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17 PowerPoint Presentation Tips From Pro Presenters [+ Templates]

Published: April 26, 2024

PowerPoint presentations can be professional, attractive, and really help your audience remember your message.

If you don’t have much experience, that’s okay — I’m going to arm you with PowerPoint design tips from pro presenters, the steps you need to build an engaging deck, and templates to help you nail great slide design.

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Buckle up for a variety of step-by-step explanations as well as tips and tricks to help you start mastering this program. There are additional resources woven in, and you’ll find expert perspectives from other HubSpotters along the way.

Table of Contents

How to Make a PowerPoint Presentation

Powerpoint presentation tips.

Microsoft PowerPoint is like a test of basic professional skills, and each PowerPoint is basically a presentation made of multiple slides.

Successful PowerPoints depend on three main factors: your command of PowerPoint's design tools, your attention to presentation processes, and being consistent with your style.

Keep those in mind as we jump into PowerPoint's capabilities.

Getting Started

1. open powerpoint and click ‘new.’.

A page with templates will usually open automatically, but if not, go to the top left pane of your screen and click New . If you’ve already created a presentation, select Open and then double-click the icon to open the existing file.

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Creating PowerPoint Slides

3. insert a slide..

Insert a new slide by clicking on the Home tab and then the New Slide button. Consider what content you want to put on the slide, including heading, text, and imagery.

• Finally, PowerPoint Live is a new tool that enables you to do more seamless presentations during video calls and may be a better overall match for doing presentations remotely. Check out this video:

11. Try Using GIFs.

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15. Embed multimedia.

PowerPoint allows you to either link to video/audio files externally or to embed the media directly in your presentation. 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).

If you use PowerPoint for Mac it gets a bit complicated, but it can be done:

• Always bring the video and/or audio file with you in the same folder as the PowerPoint presentation.
• Only insert video or audio files once the presentation and the containing folder have been saved on a portable drive in their permanent folder.
• If the presentation will be played on a Windows computer, then Mac users need to make sure their multimedia files are in WMV format.
• 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. The easiest fix? Just bring along your own laptop when you're presenting.

The next easiest fix is to upload your PowerPoint presentation into Google Slides as a backup option — just make sure there is a good internet connection and a browser available where you plan to present.

Google Slides is a cloud-based presentation software that will show up the same way on all operating systems.

To import your PowerPoint presentation into Google Slides:

• 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.
• 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

Now that you have these style, design, and presentation tips under your belt, you should feel confident to create your PowerPoint presentation.

But if you can explore other resources to make sure your content hits the mark. After all, you need a strong presentation to land your point and make an impression.

With several templates to choose from — both in PowerPoint and available for free download — you can swiftly be on your way to creating presentations that wow your audiences.

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

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A step-by-step guide to captivating PowerPoint presentation design

november 20, 2023

by Corporate PowerPoint Girl

Do you often find yourself stuck with a lackluster PowerPoint presentation, desperately seeking ways to make it more engaging and visually appealing? If your boss has ever told you to "please fix" a presentation and you didn't know where to start, you're not alone. In this article, we'll walk you through a straightforward method to transform your PowerPoint slides into a visually captivating masterpiece. 

Let's dive right in! 

Clean up your slides 

The first step in this journey to presentation excellence is all about decluttering your slides and elevating their impact. Say goodbye to those uninspiring bullet points that often dominate presentations. Instead, focus on what truly matters – the key call-out numbers. By increasing the font size of these numbers, you ensure they take center stage, immediately drawing your audience's attention. 

To make those numbers pop, consider breaking the text after the numbers into the next line and adding a touch of color. The contrast created by pairing a dark color with a lighter shade, like dark teal and light teal or burnt orange with peach, can work wonders. This simple adjustment makes your data more engaging , enhancing the overall impact of your presentation. 

Add dimension with boxes 

Now, let's introduce an element of depth and organization to your slides. By adding boxes, you'll create a visually pleasing structure that guides your audience through the content. In the "Insert" menu, select "Table" and opt for a one-by-one table. Change the table color to a light gray shade, elongate it, and position it neatly to the left of your text. 

To improve readability and aesthetics, increase the spacing between text phrases. A small adjustment in the before spacing setting (setting it to 48) significantly enhances the visual appeal of your slides. 

Insert circles 

To further enhance the visual appeal and engagement of your slides, let's introduce circles. In the Insert menu, navigate to Shapes and choose the circle. Adjust the circle's height and width to 1.2, ensuring it complements your content seamlessly. Match the circle's shape fill color with the corresponding text color for a harmonious look. 

Avoid using colored outlines for the circles, as they may distract from the overall aesthetic. This simple addition of circles adds an element of visual interest to your presentation, making it more captivating. 

Choose icons 

Now, it's time for a touch of creativity. Selecting icons to complement your text can elevate the clarity and appeal of your slides. In the "Insert" menu, you can search for relevant keywords to find the perfect icon from PowerPoint's extensive library . 

For instance, if your text discusses investment portfolio yield, search for "growth" and choose an upward arrow growth icon. These icons add an extra layer of visual appeal and clarity to your content, making it more engaging and informative. 

Final touches 

To wrap up the transformation process, we come to the final touches that give your presentation a polished, professional finish. Align your icons with their corresponding circles and change the shape fill color to white. This simple adjustment creates a crisp, cohesive look that ties everything together seamlessly. 

In conclusion, by following these steps, you've embarked on a journey to enhance your PowerPoint presentation . These initial steps are just the beginning of your exploration into the world of design elements and styles that can cater to your specific presentation needs. The key to a stunning PowerPoint presentation lies in the details. By following these steps, you can turn a lackluster set of slides into a visually engaging and dynamic presentation that will captivate your audience. So, the next time your boss says, "Please fix," you'll know exactly where to start. Happy presenting! 

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27 Super Hidden PowerPoint Tips and Tricks Only The Pros Know!

Ausbert Generoso

Ever felt like your PowerPoint presentations could use a little magic? You’re not alone. Whether you’re a seasoned presenter or just getting started, there’s a world of PowerPoint tips and tricks waiting for you. In this guide, we’re diving into the nitty-gritty of Microsoft PowerPoint to uncover 30 hidden gems that’ll transform the way you create and deliver slides.

From making your designs pop to streamlining your workflow, these PowerPoint hacks are designed for real-world impact. No jargon, just practical insights that’ll have you presenting like a pro in no time.

Let’s cut through the noise and get straight to the good stuff – your next presentation is about to level up. Ready? Let’s get started.

27 PowerPoint Tips and Tricks That Put The Power in PowerPoint

1. Morph Transition for Seamless Animation

What’s it for:  Elevate your presentation by seamlessly animating objects and creating smooth transitions between slides. Morph transition is your key to a dynamic and visually engaging storytelling experience, allowing you to captivate your audience effortlessly. 

How to do it:

• Position the same object in different parts on multiple slides
• Select all slides, and go to the Transitions tab.
• Choose “Morph” as the transition effect.

2. SVG Image Integration

What’s it for:  Did you think SVG’s only work for websites and professional photo editing tools? They do, too, in PowerPoint! Import high-quality Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG). Maintain image clarity, resize without loss, and enhance your presentations with crisp logos and icons. 

• Save your chosen SVG on your device.
• Click on the Insert tab.
• Choose “Pictures” and select your SVG file.
• Adjust the size without compromising image quality.

3. Designer Feature for Quick Layouts

What’s it for:  Effortlessly create professional-looking slides with the Designer feature. Receive instant layout suggestions based on your content, saving time and ensuring your presentation looks polished. 

• Select a slide.
• Go to the Design tab and click Designer on the far right along the ribbon.
• Select through ready-made slide designs for instant layouts.

4. Insert 3D Models

What’s it for:  Amp up your presentations with manipulable 3D models, adding a dynamic dimension. Whether it’s showcasing products or visualizing data, 3D models bring your slides to life. 

• Click on the “3D Models” dropdown and proceed to Stock 3D Models.
• Search for a 3D model of your choice and insert.
• Manipulate and customize as needed.

5. SmartArt Graphics for Visual Hierarchy

What’s it for:  Convey complex ideas with visual hierarchy using SmartArt graphics. These graphics offer a structured and visually appealing way to organize information, making your content more digestible. 

• Go to the Insert tab.
• Select “SmartArt” and navigate through the available categories.
• Select a graphic template that fits your presentation needs.
• Enter your content and customize as needed.

6. Eyedropper Tool for Color Matching

What’s it for:  Maintain a cohesive design by using the Eyedropper tool to pick colors from images or elements within your presentation. Ensure consistency and professional aesthetics in every slide. 

• Select the editable, native PowerPoint object you wish to customize.
• Go to the Shape Format tab and click on the Shape Fill dropdown.
• Select “More Fill Colors…” and click the eyedropper icon to begin color appropriating.

7. Record and Insert Audio

What’s it for:  Infuse personality into your presentation by recording audio directly within PowerPoint. Ideal for adding voiceovers, explanations, or personal touches that enhance audience engagement. 

• Click on “Audio” and choose “Record Audio.”
• Record your audio and insert it into the slide.

8. Presenter Coach for Rehearsing

What’s it for:  Elevate your presentation skills with Presenter Coach. Receive valuable feedback on pacing, filler words, and more, refining your delivery for a confident and impactful performance. 

• Click on the Slide Show tab.
• Choose “Rehearse with Coach” to start practicing.

9. Hyperlink Navigation for Seamless Transitions

What’s it for:  Streamline your presentation flow by implementing Hyperlink Navigation. This trick allows you to create clickable links within your slides, enabling effortless transitions between related content or external resources, enhancing the overall navigational experience. 

• Select the text or object you want to hyperlink.
• Right-click and choose “Hyperlink” or use the Ctrl+K shortcut.
• Specify the destination, whether it’s another slide, a website, or a file, to create a seamless navigational experience.

10. Alt Text for Accessibility

What’s it for:  Improve accessibility by adding descriptive alternative text to images and objects. Ensure inclusivity for visually impaired individuals, making your presentation accessible to a wider audience. 

• Right-click on the image or object.
• Choose “Edit Alt Text” and enter a descriptive text.

11. Slide Zoom for Dynamic Navigation

What’s it for:  Elevate your presentation’s navigation with Slide Zoom, offering the flexibility to jump to specific slides during a presentation without adhering to a linear sequence. This dynamic feature ensures a more engaging and tailored audience experience. 

• Set a master slide where you’d like to put your “mini slides” altogether.
• Navigate to the Insert tab > Zoom dropdown > Slide Zoom.
• Select the slides you want to link onto your master slide and insert.

12. Live Captions and Subtitles

What’s it for:  Foster inclusivity by enabling live captions and subtitles in multiple languages. This feature enhances accessibility, making your presentation more engaging and comprehensible for a diverse global audience. 

• Go to the Slide Show tab.
• Select “Always Use Subtitles” and choose your language.

13. Password Protection for Security

What’s it for:  Safeguard your presentation’s sensitive content by adding a password. This security measure ensures that only authorized individuals can access and view the information, adding an extra layer of protection. 

• Navigate to the File tab.
• Select “Info” and click on “Protect Presentation.”
• Choose “Encrypt with Password” and set your password.

14. Animation Painter for Consistent Animations

What’s it for:  Maintain a polished and consistent look throughout your presentation by using the Animation Painter. Copy and apply animations across different objects with ease, ensuring a cohesive visual experience. 

• Select the object with the same, desired animation as the others.
• Go to the Animation tab.
• Click on “Animation Painter” and apply to other objects.

15. Linked Excel Charts for Real-Time Updates

What’s it for:  Integrate linked Excel charts for real-time updates in your PowerPoint presentation. Any modifications made to the linked Excel file automatically reflect in your slides, ensuring data accuracy. 

• Copy your Excel chart.
• In PowerPoint, use “Paste Special” and choose “Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object.”

16. Custom Slide Sizes

What’s it for:  Tailor your presentation to various screen dimensions by customizing slide sizes. This feature, accessible through the Design tab, ensures your content fits seamlessly across different display settings. 

• Navigate to the Design tab.
• Click on the “Slide Size” dropdown and choose “Page Setup”.
• Change “Slide sized for” to Custom.

17. Grid and Guidelines for Precision

What’s it for:  Achieve precise object alignment with gridlines and guides. This feature, essential for creating visually polished and organized presentations, ensures your content is visually appealing and professionally structured. 

• Go to the View tab.
• Check the “Grids” and “Guidelines” toggles for display options and customization.

18. Slide Master for Consistent Design

What’s it for:  Establish a cohesive presentation design by utilizing the Slide Master. This time-saving feature enables you to set consistent layouts, fonts, and colors throughout your presentation. 

• Click on “Slide Master” to access and customize master slides.

19. Quick Access Toolbar Customization

What’s it for:  Streamline your workflow by personalizing the Quick Access Toolbar with your most-used commands. This customization ensures quick access to essential tools, enhancing efficiency during presentation creation. 

• Click on the dropdown arrow on the Quick Access Toolbar.
• Select “More Commands” to customize your toolbar.

20. Ink Annotations for Handwriting

What’s it for:  Personalize your presentations with a touch-enabled device using ink annotations. This feature allows you to draw or write directly on slides, adding a unique and handwritten touch to your content. 

• Go to the Draw tab and click on Draw to begin drawing.
• Choose “Ink to Text” or “Ink to Shape” for handwriting annotations.

21. Crop to Shape for Image Customization

What’s it for:  Unleash your creativity by utilizing the Crop to Shape feature, allowing you to create custom image shapes. This adds a distinctive flair to your presentation, providing a visually dynamic and engaging experience. 

• Select the image.
• Navigate to the Picture Format tab.
• Click on “Crop” and choose “Crop to Shape.”
• Select the shape you want your image to have as frame.

22. Slide Show Recording with Narration

What’s it for:  Capture your entire presentation, including narration and animations, by recording a self-running slideshow. This feature is invaluable for sharing presentations with a wider audience, ensuring a consistent and engaging delivery. 

• Click on “Record Slide Show” and choose recording options.

23.  Dynamic Color Scheme Switch for Vibrant Slides

What’s it for:  Infuse energy into your presentation by dynamically switching color schemes. This handy trick allows you to quickly experiment with various color palettes, giving your slides a vibrant and fresh appearance in just a few clicks. 

• Explore different color options by selecting “Colors” and experimenting with the available palettes. Instantly transform the look of your presentation to match your desired mood and style.

24.  Smart Alignment and Distribution for Pixel-Perfect Precision

What’s it for:  Attain pixel-perfect precision in your presentation design with the Smart Alignment and Distribution trick. This technique allows you to not only align objects with accuracy but also evenly distribute them horizontally, ensuring a polished and visually appealing layout. 

• Select the objects you want to align.
• Navigate to the Format tab.
• Click on “Align” to access options like Align Left, Center, or Right for precise alignment.
• Further refine your layout by choosing “Distribute Horizontally,” ensuring equal spacing between objects and achieving a professional design.

25. Insert Online Videos

What’s it for:  Seamlessly integrate online videos directly into your presentation. This feature eliminates the need for external players, offering a smooth and immersive viewing experience for your audience. 

• Click on the “Video” dropdown and select Online Movie.
• Paste the video link and your video should be embedded onto your PowerPoint slide.

26. Embed Fonts for Portability

What’s it for:  Ensure consistent visual appeal on any device by embedding fonts in your presentation. This is particularly useful when sharing your work with others who may not have the same fonts installed, enhancing portability. 

• Go to the File tab.
• Select “Options” and go to the Save tab from the window popup.
• Check “Embed fonts in the file” as well as “Embed all characters”.

27.  Text Transformation

What’s it for:  Uncover the elegance of text transformation with the Shape Format trick. This hack allows you to access a myriad of text transformation designs, offering a swift and sophisticated way to elevate the visual appeal of your presentation. 

• Select the text you want to transform.
• Navigate to the Shape Format tab.
• Click on “Text Effects” and explore the “Transform” options for a variety of stylish text designs. Instantly apply a transformation that suits the tone and style of your presentation.

5 Critical Best Practices to Implement These Pro PowerPoint Tips and Tricks for a Technically Proficient Presentation

Enhance the technical brilliance of your presentation by focusing on these crucial best practices:

1.  Streamlined Font Selection

• Practice:  Limit your font styles to a maximum of three per slide.
• Why:  Simplifying fonts enhances readability, maintains visual consistency, and prevents distraction, ensuring your message is clear and impactful.

2.  High-Resolution Images

• Practice:  Source HD images from reputable free resource websites like Freepik or Unsplash .
• Why:  High-resolution images prevent pixelation, ensuring clarity and professionalism. Crisp visuals contribute to a visually appealing presentation.

3.  Cohesive Color Palette

• Practice:  Stick to a consistent color palette throughout your slides; use the eyedropper tool for precise color matching.
• Why:  A unified color scheme enhances visual harmony, reinforces brand identity, and elevates the overall aesthetics of your presentation.

4.  Efficient Data Visualization

• Practice:  Use charts and graphs for data-driven slides, choosing appropriate chart types for different data sets.
• Why:  Visualizing data through charts improves comprehension, making complex information more accessible and engaging for your audience.

5.  Transitions with Purpose

• Practice:  Apply slide transitions judiciously. Choose transitions that complement the content and avoid excessive animations.
• Why:  Subtle transitions maintain audience focus, while excessive animations may distract from the core message.

Final Thoughts

In presentation-making, technical practices harmonized with thoughtful design is the key to delivering an impactful message. Whether it may be as simple as considering font choices, to incorporating high-resolution visuals, you do not only get to enhance the aesthetics but also ensure your audience’s undivided attention.

Remember, a technically proficient presentation is not just a showcase of information, but also one that leaves a rather immersive experience for those who will see. But at the end of the day, it comes down to your delivery. So, no sweat! You’re doing amazing, rockstar!

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Top 15 PowerPoint Tips and Tricks for Engaging Presentations

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Unleash Your Inner Slide Jedi!

PowerPoint is a powerful and the most trusted tool for creating presentations and visual aids that can help you effectively communicate your message. However, it's essential to prevent common hitches that can lower the impact of your presentation. In this blog post, we will share 15 best PowerPoint tips and tricks to help you create engaging and effective presentations that captivate your audience from start to finish. 

Top15 Powerpoint Tips and Tricks

A good PowerPoint presentation is really important because it serves as a visual aid that enhances the significance of your message. It provides a platform for organising and presenting information in a clear, concise, and engaging manner. 

1. Keep it Simple and Concise

One of the most crucial PowerPoint tips is to keep your slides simple and uncluttered. The main aim here is to deliver a message as easily as possible. Do not insert a lot of content, especially long paragraphs. Minimalistic content Simplicity allows your audience to focus on your key message without distractions. Keep pointers or short phrases to highlight your main points, keeping the text concise and easily readable.

2. Use High-Quality Visuals 

Another helpful Powerpoint tips and tricks is to focus on the visuals. Apart from content, there should also be a visual theme throughout the presentation in order to keep it captivating. There are several enticing templates available on Microsoft PowerPoint. Making use of the 'Arrange' feature ensures the proper alignment of objects. Avoid generic stock images that don't add value to your content. 

3. Know Your Audience 

This is one of the most important PowerPoint presentation tips. It is important to resonate with your audience, and in order for that to happen, curate your presentation according to the audience's knowledge of the subject. Meaning prepare your presentation according to the subject knowledge base inherited by the audience. Do not go all rocket science with a topic for a beginner-level audience. Customise it to be more engaging and intriguing. 

4. Emphasise Key Points with Infographics

One of the cool PowerPoint tricks is the glory of infographics. The addition of infographics is a useful way to illustrate complex information in a visually attractive and easy-to-understand form. Utilise charts, graphs, and diagrams to showcase data, statistics, or processes. Infographics make your content more engaging and memorable, enabling your audience to grasp information quickly.

5. Embed Your Fonts

An informative PowerPoint tip is to embed fonts that are downloaded from a third-party source. The simple reason behind this is PowerPoint tends to replace foreign fonts with default fonts if not downloaded. This will completely change the layout of your presentation. To embed fonts, go to Files<Options<Save<Preserve Fidelity when sharing this presentation<Embed fonts in the file.

6. Track Changes

Following our list of PowerPoint tips and tricks is the track changes feature. Turning on the Track Changes features ensures a smooth collaboration among team members. It is a way to keep a record of all activities that occurred on the slides. One can also leave comments alongside slides for their teammates to make edits for a perfect presentation. 

7. Choose Suitable Slide Transitions

One of the best PowerPoint presentation tips is to use smooth transitions between slides. One can use transitions to create seamless and professional transitions that guide your audience's attention. It is completely up to the user to manage the slide transition, but using too many can create distraction. You may more effectively manage the amount of information you provide to your audience at once by employing a couple for each slide. Explore our blog on Google slide hacks to help you create impactful and memorable presentations that captivate your audience.

8. Optimise Font Choices and Consistency

The choice of font has a big impact on how readable and visually appealing your presentation is overall. Select readable typefaces that are easy to see at a distance. To guarantee a unified and professional appearance, stick to a font scheme of no more than two or three throughout your presentation. One of the most basic yet powerful PowerPoint tips.

9. Leverage Color Contrast 

In order to ensure readability and visual impact, colour contrast is crucial. Choose contrasting colours for the backdrop and text to make the content easy to read. Refrain from employing eye-straining colours that clash or are extremely bright. A carefully considered colour scheme improves the overall appearance and aids in efficiently communicating your message. Isn't it among the cool PowerPoint tricks? 

10. Make the Presentation More Convenient

Next on our list of PowerPoint tips and tricks is convenience. The convenience PowerPoint provides is that one can easily convert the Berenstain into a PDF document. Professionals who are unable to attend your event in person may occasionally express interest in your presentation. Next, you can send the files by email or post this PDF for download on a website. Additionally, you may export your presentation as a video that viewers can see whenever it's convenient for them.

11. Incorporate Audio and Video

Your presentation's degree of engagement can be raised by including audio and video components. As one of the creative PowerPoint tips and tricks, one can make smart use of them to support writing or offer instances from real-world situations. On the other hand, pay attention to file sizes and make sure the video and audio are excellent and pertinent to your subject.

12. Rehearse and Time Your Presentation

Perfectionism is attained with practice. Practice your presentation several times to make sure you deliver it smoothly and on schedule. Despite being one of the common PowerPoint presentation tips, maintaining your audience's interest and making sure you cover all the important issues without rushing are dependent on timing. Explore more by pondering our blog on PowerPoint presentation tips to get your aims and ideas across to the audience smoothly.

13. Utilise Speaker Notes

Speaker notes are an invaluable tool to help you stay on track during your presentation. They act as a script or outline, reminding you of key points, transitions, and supporting details. Utilise speaker notes to maintain a confident and organised delivery, ensuring you cover all essential aspects of your presentation.

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14. Utilise a Remote Control

If at all feasible, move your slides forward with a remote control. This gives you the freedom to walk about, interact with the audience, and keep eye contact. Using a remote control gives your presentation a more dynamic and engaging delivery overall. Isn't it one of the cool PowerPoint tricks?

15. Seek Feedback for Continuous Improvement

One of the most important PowerPoint tips and tricks is not to be hesitant to ask for criticism of your presentation. Feedback offers insightful viewpoints and useful insights that assist you in identifying areas that require further development and improvement. Accept helpful criticism to improve your presenting abilities and produce future presentations that are even more captivating and powerful.

Incorporating these 15 best PowerPoint tips and tricks will empower you to create engaging and effective presentations that captivate your audience. By keeping your slides simple, utilising high-quality visuals, and maintaining a consistent design, you can deliver a memorable presentation that effectively communicates your message. Lastly, explore our webstory on the top 8 presentation tools for students to get introduced to some life-changing presentation tools that will boost your creativity and imagination.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the 555 rule in powerpoint, how can i improve my ppt, how can i improve my powerpoint presentation skills over time, what is the golden rule of ppt, how to start a presentation.

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15 PowerPoint Tips & Tricks To Improve Your Presentations

Creating a presentation in PowerPoint will be significantly easier if you know a few tips and tricks. We’ve shown you how to change the size of your slides, insert a PDF , add music , and how to make your PowerPoint more engaging. 

Whether you’re brand new to creating PowerPoint presentations or you’re a pro, you can improve further by incorporating new PowerPoint design ideas. 

1. How to Lock an Image in PowerPoint

Locking an image in a PowerPoint presentation will prevent the image’s proportions or aspect ratio from getting distorted or out of scale.

To lock an image in PowerPoint, follow the steps below:

• Right-click on the image and select Size and Position .

• Check the box labeled Lock aspect ratio .

It’s also possible to lock an image or object so it cannot be resized or moved around the slide at all. This feature may be missing from most PowerPoint desktop versions. You might be able to right-click on an image, shape, or object and select Lock .

If you don’t see that option, one workaround is to place objects into the master slide. To learn how, read how to edit master slides in PowerPoint . 

2. Loop a Slideshow in PowerPoint

If you plan on continuously running a PowerPoint slide show, you can set the slideshow to loop instead of having to restart it manually.

• Open the PowerPoint you want to loop.
• Select the Slide Show tab.
• Select the Set Up Slide Show button.

• Check the box labeled Loop continuously until ‘Esc.’

• Select the OK button.

You’ll need to press the Esc key to end the looped PowerPoint presentation. Clicking on the final slide in your deck or pressing the right arrow key on your keyboard will cause the slideshow to restart.

3. How to Reduce the Size of a PowerPoint

PowerPoint files can become large if you’ve inserted high-resolution images or media files. We’ve got a few PowerPoint tips and tricks that can help reduce the size of your PowerPoint file.

• Embed only the font characters used in your presentation by selecting File > Options > Save in the menu on the left.

• If you’ve chosen to embed fonts in the file, select the Embed only the characters used in the presentation option.

• Select File > Options > Advanced .
• Under Image Size and Quality , check the box labeled Discard editing data .
• To further reduce the size of your PowerPoint, uncheck the box labeled Do not compress images in file and opt for a lower default resolution for your images.

• In the Picture Format tab, select the Compress Pictures button. You can choose whether to apply compression options to all images or only the picture you’ve chosen.
• Check the box labeled Delete cropped areas of pictures , and select Use default resolution . Press OK .

By reducing the size of your PowerPoint file, you’ll make the file easier to store and email.

4. How to Add and Print PowerPoint Notes

Add speaker notes to help the presenter remember what to say during the presentation by selecting the Notes button at the bottom of the PowerPoint. Type a script or just a few notes as reminders.

To print the presentation with the notes, select Notes Pages in the Settings section of the Print dialog box.

5. How to Edit PowerPoint Backgrounds

To add, remove, or edit a background graphic from your slides using the PowerPoint desktop app, you’ll need to select Slide Master from the View menu. Then, on the left, select the slide master or one of the layouts that appears below it: Right-click and select Format Background . Check a box labeled Hide background graphics .

If you’re using PowerPoint in a browser, you might have noticed there is no slide master. When you use the online version, you can directly add, remove, or edit any graphics that appear on a slide.

6. How to Link to Another Slide in the Presentation

Linking to another slide in the same presentation can be helpful if you anticipate the need to skip part of your presentation due to time constraints or refer back to a previous slide. It is as simple as adding a hyperlink.

• Select the text, image, or shape you want to use as a link.
• Select Insert > Link or right-click and select Hyperlink .
• In the Insert Hyperlink dialog box, under Link to , select Place in This Document .

• Choose which slide you want to link to and press the OK button.

7. Stay Consistent by Using the Format Painter

Consistency is a hallmark of a well-designed PowerPoint presentation. For example, slide headings should have the same color, font, and font size throughout the deck. Using the format painter makes standardizing all the headings and element labels in your presentation quick and easy.

• Select the content that has the formatting you like.
• In the Home tab, select the Format Painter .
• Next, select something else, and the formatting of the first element will automatically be applied.

Simple. To apply formatting to multiple elements, double-click the Format Painter and repeat step #3 above until you’ve applied the formatting to all the elements you want. Press the Esc key to stop using the Format Painter.

8. Look Smart with SmartArt

PowerPoint’s built-in SmartArt feature will help take your presentations to the next level. With SmartArt, you can convert plain, boring text to engaging graphics.

• Select the text you want to convert into a graphic.
• On the Home tab, select Convert to SmartArt .

• Select the option you like the most. As you move your mouse over the different options, you’ll see what your text looks like converted to that SmartArt option.
• If you’d like a SmartArt option that allows you to add pictures, select More SmartArt Graphics .
• In the menu on the left, select Picture .

• Select the option you like best.
• To add an image, select an image icon in a SmartArt element and choose whether to insert an image from a file on your computer or from an online source like Bing.

The SmartArt gallery has dozens of options to choose from. One of them is bound to make your slide more engaging.

9. Align Your Objects

You’ve used the Format Painter to ensure your formatting is consistent throughout your presentation. While you’re at it, make sure all your objects are perfectly aligned using PowerPoint’s Align tool.

• Select the objects you want to align by holding down Shift as you select each object.
• In the Format tab, select Align .
• Choose how you want the selected object to align.

• To distribute three or more objects evenly, select the objects, and then select Align and either Distribute Horizontally or Distribute Vertically .

Being intentional about how objects on your slides are aligned goes a long way to making a professional-looking presentation.

10. How to Use Picture Layout

When you’re working with a slide with one or more images, try using PowerPoint’s built-in Picture Layout tool. It’s SmartArt for images.

• Select all the images on the slide (hold down Shift to select multiple images).
• In the Picture Tools menu, select Format > Picture Layout .

• Mouse over the options to find the Picture Layout you like best, and select it.

If you decide you don’t want to use a Picture Layout, you can convert your images back to Shapes by selecting Design > Convert > Convert to Shapes .

11. Be Sparing with the Slide Transitions

Once you discover that you can add animations between slides, you might be tempted to try them all. However, you should remember the cardinal rule of PowerPoint presentations: less is more. If you absolutely must use a transition, stick to the simple ones like Cut and Fade .

• Select a slide.
• From the Transitions tab, select a transition.

• Select Effect Options if it’s available to choose additional settings for the transition.

• Select Preview to see the transition in action.

12. Use Animations Wisely

While you’re toning down your slide transitions, make sure you’re using animations judiciously, too. Animating text or objects on a slide can help the flow of your presentation, but too many animations can be distracting. Be discerning about when and where you use them.

To add animations and effects:

• Select the text or object you want to animate.
• On the Animations tab, select an animation.

• Next, select Effect Options to choose an effect. Note, the Effect Options will be different depending on which animation you have selected.

You can select different ways to start the animations. In the Timing section of the Animations tab, choose when to start the animation.

• On click . This option will start the animation when you click the slide.
• With previous . Choose this option if you want the animation to play at the same time as the previous animation in the sequence.
• After previous . The animation will begin immediately after the prior one concludes.
• Duration . This option allows you to make an effect last longer or shorter.
• Delay . Add some time before an effect begins.

To change the order your animations play:

• Select an animation marker on a slide (or toggle on the Animation Pane by selecting it in the Advanced Animation section of the Animation tab and select an animation in the list.)

• In the Timing section of the Animation tab, select either Move Earlier or Move Later .

To add an animation to a group of objects:

• Press Ctrl and select multiple objects.
• Select Format > Group > Group to create a group.
• Choose an animation from the Animations tab.

If you use them the right way, animations can make your presentation clearer and easier for viewers to understand.

13. K.I.S.S.

PowerPoint slides are most effective when they’re simple. When you include only the most important information on your slides, you make it easier for people to digest and remember your message. You can always say more about the topic, but don’t pack the slide with more content than you need. After all, your audience should be listening more than reading.

14. Seek Out High Quality Templates, Images, and Graphics

When you keep it simple, that means using images and graphics that look good. We’ve rounded up some great stock photo sites and places to get beautiful PowerPoint templates .

15. Export the Presentation as a Video

When you’re happy with your presentation, export it as a video:

• Select File > Export .

• Choose Create a video .

• Select the quality of the video and whether to use recorded timings and narrations.

• Set the duration of each slide.
• Select the Create Video button.
• Navigate to the folder where you want to save the video file.
• Select the Save button.

By implementing these tips and tricks, you’ll take your presentations to the next level!

However, perhaps despite all the tips and tricks you’ve learned, you’ve decided to swear off the software entirely. So many PowerPoint presentations have put audience members to sleep that we now have a term for it: “death by PowerPoint.” In that case, say goodbye to Powerpoint, and check out these seven alternatives to PowerPoint that you can use online. 

Maggie Marystone is a freelance technology writer, human rights worker, and storyteller based in Chicago. Read Maggie's Full Bio

Read More Posts:

Microsoft 365 Life Hacks > Presentations > PowerPoint Tips: Make The Most of Your Presentation

PowerPoint Tips: Make The Most of Your Presentation

Got a presentation coming up but you’re not that familiar with PowerPoint ? We can help you get started with some easy PowerPoint tips and tricks that’ll help you create an impactful presentation , no matter what the occasion.

Our PowerPoint for beginners tips will show you how to:

• Make an outline.
• Choose a theme.
• Find a font.
• Use visuals.
• Not use too much text.
• Limit your color.
• Use a free online “speaker coach”.

Tell your story with captivating presentations

Powerpoint empowers you to develop well-designed content across all your devices

Outline your presentation before you start. Don’t spend time making unnecessary slides for your presentation. Create an outline before you start. Not only will this make it easier to put the content on the slides, but it will also let you know how many slides you need to make. Rather than winging it and making slides as you go, use your outline to make your slides efficient and organized . Working without an outline can sometimes lead to jumbled slides with more information than you need.

Choose a theme and template. Not everybody is a graphic designer, so coming up with the perfect slide theme and template can seem hard. Thanks to PowerPoint templates, it isn’t. Find a free online template that gives you the design, layout, color scheme, and aesthetic you want. Be sure to choose something that fits what you’re talking about (e.g. Don’t use a whimsical theme with bright colors and butterflies if you’re presenting a serious topic.)

Find the right font . Knowing which font to use for your presentation isn’t always easy. When it comes to the basics of selecting the best font, follow best-practice recommendations that say an easy-to-read sans-serif font is preferred. Fonts like Arial, Calibri, Helvetica, and others like it make for simple fonts that are easy to read. Although, there are some serif fonts that still look great on PowerPoint and are easy to read on high-resolution screens. When you’re building out the format of your slides, a great way to distinguish the title section from the body text is by using a different font for each or bolding your title font.

Use visuals . Words on a page aren’t nearly as engaging as visuals. Keep your audience’s attention during your presentation by using visuals like graphics, animations, photos, and videos. PowerPoint makes it easy to insert clipart, tables, graphs, and much more by using the features built into the program. You can also include gifs and YouTube videos to up the ante on your presentation.

While it’s great to use fun gifs or YouTube videos to enhance your presentation, don’t go crazy. Eventually, your audience will get tired of looking at a five-second loop on a gif as you speak, and videos don’t always have the impact you want. Videos can be distracting to your audience because they change the pace of your presentation, so it’s a good idea to limit the number of videos you include.

Tip: If you’re going to lay words over a picture, use a colored box with the opacity down around 50% to create more contrast between the image and the words.

Limit your text. Your audience doesn’t want to read; they want to listen to you. Don’t fill your slides with long sentences and complex phrasing. Instead, include only the most important points of what you want to say. The PowerPoint 6×6 rule suggests limiting your slides to six lines with a maximum of six words per line. Following this rule makes for slides that include only the most important points while avoiding information overload. Using bullet points is a great way to stick to the 6×6 rule.

Go easy on the colors. Be careful of the colors you use when making a PowerPoint presentation. Too many bright colors can be hard on the eyes and reduce the contrast between the letters, making them hard to read. It’s generally a good idea to use a black or white font with a color that makes the font pop against the background. Black on white is always easy to read, and white looks great against most solid colors. If you’re not sure how a specific font color looks against a background, sit back in your chair, and try to read it. If it’s hard to read with the font and background you have, it’s a good idea to change one or both.

Use a free online “speaker coach”. Rehearsing in front of a mirror is good, but using free speaker coaching software is even better. Do you say “um” a lot? Are you talking too fast? Did you use a culturally insensitive term? A free digital “coach” with built-in AI will catch all that stuff and more.It’s the best way to assess your strengths and weaknesses and identify areas of growth.

These PowerPoint tips are enough to get you started on your presentation. Soon, you’ll be creating and presenting a beautiful deck.

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What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

• Carmine Gallo

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

• Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

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• Presentations

How to Make Good PowerPoint Slide Designs Even Better in 2024

• Bahasa Indonesia
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Want to learn how to design PowerPoint slides? Great presentations are supported by a good PowerPoint layout. Most PowerPoint graphic design you see is rather invisible. When something is wrong with a slide design, you'll notice. 

In this PowerPoint design tutorial, we cover the basics of presentation design. It's a strong way to approach how to make a good PowerPoint presentation design. As you'll notice, subtle details go a long way. You'll learn:

• Visual Hierarchy . We'll look at visual hierarchy and how you can use it effectively.
• Slide Layout . Turning the design principles of visual hierarchy into effective PowerPoint slide designs. 
• Typography . Choosing the right typefaces. 
• Color . The basics of color theory.
• Details . The extras that make your presentation great.

We'll look at how you can apply all these techniques to your designer PowerPoint ideas.

5 Principles of Presentation Design

How to follow a good powerpoint design principles, how to quickly design great slides in powerpoint with ppt templates, find the best premade powerpoint templates, 5 best powerpoint presentation design templates (for 2024), discover more great powerpoint templates, 5 top trends in powerpoint graphic design, common powerpoint questions answered (faq), more great powerpoint tutorial resources, make great presentations (free ebook download), apply powerpoint design principles to your next presentation, start a good design with a good template.

Are you looking to use ready-made presentation slide designs to shorten the process? I recommend checking out the trending PowerPoint templates on Envato Elements. It can save valuable time when you need to get a beautiful presentation, done quickly. It also takes some of the guess work out of how to design PowerPoint slides. 

We're going to talk about PowerPoint graphic design, but first we need to understand what that means. After all, it's not enough to open PowerPoint and start clicking. If you want to know how to design PowerPoint slides, you've got to understand the principles.

We'll look at how important structure and slide layouts are to content. You can also learn how the fonts and colors you choose affect the whole presentation. We'll also look at any details you can add to improve design.

We're going to dive deeper into these principles of design. They're behind a great PowerPoint presentation:

1. Visual Hierarchy

Any type of design starts with visual hierarchy. What exactly is visual hierarchy? This refers to the arrangement of elements in a way that it implies importance. You can influence how we perceive what we see with contrast.

The theory of visual hierarchy helps you define the structure of your PPT design slides. Good visual hierarchy assures that the right elements are catching your attention.

You can achieve visual hierarchy through several PowerPoint graphic design techniques:

• Use contrasting colors to make certain elements stand out more.
• Play with the size of text or photos to make something stand out more than something else.

The above concepts are known as adding visual weight to an element. How does this work in practice? How does this help us learn how to design PowerPoint slides? 

Below, you see two slides with the same copy. One's got no visual hierarchy applied. The other one uses simple color and typography. You'll learn more about later. It's used to apply visual weight.

For Example

You're giving a financial presentation. You want your audience to recall that the third quarter performed poorly and why.

It's unrealistic is to believe your audience will recall exact data. A presentation gives a lot of information in a short time span. Unfortunately, the attention of people is quite brief. Focus on key messages and use visual hierarchy to make those ideas stick out. It will help people digest your objective and key takeaways slides in PowerPoint.

2. Slide Layout Design

You can apply visual hierarchy to create effective PowerPoint presentation slide designs. It's one of the corner stones of how to make a good PowerPoint design.

The trick is to understand what the most important message is. Through PowerPoint design principles, that this will be the content that people remember.

This goes further than just designing one simple slide background. For example, you might have a few slides in a row about the same topic. But the final slide with the conclusion could be the slide to add that extra visual weight. For example, by adding an image for the first time or making the text bigger as usual. This is applying visual hierarchy to your slide layouts as well.

One of the most effective PowerPoint graphic design tricks to apply is that less is more , in most cases. When you've got key statistics, the following method helps:

• First, display the graph (or all the statistics) that display the context of the key number.
• Display the key percentage on a single slide. Try this without any further elements. Use this as a follow-up to make people pay attention to this number.

This is known as letting your design (and content) breathe. The idea you should keep in mind is that you should try and give your content (and thus your design) a hidden order.

Repetition is another trick to help you emphasize a key message. For example, try displaying a graph. Then try an individual statistic on two separate slides. This is a good example of effective repetition. It will also help your designer PowerPoint ideas stick with an audience.

If you're looking for some inspiration for slide layouts, dive into this curated selection of trending PPT presentation designs: 

3. Typography

We can't discuss how to design PowerPoint slides without talking about type. The right choice of typography goes a long way as a PowerPoint designer. It can really improve the design of your PowerPoint presentation.

For example, if your whole presentation has Comic Sans as a font choice, people will notice. When you notice a font, it's often because the legibility of the font is quite poor. If something is difficult to read, it requires much more attention from your audience.

Traditional font choices are often the best to use for PowerPoint presentation slide design. Stick to Helvetica, Arial or Gill Sans, for example. Use the regular version for your body text and use the bold version for your title. Make your font size big enough to ensure readability (around 18pt) and make titles bigger (around 34pt).

It's also possible to mix fonts as a PowerPoint designer. When you're just starting out, I'd recommend keeping things simple. If you're curious, you could always try to search for good font combinations.

If you're intrigued by typography, there are plenty online resources to help you. I personally enjoy  Typewolf , for example.

Of course, typography is a way to customize a design and make presentations much more unique. But, when starting out, I recommend sticking to the basics.

Something else to think about is how much text you use on your slides. It's rarely useful to write down full sentences in presentations. It's much better to use bullet lists of key facts. Make sure that people are paying attention to you while you're giving your presentation. Remember our ' Improving our marketing ' slide? Let's clean that one up so you'll notice the difference.

As you can see, this marketing key takeaways slide looks better straight away. Apply this principle to your objective slide, and all other slides, in PowerPoint.

Color is an essential part of how to design PowerPoint slides. But color is a complex topic. A good understanding of the basics goes a long way. Understand that colors express a certain feeling, much like photography. Brighter, more vibrant colors often come across more playful. Darker colors often feel a little cooler (and more professional).

Notice the playful colors in this PowerPoint template's simple slide backgrounds. If you dig further into the PPT download, there are some simple minimal slides and a darker set to work with as well.

The colors you use in your PowerPoint graphic design depend on the context. If you're making a professional presentation, you'll likely work with the colors of your brand. That makes presentation design much easier. I recommend sticking to brand colors instead of experimenting.

In other cases, you might have to choose colors from scratch. In that case, don't panic yet. You can still make a palette that works with your designer PowerPoint ideas.

If you're a little more daring, you can learn more about color theory. You could try complementary and contrasting colors, for example.

An easy way to get started with color is to use a resource such as Adobe Color . By browsing the 'Explore' section, you can discover wonderful color palettes. Another way to see some nice palettes is to use design sites as Dribbble or Behance . See what colors are being used as inspiration.

You'd be surprised how some subtle elements can pack a lot of punch. They can really improve your presentation visually. Think about these important details:

Photography

A presentation wouldn't be complete without the use of photography. Photography is the easiest way to improve your PowerPoint presentation. A simple trick to improve the design of your presentation is to use high-quality stock photography. You can find thousands of gorgeous professional stock photos on Envato Elements.

Using premium stock photos such as those found on Envato Elements means your presentation will be unique. You won't be using the same old stock photography everyone else is using. You can find photos that match your brand. You can also find photos of landscapes, city or coffee vibes, office settings, and much more.

Another simple way to visually enhance your presentation is to use icons. Icons are great to use when you've got little text in your presentation and don't want to use photography.

Ideally as a PowerPoint designer, you use icons from a single icon kit. This assures that all icons do have the same style. What's excellent is that a lot of PowerPoint themes you can buy include an icon kit. If not, you can find icon kits online on marketplaces like Envato Elements.

When working with data, adding some type of chart can help in your presentation.

Charts as a design element are something to pay attention to, as it's easy to overwhelm your audience with a bunch of data. Here are some thoughts about using charts to your advantage:

• Don't use too many charts. Rather use them sparingly and only when they add value to what you've got to say.
• Make sure that the data is easily legible. This, by avoiding fancy animations or unnecessary 3D design for example. 
• Have a follow-up slide explaining the key takeaway of your chart.

Learn more about how to create charts in this PowerPoint design tutorial:

Discover more helpful infographic and data-driven PowerPoint presentation design templates : 

If possible, adding some multimedia to your presentation can help in many ways. First, it makes your presentation feel interactive. An interactive element can help you explain your designer PowerPoint ideas in a way that words and pictures can't.

But don't forget what we've learned about how to make a good PowerPoint design. Fundamentals come before distracting extras.

Let's use a mobile app as an example. Displaying a video demo might be an intriguing option. You could show off features that way. 

Transitions and Animations

When thinking on how to design a PPT slide, you might consider animations. Transitions are often added to PowerPoint design elements.

The above is a little tricky. It's very easy to overdo animations and transitions. It can distract your audience. A good rule is that 80% of your presentation doesn't really need a transition or animation.

Only use transitions and animations where it matters. Use them to help your audience remember what you're saying. The principles of visual hierarchy apply here as well. 

Want to learn more about how to use animations in your PowerPoint presentation slide designs? Check out this PowerPoint design tutorial:

So, let's use what we learned about how to design PowerPoint slides. We'll dive into how you can apply all the lessons above while working on a PowerPoint presentation design:

Step 1. Plan Your Content Before the Design

I know that as a PowerPoint designer you want to dive straight into your work. But before you start working on the design of your PPT slides, think about your content. Consider your key messages . Ask yourself what your audience should remember after seeing your presentation. That's a big part of effective PowerPoint design.

Optimize your objective and key takeaways slides in PowerPoint to support those messages. Make sure that your content and your key message stands out. That's where all the above PowerPoint graphic design advice kicks in. 

In summary, start with your key message. The opportunity to design will follow. Learn more about the presentation writing process in this PowerPoint design tutorial: 

Step 2. Now Begin With Presentation Design Basics

Once you've got your content figured out, next you should define what the foundations of your slide design should be. Remember, this is a big part of how to make a good PowerPoint presentation design.

This is defined by your selection of  color and  typography . Pick a primary color and a font you'd like to work with and you're off for a good start.

Step 3. Collect Your Photography

You'll likely use some sort of photography (or other imagery) in your presentation. Start collecting images you like. Select them for your PowerPoint presentation once you start designing.

After you're all set with the above, start with the actual design.

Step 4. Define Your Slide Layout(s)

Finally, it's time to work on the layout of each individual slide. It's not necessary to create a unique layout for each slide, but some variety helps. Good PowerPoint design finds a balance. For a presentation of about 20 slides, I work on about six to eight layouts. I'll use them throughout my PowerPoint presentation design. For this presentation, for example, I've designed three layouts. You can see them below for some inspiration:

A layout can be quite simple with its slide backgrounds and foreground elements. For example, a simple title with a subtitle or a slide containing a photo. Or a layout can be complex. For example, combining some bullet points and a graph. A well-designed PowerPoint is strategically designed.

The trick is to create enough layouts. Pay attention to the design of the slide layout individually.

Once you've designed all layouts, put your PowerPoint design together and see how your presentation flows. Make sure to practice your presentation at least once! Then, fine-tune your design and finish your presentation! 

Let’s work with a basic presentation with nice PowerPoint graphic design. We can quickly turn it into a standout PowerPoint graphic design example. We'll use the help of a professional PPT template. 

I’ve designed a very basic presentation in PowerPoint that consists of five slides:

• title slide
• about slide
• product slide
• picture and text slide

I’ll be using this PowerPoint template to share these designer PowerPoint ideas. We'll customize the design of the basic presentation. 

Download the template above or follow along with your favorite premium template. These PowerPoint graphic design concepts will apply to any design. Let's get started:

Step 1. Find Slides You Want To Use 

You don't need to be an all-star PowerPoint designer for the first step in the process. Just find the slides you want to use to customize the template. The easiest way to do this is to switch to the Slide Sorter view. Delete any slides you don’t want by clicking to select them. Then, right-click on those slides and select Delete .

Step 2. Customize Your Title Slide

The title slide is one of the most important slides in your presentation. When done right, it can pique the interest of your audience so it’s a good idea to make sure it captures their attention. My original slide uses a simple underlined title for the slide background.

I’ve customized the title slide, so it includes a full-width photo. I’ve also changed the fonts. The result makes the slide title look more polished and professional. 

Step 3. Layer Text and Images

Your presentation will have a variety of different slides. Some slides might be purely text based. Others might have a combination of text and images. Get creative and experiment with layering text over images. 

This template makes it easy to experiment with designer PowerPoint ideas. I’ve made it more visually interesting by playing with the text layout. I've also layered text over images in the simple slide backgrounds. 

Step 4. Break Away From the Grid

Chances are, you might use many photos on one slide. But that doesn’t mean you've got to place them side by side. 

Break away from the grid and place images in different positions. You can also break them apart with text. Your slides will be more interesting this way. That means your audience will be more engaged throughout the presentation. 

As you can see, I had a basic, grid-based slide with two images side by side.

Here, I’ve made the product slide more interesting and engaging. Simply add some text between the images. Try it for your own objective and key takeaways slide in PowerPoint.

Step 5. Spice Up Text With Icons

Another way to spice up your text-based slides is to use icons. Icons are great visual cues that help us visualize important points. In the example below, I’ve used a text-based slide with a simple title and a plain bulleted list.

I’ve made this slide more engaging by adding icons instead of bullet points. I've also tried rearranging the text to fit more points onto one slide.   

A premade PowerPoint template is a great time saver, even for PowerPoint designers. You can find plenty of PowerPoint templates over on Envato Elements.

Each of the PowerPoint templates features an attractive design. They come with premade slides. Many also include extra elements such as charts, icons, and graphs. It'll be an invaluable resource and help you make an effective slide design.

Look at some of the best PowerPoint presentation design templates from Envato Elements:

1.  Nextar - Multipurpose PowerPoint Presentation Design Template

The Nextar template has a modern and trendy graphic design for PowerPoint. It comes with 30 unique slides and three premade color schemes. That's plenty of options for your key takeaways slides. The template is versatile enough to be used in business or corporate presentations as well as webinars, pitch decks, and more. On top of that, the template's got image placeholders so all you've got to do is drag and drop in your images.

2. Brusher - Trendy PowerPoint Presentation

The Brusher template is a trendy PowerPoint template. It’s a great choice if you’re looking to enhance your PowerPoint presentations with graphics. The template features bold brush strokes. You'll also get 120+ slides and five premade color schemes. It also includes image placeholders and creative illustrations.

3. Native - Minimalist PowerPoint Presentation Design Template

Try this template if you like a minimalist design style. This template is perfect for small businesses that want a clean presentation look. The template includes over 20 premade color schemes and 84 individual slides. The slides are animated, and you'll also get custom icons that you can use to improve your PowerPoint presentation.

4. Mild - PowerPoint Presentation Template

Consider this template if you want to use photos in your presentation design. The template includes image placeholders. You can easily replace them with your own photos. The template comes with a custom icon pack. It also has 35 premade slides as well as over 50 color schemes.

5. Sprint - Bold PowerPoint Template

This template features a bold and modern design. It's perfect for startups as well as established corporations. The template comes with 20 master slides. They'll let you quickly customize your objective and other slides in PowerPoint. You'll also get matching charts, diagrams, tables, and other data visualization elements. This template is a perfect choice if you want to quickly design a PowerPoint presentation.

Find more great PowerPoint presentation design templates in this article:

The templates above are just a small sample of what’s available on our marketplaces in terms of PowerPoint templates. To see even more great PowerPoint designs, check out the articles below: 

As you explore how to design in PowerPoint, you might wonder which aesthetic is best. PowerPoint design principles are in this article. But good PowerPoint design also requires sensitivity to your objectives. PowerPoint design elements should make sense. A good PowerPoint layout that looks great but doesn't relate won't succeed.

A well-designed PowerPoint uses design principles to communicate. That's what makes an effective PowerPoint design. It looks good. It works well. It connects to the material. Consider how to design a PowerPoint presentation from this perspective.

Check out these design trends. They each use PowerPoint design principles in their own, strategic way. 

1. Use Color as a Consistent, Anchoring Element

It's a great idea to have variety, from slide to slide. This keeps things interesting. But too much variety can look chaotic. Color can act as a consistent element in our presentation.

Look at this premium PowerPoint template, below. Its use of color shows excellent PowerPoint graphic design. Each slide layout varies quite a bit. One of the elements they all have in common is this bright, yellow color. It helps keep them looking like one, related presentation. 

2. Visually Communicate Ideas With Infographics

Infographics are both trendy and a smart choice. It's one thing to hear facts. It's another to actually see them. Conveying data in more than one way can help with retention rates. It can also help further communicate the overall message behind the data. 

There are so many creative ways you can use infographics too. Use them for statistics. Try infographics for timelines and progress reports. And put them against simple slide backgrounds that aren't distracting.

3. Experiment With Abstract Shapes

Abstract shapes have been quite trendy in PowerPoint template design. They work well in many different aesthetics too. This premium PowerPoint template uses bouncy, playful shapes. When paired with these muted colors, it makes for a friendly design. 

Abstract shapes also lend to make for a versatile aesthetic. The neutrality of abstract backgrounds and designs can work in so many scenarios. 

4. Let Beautiful Photography Do the Talking

Visuals are part of every PowerPoint designer's toolkit. Large, high-quality photos can be really communicative. This is particularly effective if you're sharing product photos or a portfolio. If your presentation or business is heavily reliant on visuals, consider pushing the photography. 

Keep in mind that your PowerPoint design elements shouldn't fight for attention. If the photo is the emphasis, then the other elements should support that. This means a large photo might warrant smaller text, for example.

5. Try a Dark, High Contrast Aesthetic

Dark PowerPoint themes can be really trendy too. Doesn't this premium PowerPoint presentation look cool? Themes like this could be particularly well received in technology industries. There's a lot of potential for high energy and high contrast in an aesthetic like this one too. 

Make sure to keep an eye out for readability in this aesthetic. Too much contrast can be hard on the eyes. Check to make sure your content is easily legible for your audience.

As you explore how to design PowerPoint slides, questions may arise. Take a look at these answers to commonly asked design questions:

1. What's the Best Look for My PowerPoint Design?

This is a great question with a complicated answer. An effective PowerPoint design has a look that relates to the topic. Make sure your PowerPoint design elements relate. Visuals are very communicative. You can use them to support your narrative.

Want to learn more about visual communication and storytelling? Check out this free tutorial:

2. How Can I Get Better at Typography? How Do I Choose Fonts?

Typography can be a complicated subject. It's a good idea to get yourself comfortable with the basics. But here are some quick tips to get you started. Think of it like a cheat sheet that you can rely on:

• Avoid using too many different fonts. This can look distracting. 
• Make sure your fonts are legible. Display fonts are not for things like body copy.
• When pairing fonts together, go for fonts that contrast. This means two fonts that are visually different. Choose one for emphasis and one to complement.

Want to learn more about typography? Check out this free guide:

3. How Can I Design Good PowerPoint Layouts? 

We covered some great tips and tricks on layout design in this article. But there's plenty more to discover. If you feel stuck, remember these essential basics:

• Hierarchy matters. Draw attention to key points, like headlines. Supplemental content should have less contrast or scale.
• Remember not to "stuff" your layouts. Sometimes, less is more. It is often better to be reserved than to overdo it.
• Be selective with your content. Too much variety can look chaotic. Don't overdo it with things like colors, fonts, or imagery.

Learn more about great layout design in this free tutorial:

4. How Can I Come Up With Creative PowerPoint Design Ideas?

Ideas can be one of the trickiest parts of the design process. When in doubt, try some visual research. This can be as simple as looking at other designs. Note what works well in them. Think about what you can learn from them and try in your own designs.

If you're looking for design inspiration, check out these collections from Envato Tuts+. There's plenty to see and download. Besides, there's design tips you can try too.

5. How Can I Learn More about Design Principles?

There's even more to learn about the principles of design. The best part is that these principles can apply to almost all types of design too. So, you can use this in your PowerPoint slide designs, business cards, stationery, and more. 

While the official list can vary, the principles of design generally include:

Check out these Microsoft PowerPoint tutorials from Envato Tuts+. There are many resources to help take your PowerPoint skills further: 

Take the tips you learned in this article further with our eBook: The Complete Guide to Making Great Presentations ( grab it now for FREE ) . 

It'll help walk you through the complete presentation process. Learn how to write your presentation, design it like a pro, and prepare it to present powerfully.

That's it! We covered the basics of effective PowerPoint presentation design. You've just learned how design PowerPoint (PPT) slides. As a key takeaway, remember that good design is often subtle. The best design is typically invisible.

Instead of trying to design everything, keep it simple and focus on a process that works for you. For example, design a few layouts you could use. Only use animations where it makes sense. Keep your colors simple.

If you lack time, I recommend starting from a professional PPT template and customizing it to your needs.

Here are some excellent PowerPoint templates to look at on Envato Elements. Download unlimited presentation designs. Download web templates, and graphic assets for a single monthly fee.

Designing is much easier if you don't make it unnecessarily difficult for yourself.

Editorial Note:  The tutorial was originally published in March of 2017. It's been comprehensively revised to include new information—with special help from Brenda Barron , Daisy Ein , and Nathan Umoh . 

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• 50 tips on how to improve PowerPoint presentations in 2022-2023 [Updated]

While PowerPoint helps create a compelling presentation, a business meeting or a lecture can easily turn boring if the information is less engaging or distracting. This post acts as a guideline on how best to improve PowerPoint presentation and make your message remembered by any audience, whether business owners, students or even homemakers. Plus, you will also learn the easiest ways to make a better PowerPoints presentation without it taking forever and convey the content in the best possible way by presenting it with maximum impact. So let’s get down to it!

Create a memorable opening slide

Your presentation’s opening slide resembles a book cover. You choose whether to open and read the book based on what you see. The same often holds true for PowerPoint slides. To make better PowerPoint slides that immediately catch the audience’s attention, you should always make sure the opening slide contains an intriguing headline and a noticeable image.

These tips will help you create a perfect opening slide:

• Come up with a catchy headline.
• Keep your ppt slides tidy.
• Impress with sophisticated colors and images.

Remember, for your PowerPoint slides makeover to get the desired results, your slides have to be designed following the best practices.

Keep your presentation simple

Do you often find yourself typing, “how to improve my presentation,” but can’t seem to get a definitive answer? The answer could be a PowerPoint slide makeover. Too much text on a PowerPoint makes the presentation forgettable, hard to pay attention to, confusing, and overwhelming.

To improve PowerPoint presentation:

• Ensure that your slides don’t have too many words.
• Go for a PowerPoint redesign where a striking image is teamed with a simple but clear message.
• Use the 1-6-6 ppt presentation redesign rule to include not more than six bullet points and six words per slide.

Pros usually improve PowerPoint presentation by limiting the words on the slides to allow the audience to listen to you and not focus more on reading. So instead of using complete sentences in your ppt redesign, use short forms that improve your memory. That way, a presenter can focus on each specific point and make it easier for the audience to comprehend which point in the ppt slides is being covered.

Present one idea per slide

If you want to craft a powerful PowerPoint like a pro, the first tip is to have only one idea per slide. But why is it necessary to have one main point per slide?

The first reason is to improve PowerPoint presentation. Your slides should not read like a textbook or novel. Otherwise, you might redo the whole thing or get a PowerPoint slide makeover. So let’s uncover more reasons why you should have only one idea per slide.

• The audience will focus on a single idea that prevents them from getting confused or overwhelmed by the slides.
• It allows the presenter to give more details orally, which motivates students to attend class.
• It prevents giving out too much information that dilutes the central message in the slides.

If you are worried about the low word count in your slides, go for a PowerPoint redesign and add impactful imagery or visual aids. Ensure each point is consistently structured and there is a clear transition in all slides.

Relevance and quality of content are key

There is plenty to consider when making a PowerPoint slide makeover. However, the relevance and quality of the content are among the top factors. The text has to be supported by relevant and quality images to ensure the presentation exudes professionalism.

In addition, PP slides created specifically for students must be aimed at improving learning. Some quick tips to ensure your slides are relevant and of decent quality are:

• Before presenting the content, ensure it engages the audience.
• Maintain quality by ensuring a slide is not full of text.
• Use structure to keep the content organized.
• If it does not fit in a single line, chances are high it is not relevant.

Ensure your slides don’t have too much information, as it reduces relevance. Since the human brain process images faster than text, convert any long paragraphs into appropriate visual formats.

Eliminate unnecessary text

The first step to improve PowerPoint is removing unnecessary text that might reduce the white space and make the slide look uncluttered. If the text is too much, your audience will focus more on reading the slides than what you want to say.

Don’t know how to make your slides simple? Use these tips:

• Remove any content that is not intended for your audience.
• Any phrases that are not clear should be eliminated.
• Be brief and clear.
• Only add two to three sentences on each slide.
• Replace words with visual elements.

No need to cram everything into a single slide redesign. Instead, include main phrases that help you remember what you want to talk about and ensure the listeners absorb the information you are conveying.

Always use one story per slide

The correct way to improve PowerPoint presentation is to use one story per slide. That way, your ppt slides won’t overwhelm your audience with too much information. Moreover, if you improve a ppt redesign, it will also prevent the presenter from diverting away from the main topic. Besides, people don’t attend lectures to read the ppt slides. But rather to hear you speak because you are an expert in that subject matter.

When you include only one story in a ppt redesign, it gives the audience a chance to:

• Concentrate on what you are saying.
• Quickly digest the information.
• Use the texts on the ppt slides to support your verbal presentation.

The story is what helps you focus on the central message and drive the point home. But even if you put a single story in each slide, ensure there is a great transition to avoid confusing the listeners. Also, make sure the story is consistently structured and doesn’t generalize the subject under discussion.

Use white space to make texts more readable

Using white space to your advantage is another way to improve PowerPoint presentation. How? With a good redesign, you will improve the readability of the text and add a professional effect to your slides. Without white space in a redesign, the information on your slides becomes disorganized, hard to read, and showcases clutter.

We all know that cluttered PowerPoint presentation slides are unattractive. But how do you know you need white space in your PowerPoint presentation slides? If you try to add white space but run out of space, your slides could probably benefit from less content and a redesign.

To improve PowerPoint presentation and make your redesign effective, consider active and passive white space and micro and macro white space. Overall, the type of white space to use to improve your redesign is determined by:

• User research
• The message being conveyed
• User interface design

White space is also crucial in directing the audience to focal points and helps improve specific text parts. So play around with the number of white spaces to improve your ppt redesign and shine the spotlight on specific points. If you are still wondering, “how do I redesign my presentation?” try improving the white or negative space.

Rework text-heavy PPT screens

Most people, especially in formal presentations, focus on making text-heavy slides. This often bores the audience and results in a disastrous presentation. Such a case leads a presenter to wonder, “how do I improve my presentation.” Ensure your slides are not loaded with text, as it reduces the chances of the audience paying attention to what you have to say.

Instead, the audience will be busy reading the heavy text screens, which reduces learning or understanding of the information. If you have heavy text slides and urgently need to enhance PowerPoint presentation, here are three tips to help you change them into impressive slides:

• Change data into graphs, charts, diagrams, or appropriate visual elements.
• Use infographics to showcase step-by-step procedures.
• Use different shapes to show the relationship between subjects or items.
• Convert long texts into bullets.

Finally, remove all text irrelevant to the central message and include only short phrases.

Visualize data

Do you have a lot of data in text format and want to change it to improve your slides? Visualize that data to enhance PowerPoint presentation. For complex data that can be compared, consider changing it into a graph format. This helps to reduce heavy text usage and makes the information easier to comprehend.

Wondering, “how do I improve my presentation through data visualization?” Use these tips:

• Go for visual elements that tell a story.
• Tweak the elements to make them easier to comprehend.
• Always opt for visual consistency.
• The headers for graphs and charts should be simple.
• Use one color to represent one type of data.

Data visualization is a great option for those who want to improve PowerPoint presentation. It makes it easier to convey a lot of information and still uses limited space. It also allows the audience to comprehend complex data.

Use original PowerPoint presentation templates

Looking at the same old PowerPoint template slides can make a fascinating topic boring. That’s why if you wish to make better PowerPoint slides, you must use original templates from trustworthy sites. For example, Microsoft PowerPoint has original template slides that you can use to create a great visual experience for the audience.

But why do you need original ppt template slides?

• To access a wide range of ppt redesign choices.
• To make it easy to create professional and visually appealing ppt presentations.

And the best part is that you don’t have to be an IT pro to use the ppt template slides.

Overall, original ppt template slides improve the redesign and give you confidence in the work you are presenting. They also eliminate the time-wasting factor of looking for and arranging the ppt redesign slides from scratch. When you redesign a PowerPoint template, the slides are already prepared and laid out for you. Adding fancy fonts, graphics, and relevant photos helps to improve your PowerPoint slides makeover even more.

These template examples can provide some inspiration:

Remember, even after you improve the slides and have a ppt template at your disposal, you can still create custom slides. So take advantage of all the great features such as themes, shapes, and editing tools to improve a ppt redesign and give it a professional look.

Don’t let PowerPoint decide how you use it

If you allow the default settings of PowerPoint to dictate how you will create and present your slides, you are more likely to come up with a less creative piece. Instead, opt to improve your PowerPoint presentation with a ppt redesign.

Consider PowerPoint as a blank canvas but keep the design simple. That way, you won’t get overwhelmed by what to do or, worse, end up with a confusing ppt slide. Listed below are important tips to use when creating PowerPoint slides.

• Make better PowerPoints when dealing with macro details or concepts.
• Balance the text and image appropriately to avoid losing the audience’s attention.
• Make the message in the ppt slide clear and clutter-free.

After PowerPoint slides makeover, ensure that the content or concept is easy to absorb. Remember, there is no one-size-fits-all approach, and PowerPoint slides are effective for a large audience of around 20 people.

Create a new PPT presentation for a template or blank page

When you start a project in PowerPoint, you have to create a new presentation. This can either be from a ppt template or blank slides. You can also opt to open a previously made or an existing presentation and edit it to improve PowerPoint. The great part about making professional ppt slides is that you can work with the same presentation without making several changes.

Using a predesigned ppt presentation or template is also advantageous and time-saving. This is because ppt templates have custom formatting options that allow you to save designs. This, in turn, reduces the need to start a new ppt project from scratch. With a ppt template acting as the foundation, each presentation will inherit:

While ppt templates come with the material you can recycle for future presentations, they are often harder to modify. In such a case, it’s better to consider a PowerPoint redesign and start with a blank presentation.

Use slide master to edit your PPT slide template design

Knowing how to redesign a slide template is a great skill for anyone who wants to improve PowerPoint presentation. Editing a template allows the user to make the necessary changes that translate to an effective ppt presentation.

When you redesign your favorite ppt template or one that you really love, it creates custom designs that are clean and professional-looking. So how do you edit a PowerPoint template?

• First, pick a suitable ppt template.
• Add the number of ppt slides that fit the content elements you want to include.
• Adjust the ppt fonts and color.
• Remove the ppt slides you don’t need to make the redesign process easier.

The trick with good ppt slides redesign is to use the slide master placed under view and ensure the slides grouping fits what you want. Note that while the slide master is open, any changes you make to one ppt slide affect the entire pack.

Use duplicate slides to save time

Are you asking yourself, “how do I redesign my presentation without spending a lot of time doing it?” Use duplicate ppt slides! Using slides from a previous presentation eliminates the need to redesign the entire PowerPoint lecture.

The duplicate slide and copy-paste are some methods used to create duplicate ppt slides. The easiest method to duplicate ppt slides is to use the copy and paste method. For this ppt procedure to work, follow these steps:

• Start by right-clicking the ppt slide you want to duplicate.
• Select “copy” from the menu.
• Move it to a specific section on the ppt slide.

The duplicate technique involves opening the ppt slides show and selecting the sliding thumb from the slide you wish to duplicate. Then, when you right-click on any of the ppt slides, a menu will appear, allowing you to click on the duplicate slide option.

Select the right font

Font can make or break your PowerPoint presentation. When chosen right, it will improve PowerPoint presentation. Unfortunately, most presenters make the mistake of choosing a fancy font to add visual appeal to the content. That is a big mistake. When it comes to professional presentation, stick to a standard-looking font that doesn’t detract from the main message.

Some of the standard fonts that give slides a professional and clean look while making the text readable include:

• Times New Roman

You don’t even need to download these fonts as they are accessible in all PowerPoint slides. So if you are still wondering, “which is the easiest way to redesign my presentation,” the answer is to use the appropriate font. Comic Sans and Mistral should be avoided, and using fonts like Forte sparingly is better. Serif and Helvetica are great for headers.

Make sure you use the proper font size

Your content font size greatly impacts how the audience perceives the information you are presenting. For example, it can affect navigation speed, the amount of content included in a single slide, and a reader’s experience. That’s why presenters who ask, “how do I improve my presentation?” are often advised to check the font size.

But which font size is appropriate for a PowerPoint presentation?

• Larger than 18 points improve readability.
• For titles, the font size is between 36 and 44.
• For text, maintain a range of between 24 and 36.
• Use a font size of 18-20 when adding explanatory text to a diagram or graph.

Overall, use a big enough fit to ensure anyone sitting at the back of the room can clearly see the slides’ contents.

Settle on specific style and color to use in a redesign

Thanks to its numerous features, PowerPoint has become the go-to option for making professional and impactful presentation redesign. That’s why when considering a PowerPoint slide makeover, style and color are some of the first things you should look into. For your redesign to improve, you can choose a specific style, color, and design with themes. To create consistency and improve the redesign, use the same style or design in all the slides.

Use the following tips to improve the style and color of your redesign:

• Experiment with different ppt theme styles before settling on a specific one.
• Mix and match color, effects, and font until you get a unique ppt look that fits your presentation.
• Customize the themes to fit the style and color you want.

Using themes makes it easier to get clues on the general style, design, and color you wish to have. But for a ppt redesign, go further and customize the themes by modifying the color, font, background styles, and effects.

Avoid PPT templates with too many colors

One of the things you should do when you want to improve PowerPoint presentation is to use different colors to your advantage to inspire your audience. Unfortunately, ppt templates with too many colors distract and fail to drive the message home.

But the right color combination evokes the right emotions that lead to enjoyment of the PowerPoint presentation. For example:

• Blue shows trust, peace, and confidence.
• Yellow portrays optimism and happiness.
• Red shows passion and grabs attention.
• Green is associated with nature and the environment.

When selecting a ppt template with the right colors, consider the following:

• Your brand or that of the company you are representing.
• Niche or industry.

So if you need to improve PowerPoint presentation redesign quickly, use colors that are easy on the eyes and look harmoniously together. Use ppt templates with complementary color schemes when you want to draw attention to a specific point or data.

Stick to using basic coloring

Color themes are a powerful thing that can easily improve PowerPoint presentation. You can use colors to emphasize specific information or draw attention to a specific element in a slide. Yes, if you are a pro, you can use more than two colors in a slide, especially when giving an informative PowerPoint presentation. However, if you are giving a formal presentation to adults, stick to basic coloring.

Young kids will enjoy bold and vibrant colors in a presentation. However, when dealing with adults, consider using neutral hues. Besides considering your target audience, what else should you do when it comes to colors?

• Use color to create contrast.
• Use colors to make information pop and direct the train of thought.
• Take advantage of complementary and monochromatic color schemes.
• Brighter or vibrant colors balance dark backgrounds.

Don’t use more colors than needed in one slide, as it affects balance and creates confusion. On the other hand, the right colors improve PowerPoint presentation and deliver excellent results.

Contrast in a presentation is essential

One of the most effective ways to improve PowerPoint presentation is through contrast. It draws the eye towards something specific. Colors help to show contrast in slides and draw the viewer to something specific.

But when choosing to use different colors as a way to create contrast, remember that some of your viewers might have color blindness issues. While there are different types of contrast, including shape, shade, color, and size, here are the top tips for creating contrast:

• Black and white provide the strongest contrasts.
• The colors in the background and foreground should be different.
• The colors in the slides should be 30% lighter than what you see on your laptop.

The display for your slide, whether a laptop or projector, and even the room you will be giving the presentation might alter the color and brightness. So check the colors in dark and light to see the contrast difference.

In PPT, images are more powerful than words

Our brains process images faster than text. That’s why visuals or images will be a good option for when you need to improve PowerPoint presentation. Besides, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by text in a ppt redesign.

On the other hand, images add visual appeal to the ppt slides, improve concertation and engagement. Having fewer texts and more images in slides also applies to academics and scientific ppt presentations.

But how many images are too many in ppt? Pros tend to combine beautiful images with text. However, it’s better to have more relevant images than text to redesign the ppt and make the content engaging. We are not just talking about pictures but also infographics, animations, and GIFs added to ppt.

Incorporating images in ppt slides has the following advantages:

• Saves time by preparing the ppt slides.
• Reduces boredom or dullness associated with class PowerPoint presentations.
• Helps to make complex concepts presented in a ppt redesign easy to comprehend.

Overall, the best PowerPoint slides makeover is rich in memorable imagery.

Use high-resolution clip art for your PPT redesign

Adding clip art is one of the things that can spice up a PowerPoint presentation. Instead of having ppt slide after slide, clip art breaks the monotony of the text and adds a striking visual effect to the PowerPoint redesign presentation. It also allows the presenter to showcase additional information not included in the PowerPoint slides. The advantages of adding clip art to a ppt redesign include:

• Helps get rid of using too many words.
• Keeps the audience’s attention.
• Improves the information in the ppt redesign and makes it memorable and engaging.

While, in some cases, outdated clip art makes your redesign presentation look unprofessional, it’s a great PowerPoint slide makeover if only it’s of high quality and can be scaled without distortion. So support your ppt redesign text with clip art as it assists the audience in visualizing the words.

Add meaningful visuals and interactions

Want a PowerPoint slides makeover to ensure your presentation makes a lasting impression? Add meaningful visuals and interactions. Most times, what differentiates a great PowerPoint presentation from a bad one is the content and visuals.

High-quality, relevant images make a presentation more visual. The trick is not to get carried away with the number of visuals included in a single slide. Instead of subjecting your audience to one boring slide after another, make a PowerPoint redesign and create an interactive presentation. How?

Tailor the presentation redesign to suit a wide range of audiences without having to edit the slides beforehand. When it comes to visuals and interactions in a redesign, stick to these three principles:

• Less is more.
• Consistently use high-resolution and quality images.
• Treat each slide as a special visual object.

Not all visuals will fit your message or the redesign you want. So choose correctly and avoid those with too many focal items, color, and contrast.

Align elements properly

Icons, shapes, and images are the most common elements in a PowerPoint presentation. Keeping these crucial elements properly aligned showcases professionalism in ppt and helps to grab the audience’s attention. It also keeps the ppt slides organized and makes it easier to convey the main message effectively.

Here are some tips to help you align elements like a PowerPoint redesign expert:

• Always select the object you want to align.
• Use ppt redesign guides are a reference to align objects correctly.
• For ppt redesign, have the option to align two or more objects.
• In a ppt redesign, you can align left, right, center, top, or bottom.

When you choose a specific position, for instance, to align the center if it’s two or more objects, they will be aligned vertically but centered on the ppt slides. For users who want a ppt redesign, aligning the text is another way to go. This involves tweaking the text placed inside the ppt text box.

Include a good background picture to improve your slides

Are your slides lacking a unique look? The simplest step to improve a ppt redesign is to include a background picture that will improve your PowerPoint presentation and clarify the message. A good background photo will personalize your PowerPoint presentation redesign and take it to the next level.

Here are five tips to help improve and select a great background image for a redesign:

• Go for a photo with a high resolution.
• Avoid choosing small photos as they will be distorted if the slide size is bigger.
• Ensure the picture makes it easier to see the text in the slides.

If the background image obscures the text, improve PowerPoint presentation redesign by adjusting the transparency or fine-tuning the text percentage. If you want to use that same background image in all the slides, don’t forget to select the “apply all” option when redesigning.

Incorporate interactive mockups

Don’t be fooled into believing that screenshots and diagrams can improve PowerPoint presentation. They add too much information to a slide and, in turn, make the presentation boring and visually unappealing. A quick way to improve a PowerPoint redesign is to use interactive mockups.

Even if you don’t have exceptional design skills, a mockup is a great way of ensuring your presentation makes a lasting impression. 3D mockups are also unique and a great tool for conveying your message. In case you feel stuck and require a unique way to make better PowerPoints, consider these tips:

• Use screenshots to create unique mockups.
• Copy the screenshots on a blank ppt slide.
• Edit and crop the image to hide unnecessary elements.
• Ensure the changes made on your mockups are duplicated in all the slides.

It’s optional to use PowerPoint hyperlinks to create interactive mockups. However, always test the mockup on different platforms such as laptops and mobile phones to ensure the font size is not affected regardless of the medium used.

Add relevant images to the redesign

Creating a redesign with engaging presentation slides that summarize the key points and capture attention is not easy. That’s why most professional presenters add pictures to improve PowerPoint presentation slides. But in a formal setting or when presenting complex or scientific information, most people don’t add photos to improve the redesign. However, that’s a mistake because it reduces the overall success of your redesign and PowerPoint presentation.

Before you add a specific visual aid to the redesign, consider its purpose. For example, apart from assisting in ppt redesign, use visual aids to:

• Summarize information.
• Reduce the total words to be included in redesign slides.
• Improve and enforce the points being talked about in the redesign.
• Make a stronger impact.
• Engage your audience and capture their attention.

While there are many benefits of using pictures in a ppt redesign, avoid cluttering them as it will make your work look unprofessional. So if you are asking yourself, “which is the ideal way to improve my presentation slides?” use these redesign tips:

• Use images consistently in all ppt redesign slides.
• Go for pictures that tell a story and improve the ppt slides.
• Incorporate photos that improve understanding of the ppt slides.
• Prioritize clarity and simplicity in your ppt redesign.

Adjust and format images appropriately in a redesign

PowerPoint has numerous effective features that can help correct a picture. That means you can play around with color, resizing, saturation, and even apply artist effects. This is a great option for anyone looking for “quick ways to fix my PowerPoint presentation.” What’s to love about PowerPoint redesign is that it ensures no non-destructive editing for adjusting photos.

If you realize that you have made a mistake in your PowerPoint presentation redesign, you can quickly reset, remove any changes, and get your original image. The editing and redesign option allows you to format your photo to ensure it holds the audience’s attention. Some of the tips that you can use to make your photo better and redesign your slides include:

• Sharpen the image to refine edges and correct slightly blurry images in the presentation redesign.
• Use brightness and contrast to improve the pictures and the redesign.
• Scale an image to fit your redesign slides.

Crop any parts of the images that you don’t want to appear on the redesign slides.

Use graphs to increase understanding of content

Graphs come in handy when ppt data is too large or complicated to be represented in the text. Graphs are a great tool when you need to “fix my PowerPoint presentation” or redesign the project because they can help showcase trends or similarities between two variables. The benefits of incorporating graphs in a PowerPoint presentation include:

• Improve comprehension of data added in the ppt redesign.
• Improve the visual interpretation of any complex numerical to be included in a ppt redesign.
• Highlight and improve the interpretation of salient features of the ppt data.
• Showcase relationships that may not be that obvious when viewing the ppt redesign.
• Improve comparison of a different set of data.

While a specific presentation may call for different types of graphs, all of them work to enhance PowerPoint presentation. Graphs improve focus and allow the audience to concentrate on one salient point. That’s why a presenter should create graphs with one clear message that is simple to understand and find meaning in presented data. Graphs also allow a user to back up their claims.

Modify graphs to suit the data in the presentation

Did you know that one great way to improve PowerPoint presentation is by enhancing the appearance of a chart? To improve it, override the default graph format and edit. However, if not used correctly, graphs can be distracting. So to improve a redesign, keep each graph simple and easy to comprehend.

That way, the audience won’t get confused or spend much time deciphering what the graph from your redesign means. For large data, convert it to graphs but follow these redesign tips to ensure you improve the slides’ visual aid:

• To improve a redesign, you have to choose a specific graph presentation that tells a story.
• The elements included in the graphs should not be distracting but improve the redesign and PowerPoint presentation.
• To improve a redesign, use colors to highlight the key message.
• To improve a redesign, use different colored lines to improve and contrast two items or variables.

Another trick to improve a ppt redesign is adding titles to your graphs with information you want the audience to remember. Then, for a simple PowerPoint slides makeover, apply the simple formatting commands that adjust the font size, color, and style.

Add bulleted lists to organize ideas

Writing, whether in an academic or professional setting, must be clear, concise, and organized. Bullet points can help to organize ideas. For example, to use them to “redesign my presentation and improve it,” list out key points or items from the PowerPoint presentation.

This is mostly because even in a PowerPoint presentation , the audience might scan your content instead of reading it line by line. A bulleted list will break up long blocks of text, improve it, and motivate your audience to read the information.

But for bullet points to be effective in a ppt redesign, you should do the following:

• To improve the ppt redesign, keep bullets short in order to motivate the reader to move through the presentation.
• To improve the ppt redesign, the bullets must be brief and act as mini headlines.
• Bullets should be formatted the same way as the text in the PowerPoint presentation.

Since bullet points should be thematically related to the text, you might wonder how they can help redesign or improve PowerPoint presentation. A bulleted list in a ppt redesign breaks up long blocks of texts into digestible chunks and keeps the audience reading down the slides.

Make the slides pop with the 2/4/8 rule

One of the quickest ways to enhance PowerPoint presentations or give a PowerPoint redesign a fresh look is to use the 2/4/8 rule. To improve your redesign, you should not spend more than 2 minutes on a slide. Moreover, a single slide should not have more than four bullets. Finally, a bullet point should not have more than eight words.

This powerful rule is popular among professional presenters. So to help you out, here are some pointers for the 2/4/8 rule that can help improve a redesign:

• Ensure that 2 minutes are enough to inform the audience about the key points.
• The four bullet points should highlight the main points.
• Adding only eight words per line to every slide ensures the audience doesn’t get bored.

The 2/4/8 rule works to ensure that your slides are not cluttered. It also shows that there is no need to squeeze all the information into a single slide. Instead, it helps supplement the short words with a lengthy verbal presentation

Replace long bullet lists with pictures

Replace a long bulleted list with a high-quality image. Combining graphics and information to create infographics is another great way to achieve an impactful PowerPoint slide makeover.

Since the infographic accommodates varying font types, font sizes, color contrasts, and imagery, it eliminates monotony and adds visual appeal. So which is the correct way to add infographics to PowerPoint slides? Follow these tips:

• Use data visualization to turn lengthy data in slides into fascinating pictures.
• Opt for a ppt slides redesign to play with different shapes and diagrams.
• In your ppt redesign, include icons to improve the overall look.
• Use vector graphics that can be customizable per your preference to improve the ppt redesign.

While bullets in a ppt redesign were meant to break long blocks of text and make paragraphs easier to digest, sometimes they fail to create a fascinating visual aid. But when replaced with a picture or infographic, your message becomes memorable and works to enhance PowerPoint presentation.

Make use of PowerPoint redesign presentation examples

If you want to improve your PowerPoint presentation by always ending up with a blank page, find appealing and relatable redesign examples online. The redesign samples will act as guidelines and inspiration for your next project. With a redesign example to follow, you will know which colors to use and what to include to ensure your PowerPoint slides makeover is a success. The trick is to use online redesign examples from reputable sites. When looking at examples, follow these tips:

• Go for redesign examples that capture your attention and note which areas you focus more on.
• Use the redesign example to check how the slides have been customized and use that aspect to create your pieces.
• Use the redesign sample to determine whether the PowerPoint presentation is image-heavy or text-heavy or combines the two approaches.

It’s often best to combine text and images in equal proportion to help give PowerPoint presentation redesign in a conversational style.

Improve the layout

Did you know that you can improve clarity with layouts? This is simple but important to help improve PowerPoint presentation. When the layout has too much content, including a chart, text, and picture, in a single redesign or slide, the audience often gets confused. That’s why when it comes to a perfect redesign, avoid complex layouts and stick to simple ones.

Not all PowerPoint slides will be equal. However, when it comes to ppt redesign, here are essential tips that result in a great layout:

• Always limit the number of items you add in a single slide layout.
• Ensure every text added to the layout is readable.
• Don’t overfill the entire layout.
• For a stunning redesign, leave white space between each element.

Use placeholders in the slide layout to set a good position for texts, images, graphs, and other visual elements. You can also create custom layouts and save them within the chosen ppt template.

Use shapes to redesign a winning PPT presentation

Are you fond of asking, “how do I redesign my presentation?” Shapes can enhance your PowerPoint presentation. Using other format options, PowerPoint shapes will elevate your slides and add a visual appeal to the content.

What’s even greater is that you don’t have to stick to using common shapes such as rectangles, circles, and ovals. Instead, opt for sleek shapes that transform your ppt presentation.

Shapes can help you create simple or even complex ppt illustrations that will showcase your professionalism. But what’s so great about shapes, and what are their benefits in PowerPoint redesign?

• PPT shapes can be resized without getting distorted or losing image quality.
• PPT shapes offer immense flexibility.
• PPT shapes come in a variety of sizes, from large to small.
• PPT shapes are great for creating flowcharts, illustrations, and other basic diagrams.

Use the rule of thirds to improve PowerPoint slides

Anyone looking for a quick way to improve PowerPoint presentation should use the rule of thirds. It offers an easy way to make attractive slides that capture attention. The rule of thirds is based on the principle of dividing the slides into nine equal parts with two horizontal and vertical intersections.

Based on the rule, you should keep important visual elements in your redesign within the intersections. To use the principle effectively to redesign slides, follow these tips:

• Use the guide feature in PowerPoint to draw four lines on the slides and improve your redesign.
• Both the vertical and horizontal lines should divide your images into thirds and make the redesign better.
• In the redesign, ensure the lines intersect at four points, also known as the power points.

Note that even if your image has several elements, the viewer’s eye will be focused on the power points. Therefore, when you need to improve PowerPoint redesign and achieve maximum impact, place the key elements in the power points.

Add GIFs to your PowerPoint slides

Is your ppt presentation missing a wow factor that can appeal to a target audience? Are you asking yourself, “how do I fix my PowerPoint presentation and make it less boring? Insert a GIF into your ppt slides. A well-placed GIF makes the ppt presentation entertaining, which appeals to a younger audience. The ppt slides redesign can also add humor and capture attention.

Most people might refrain from adding GIFs to PowerPoint presentations because they believe it requires special skills or tools. However, inserting a GIF into ppt slides is just like adding an image. The steps include:

• Download a GIF.
• Open PowerPoint slides.
• Insert a picture.
• Choose the location where you placed the downloaded GIF.
• Insert the GIF in a specific position in the ppt slides.

Depending on the device you are using or the version of PowerPoint, you may choose clip art or picture instead.

Make slides advance automatically

PowerPoint allows users to improve their presentation with special effects. For example, you can create slides that advance automatically using the autoplay feature. This eliminates the need to keep clicking a slide whenever you want to move to the next one.

For a presentation, having an automatic advance feature shows professionalism and that you are well prepared. On the other hand, clicking a slide during a PowerPoint presentation can be distracting and cause you to lose flow or rhythm.

If you want an effective PowerPoint slide makeover, consider creating a slide show that advances automatically. But before setting the advance option, consider the following:

• Have you practiced beforehand to ensure your slides advance with your speech?
• Do you want to focus on the audience instead of looking at the slides?

A self-advancing PowerPoint slide would fit your needs if you answered yes to any of these questions.

Use animations wisely

Animation can improve PowerPoint presentation. It’s also a go-to option for anyone who wants to make better PowerPoints. While adding animation to ppt slides is risky, especially if it’s distracting, it will often improve the presentation redesign.

The trick is to use animations that complement your ppt message. That way, the audience understands what the animation represents, eliminating misunderstandings. If you want to incorporate animations as a way to improve PowerPoint, consider these tips:

• Use animation as a tool to help your audience connect with the message in the ppt.
• Use eye-catching animations to break the monotony of the ppt text and capture attention.
• For long ppt presentations, use animations to engage the audience and prevent fatigue.
• Use animations to draw attention to key points or new terms in the ppt.

While animations are great for presentations, they can only be effective if kept simple. So avoid using several animations in a single slide and use them consistently.

In PPT, it’s better to keep transition effects at a minimum

Animation and slide transition effects have a poor reputation among many professional PowerPoint presenters because they can distract the audience. However, simple animations and quick slide transitions can add meaning and improve PowerPoint presentation or redesign. But before you include a transition and animation into your slide as a way to “improve my presentation redesign,” consider the following:

• Context and relevancy.
• Whether the ppt redesign presentation involves complex or simple data.
• Which points need more attention and can help improve the ppt redesign.

If you fail to use transition effects or animations, your PowerPoint presentation can appear boring. Adding only one or two animation effects is a great PowerPoint slide makeover. This ensures that the effects of the redesign don’t overpower the message.

PPT slide transitions also add professional impact and draw attention to important data. When appropriately customized, you can use the effects to control the speed at which the PowerPoint slides appear on the screen.

Change slide size to fit your presentation

PowerPoint usually has two common slide sizes: 16:9 and 4:3. The first size is ideal for ppt presentations that involve a modern projector. However, 4:3 is great when you are using an old model device. But what if I want to redesign my presentation? Are these the only slide sizes appropriate for ppt? Of course, not.

You can customize the slides to fit the size you want. This is often an option if 4:3 and 16:9 are unsuitable for the ppt redesign. But before you customize the size of your slides, here are some tips to consider:

• 4:3 is great for creating multipurpose ppt content to be printed or shown across different platforms.
• 16:9 is great for high visual ppt content.
• Use 4:3 when the ppt slides are not going to be projected on the LCD screen.

It would be best if you also educated yourself on the ppt aspect ratio. For instance, the 4:3 aspect ratio is 1024×768 pixels, ideal for smaller ppt slides and screens.

When in doubt, dump the slides

Thanks to PowerPoint, it’s possible to have a ppt redesign that creates engaging content. However, sometimes even after looking at several examples, you can find out that your presentation is still dull. For example, if you have tried several times to improve PowerPoint presentation, but the result is slides that will bore the audience, then dump the whole project and start over.

The main aim of a PowerPoint presentation is to hook the audience on the message you are conveying and make them understand it. That is, if your ppt redesign does not have the necessary elements to hook the audience from the word go, it’s best to trash it. To make your next PowerPoint redesign a success, adhere to these tips:

• Replace large chunks of texts in ppt with stunning visual elements.
• Use animations, clip art, and GIFs sparingly in ppt.
• Instead of adding text in ppt, think like an editor and delete what can be omitted.

Finally, be consistent with font size, color schemes, font types, and bullets used in any ppt redesign.

Now that you know how to create a perfectly-balanced presentation, let’s find out how to present it to your audience in the best possible way. These tips will be especially relevant for teachers, lecturers, and presenters.

Present PPT material in short phrases

Presenting the material in short phrases rather than full sentences is another way to improve PowerPoint redesign. It ensures you don’t focus more on reading from ppt slides as it’s an ineffective way to teach. Instead, adding only a few short phrases to improve PowerPoint presentation allows you to focus on one idea and make the topic easier for the audience to understand.

The benefits of shorter phrases in a PowerPoint presentation redesign are as follows:

• It leaves less room for your audience to focus more on what is written on the ppt slides.
• It allows your audience to focus on your thoughts, explanation, and insights on the subject discussed in the ppt redesign.
• It lets the audience know and focus on the main point presented in the ppt redesign.

To improve PowerPoint presentation at any time, stick to short phrases that do not exceed 30 words or one line. Emphasize the short phrases with bold or bigger font sizes.

Include verbal explanations for pictures/graphs

It’s without a doubt that visual aids improve PowerPoint presentation redesign. PPT slides increase an audience’s understanding of the topic. That’s why pictures and graphs are great for anyone asking themselves, “how do I fix my PowerPoint presentation redesign.”

But without a verbal explanation, it can be challenging to comprehend the information in the ppt redesign presentation. So to give PowerPoint slides makeover, accompany visual aids with verbal explanations. Adding verbal explanations in ppt redesign slides is important because:

• A real-time ppt presentation allows the audience to ask questions about the visual aids used in the redesign.
• It enables your audience to assimilate the content better and freely discuss any doubts.
• It allows the lecturer or presenter to give real-time answers to any relevant question asked.

Simplicity in the verbal explanation is key in assimilating the message and a great way to improve a redesign or a PowerPoint presentation.

Don’t make the audience read the information on the slides

It’s hard for people to concentrate on what you are saying and still read the content on the slides. So if you want to make better PowerPoint presentation, don’t make your audience read the slides. Instead, allow them to listen to you and digest the information you have given in the redesign.

When the audience reads the slides, there is a high chance that they will not listen attentively. This reduces the concentration and retention of relevant information. It also beats the purpose of PowerPoint slide makeover. Besides, listening makes it easier for the audience to take notes and remember the key points in the redesign. When making a redesign, instead of allowing your audience to read the slides on their own, consider these four tips:

• At the beginning of the PowerPoint presentation, tell the audience what to expect.
• Elicit conversation to prevent the audience from focusing on the slides.
• Use the redesign to open with a story that ties to the topic to captivate your audience.
• Blackout the screen to ensure you are not competing with the PowerPoint redesign slides.

Fade to black when speaking

In search engines, the phrase “redesign my presentation” is commonly asked by presenters who want to be pros. However, one answer that is often overlooked but can easily improve PowerPoint presentation is the fade-to-black effect.

It’s often considered a transition that prevents the audience from concentrating too much on the slides. Instead, it allows the listeners to focus on the presenter. If fade-to-black is a new concept to you, check out the tips below:

• Use the fade-to-black effect to carry and improve your narrative.
• Fade-to-black provides room to pause and move on to the next slide.
• Use fade-to-black to get undivided attention and connect with the audience.

The chances are high that you have not been using the fade-to-black effect in your presentation. However, we recommend you try it because you are definitely missing out on a big opportunity that can enhance PowerPoint presentation.

Use PowerPoint slides to boost note-taking skills

One efficient way to make better PowerPoint presentation slides is to ensure your lectures improve note-taking skills. How?

With PowerPoint slides that summarize the subject or topic under discussion, students will have all it takes to improve and make good notes. In addition, learners will be able to follow what the lecturer is saying to understand key points given in the ppt slides.

The key to improving note-taking skills is to do it when the professor is not talking, decreasing information retention and learning. If a professor realizes that students focus more on taking notes than listening, they might have to do a PowerPoint redesign. For starters, ensure the ppt slides don’t have too much text that takes too much time for students to write down. When presenting your ppt slides, promote active listening by:

• Repeating the main points stated in the ppt slides.
• Asking questions to help learners focus on what is being said in the ppt slides.
• Don’t cover what is not included in the ppt slides.
• Don’t speak too fast or often point at the ppt slides.

And last but not least, take breaks or pauses between ppt slides to allow students to catch up and not miss any crucial information.

Give PowerPoint slides before the lecture

Do you sometimes see a specific student struggle to understand your ppt presentation? The solution might lie in the PowerPoint slide makeover. Most professors are used to presenting the slides during the actual lecture. This is because some students will not attend class if given the ppt slides before the lesson. However, there are numerous advantages to making the ppt slides available before the lecture.

• The ppt slides act as a guide for note-taking.
• When you improve a ppt redesign, it allows your audience to add information that was verbally discussed during class.
• PPT redesign increases student participation and concentration.

PowerPoint slides given before class allow the audience to gauge which sections they might find difficult to comprehend and ask relevant questions. However, if your students don’t attend class after getting the slides and you ask yourself, “how do I fix my PowerPoint presentation?” we recommend considering the quality of the slides. Ensure the slides don’t divulge every important detail. That way, you leave room for a verbal presentation to fill in the blanks and explain the subject matter further.

Use PowerPoint slides structure to complement lectures

Every teacher has used PowerPoint slides to improve lectures. But some of the teachers end up creating the slides in a dull way that makes students bored. However, the appropriate use of PowerPoint slides can be a great teaching tool as long as it follows a logically sound structure. This is another great tip to improve PowerPoint presentation redesign.

So how do you structure slides and improve PowerPoint presentations?

• As a way to improve the ppt slides, include the outline view to help you get a quick overview of the content
• Ensure slides from the ppt redesign include the table of contents to ease navigation
• Combine ppt slides into collapsible and expandable sections

The trick to improve PowerPoint slides is to make the presentation just like any other narration. Ensure the ppt redesign has an introduction, body, and conclusion. Besides, you can also give the PowerPoint presentation slides to students before class to enhance understanding and memory.

Wrapping up

PowerPoint presentations can be a great tool to get information across, demonstrate your expertise, projects, and accomplishments, as well as supplement a lecture. However, slides have to be created using best practices to get you the result you want.

Observance of a few simple principles will help you easily make effective PowerPoint presentations in 2022:

• Design your PowerPoint slides in one style. Use font, color, and shapes to create a visual hierarchy.
• Arrange elements so that everyone can immediately read the most important message.
• Highlight key elements with color, shape, or layout. Create a contrast or color spot.
• In the text, try to highlight the most critical phrases. This can be done using the color, thickness, or size of the text.
• Choose flat icons and simple shapes instead of 3D elements and rendered details.
• Use the built-in alignment tools (ruler, guides, and grid in PowerPoint).
• Copy slides and elements instead of re-creating them. An excellent PowerPoint presentation design is the reproduction of items, colors, and other objects.

In case you’re not good at slide design, don’t worry. SlidePeak can help you ensure each slide of your PowerPoint presentation looks professional and grabs your audience’s attention from the first line.

#ezw_tco-2 .ez-toc-widget-container ul.ez-toc-list li.active::before { background-color: #ededed; } Table of contents

• Presenting techniques
• Present financial information visually in PowerPoint to drive results
• Keynote VS PowerPoint
• Types of presentations

8 rules of effective presentation

How to make a presentation interactive

The biggest trends in graphic design for presentations in 2022/2023

How to give better PowerPoint presentations and improve your slides to keep an audience engaged

• You can improve your PowerPoint presentations by both improving your presentation skills and making better use of the program. 
• To create a more compelling PowerPoint presentation, you can use tricks like animated charts, a background soundtrack, or embedded fonts. 
• Here are 17 tips for making cleaner slides, speaking more effectively, and using little-known PowerPoint tools for smarter presentations.

Microsoft PowerPoint remains the most common platform to create and deliver presentations. 

No matter what your content, you can make a more compelling presentation when you've toned some common presentation skills and also mastered some of PowerPoint's lesser-known features.

How to make a better PowerPoint presentation

Here are nine ways to get more out of PowerPoint and create a killer presentation. 

Start your presentation instantly 

Few things look as unprofessional as fumbling around trying to start your presentation in the PowerPoint app. But you can skip all that by setting your presentation to start instantly.

1. When your PowerPoint deck is complete, click "File" and "Save As."

2. In the Save As dialog box, change the "Save as" type to "PowerPoint Show" and store it somewhere easy to find, like your desktop. 

3. When you're ready to start the presentation, double-click this icon, and the deck will launch instantly in presentation mode, without needing to open the PowerPoint application. 

Create an animated chart

You can format any kind of chart so each segment animates individually. This can help you call attention to specific parts of the chart as you discuss it. Add a chart in the usual way, then:

1. Click the "Animations" tab in the ribbon and then click "Animation Pane."

2. In the ribbon, click "Add Animation."

3. Choose the kind of animation you want to apply to the chart. 

4. Right-click the effect in the Animation Pane and then, in the menu, choose "Effect Options."

5. In the Properties box, choose the "Chart Animation" tab and then change "Group chart" to "By Category" and click "OK."

Align your graphics

PowerPoint lets you add objects — shapes, lines, arrows, text boxes, and other elements — to the screen, but getting them aligned can be tricky. You might appreciate knowing you can perfectly align any elements on the screen with just a couple of clicks. 

1. Press and hold the Shift key.

2. While continuing to hold Shift, click each item on the screen that you want to align. If you click an element by accident, click it again to de-select it. Release the Shift key when they're all selected.

3. Click the "Home" tab in the ribbon.

4. In the ribbon, click "Arrange" and then, in the "Position Objects" section, choose an alignment to arrange or distribute the objects neatly on the screen. 

Embed your fonts for portability

If you're using special fonts in your presentation and you try to open the deck on a computer that doesn't have those fonts installed, PowerPoint will substitute a local font, sometimes with disastrous results. You can avoid that problem by embedding the font in the deck, making the presentation fully portable (and possible for other people to share and edit the deck as well).

1. Click the "File" tab in the ribbon and then choose "Options."

2. In the PowerPoint Options dialog box, choose "Save" in the navigation pane on the left.

3. In the section called "Preserve fidelity when sharing this presentation," click "Embed fonts in the file" and then select "Embed all characters."

Blank the screen to keep all eyes on you

It seems inevitable: For whatever reason, you find yourself needing to discuss a topic that's not directly related to the slide on the screen. That's when the deck can become a distraction, with your audience's eyes focused on a pie chart when you're answering an unrelated question. PowerPoint has an easy solution: Press the B key to blank the screen — it'll turn black until you press B again or move to the next slide. If you prefer, press W to turn the screen white. 

Easily jump between sections of your deck

Not every presentation is linear, and you might prefer to jump back and forth from sections of your deck to a common "table of contents," so you can tackle the presentation in any order. This can be handy, for example, if you're using a deck for training or education. PowerPoint's Zoom feature is ideal for this.

1. Create a presentation and be sure to organize it into sections, ideally with title slides dividing each part of the deck.

2. Click the "Insert" tab in the ribbon.

3. Click "Zoom" and then click "Summary Zoom."

4. In the "Insert Summary Zoom" window, select the title slide or start of each section and then click "Insert."

PowerPoint will add a summary page to your deck. Now you can start your presentation here and click a section to go there. When that section is complete, PowerPoint will return you to the summary page. 

Preserve the presentation as a PDF

If you want to share your presentation with your audience, a PDF file is an easy way to preserve the formatting, make it easily printable, and prevent anyone from modifying your content. Just click the "File" tab in the ribbon, choose "Save As," and then select "PDF" as the "Save as" type. You can now share this PDF file quickly and easily. 

Zoom in for a closer look

During a presentation, you might realize that the audience can't clearly see a detail you want to focus on. That's ok — PowerPoint lets you zoom in with a couple clicks. 

First, make sure your presentation is set to Slide Show view. To zoom in, click on the magnifying glass in the lower-left corner of the presenter view. You'll see a zoom box appear — position it where you want to zoom, and click. Now the presentation will be zoomed in on the part of the screen you want to focus on. You can even click and drag to move around the screen while zoomed in. 

When you're done and want to zoom back out, either press the Escape key or the magnifying glass icon again. 

Add a musical soundtrack

You can easily add a musical score that plays in the background across all your slides. This is especially handy for "kiosk" presentations that run autonomously. 

1. Go to the slide where you want the music to begin and then click the "Insert" tab in the ribbon.

2. Click "Audio" and then click "Audio on my PC…"

3. Choose the track you want to play. 

4. In the ribbon, click "Play in Background."

Now, when you reach this slide, the music will start to play automatically and it will continue playing across slides until the track is over, then loop and play again.

Related coverage from  Tech Reference :

How to do a voiceover on a powerpoint presentation and add pre-recorded audio to your slides, the 48 best powerpoint keyboard shortcuts for making great presentations quickly and easily, how to add a border to slides in powerpoint, and give your slideshow a sleek design, how to compress a powerpoint file so that it loads faster and doesn't take up as much space, how to create a custom powerpoint template to use or share with others.

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13 PowerPoint Presentation Tips to Create Engaging Presentations

Written by: Chloe West

Have to create a PowerPoint presentation and dread it? Your presentations don’t always have to be dry, boring and limited. With these PowerPoint presentation tips, you’ll be able to put together a dynamic and engaging presentation.

Let’s start from the very beginning before you even open up your presentation tool.

• Start by writing out your talking points.
• Get creative with your slide design.
• Keep your design consistent throughout.
• Make your presentation interactive.
• Add animation.
• Put together seamless transitions.
• Use text creatively.
• Align objects with the grid.
• Create non-linear presentations.
• Place shapes strategically.
• Crop images into shapes.
• Utilize the presenter notes.
• Use a dynamic presentation software.

1. Start by writing out your talking points.

The first thing you need to do, before even considering your presentation design, is to write out your talking points and outline your speech.

Pay attention to popular and engaging presentation structures so you know the framework you want to follow throughout your talk. This will also make it easier to create an outline that focuses on each of your talking points.

Once you’ve put together an outline that represents your topic and touches on each important element you need to cover, you can start searching for a PowerPoint presentation template that will fit your topic.

Or, you can start browsing through Visme’s presentation templates below.

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2. Get creative with your PowerPoint presentation slide design.

When it comes to putting your content onto your PowerPoint presentation slides, you want to be sure your slides are clean, easy to read and engaging.

This means you should try out a variety of different creative themes. And while we have a post with over 100 creative presentation ideas you should check out, here are a few ways to really make your slideshow stand out.

Use more design elements than photos.

While a photo collage or stock image background tends to be PowerPoint presentation go-to’s, we’re trying to empower you to do something different!

Take a page out of this template’s book by taking advantage of different design elements. Here, we see a solid colored background, shapes, icons and text decorating the slides of this presentation.

In this example PowerPoint slides, we do still see a photo added to emphasize the point on one of the slides, but it’s used as a design element rather than the foundation of the slide.

Use a bold color scheme.

When customizing example PowerPoint slides , your color palette matters. Using a more bold and bright color scheme is a great way to grab audience attention and make yourself seem more serious about your topic.

A more powerful color scheme makes an impression on your viewers, helping them to further see you as an authority on the information you’re sharing.

This example PowerPoint slides uses a bold blue and orange color scheme to stand out. To get an idea for a color palette for your next presentation, take a look at these 50 combinations .

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3. Keep your design consistent throughout.

We just shared a couple of different presentation templates available with our platform in the last point. What do you notice?

Here’s another example for you to take a look at.

All of the example PowerPoint slides have a similar look and feel, creating a cohesive presentation deck that looks intentional and professionally designed.

Imagine if you were sitting in a presentation that looked something like this.

This looks messy and cluttered. It’s an amateur-looking design, and your audience will be confused about how these slides make any sense together.

Because keeping your design consistent is an essential part of creating an engaging presentation, we’ve also created a few different presentation themes with hundreds of example PowerPoint slides that all follow the same design theme.

Here’s an example of our Modern presentation theme below with over 900 different slides so that you can find a variety of slides perfect for your next slide deck.

4. Make your presentation interactive.

One way to create a really dynamic presentation that will keep your audience engaged and create a memorable experience is to make your presentation interactive.

While we’ve covered 17 ways to create an interactive presentation before, let’s go over how you can do this using a tool like Visme.

PowerPoint is widely known as the go-to presentation software, but there are so many alternatives that can lead you to a better solution and a better end result.

In Visme’s presentation maker, you can easily add links to any object in your presentation that lead to web pages, other slides within your presentation or create popup or hover effects with other objects on your slide.

Simply click on the element that you want to add a link to, head to the Actions menu, then select which type of interactive link you want to add.

You’re also able to create interactive maps and data visualizations that allow you or your viewers to hover over each element in your visual to see more information.

Here’s an example of an interactive map that you can easily create to showcase more information in a more digestible format.

Visme also allows you to embed external content like videos, polls, forms, surveys, quizzes and more. Plus, there are several third-party integrations you can use to embed and connect even more interactive content.

5. Add animation.

Another way to help your slides stand out is by adding in animated elements. Try to incorporate enter and exit effects for various objects on your slides to grab your audience’s attention as new slides fly onto the screen.

Here’s a great example of how this could look.

Or, if you put together your PowerPoint presentation slides with a different tool – like Visme, wink wink – you can gain access to even more animated elements.

Visme provides users with fully customizable animated illustrations, icons, shapes and more that can have their size, colors and animation speed updated to fit your needs.

These illustrations can be perfect for adding even more depth to your presentation slides, especially when it comes to your title slides and section headers to help break up your presentation.

6. Put together seamless transitions.

When customizing example PowerPoint slides, you want to put a creative spin on it. Instead of having one slide disappear for another to appear in full, why not try out some creative transitions?

It’s important for us to note that if you find a transition you like, you should stick with it throughout your presentation. This goes back to our point about cohesive design. You want everything to flow well.

This means that you don’t want to throw a ton of different slide designs, animation types and transitions into the mix, or you’ll end up with a cluttered and hard-to-follow presentation deck.

Visme’s unique transitions offer not just slide transitions, but a way to seamlessly transition all of your elements onto the screen as well.

Take a look at this presentation below to see how this looks. Click through the slides to see them transition.

To get this effect, simply choose one of the following transitions that also show the slide elements following suit after the background appears.

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7. Use text creatively.

There are hundreds of fonts to choose from, so how do you know the best ones to use and how to make them stand out on your slides?

First, you can check out our guide to font pairing to understand some basics for choosing the right fonts for your slides.

For example, make sure you’re using 3 fonts max, and that each has a specific role in your presentation, as you see below.

Once you’ve chosen your preferred fonts, whether you look through our selections of top fonts , modern fonts , pretty fonts or elsewhere, start considering how you can use them creatively in your presentation design.

Pro Tip: It’s important to remember that in a presentation, you won’t have many words on the screen. So you want to make sure the text that you do include focuses on your main point of each slide and grabs attention.

Let’s cover a few ways that you can use text creatively and really make your slides stand out to your viewers.

Surround your text with shapes.

If you really want to make certain words pop off the slide, add a shape behind them like you see in this presentation about dinosaurs above.

While this is more of an informational presentation, this tactic can also be used for business-related presentations as well. 

Simply search through Visme’s library of shapes for something that matches your theme and set it behind your content.

Place your text on the white space of a photo.

Try positioning your photos strategically and utilizing pictures with more white space than you normally would. This helps you find the perfect spot to place your text so that it’s easy for your audience to read while still being visual.

In the above example PowerPoint slides, these minimalistic nature photos are the perfect backdrop for the text, providing tons of white space while still offering texture and visual elements.

Use color overlays.

Another great way to really make your words pop is by adding a translucent color overlay on top of your background photo.

Incorporating a photo into your presentation slide helps create more depth and visualize the words you’re saying, but you still want to be able to have your text be legible throughout the slide deck.

8. Align objects with the grid.

When using a tool like Visme to create your presentation, you can turn on a grid that allows you to ensure your design elements are properly aligned and perfectly symmetrical.

To access the grid in Visme’s editor, click the hamburger menu, then go to View Options , then toggle the Show grid option to turn it on.

You can set the size you want your grid to be to strategically align elements around your slide as well as set how opaque the grid lines are.

9. Create non-linear presentations.

You don’t have to go from slide to slide in your PowerPoint presentation. In fact, there are endless options for how you could navigate between slides when presenting.

Whether you let the audience decide the direction of your presentation by offering them different options to choose from, you create a navigation bar for your presentation or you allow yourself to determine the flow as you go by adding a progress bar, you have tons of options.

Here’s a great example of what your presentation could look like with a navigation menu within your slides.

10. Place shapes strategically.

Don’t underestimate the power of shapes in your presentation design. Or any design, really. 

Using various geometric shapes or even shapes you may not have heard of before to draw attention to various elements on the screen is a great design practice.

Our Creative presentation theme – with over 300 different slide layouts – is a great example of using shapes strategically to add design elements and emphasize various parts of your content.

Visme presentation maker has a library full of different types of shapes that can be used in diagrams, as backgrounds to icons , to frame text and so much more.

Put together a set of guidelines for which shapes you plan to use in your presentation and stick to no more than two or three different shapes throughout. While you can resize them based on your needs, you don’t want to clutter your slides.

11. Crop images into shapes.

Back with the shapes! Another creative way to bring shapes into your designs is to crop photos into different geometric shapes.

The presentation template below is the perfect example for how you can visually incorporate these cropped images into your slide design.

It’s easy to do this with a tool like Visme. Simply drag and drop your choice of photo from the photo library in the left sidebar onto your slide, click it, choose Frames in the navigation bar and choose the one that fits your design.

Take a look at a few of the frames available in our software.

12. Utilize presenter notes.

Want to really give a good presentation ? It’s important not to read off the slide and actually speak directly to your audience throughout your PowerPoint presentation.

One great way to keep yourself on task and ensure you don’t skip over any important information is to take advantage of presenter notes available to you when up on stage or in front of your audience presenting.

Visme has dynamic and comprehensive presenter notes built in that help ease the pressure of presenting.

Take a look below at what you can expect to see on your screen when presenting – all while your audience only sees the slide you’re showcasing.

You get access to the time of your presentation, the current slide, the slide you can expect next to help with the flow of your slideshow and the notes you’ve prepared for your talking points.

13. Use a dynamic presentation software.

The last way to create an amazing and engaging PowerPoint presentation is to use a dynamic presentation software that isn’t PowerPoint.

I know what you’re thinking – how can you deliver a PowerPoint by using a different software?

With a tool like Visme, you’ll get tons of premade example PowerPoint slides to choose from. You’re able to both import existing PowerPoints to edit and spice them up and export editable PowerPoints to present offline and make any last minute changes.

When creating your presentation, you can use Dynamic Fields to automatically update key information throughout the slides. You can also personalize the fields and apply them to other projects.

Our analytics tool helps you track the performance of your presentation. You can track views, unique visits, average time, average completion and a host of other key metrics.

Learn more about turning your Vismes into PowerPoint presentations in this quick tutorial video.

Start improving your PowerPoint presentations with Visme.

Ready to start creating PowerPoint presentations with Visme? Sign up for a business account today and improve your brand and the presentations you share with your audience. Start creating engaging and interactive presentations that your viewers will love.

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About the Author

Chloe West is the content marketing manager at Visme. Her experience in digital marketing includes everything from social media, blogging, email marketing to graphic design, strategy creation and implementation, and more. During her spare time, she enjoys exploring her home city of Charleston with her son.

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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7 Cool Ways to Improve Any PowerPoint Presentation

Want to be a powerpoint power user read on..

PowerPoint presentations--we all create them, and we all wish we could create better, more engaging ones.

And we all wish they didn't take so much time and effort to create--time and effort that would be better spent crafting what we want to say , not how we want to present it.

Here's a cool infographic from Best STL , a U.K.-based provider of Microsoft Office training, professional and management courses, and technical and eLearning services. (The original can be found here .)

A refreshed look at leadership from the desk of CEO and chief content officer Stephanie Mehta

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How to Improve Your Presentation Skills: 11 Practical Tips

• The Speaker Lab
• August 15, 2024

Table of Contents

Have you ever felt your heart racing just before stepping onto a stage? That’s presentation anxiety knocking. But how do you beat it? One solution is to improve your presentation skills . By honing your abilities, you achieve greater confidence in yourself. You see, great public speakers are made through practice, and lots of it. Knowing your subject inside out matters, as does understanding who you’re talking to.

This journey doesn’t start at the podium or end at the applause. It begins much earlier, in how we prepare our minds and material for that spotlight moment. To keep an audience hanging on every word requires more than good content alone. Body language speaks volumes too. So, it’s crucial to master both your verbal and nonverbal cues. This approach guarantees your message resonates deeply with all present.

Understanding the Importance of Presentation Skills

Presentation skills go beyond merely standing and speaking before an audience. They embody the essence of engaging and connecting with others. As it turns out, being able to connect with people in this way is an invaluable skill worth having. From convincing a potential new client to sharing knowledge with peers, presenting helps you get key ideas across. But here’s the kicker: it’s not only about what you say but how you say it that counts. While such finesse comes naturally to some, others need a bit of practice before they can nail it. But that’s why we’re here—to help you out.

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Mastering the Basics of Effective Presentations

Grasping the fundamentals can elevate a decent presentation to one that’s memorable. Let’s break it down.

Knowing Your Subject and Audience

Before you give your presentation, you first have to know who you’re talking to and what you’re talking about. It sounds simple because it is. But don’t let that simplicity fool you—it’s also where the magic happens. Dive deep into your topic and become the expert they expect you to be. As for your audience? Find a way to connect your presentation to them as individuals. Consider why your topic might be important to them. If you can get your topic to hit home with your audience, it’s much more likely that they’ll be impacted by what you say.

Using Open, Friendly Body Language

Our body language allows us to speak volumes without ever saying a word. So when you’re on stage, use open gestures, keep those arms uncrossed, and maintain a pleasant demeanor. Move around if space allows; make yourself bigger than just the spot behind the podium. Frequently make eye contact with the crowd instead of just looking at your notes or slides. Lastly, use gestures to complement your words, emphasizing key points.

Practicing for Perfection

When preparing for your presentation, rehearse until those nerves start feeling like excitement instead of sheer terror. Out of all presentation skills, this is perhaps one of the most important to improve. Even rehearsing in the outfit you’ll wear on presentation day can help you practice the right mindset you need. Whether or not you rewrite your script as bullet points, make sure you’re not reading off your notes. After all, you want to maintain a natural, conversational tone with your audience, not a robotic one. Before you begin your talk, breathe deeply. Not only does grounding yourself help calm your nerves, it actually improves your voice quality .

Designing Engaging Presentations

Every speaker wants to engage their audience. As a result, the ability to design engaging presentations is one skill that’s worth constantly improving. It’s all about balance, blending engaging content with sleek design.

Keeping Your Presentation Engaging and Structured

Every speaker would agree that maintaining audience interest is crucial. But how exactly do you do that? It takes a lot to focus on your presentation  and your audience at the same time. To get started, try some of these techniques.

• Tell a story: Weave your facts into a narrative because everyone loves a good tale.
• Vary the pace: Mix it up with videos, anecdotes, or jokes to keep things fresh.
• Pose questions: Asking rhetorical questions keeps minds ticking and engaged.

Maintaining structure is key. You want to guide your audience through smoothly, making sure they’re following along every step of the way. Think of it as taking them on a journey where each point builds upon the last until you reach a compelling conclusion together.

Simplicity in Slide Design

If there’s one thing you don’t want to impose on your audience, it’s a cluttered slide. So what should you to improve this presentation skill? Take a look at these tips:

• Keep it simple: A simple background with high contrast text can work wonders.
• Leverage visuals wisely: If you’re talking numbers, opt for an infographic instead of listing out stats one after another. Visuals should enhance understanding, not confuse further. Make sure they’re relevant.
• Use bullet points: Cover one idea per slide and use bullet points to break it down. This isn’t just easier for your audience to digest; it gives each point its moment in the spotlight.

The trick here is to avoid just throwing your entire presentation onto slides. That’s what leads to clutter. Instead, focus on the key points you want to communicate, and create visual summaries that complement what you’re saying. Good presentation design matters. And sometimes less really is more when helping people understand complex topics easily. For more on creating PowerPoint presentations, check out our article here .

Mastering Nonverbal Communication

As a speaker, it’s a given that your words are a vital part of your presentation. But what about your nonverbal cues? Believe it or not, those are just as important. And don’t forget tone—delivery is often where the real magic happens.

Improving Eye Contact

For instance, take eye contact. Making eye contact with your audience demonstrates confidence and professionalism. The trick is striking the balance: too little, and you seem disengaged; too much, and it’s just awkward for everyone involved. To improve this presentation skills, practice finding that balance. Aim to make brief but meaningful eye contact with different parts of your audience throughout your presentation. A general rule of thumb is the 50/70 rule , which says to spend about 50% of your time making eye contact when speaking, bumping it up to 70% when listening or answering questions.

Avoiding Filled Pauses When Speaking

The bane of any speaker’s presentation is a slew of filler words. These are words like “um,” “uh,” and “like.” These filler sounds typically sneak into our speech because we’re nervous or trying to think on our feet. To avoid them, practice pausing with purpose in between sentences or thoughts. Silence may feel scary, but using intentional pauses can give you time to think and keeps listeners hanging onto your next word. In addition, never forget to taking deep breaths. Doing so will help calm the nerves that are triggering those verbal fillers in the first place.

By improving these presentation skills, you’ll not only boost how others perceive you, but also how confidently you carry yourself through every slide.

Overcoming Presentation Anxiety

Feeling like a bundle of nerves before you hit the stage? If so, you’re not alone. But guess what? That jittery feeling doesn’t have to be your enemy.

Techniques to Calm Nerves During a Presentation

We’ve all been there—heart racing, palms sweaty, mind blanking out just when you need it most. It feels like your body is betraying you right at the crucial moment. Thankfully, it’s entirely possible to regain control by redirecting that nervous energy. To calm yourself, try some of these techniques.

• Breathe deeply: It seems simple, but deep breaths are like a reset button for your nervous system.
• Ground yourself: Feel your feet on the ground. Literally grounding yourself in reality helps shift focus back from fear to action.
• The power pose: Standing in a posture of confidence can actually make you feel more confident thanks to some nifty brain-body communication.
• Embrace silence: If you lose track during your presentation, use this time not as an awkward pause but as an intentional break for both you and your audience.

By practicing these techniques and improving them before your presentation, they will come more naturally. Plus, the more you prepare, the fewer surprises you’ll encounter, which means less fodder for anxiety.

Transforming Nervous Energy into Enthusiasm

Nervous energy isn’t bad—it shows you care. Mastering the art involves channeling that untamed vigor into a force of zeal.

• Talk about what you love: You naturally become more animated and enthusiastic when discussing topics close to your heart.
• Harness the adrenaline rush: This rush pushes us beyond our usual boundaries, so don’t be afraid to use it. Speak louder than normal if needed or move around more freely (if appropriate).
• Redefine success: Focus on connecting with at least one person rather than impressing everyone—that takes off loads of pressure.

In essence, presentation skills aren’t just about speaking well. They’re about managing emotions effectively so they don’t manage us. So next time those butterflies start fluttering in your stomach before a big presentation, remember it’s all part of the process. Embrace the experience and use it to fuel your performance rather than let it derail you.

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Continually Improving Presentation Skills

The journey to becoming a presentation pro never really ends. Embarking on this path means consistently challenging oneself, exploring new depths, and setting sights on ever-higher achievements.

Seeking Feedback for Improvement

Let’s talk feedback. Although it might sting at first, feedback is a great way to improve your presentation skills. After every presentation, ask your audience what hit home and what missed the mark. But don’t stop there.

• Talk to a mentor: Someone who’s been where you are can give insights you hadn’t even considered.
• Solicit anonymous feedback: Sometimes people speak more freely when they’re not face-to-face.
• Use online tools: There are platforms designed specifically for gathering and analyzing presentation feedback efficiently.

Volunteering for Presentations to Gain Experience

If practice makes perfect, then volunteering is your practice arena. Seizing each moment as a platform can really polish your expertise.

• Pitch new ideas at work: Be the one who steps up during meetings with fresh insights or project proposals.
• Dive into community events: Local clubs or groups often seek speakers on various topics—perfect for testing out different styles and formats.
• Become a webinar host: This lets you play with technology while practicing how best to engage virtual attendees.

Remember, improving your public speaking skills takes time. But by consistently seeking out constructive criticism and grabbing every chance to get in front of an audience ,  you’re paving your way towards mastery. So take that deep breath, keep your head high, and take that stage. Your future self will thank you.

So there you have it. Together, we’ve learned how to improve presentation skills. This isn’t just about shaking off those stage jitters; it’s an expedition towards becoming a masterful storyteller who captivates every soul in the room.

Embarking on this journey, we dove headfirst into mastering basics like knowing your audience and subject. Plus, we covered tips on keeping slides simple yet engaging—a fine balance between clutter and clarity. And let’s not forget our silent but potent ally: nonverbal communication—where eye contact and body language can help engage your audience.

Anxiety had its moment under our microscope as well. Turns out, it’s less about fighting nerves and more about channeling them into electrifying enthusiasm.

Improving your presentation skills requires persistence—and lots of practice. The process isn’t just a path but an ongoing adventure that challenges us to grow and adapt in our quest for meaningful impact.

• Last Updated: August 6, 2024

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How-To Geek

Everything you need to know about animations and transitions in powerpoint.

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If Your PC Won't Run Windows 11, Here Are 5 Great Linux Operating Systems to Try Instead

How to make your linux laptop more secure in 7 steps, i don't like subscriptions, but the oura ring is worth it for me, quick links, what are animations, what are transitions, things to note before you begin, how to add, amend, and remove an animation, how to add, amend, and remove a transition, using the morph transition.

PowerPoint's animations and transitions can help you grab your audience's attention, present information in bite-sized chunks, and—when used sparingly—deliver a more professional presentation. In this article, we'll run through the nuts and bolts of these useful PowerPoint tools.

Animations are effects you can add to your slides' text, pictures, shapes, graphics, tables, and other elements. There are four different types of animations:

• Entrance animations—These are the effects you can add to make an object appear on your slide in different ways.
• Emphasis animations—You can add an emphasis animation to an object already visible on your slide, such as changing its size or color.
• Exit animations—The opposite to entrance animations, exit animations make objects disappear from your slide through different effects.
• Motion paths animations —You can make an element on your slide move to a different place, with your audience seeing this movement from where it started to where it ends up.

You can use more than one animation on a single object. For example, you can apply an entrance animation to some text, followed by an emphasis animation.

A transition effect dictates how your presentation progresses from one slide to the next, and you can choose from three different levels of complexity:

• Subtle—These are the most basic types of transitions in PowerPoint, aiding speed and slickness as you jump from one slide to the next.
• Exciting—You can make your transitions more visually entertaining.
• Dynamic—A dynamic transition applies to all parts of a slide, except for the background, giving the illusion that the content is rolling through on a single page.

Only one transition effect can be added to each slide, and it's important that you apply the transition to the slide that will be visible once the transition is complete. For example, if you have two slides and want to create a transition effect as you move from slide 1 to slide 2, you will need to apply the transition to slide 2.

Before you add animation and transition effects to your PowerPoint presentation, bear in mind the following tips:

• Don't add too many animations and transitions . Overusing these features can distract your audiences in ways you didn't intend to, and they can also look tacky and unprofessional. Ask yourself, "Does this make my presentation better?" If the answer is no, don't add it.
• Another issue with using too many animations and transitions is that it could significantly slow down your PowerPoint file's processing speed , as it adds volume to your file size.
• Keep things professional in the right contexts. For example, if you're presenting a formal business plan, you don't want to add funky transitions that take ten seconds to complete. Try sticking to slick effects that last less than a second.
• Use the same transition effect for each slide and, if you can, the same animation for each item.

It's a widely shared opinion that Microsoft 365's desktop apps offer more flexibility and functionality than their web-based counterparts. However, the exact opposite can be said for adding animations, which is significantly easier to do on PowerPoint for the web than via the subscription-only app. So, to create the animations for screenshots in this section, we have used PowerPoint online, rather than the desktop app, and we recommend that you do the same.

Before you add any animations, click "Animation Pane" in the Animations tab on the ribbon. This will open a pane on the right side of your window, which will make seeing and managing your animations much easier.

Now, select the item you want to animate. If you want several items on a slide to animate in the same way at the same time, hold Ctrl while clicking them all. Then, click the down arrow in the Animations tab, and choose the appropriate effect.

You will then see an animation card in the Animation Pane for the effect you just added. Here, you can change the animation type, how it is activated (whether via a click, with the previous animation, or after the previous animation), and the duration and delay.

If you have more than one animation on a slide and want to reorder them, click and drag the six dots next to the relevant animation card upwards or downwards.

Finally, to remove an animation, click the trash icon on the appropriate animation card.

You can also animate paragraphs of text within a text box. To do so, select the relevant text, and follow the same process.

Whether you're using PowerPoint's desktop app or the online version of the program, adding transitions involves a very similar process.

First, select the slide you want to transition to (for example, you'll select slide 2 if you want to create a transition from slide 1 to slide 2) in the slide thumbnail pane, and then click the "Transitions" tab on the ribbon.

To see more transitions, click the down arrow on the right-hand side of the Transition To This Slide group.

Clicking any of the transition effects on display will do two things—first, it will show you a preview of what that transition will look like, and second, it will apply that transition to that slide.

You can then amend the options (such as the direction of the transition) and timing of the transition using the settings on the right side of the Transitions tab. This is where you can also add a sound effect to the transition, or decide whether the transition effect occurs when you click your mouse or automatically after a given length of time.

If you want to apply the same transition effect and options to all slides, click "Apply To All" in the Timing group of the Transition tab when you have finished setting up your transition's parameters. You can then select individual slides to make further adjustments if needed.

To remove a transition, select the slide in the slide thumbnail pane, and click "None" in the Transitions tab.

PowerPoint's Morph is a transition effect that recognizes differences between the same items on two slides, and smoothly transitions between them when you proceed from one slide to the next. For example, you might have an image on slide 1, and the same image in a different position on slide 2. The morph transition gives your audience the impression that you're still on the same slide, but the objects are merely moving and resizing.

This is different to the motion path animation, which you can set for different items and activate at different times on your slide. The morph transition, however, moves all items together as you move from one slide to the next, saving you from having to apply motion path animations to individual objects. Any objects on the first slide but not the second will simply fade away during the morph transition. Similarly, any new items on the second slide will appear gradually.

In this example, we have a title and an image on slide 1, and the same objects on slide 2 but in different places and different sizes. We created this scenario by copying and pasting the whole of slide 1, and then changing the text and image on slide 2. However, you can also create a blank slide, and then copy and paste the different elements you want to morph.

Then, we need to select slide 2, and click "Morph" in the Transitions tab on the ribbon.

Then, press F5 to see your presentation, and witness the smooth morph transition from one slide to the next. You can also use this transition effect to zoom into an image or fade an image into the background. Just ensure that you copy and paste from one slide to the next before you create the transition, so that PowerPoint recognizes them as the same.

If animations and transitions are new to you, check out these other tips that you should also know before you design your next presentation.

• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft 365

Death By PowerPoint: Tips To Avoid In Your Presentation

The phrase “Death by PowerPoint” first appeared as a criticism of badly planned and executed presentations that were unable to engage or educate the audience. These presentations lack visual appeal because of the excessive text and complicated slides. Presenting information is essential, whether you are creating slides for a team meeting, delivering a class, or a business proposal. A well-created presentation always makes the message clear and engaging and leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

Table of Contents

• Real-Life Examples and Consequences 
• Audience Needs and Preferences 
• Engage Your Audience 
• The Role of Visual Design in Presentations 
• Key Design Elements: Fonts, Colors, and Layouts 
• Tips to Avoid Death by PowerPoint 
• Utilize Technology to Improve Delivery 
• Tools and Resources for Better Presentations 
• Conclusion 

What is Death by PowerPoint?

“Death By PowerPoint” refers to presentations that are so monotonous and tedious that fail to get the audience’s attention and interest, leading to disengagement and lack of audience retention. 

Real-Life Examples and Consequences

Think about the meetings where people have completely lost interest or the sales presentations that were so overwhelming that the audience was unable to convince them. These examples show how bad presentation techniques can lead to missed opportunities, weakened credibility, and time wastage in real life. 

Understanding Your Audience

Audience needs and preferences.

To create an effective presentation, first understand your audience. Ask yourself: 

• What expectations and interests do they have?  
• How much experience do they have with the subject?  
• What are their primary concerns or areas of discomfort?

Engage Your Audience

Make the content specifically targeted at your audience’s needs and preferences. Maintain their interest throughout the entire presentation by using language and examples that they can relate to. 

Design Principles for Effective Slides

The role of visual design in presentations.

Using effective visual design in your presentation makes it more engaging and memorable. A poorly created slide could be confusing and tedious to your audience, on the other hand, a well-designed slide will clearly communicate the actual information quickly and clearly. 

Key Design Elements: Fonts, Colors, and Layouts

• Fonts : Make sure the presentation is consistent throughout by using a limited number of fonts. Choose fonts that could improve visibility. 
• Colors : Try a color palette that is visually appealing and creates contrast. Use colors to highlight key points. 
• Layouts : Maintain your slides layouts clean and structured. Use whitespace effectively to avoid overwhelming your audience. 
• Avoiding Clutter and Overload : Be focused on the key points to make your slides simple and easy to understand to the audience. Avoiding information overload in a single slide is the primary factor to consider. Also, using bullet points will help to make the slide clear and easy to understand. 

Tips to Avoid Death by PowerPoint

• Keep Slides Simple and Focused  

Your presentation should convey the exact information. Make it structured and break down complex data and information by keeping them concise. 

• Use High-Quality Visuals and Graphics  

Always use high-quality visuals and graphics throughout your presentation and make it more engaging to your audience. But make sure that they help you share the exact message of the presentation. 

• Limit Text and Bullet Points  

Don’t make slides with a lot of text. Try to use key phrases and bullet points to highlight important points. Explain and interact with the audience instead of just reading the exact sentences in the slide.  

• Incorporate Storytelling Techniques  

The storytelling method could engage your audience. You can also include case studies and other examples to strengthen your points and presentation. 

• Practice Good Slide Transitions and Animations  

Don’t make the presentation filled up with animations and transitions, that could distract the audience. Instead, use it wisely to guide your audience. 

• Engage Using Interactive Elements  

Another technique to engage your audience is including Q&A sessions and games in between the presentations. 

Delivery Techniques

• Strategies for Confident and Clear Speaking  

Practice makes perfect. Practicing also helps you deliver presentations confidently and clearly. Always try to use a conversational tone while delivering. 

• Questions and Interactions  

The audience will have questions so be prepared for that. Encourage the audience participation thoughtfully. 

• Utilize Technology to Improve Delivery  

As we have advanced technologies like remote clickers and laser pointers available

Utilize Technology to Improve Delivery

• As we have advanced technologies like remote clickers and laser pointers available  

Tools and Resources for Better Presentations

• Recommended Software and Online Sources  

Make use of software and online sources like SlideBazaar, SlideKit, Prezi, and Canva to design a better presentation. 

• Forums and Communities   

Many online communities and forums like SlideShare and TED Talks are available over the internet in which you can discuss, share, and get feedback for your presentation. 

To avoid Death by PowerPoint, the presentation should have a good visual design, interesting content, and a better delivery. Create informative and engaging presentations by following the tips and focusing on your audience. 

Practice as much as possible and try to get feedback from the audience to improve your delivery skills. Your presentation will be better the more you refine your skills. 

At SlideBazaar, we help you create engaging and memorable presentations. Choose from our collection of professional templates or opt for our custom design services for a personalized touch. Your presentations deserve to be elevated to new heights, and we’re here to help you achieve just that!

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Create a presentation

Create a presentation in PowerPoint

Create presentations from scratch or start with a professionally designed, fully customizable template from Microsoft Create .

Tip:  If you have Microsoft Copilot it can help you create a presentation, add slides or images, and more. To learn more see  Create a new presentation with Copilot in PowerPoint.

Open PowerPoint.

In the left pane, select New .

Select an option:

To create a presentation from scratch, select Blank Presentation .

To use a prepared design, select one of the templates.

To see tips for using PowerPoint, select Take a Tour , and then select Create , .

Add a slide

In the thumbnails on the left pane, select the slide you want your new slide to follow.

In the  Home tab, in the  Slides  section, select  New Slide .

In the Slides section, select Layout , and then select the layout you want from the menu.

Add and format text

Place the cursor inside a text box, and then type something.

Select the text, and then select one or more options from the Font section of the Home tab, such as  Font , Increase Font Size , Decrease Font Size ,  Bold , Italic , Underline , etc.

To create bulleted or numbered lists, select the text, and then select Bullets or Numbering .

Add a picture, shape, and more

Go to the  Insert  tab.

To add a picture:

In the Images section, select Pictures .

In the Insert Picture From menu, select the source you want.

Browse for the picture you want, select it, and then select Insert .

To add illustrations:

In the Illustrations section, select Shapes , Icons , 3D Models ,  SmartArt , or Chart .

In the dialog box that opens when you click one of the illustration types, select the item you want and follow the prompts to insert it.

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ROI of Design: How to Maximize Your Business Strategy?

Many organizations overlook the discipline of design because it’s often not considered important for financial success. However, taking your design strategies seriously might be the missing piece you were looking for to stand out in the market. 

According to a McKinsey report , companies that integrate design as a core component of their strategy achieved 32% more revenue and 56% more total return to shareholders than their counterparts.

Thus, we can say that design actions are not merely about aesthetics; they are a crucial element of business strategies that can positively influence a company’s growth. In this context, it’s essential to measure the quality of these design initiatives and their respective return on investment (better known as ROI of Design).

Today, you’ll learn about:

What is ROI in Graphic Design?

How to calculate the roi of design, what is considered a good roi in business.

• The Impact of Outsourcing on Your ROI of Design (+ Success Story !)

Final Conclusions about the ROI of Design

Let’s dive into the essentials first!

The Return on Investment (ROI) of Design are all the benefits derived from the design strategies applied to your business . 

These benefits can be measured using various indicators, which vary depending on your business sector (they can even vary depending on the type of design project).

Here are a few examples of how Design ROI can be measured based on its impact on:

• Reducing your website’s bounce rate
• Increasing qualified leads
• Boosting your sales rate
• Enhancing User Experience (UX)
• Strengthening your brand identity
• Increasing the perceived value of your product or service
• Improving long-term customer satisfaction
• Improving employee motivation in their daily work routine (learn more in our latest study !)

By understanding and measuring the Design ROI in your operations, you can determine which design actions are most beneficial for your business. Additionally, by properly tracking the evolution of this ROI over time, you can optimize your creative strategies and maximize the return on investment.

Remember, in the corporate world, if something isn’t measured, it doesn’t exist! Don’t get left behind, and discover how to calculate the ROI of Design for your company in the next section.

Calculating Design ROI can be challenging due to the mix of qualitative and quantitative factors involved . The complexity also varies depending on each company’s methodology and the unique characteristics of each design project.

However, here are some insights that will help you calculate Design ROI as realistically as possible:

• Identify Your Design Goals : Start by defining the specific goals of your design initiatives. These may include improving website usability, increasing newsletter subscriptions, boosting product sales, reducing delivery times, and improving brand perception, among others. Setting clear objectives provides a solid foundation for you to measure the impact of design in financial terms.
• Determine the Costs : Calculate the total costs associated with your design efforts. This includes designer salaries, software and tool expenses, and any other related costs. If you outsource the service, this calculation will be easier. We recommend being thorough in this part in order to obtain a more accurate ROI of Design.
• Measure the Benefits : In the ROI formula, the "benefits" of design are also known as revenue or income. These can include direct financial gains, such as increased revenue or cost savings, as well as indirect benefits, like improved website usability or long-term increases in customer satisfaction.
• Calculate the ROI : Use the standard ROI formula (see image) to determine the return on your design investment. This formula provides a percentage that indicates the return you get for every dollar spent on your design actions.

How to Measure the Benefits of a Design Project?

Due to the subjective nature of design, measuring the benefits of your design actions can often be a complex task. You’ll need to collect data and potentially establish a baseline to compare the results of your investments .

That being said, we want to detail some of the most important metrics for measuring the benefits of your creative projects:

Quantitative Metrics and KPIs

When applying the ROI formula, quantitative metrics can be directly added as financial benefits . For example, if the new design generates a $20,000 increase in sales, that amount is incorporated as part of the benefits.

Let’s start with the most common quantitative metrics in marketing and business:

• Increase in Sales : Additional sales value generated after implementing your design action. It’s crucial to compare the results with the previous period to determine the growth margin.
• Increase in Conversion Rate : The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action after the new design is implemented. For example, a new subscription to the newsletter.
• Increase in Web Traffic : The rise in the number of website visits after redesigning the interface or promotional graphic material.
• Repeat Purchase Rate : The increase in the frequency with which customers make repeat purchases after the redesign.
• Increase in Customer Retention Rate : The percentage of customers who remain loyal to your brand after the design update, compared to previous periods.
• Increase in Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) : The total value generated by a customer over the course of their relationship with the company. This composite metric includes the average purchase amount, purchase frequency, and the duration of the business relationship.
• Reduction in Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) : The decrease in the average cost to acquire a new customer thanks to the positive impact of the new design on marketing campaigns.
• Reduction in Sales Cycle Time : The decrease in the average time it takes to close a sale due to improvements in the clarity and effectiveness of your design assets. This can include sales presentations or new visuals for your e-commerce.
• Reduction of Operational Costs: Includes savings from more efficient operations, such as reduced production costs, lower overhead, or fewer resources needed.

Qualitative Metrics and KPIs

Although they cannot be directly added in monetary terms, qualitative data can be converted into indirect financial estimates .

Let’s say you find an improvement in User Experience (UX) after a redesign, you can assess its impact by measuring its correlation with metrics like Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) or web conversion rates.

Here are some qualitative metrics you should consider when calculating your ROI of Design:

• Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) : The percentage of customer satisfaction regarding your products, services, or any specific action. It’s based on the direct question: “On a scale of 1 to 5, how satisfied are you with [product/service/interaction]?”
• Net Promoter Score (NPS) : Measures customer loyalty and their willingness to recommend your company, product, or service to others. It’s based on the question: “On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend [product/service/company] to a friend or colleague?”
• Improvements in User Experience (UX) : This includes qualitative feedback or scores that indicate enhancements in the ease of use and interaction with your product. Focus on how the design changes have positively impacted user satisfaction and influenced their purchasing decisions.
• Improvement in Brand Perception : Collect insights on how your customers perceive your brand, including their perceptions of product or service quality. Keep in mind that their perceptions affect their willingness to pay and their overall loyalty to your brand.

The most common tool for collecting this qualitative data is through surveys . If you want to make comparisons throughout the time, you need to take different surveys for each period.

Understanding how to measure the ROI of Design provides a more accurate basis for justifying your investments. If you haven’t already, it’s time for you to determine which KPIs should be your top priority!

Determining what constitutes a good ROI in business can vary depending on the industry, company size, and your specific goals .

Unsure if your ROI is on target? Evaluate these factors to see if your design investments are going in the right direction:

• Industry Standards : Research the Design ROI standards in your business sector in order to have a reference point for evaluating your performance.
• Positive ROI : At a minimum, a good ROI should be positive , meaning that the benefits outweigh the costs. A positive ROI indicates that your design investments are generating value for your business.
• Percentage Returns : A common benchmark for a good ROI is a return of 10% or more . However, some design initiatives can yield much higher returns, especially if they lead to significant improvements in user experience and customer satisfaction.
• Long-term Qualitative Impact : In addition to quantitative measures, consider the qualitative impact of design. A better user experience, improved brand perception, and long-term customer retention are valuable outcomes resulting from a good Design ROI.

The Impact of Outsourcing on Your ROI of Design

Outsourcing creative tasks can also significantly impact your final Design ROI. By trusting in external expertise, companies can achieve exceptional designs while managing costs effectively .

The biggest challenge lies in aligning the external team (agency, studio, or freelancer) with the internal team’s processes and standards. In this context, effective communication is key to ensuring a successful collaboration.

At 24Slides, we believe that when measuring the ROI of Design, you need to have an open mind and see the whole picture. According to our latest survey , 55% of the specialists say that creating slides is a really time-consuming task and generates demotivation at work . 

"We often witnessed how being asked to redo a presentation could cause stress and demotivation. And with little time and extraordinary expectations, the end result is usually not satisfying for any parties involved."

-Marketing Manager interviewed for our latest study

At this point, we can say that delivering design tasks is not for everybody . And with good reason! Every employee is proficient in their area of ​​expertise, and breaking that rule not only creates inefficiency but can also demotivate your team.

Time is a valuable resource, and at 24Slides, we understand that. Let’s see how we can improve this scenario for companies and specialists at all levels:

"Outsourcing design services can significantly impact your ROI in two key ways. First, it saves valuable time for your in-house team , allowing them to focus on strategic tasks rather than creating presentations. Second, with 24Slides, you have predictable costs. Unlike traditional agencies where prices fluctuate during peak seasons, 24Slides maintains steady rates, ensuring a solid ROI without the headache of constant price negotiations ."

- Dan Sørensen , Chief Marketing Officer at 24Slides

Success Story: Healthcare Company Optimizes 9,000 Work Hours by Collaborating with 24Slides

At 24Slides, we’re committed to delivering exceptional design , which is why we collaborate with leading companies worldwide. From investor pitch decks to high-impact presentations for various departments and marketing collateral after a brand refresh or rebranding, we handle it all!

With over 200 expert designers, we tailor our services to meet the unique needs of every client, whether you’re a local business or a multinational corporation with a global presence.

In 2023, a global leader in healthcare entrusted us with a large volume of their presentation design workload . We embraced the challenge with great enthusiasm!

A bit of a spoiler for what’s next: this collaboration delivered outstanding results, optimizing over 9,000 hours of our client’s work time and achieving an impressive Design ROI of 176%.

Calculating the ROI of Design

As a practical exercise, let’s calculate the Design ROI of this collaboration. First, it’s important to highlight some data collected in 2023:

• Total hours saved by the client with 24Slides’ partnership = 9,006 hours
• Salary per hour of the client’s employees = $63
• 24Slides’ Service = $205,705
• Total Benefits = Total hours saved by the client x Salary per hour
• Total Cost = 24Slides’ Service

Now, it’s time to refresh the ROI formula:

By applying the previous data to the formula, we achieved a Design ROI of 176% , which means that for every dollar invested, our client earned $1.76 in return . This is an excellent result, considering that a 10% ROI is the minimum acceptable for business.

While ROI is typically quantified with hard data, we’ve seen firsthand how design can create powerful effects beyond the numbers . Let’s see some of them for this case study: 

• +9,000 hours saved, time redirected to core business activities
• +1,400 presentations designed, enhancing the client’s brand image
• 24-hour turnaround, boosting the client’s workflow
• Increased stakeholder satisfaction with presentation performance
• Improved employee motivation and satisfaction in their daily work routine

As design continues to play a crucial role in business growth, mastering the art of measuring ROI becomes increasingly important for small, medium, and large enterprises.

Here are some final thoughts:

• Adopt a Holistic Approach : Understanding and achieving a good Design ROI requires a holistic approach. By considering both quantitative and qualitative benefits, you can better justify your design investments and make more strategic decisions.
• Know Your Business : You can’t measure what you don’t know. While the general ROI formula seems simple, accurate measurement depends on knowing which metrics and KPIs apply to your specific situation. Understand your audience and set profit-driven objectives to achieve better results.
• Design Beyond Aesthetics : The role of design goes beyond a pretty illustration for social media; it can positively impact your marketing actions and the development of your product or service. Taking an integrated approach will enhance the user experience you deliver, which is a powerful differentiator in the market!
• Specialization Matters : Outsourcing your design tasks not only saves valuable time for your employees but also ensures higher product quality, shorter delivery times, and, most importantly, greater motivation for your team, who can focus on their primary tasks.

For a more accurate calculation of the costs your team incurs designing in PowerPoint, check out our hidden cost calculator to find your Design ROI with no problems!

Ready to unlock the full potential of our outsourcing model? Let our team be your creative partner, transforming your ideas into reality and driving your business to success.

Start the journey by booking a call with us here .

If you enjoy this article, you will love this content:

• How to Refresh Your Brand? Discover Our Strategic Approach
• AI vs. Professional Presentation Designer: A Comprehensive Comparison
• 10 Best AI Tools for Creating Impactful Presentations  
• Mastering the Art of Presenting Data in PowerPoint

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