifs (the fancy projection finishing off a stroke of a letter) or any fonts that resemble papyrus (I’m looking at you, high school kids). While these types of fonts may look great close up on a computer screen 17 inches from your face, the same clarity and understanding doesn’t translate when you are 15-20 feet away. And to help create a sense of unity within the presentation, never use more than two font types: one for titles and headers, and the other for body text.

A procedure that may seem mundane and worthless like labeling all your graphs, tables, charts, and etc. makes a huge difference when presenting to an audience. Again, they don’t know the content as well as you do and you have to walk your audience by hand through the information. This is especially important when it has to do with the type of content that is generally presented in tables and charts (lots and lots of numbers).

3. Consistent Backgrounds:

When it comes to backgrounds, there is definitely a method to the madness. Good presentations ameliorate content with backgrounds that don’t detract from the flow of the presentation. And good presenters will interchange between one or two different backgrounds depending on the information shown on screen. If this is done consistently, you will almost always know what kind of information is being displayed because the presenter defined it through the correlation of the content and the background.

4. Contrast:

This tip goes hand in hand with tip #1 and #3. If you are set on using certain font types and colors in your presentation, make sure that your content is always easy to read after the background images are applied. Always go back through your presentation and locate the trouble spots and mask your text with a darker (or lighter) shape. This will allow you to keep your background selection and create a presentation that is easy to read and digest.

5. High Quality Images:

7 words: Absolutely use nothing that resembles clip art. This will be easier to do now that PowerPoint has drifted away from using it. I don’t know how hard I need to try and convince you not to use it, but in case you do like using it, here is a bulleted list of why you should never use clip art in a presentation ever again.

• Not professional
• You can do so much better
• Audience won’t take you seriously

Presenting and presentation is headed to a more simplistic and modern approach to design. Clip art is stepping back into the 90’s. You can tell better stories and give better examples by using high quality images. And if royalties and licensing scares you, go to eLearning Brothers and use some of our 2 million royalty free assets! It pays to to look for the perfect image.

6. Duplicate Final Slide:

While perusing the internet this last week I found a rather peculiar tip, it was to duplicate your final slide in its final state (meaning what it would look like without any animations or transitions) so that you never accidentally double click and skip to the black screen of death before it is time. This is such a simple tip that creates a huge safeguard when presenting at prestigious conferences or in front of your CEO.

Whether or not you deliver an effective presentation is decided long before you stand in front of an audience. It is decided during the production of your presentation. So take the time and give the time an awesome presentation deserves. Do you have any tips for creating an awesome presentation that you would like to share? Comment below!

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The effectiveness of any presentation largely depends on the speaker’s ability to grasp the audience’s attention and sustain it. An engaging PowerPoint presentation can act as an excellent tool to enhance your effectiveness as a speaker, making your content more understandable and memorable.

Moreover, an intriguing presentation will not only captivate your audience’s attention but also elevate their interest in the subject. It amplifies the quality of communication by displaying information in a visually appealing manner, thereby simplifying complex ideas or data.

If you’re looking for an easy way to ensure your presentation looks professional and aesthetically pleasing, consider using a  custom PowerPoint template service . These services provide uniquely designed templates that can be customized to suit your needs, saving you valuable time and effort.

Working with a PowerPoint template service can greatly enhance your skills and create engaging PowerPoint presentations. Whether you are a business professional, educator, or public speaker, utilizing these templates can take your presentations to the next level and ensure that your message leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

In a business scenario, a well-designed PowerPoint can play a significant role in persuading your potential clients or investors due to its visual impact and coherent format. Beyond that, it can distinguish you from the competition and enhance your professional image. The efforts put into creating an engaging PowerPoint presentation can therefore pay off in numerous ways.

Harnessing the Power of Visual Aids in PowerPoint

Visual aids play a major role i n engaging your audience and reinforcing your message. Graphics, images, diagrams, and charts can make your PowerPoint presentation more dynamic and understandable. Visual elements are more effective than text in conveying information as they increase memory retention and stimulate multiple senses. However, ensure they are relevant, clear, and do not distract from the main message.

Additionally, effective use of whitespace gives your slides a clean, uncluttered look, giving your visuals space to breathe and your audience the ease to focus on the content. Remember the adage “A picture is worth a thousand words.” By integrating impactful visuals, your PowerPoint presentation will be more engaging, memorable, and effective.

Techniques to Enhance Engagement in Your Presentation

Boosting engagement during your presentation  can heighten the audience’s interest and attention span. Encourage interaction by asking questions or getting feedback. This makes the session more active and allows you to gauge the audience’s understanding of the topic. Utilizing storytelling techniques can also enhance engagement by creating an emotional connection with the audience. Stories entice the listeners and simplify complex subjects, making them easier to comprehend.

Including quizzes, polls, or short activities can also increase audience participation and make the presentation more interactive. It provides a sense of involvement, making the experience more immersive for the participants. Incorporating humor when appropriate can lighten the mood, making your presentation more enjoyable and leaving a lasting impression on your audience.

Achieving the Balance Between Information and Entertainment

Striking a balance between information and entertainment in your PowerPoint presentation can be challenging yet crucial. Overloading your presentation with only data and facts can make it dry and monotonous. On the other hand, focusing too much on entertaining elements can dilute the importance of the information and lead the audience astray.

Use visuals and humor to lighten the information load and enhance comprehension. However, the visuals should be relevant, and the humor should align with the content. This balance can make your presentation more appealing and engaging without compromising its informational value. Incorporating real-life examples and case studies can also help to achieve this balance. They not only make the information relatable but also reinforce the credibility of your content.

As this article illustrates, creating an engaging PowerPoint presentation requires careful planning, strategic design, and effective delivery techniques. By implementing the tips outlined in this article, you can captivate your audience, convey your message effectively, and leave a lasting impression.

Image Credit: Midjourney

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Tips for Creating Effective Presentations in PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is one of the most popular tools for creating presentations. However, creating an effective PowerPoint presentation can be daunting, especially if you are new to the software. In this tutorial, we will explore some tips and tricks to help you create engaging and impactful presentations in PowerPoint.

PowerPoint Presentation Tips

Microsoft PowerPoint has plenty of features to help users create effective presentations. Here are some tips to help you leverage the software’s power to best convey your message to your audience, including:

• Conciseness
• Consistency
• Using simple fonts
• Using the right font size
• Using high quality Images
• Choosing great visuals over text
• Simple table designs
• Choose colors wisely
• Avoid complex transitions

Read: Top Online Microsoft Office Courses

Keep PowerPoint Presentations Concise

Could PowerPoint present all of your information for you? Sure, but instead of letting PowerPoint do all the work, you should view it as a tool to help supplement your story.

When creating PowerPoint slides, the less text, the better, and white space is your friend. Too much text on a slide makes your audience read versus listen. It distracts attention away from you, the speaker. And worst of all, excess slide text makes your presentation dull.

A great way to infuse sufficient text into your slides without overwhelming your audience’s eyes is to use short bullet points that summarize what you are about to say. This makes the information easier to digest and keeps the focus where it belongs: On you. Some go even further and suggest that you should avoid complete sentences altogether unless you are quoting someone.

If you want something more specific to follow when determining how much content to put on each slide, follow the 6×6 rule. It limits you to six bullet points per slide with six words per bullet. On the more extreme end, some say you should limit the content to six words per slide, although that may be difficult to achieve.

In short, do not let your slides dominate the presentation. And avoid the common mistake of simply re-reading your slides as well. They should serve as your guide and not as a script or teleprompter.

Keep It Consistent

Rather than trying to incorporate every color, font, chart, etc., available in PowerPoint into your presentation, aim for consistency. All your slides should have a similar look and feel that creates cohesion and an air of professionalism throughout your presentation. Doing so reflects well on you as the presenter and makes it easier for your audience to follow and absorb your content.

Choose A Simple Font

Avoid the temptation of picking a creative font to spruce up your slides. If your computer does not have the creative font you desire installed, it will replace it with a random one. A classic font, such as Calibri , Helvetica , or Verdana is a much better choice since it is likely available on all devices. More importantly, some fancier fonts are hard to read and could frustrate your audience as they try to decipher what is on-screen.

Do you have to stick with only one font in your PowerPoint presentation? No, but any more than three could be pushing it. And, if you choose the three-font max, for example, ensure that each font plays a particular role in your presentation. Use the first font for your headers, the second for your sub-headers, and the third for your body text to keep it cohesive, organized, and easy to follow and digest.

Another point to remember when dealing with font style is to not over-style the text. While using italics and bold can help you emphasize certain parts of your presentation, overdoing it can be distracting.

Read: Overview of Microsoft Office Certification

Pick A Proper Font Size

Your font style is not the only thing that matters, as you also need to pick the proper size to get your point across. You do not want a font that is too big and dominates your slides. You also do not want a font that is too small to read. Some suggest using a minimum of 20pt font for headers and 18pt for body text. Others say a 30pt font should be the minimum, as it allows everyone to see it and limits you to how much text you put on a slide, forcing you to craft more concise and impactful messages.

A good rule to follow when picking font size or designing slides overall is to create your presentations for the back of the room. In other words, can the person sitting in the last row see everything fine? If not, adjust until they can.

Use High-Quality Images

You may have superb and informative text on your slides, but if your images do not match in terms of quality, you may lose points with your audience. Instead of choosing the first result you see on Google Images , make sure your pictures match the text and the message you are trying to convey. The higher-quality images you use, the better.

Beyond ensuring your images are of high quality, here are some other characteristics they should have to strengthen your PowerPoint presentation visually, including being supportive of content, inspiring readers to read more, and being more “human” relatable:

• Supportive: The images should support your content and prove your point further without being so overbearing that they distract the audience.
• Inspirational: Your presentation’s images should inspire the audience to want to learn more or ask questions about what you are presenting. Inspiring engagement is the goal here.
• Realistic and human: You can win over your audience by connecting with them on a human level. Pick images for your .ppt presentation that convey realism and feelings of humanity to achieve this goal. Your basic stock photos will typically fail to connect with your viewers, so picking the right images may take some time and a bit of effort until you find the right fit.

Opt For Visuals Versus Text in Your Presentations

Using visuals to convey your message is an easy way to avoid putting too much text on your slides and overwhelming your audience. PowerPoint has many graphs that can convert complex, sometimes dull data into eye-catching and easy-to-digest information. Another reason to use visuals is that studies show people tend to remember pictures better than words after brief exposure.

“Less Is More” When Designing Tables in PowerPoint

Tables can help you relay data in an organized manner. Unfortunately, many make the common mistake of crowding their tables in PowerPoint with unnecessary borders, colors, and outlines. Keep your tables minimalist, and they will relay your desired information without confusing your audience.

Avoid Complex Transitions Between PowerPoint Slides

Does it seem like your PowerPoint presentation is dull? Avoid the temptation of adding life to it by using diverse transitions as you go from slide to slide. A standard fade effect is all you need for an effective PowerPoint presentation. Anything more than that, and you could distract your audience or come across as unprofessional. As with other elements of your PowerPoint presentation, aim for cohesion and uniformity with your transitions. Once you find one that works, stick with it.

Do Not Overdo PowerPoint Slides With Colors

If you are doing a presentation for a particular brand, use its primary and secondary colors. If the color choice is entirely up to you, avoid extremely bright colors that can cause fatigue or seem tacky.

You can stick to a simple combination of light and dark colors, using light text on a dark background or vice versa to create a contrast that makes for easy reading.

Read: Microsoft PowerPoint Tips and Tricks

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How To Get Free Access To Microsoft PowerPoint

E very time you need to present an overview of a plan or a report to a whole room of people, chances are you turn to Microsoft PowerPoint. And who doesn't? It's popular for its wide array of features that make creating effective presentations a walk in the park. PowerPoint comes with a host of keyboard shortcuts for easy navigation, subtitles and video recordings for your audience's benefit, and a variety of transitions, animations, and designs for better engagement.

But with these nifty features comes a hefty price tag. At the moment, the personal plan — which includes other Office apps — is at $69.99 a year. This might be the most budget-friendly option, especially if you plan to use the other Microsoft Office apps, too. Unfortunately, you can't buy PowerPoint alone, but there are a few workarounds you can use to get access to PowerPoint at no cost to you at all.

Read more: The 20 Best Mac Apps That Will Improve Your Apple Experience

Method #1: Sign Up For A Free Microsoft Account On The Office Website

Microsoft offers a web-based version of PowerPoint completely free of charge to all users. Here's how you can access it:

• Visit the Microsoft 365 page .
• If you already have a free account with Microsoft, click Sign in. Otherwise, press "Sign up for the free version of Microsoft 365" to create a new account at no cost.
• On the Office home page, select PowerPoint from the side panel on the left.
• Click on "Blank presentation" to create your presentation from scratch, or pick your preferred free PowerPoint template from the options at the top (there's also a host of editable templates you can find on the Microsoft 365 Create site ).
• Create your presentation as normal. Your edits will be saved automatically to your Microsoft OneDrive as long as you're connected to the internet.

It's important to keep in mind, though, that while you're free to use this web version of PowerPoint to create your slides and edit templates, there are certain features it doesn't have that you can find on the paid version. For instance, you can access only a handful of font styles and stock elements like images, videos, icons, and stickers. Designer is also available for use on up to three presentations per month only (it's unlimited for premium subscribers). When presenting, you won't find the Present Live and Always Use Subtitles options present in the paid plans. The biggest caveat of the free version is that it won't get any newly released features, unlike its premium counterparts.

Method #2: Install Microsoft 365 (Office) To Your Windows

Don't fancy working on your presentation in a browser? If you have a Windows computer with the Office 365 apps pre-installed or downloaded from a previous Office 365 trial, you can use the Microsoft 365 (Office) app instead. Unlike the individual Microsoft apps that you need to buy from the Microsoft Store, this one is free to download and use. Here's how to get free PowerPoint on the Microsoft 365 (Office) app:

• Search for Microsoft 365 (Office) on the Microsoft Store app.
• Install and open it.
• Sign in with your Microsoft account. Alternatively, press "Create free account" if you don't have one yet.
• Click on Create on the left side panel.
• Select Presentation.
• In the PowerPoint window that opens, log in using your account.
• Press Accept on the "Free 5-day pass" section. This lets you use PowerPoint (and Word and Excel) for five days — free of charge and without having to input any payment information.
• Create your presentation as usual. As you're using the desktop version, you can access the full features of PowerPoint, including the ability to present in Teams, export the presentation as a video file, translate the slides' content to a different language, and even work offline.

The only downside of this method is the time limit. Once the five days are up, you can no longer open the PowerPoint desktop app. However, all your files will still be accessible to you. If you saved them to OneDrive, you can continue editing them on the web app. If you saved them to your computer, you can upload them to OneDrive and edit them from there.

Method #3: Download The Microsoft PowerPoint App On Your Android Or iOS Device

If you're always on the move and need the flexibility of creating and editing presentations on your Android or iOS device, you'll be glad to know that PowerPoint is free and available for offline use on your mobile phones. But — of course, there's a but — you can only access the free version if your device is under 10.1 inches. Anything bigger than that requires a premium subscription. If your phone fits the bill, then follow these steps to get free PowerPoint on your device:

• Install Microsoft PowerPoint from the App Store or Google Play Store .
• Log in using your existing Microsoft email or enter a new email address to create one if you don't already have an account.
• On the "Get Microsoft 365 Personal Plan" screen, press Skip For Now.
• If you're offered a free trial, select Try later (or enjoy the free 30-day trial if you're interested).
• To make a new presentation, tap the plus sign in the upper right corner.
• Change the "Create in" option from OneDrive - Personal to a folder on your device. This allows you to save the presentation to your local storage and make offline edits.
• Press "Set as default" to set your local folder as the default file storage location.
• Choose your template from the selection or use a blank presentation.
• Edit your presentation as needed.

Do note that PowerPoint mobile comes with some restrictions. There's no option to insert stock elements, change the slide size to a custom size, use the Designer feature, or display the presentation in Immersive Reader mode. However, you can use font styles considered premium on the web app.

Method #4: Use Your School Email Address

Office 365 Education is free for students and teachers, provided they have an email address from an eligible school. To check for your eligibility, here's what you need to do:

• Go to the Office 365 Education page .
• Type in your school email address in the empty text field.
• Press "Get Started."
• On the next screen, verify your eligibility. If you're eligible, you'll be asked to select whether you're a student or a teacher. If your school isn't recognized, however, you'll get a message telling you so.
• For those who are eligible, proceed with creating your Office 365 Education account. Make sure your school email can receive external mail, as Microsoft will send you a verification code for your account.
• Once you're done filling out the form, press "Start." This will open your Office 365 account page.

You can then start making your PowerPoint presentation using the web app. If your school's plan supports it, you can also install the Office 365 apps to your computer by clicking the "Install Office" button on your Office 365 account page and running the downloaded installation file. What sets the Office 365 Education account apart from the regular free account is that you have unlimited personal cloud storage and access to other Office apps like Word, Excel, and Outlook.

Read the original article on SlashGear .

Blog – Creative Presentations Ideas

infoDiagram visual slide examples, PowerPoint diagrams & icons , PPT tricks & guides

How to Present Real Estate Property with Impact Using PowerPoint

Do you need to present real estate property in an impactful way, or create an eye-catching leaflet showcasing apartments to sell or rent? Without investing a ton of money for a designer, you can use a tool you are already probably familiar with – Microsoft PowerPoint. Let me inspire you with examples of slides that not only convey information but do so with style and visual appeal.

A property presentation materials have typically structure like this:

• General information about the property (what it is, how big, best pictures).
• Main characteristics like location, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and area of property.
• Interior, with a description of the living area, kitchen, bedrooms, and bathrooms.
• Exterior with examples.
• Overview with a few pictures gallery of property.
• Contact information.

All this information can be easily represented within a PowerPoint presentation that you can export to PDF and print. Additionally, PowerPoint gives you the flexibility to change content or replace pictures even when you are offline. 

I’d like to share a few layouts that I would use as a presentation designer for creating a real estate leaflet. 

Get all the graphics presented here – click on the slide pictures to see and download the source illustration. Check the full Real Estate Property Presentation .

Start with Property Introduction

This slide is all about showing off your property. On the right, there is a place for putting stunning photos that show off the home’s best features — like that cozy A-frame cabin bathed in sunlight. On the left, add a quick rundown of the important details. A bold text at the top with the property’s highlight, like the ’60m2 terrace’, makes sure it stands out. This design is easy to change up with different photos and facts to match any property. Notice also ribbons on top and at the bottom with icons and names of the property and website.

Main Characteristics Display

Here is a snapshot of the property’s essentials, making it simple for viewers to get the key details at a glance. It’s clean, direct, and to the point. A welcoming image on the left invites the eye. The right side could feature a list of characteristics, from the number of bedrooms to the total area, each visualized with a corresponding icon to make them stand out. A subtle color block behind the text helps to draw the eye, while a soft background can give the slide a professional and polished look.

Interior Exploration

Take a quick peek inside the home with this ‘Interior’ slide. It’s laid out with four clear photos that show off the main spots: the living room, kitchen, bedrooms, and bathrooms. Below each photo, there’s a place for a little list of highlights, like a ‘cozy fireplace’ or ‘fancy appliances’, each on a nice vibrant rectangular background. The design is super straightforward, so you can get the feel of the place and the details.

Exterior Showcase

Presenting real estate is also about showcasing the exterior. Check out this slide – it’s like giving people a virtual tour of what’s outside the house. You’ve got three photos that show off different spots: it might be a roof terrace that’s all about the views, a lower terrace that’s perfect for hanging out with friends, and a covered spot to park cars. Under each photo, there’s a quick list with a color background that tells you what’s cool about each place, like a hot tub on the roof or lots of room to park. The design is super straightforward, so you can get the feel of the place and the details.

Visual Summary

Create a mosaic of images on this slide, giving a visual summary of the property. The use of a grid layout allows you to present a variety of spaces and angles, giving a well-rounded impression of the property. You can place a translucent banner with the title e.g. overview, above the images for a modern touch and consistency with other slides.

Designing a presentation for real estate is about creating an experience. Through thoughtful design, strategic layout, and the clever use of visuals, you can present real estate in a way that is not only informative but also inspiring and memorable.

What to Remember about how to Present Real Estate Visually

It’s useful to know a few simple design rules connected with creating real estate presentations:

• Stick to one style and color palette for consistency .
• Enrich your text with icons – properly chosen icons can perfectly show what you are talking about e.g. icon of the interior.
• Use the same margins on each slide, it will make your presentation look more professional.
• Choose the best photoshoots you will find, and keep it visually welcoming.

I’m sure you can make an impactful presentation and overall impression with these basic design rules.

Shortcut to create stunning Real Estate presentation

The examples above used the graphics from a PowerPoint template Real Estate Property Presentation. 

All slides are available in the infoDiagram collection of presentation graphics here:

Real Estate Property PPT Presentation

So if you want to create your real estate presentation quickly and visually appealing you can use this template. Simply add your pictures into predefined placeholders, replace texts, and enjoy a beautifully craft deck.

Moreover, you can extend your data presentation with an HR Metrics Dashboard Data Charts right here .

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