I often receive questions about guidelines for PowerPoint slides and how they should be used. Some people believe PowerPoint is simply an awful tool. I maintain that the problem is not with the tool or the technology but with how the presenter uses it.
It will be a distraction if you cram a bunch of content that your audience can’t see or read onto your slide. That kind of material isn’t valuable to you or your audience. What should you do instead? Here are a few of the top tips I offer regarding making the most of your PowerPoint slides:
- Use bullet points only (no sentences)
- Minimum font size guideline is 24 point
- Use color
- Use one simple font
- Use upper and lower case
- 4 x 6 rule: Use either four lines of text with six words per line, or six lines of text with four words per line
- Enlarge one section of a diagram or spreadsheet for easy explanation and comprehension
Here are a few “How To” videos to help you make the most of PowerPoint
Five Time-Saving PowerPoint Tips to Enhance Creativity
During this video, you’ll learn 1. How to quickly make busy visuals resonate virtually, 2. Put your attendees in charge using the Zoom feature, 3. Look like a pro with the morph transition, 4. Include the right amount of content with the timing feature, 5. Swap out photos to reuse slides without re-working your animation
How to add “Call-Outs” to PowerPoint Slides
During this video, we provide click-by-click instructions to Chunk text to eliminate sentences and create visual interest, increase chart size and add “call outs” (arrows), format a table using PowerPoint tools, and animate a line chart.
The bottom line is to keep it simple. Think of your audience. What do they need to know, and how can you communicate that information clearly and concisely?
Want to learn more?
- For more videos, check out our YouTube channel.
- Contact us with your specific questions or training needs.