What It Takes to Create A Great Powerpoint Presentation
So you have a big presentation coming up and you want to know how to create a killer PowerPoint presentation so you can wow all of your colleagues, win the Customer, and have your boss reward you with a big fat promotion. Ok, maybe that is a little much, but you do need to create a great PowerPoint presentation. Here are ten rules for creating the best PowerPoint presentation. Follow these rules and you will be creating a better presentation in no time
1. Try to use no more than 6 to 8 PowerPoint slides in the entire presentation:
Keep the presentation short. A lot of the key information will not be retained if the presentation is too long. People get bored quick with too many slides. This will also challenge you to put only the best and most pertinent, important, and value driven information on your slides.
2. Bag the introduction and contact us PowerPoint slides:
Whether you are presenting face to face or you are on the phone with them, the people you are meeting with know who you are. Try to use as few slides as possible to get your point across.
3. No more than four key points per PowerPoint slide:
Your presentation should be all about key data and points that will really impact the person you are presenting to. Again keep it to the point. Use only the best information. Four points per slide will make each slide very succinct and easy for people to get the message. The key here is to get your message across by using smart effective burst of information. In other words use if you only use 4 points per page then you are going to be forced to create points that make sense, tell your story, and get the overall point across.
4. Keep the PowerPoint slide backgrounds white so text is easy to ready:
This is your presentation and you want the Customer to know you have a lot to offer with your services right? So the look of the presentation should be simple as well. Make it as easy as you can to see the presentation and to read it. Keep it simple. The content should stand out not the colors! You can add some bling to it by using charts, graphs, and photos to the presentation.
5. Choose only your best points to get across and put them onto a PowerPoint slide:
Again, make sure the information you use is smart and effective when it comes to driving key points of what you can do for the Customer home. You only have four per slide, and a limited number of Powerpoint slides. Make sure your points are all developed around your call to action. What do you want the person or persons that you are presenting to do after they see your presentation? Make sure your data within the presentation drives them in the direction you want them to go!
6. Add some charts and photos to add some color and excitement:
Use charts and graphs to make great points pop. Your PowerPoint presentation should tell a story. It should have critical data in it that should make the people you are presenting to take notice about the point you are trying to make. Charts and graphs can do this if the information you present in them is value driven and stands out. Photos are always good to give a presentation a certain professional look, but DO NOT GO CRAZY on this point! Again, we are not trying to baffle them with bull %$#, we are trying to dazzle them with brilliance. If the photo or graphs lends credibility to your story or call to action then use it. If it does not, then bag it as fast as you can.
7. Add some humor:
No one wants to be bored. I don’t care how great your product is make your presentation fun, and add a little spice to it. Keeping your presentation interesting will certainly allow you to have a successful powerpoint presentation. No one wants to be bored to tears, and anymore when people say PowerPoint most people in the room cringe. This is because PowerPoint presentations are generally way too long, have way too much information, never give any real hardcore data that drives anyone to do anything. Last but not least, rarely are they funny and entertaining. Make sure you add some great insight, amazing data and facts, and top it with some humor. You don’t have to have the humor in the presentation; you can add the humor while delivering the presentation. One key point, if you are going to go for it, then go for it. If you are not sure if your humor is good, then ask someone else if they think it appropriate and light hearted.
8. Cover top points only on slides:
By making yourself use only 4 to 6 slides you will be forced to really dive down into the main things you would like to say:
In other words come up with something that makes your story and you call to action a no brainer. Try to captivate your audience by actually providing data that knocks their socks off. Surprise them by making the presentation fun and humorous. Don’t bore them and make them sit in PowerPoint Hell for an hour. Be Different!
9. Make it look professional, no typos, no errors, and no mistakes!
Enough said here.
10. Be prepared to shut the PowerPoint presentation down if it is not the right form of presenting or if your audience looks bored out of their mind. You are not giving a speech or a monologue.
I have been in huge meeting and presenting where it became obvious that people were just not responding as I had wanted them to and the energy was being zapped out of the room via the infamous PowerPoint presentation. So I shut it down! Do not be afraid to shut the entire presentation down and go to a discussion or a different presentation format. One thing here, you have to really know your topic, your audience, and you have to be good on your feet.
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