Tips for Making Effective PowerPoint Presentations

Making Your Meetings Impactful

Keep in mind these tips are not “hard and fast”;As with everything in life, use them judiciously.

Use the slide master feature to create a consistent and simple design template.
Simplify and limit the number of words on each screen.
Limit punctuation and avoid all capital letters. More white space is best! (or whatever color you choose)
Use contrasting colors for text and background. Light text on a dark background is best. No patterns. (remember Nana!)
Everything in moderation as far as flashy transitions and animations. You want to keep your credibility as a professional.
Use good quality images.
Avoid the tired standard clipart.
Limit the number of slides. A good rule of thumb is one slide per minute.
Be able to navigate your presentation in a non-linear fashion. You simply type the slide number to jump to that particular slide. (in slide show view only)
Have a Plan B in the event of technical difficulties.
Practice with someone who has never seen your presentation. Ask them for honest feedback about colors, content, and any effects or graphical images you’ve included.
Do not read from your slides. But you already know this! 😊
Do not speak to your slides. Face your audience.
Do not apologize for anything in your presentation. If you believe something will be hard to read or understand, don’t use it. This is so important for credibility.

Select a single sans-serif fonts such as Arial or Helvetica. These don’t have the “curly-qs.”
Use no font size smaller than 24 point.
Use the same font for all your headlines.
Select a font for body copy and another for headlines.
Use bold and different sizes (Avoid italics-hard to read) of those fonts for captions and subheadings. Larger = More Important.
Add a fourth font for page numbers or as a secondary body font for sidebars.
Don’t use more than four fonts in any one publication.
Use different colors, sizes and styles (e.g., bold) for impact.
Limit punctuation marks.
No more than 4-8 words per line
For bullet points, use the 4 x 6 or 5 X 8 Rule. One thought per line with no more than 4 words per line and no more than 6 lines per slide, etc.
All caps only for titles.

Use design templates. You may want to make your own (slide master) or grab one from somewhere else since the ones that come with the software are a bit tired.
Standardize position, colors, and styles.
Limit information.
Use colors that contrast and compliment.
Limit transitions and animations.
Use a single style of bullets.
Limit text with charts and images.
Keep the design clean and uncluttered. Think white (or whatever color) space.
Repetition of an image reinforces the message.
Avoid flashy images and noisy animation effects unless it relates directly to the slide.

Limit the number of colors (some designers say four) Use variants to add contrast.

Plan carefully.
Know the Situation.
Know your Purpose.
Know your audience.
Choose your Method.
Speak comfortably and clearly.
Check the spelling and grammar.
Do not read the presentation.
Give a brief overview at the start. Then present the information. Finally review important points. (Tell them what you are going to talk about, talk about it, tell them what you talked about)
If sound effects are used, wait until the sound has finished to speak.
If the content is complex, print the slides so the audience can take notes.
Do not turn your back on the audience.