Making PowerPoint Work

Keys to effective PowerPoint slides

We’ll Cover …• Presentation structure

• Start and end with summaries• Just enough detail in the

middle

• Style– Colors– Text– Images– Syntax– Spelling

Presentation Structure

• Start and end with summaries– Tell them what your

going to tell them– Tell them – Tell them what you told

them

• Just enough detail in the middle– Avoid reading slides– Key points– Reminders

Why Summarize?

• A good listener typically gets 70% and will probably forgets most of that – Daydreams, distractions, noise

• Motivated listeners perform better• Explain why they should care in opening• Explain the importance in closing

Style• Colors

– When/where to use bright/dark colors• Text

– Size is important– Less is more

• Images– Adding interest– Adding information

• Syntax and Spelling– Fragments are ok– Break some rules– Why spelling is important

Color

• Color adds visual interest• Room lighting (windows, sunlight, night) plays

a role.– Use high contrast in general• Dark text on light background (best for bright rooms)• Light text on dark background (best for dark rooms)

• Projector lumens plays a role– With enough lumens it doesn’t matter

Color

• Too much color– Don’t make color a distraction

• The right colors– Like music notes, some colors don’t play well

together– Find good blends

• Simple choices– Built in schemes are good

Text

• Less is more• No one wants to read your presentation• Limit your self– 7 words per line

is usually enough– 7 lines per page– Rules are meant

to be broken• Have a reason for breaking it

Text

• Size matters• Use as large a font as possible• Back of the room viewing– Rules can vary with the

size of the room– sizes 18-24 may be too

small for large rooms• Bonus: large font

means less text

Images• Images add visual interest• Include relevant image– Clip art – Graphs– Aim for every slide

• Give the audience something to focus on

Images

• People process images faster than text• An outstanding graphic transmits more

information– Is more memorable– Carries more weight

We Covered …

• Style– Colors– Text– Images– Syntax– Spelling

• Presentation structure• Start and end with summaries• Just enough detail in the middle