5 Steps to Prevent Death by PowerPoint

1. Number of slides

If you are doing a sales presentation, I would limit myself to six slides. If you can’t sell yourself in six slides, you’ll never be able to sell yourself. Most sales books will tell you that you have about 5 minutes tops to get a customer’s attention.

After the six slides, you may want to move on to the individual benefits or custom product slides. Use PowerPoint hyperlinks to move from one part of the presentation to the next.

2. The text

How much text?

The short answer is as little as possible… Generally, if someone can read the PowerPoint and understand the presentation without further help, then it’s too much text. Many coaches talk about the use of slogans, but to define it a little more:

simple slides

short clauses

Item No.

few verbs

size 32 better

surprise me

memory runner

6 lines maximum

If you reveal line by line or all at once… Well, there’s a lot of debate and my opinion is that if you have a big surprise in the text, don’t show your hand! Otherwise, it would show all the points, it gives the presenter and the audience an indication of the flow of the presentation.

3. Graphics

In simple terms, if you’re going to talk about the diagram in your presentation then it’s an advantage, if it’s just there to make your slide look pretty then it’s a disadvantage. An old boss of mine used to say that every presentation should have a striking image that people will remember. Even if that image takes more time than the rest of the presentation, it’s time well spent.

design graphics

The ideal chart is one made specifically for presentation by a professional. Failing that, consider the following options:

For numerical information, use Excel to create charts, then copy and paste them into your PowerPoint. (Excel has much better control over graphics than PowerPoint)

Use the insert -> diagram option to create semi-custom content.

Use Google Images to try to find the specific image you want.

Use the drawing toolbar to combine your images effectively.

Thumbnails can be useful navigational elements for training presentations, providing a quick visual reference for students to see what aspect of the topic the speaker is talking about.

4. Media Content

Generally speaking, I try to avoid multimedia content, and unless you’re very technically savvy, I’d advise against using any type of sound or video in your presentation. Be aware of the following pitfalls:

Linked files do not transfer well from one PC to another. The best method to make presentations portable is to use the package for CD option.

Check your audio before giving the presentation, and be sure to bring all the necessary cables. (Plan B, one presentation with sound and one without)

NEVER assume that you can use the Internet during a presentation. It is always better to make sure that all the content is on your PC.

Be sure to use the same version of PowerPoint on both PCs. (If you can’t review your presentation carefully before giving it.)

Don’t use more than one fade and more than one transition per slideshow, unless this is going to be used in a kiosk, you want the speaker to be the center of attention, not the flickering graphics.

5. Cover

In many cases the front slide will be shown before your presentation and this is a great opportunity to get the audience excited about what you are going to say, make sure your front page has:

The name of the presentation is clearly displayed.

You’ve now designed a wonderful slide, so now all you have to do is talk about them!

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