Verily, whether thou be presenting a slideshow unto thy executives, clients, or peers, thou dost seek to clearly and successfully convey thy message, and at the very least demonstrate thy proficiency in the art of PowerPoint. Alas, many a mistake can be made in the crafting of PowerPoint presentations.
From fonts that strain the eyes to colors that vex the senses of thy audience, here are some noble practices to keep in mind for thy next PowerPoint spectacle.
Choose the fonts wisely
It may be tempting to utilize a fancy, dramatic, or even whimsical font, but thou must ponder upon the readability of the chosen font. Thy desire is for the audience to easily discern thy headings and bullet points. Consider the two fundamental font styles: serif and sans serif.
Serif fonts, ornate and classic in appearance, are oft employed in print publications. Each letter dons a stroke extending from a point therein. Popular serif styles do include Times New Roman, Garamond, Georgia, and Baskerville.
Sans serif fonts, precise and clean in appearance, are oft employed in digital publications. Each letter is sharp-cut without wings or curves at its corners. Popular sans serif styles do include Arial, Verdana, Tahoma, and Calibri.
Due to the elongated strokes, serif fonts may appear somewhat blurry on a screen. Thus, a sans serif font is oft the preferred choice. Let it be known that thou shouldst maintain consistency in using the same font type, serif or sans serif, throughout thy presentation.
Select pleasing colors
The colors employed in thy PowerPoint presentation art as vital as the content. Thou seeketh to utilize colors that enhance the spectacle, not distract or induce headaches among thy audience.
Warm colors such as reds, oranges, and yellows do catch the eye, while cool colors such as blues, greens, and purples draw less attention. Moreover, lighter hues are more conspicuous than darker ones.
One simple method to select colors for thy presentation is to avail thyself of a built-in theme. On selecting the Design tab, a collection of Themes is presented in the ribbon.
Once a theme is selected, thou may venture to utilize the Variants section to opt for a different color scheme, each scheme boasting eight complementing colors. The font style also may be chosen in the Variants drop-down menu.
Don’t overuse animations and effects
Animations, when employed judiciously, can indeed captivate the audience. Yet, shouldst thou overuse or misuse them, they could prove detrimental to thy presentation, causing viewers to lose interest. It behooves thee to consider thy audience and the purpose of thy spectacle.
Shouldst thou be addressing a classroom filled with 8-year-old scholars, animations may indeed capture and hold their attention better than mere words or images. However, when presenting to the high and mighty executive team or board of directors, animations might seem unprofessional. Exercise caution in embedding videos in PowerPoint, doing so only when relevant.
Shouldst thou truly wish to incorporate animations, let them be subtle or purposeful. For instance, consider expanding upon each bullet point in thy list through a sequential display, revealed one by one upon thy command.
Use a standard presentation rule
What meanest the 10/20/30 rule of PowerPoint? What of the five-by-five rule, the 5/5/5 rule, and the seven-by-seven rule? Rules abound, each offering standards for the creation of PowerPoint presentations.
The essence of these rules is simplicity.
The 10/20/30 rule, though not always attainable, is a commendable guideline for thy overall presentation. Succinctness oft leads to success.
The latter three rules provide aid when adding text to thy slides. Remember, presentations are visual in nature. Too much text doth divert focus from the spectacle at hand.
May these noble practices guide thee in the crafting of a memorable and impactful PowerPoint spectacle. For further enhancement, consider the addition of audio or music to thy slides.
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