Training and Intervention Program
jbass
presentation_tips.pptMaking PowerPoint Slides
How to Design an Effective Presentation
Reference: www.iasted.org/conferences/formatting/Presentations-Tips.ppt
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Tips to be Covered
- Title slide and Outlines
- Slide Structure
- Fonts
- Color
- Background
- Graphs
- Spelling and Grammar
- Conclusions
- Speaker Notes
- Questions
- References
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Title and Outline
- On the first slide, include the title of your presentation, your full name and affiliation.
- Make your 1st or 2nd slide an outline of your presentation
- Follow the order of your outline for the rest of the presentation
- Only place main points on the outline slide
Use the titles of each slide as main points
Use Notes section at the bottom of the slide to write out more complete information the speaker will need (see below).
It is important to give the audience an overview of the presentation. By previewing the presentation in a brief outline, the audience will have an idea of what topics to expect and they might start to develop questions to ask.
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Helpful hint:
“Before you create a single slide, think about what you want to say” (Friedman, 2007, p. 23).
Slide Structure
- Use 1-2 slides per minute of your presentation
- Write in bullet-point form, not complete sentences
- Include 4-5 points per slide
- Avoid wordiness: use key words and phrases only
The point is to guide the presenter as well as provide visual aids for the audience. If the presenter clutters the slide with too much information, readers will become too involved with the slides rather than what the presenter is saying.
If you are spend several minutes on one slide, consider breaking it up (obviously, some charts or graphics may take several minutes to properly present).
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Slide Structure
- This page contains too many words for a presentation slide. It is not written in point form, making it difficult both for your audience to read and for you to present each point. Although there are exactly the same number of points on this slide as the previous slide, it looks much more complicated. In short, your audience will spend too much time trying to read this paragraph instead of listening to you.
Burke, James, and Ahmadi (2009) suggest that no more than about bullet points should appear on each slide. Too much information presented at a time results in decreased attention and understanding of the material.
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Slide Structure
- Show one point at a time:
Will help audience concentrate on what you are saying
Will prevent audience from reading ahead
Will help you keep your presentation focused
Slide Structure
- Do not use distracting animation
- Do not go overboard with the animation
- Be consistent with the animation that you use
Just as in using quotations within an APA-formatted paper, animation should be used to emphasize a point, not to take up space.
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Fonts
- Use at least an 18-point font
- Use different size fonts for main points and secondary points, but keep them consistent across slides
this font is 24-point, the main point font is 28-point, and the title font is 36-point
- Use a standard font like Times New Roman or Arial
Fonts
- If you use a small font, your audience won’t be able to read what you have written
- CAPITALIZE ONLY WHEN NECESSARY. IT IS DIFFICULT TO READ
- Don’t use a complicated font
Color
- Use a color of font that contrasts sharply with the background
Eg.: blue font on white background
- Use color to reinforce the logic of your structure
Eg.: light blue title and dark blue text
- Use color to emphasize a point
But only use this occasionally
Color
- Using a font color that does not contrast with the background color is hard to read
- Using color for decoration is distracting and unprofessional.
- So is using color to creative.
- Using a different color for each point is unnecessary
Using a different color for secondary points is also unnecessary
Background
- Use backgrounds such as this one that are attractive but simple
- Use backgrounds which are light
- Use the same background consistently throughout your presentation
Background
- Avoid backgrounds that are distracting or difficult to read from
- Always be consistent with the background that you use
Graphs
- Use graphs rather than just charts and words
Data in graphs is easier to comprehend & retain than is raw data
Trends are easier to visualize in graph form
- Always title your graphs
- Do not copy graphs or charts from other sources without permission
Graphs
Compare this table to the graph on the next slide. Which is easier to read?
Good
| January | January |
| February | February |
| March | March |
| April | April |
Bad
| January | January |
| February | February |
| March | March |
| April | April |
Sheet1
| January | February | March | April | |
| Blue Balls | 20.4 | 27.4 | 90 | 20.4 |
| Red Balls | 30.6 | 38.6 | 34.6 | 31.6 |
Sheet2
Sheet3
Graphs
Good
| January | January |
| February | February |
| March | March |
| April | April |
Sheet1
| January | February | March | April | |
| Blue Balls | 20.4 | 27.4 | 90 | 20.4 |
| Red Balls | 30.6 | 38.6 | 34.6 | 31.6 |
Sheet2
Sheet3
Graphs
Minor gridlines are unnecessary, font is too small, colors are illogical, title is missing, shading is distracting
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Good
| January | January |
| February | February |
| March | March |
| April | April |
Bad
| January | January |
| February | February |
| March | March |
| April | April |
Sheet1
| January | February | March | April | |
| Blue Balls | 20.4 | 27.4 | 90 | 20.4 |
| Red Balls | 30.6 | 38.6 | 34.6 | 31.6 |
Sheet2
Sheet3
Graphs
Why is the graph on the previous page difficult to read?
- Minor gridlines are unnecessary
- Font is too small
- Colors are illogical
- Title is missing
- Shading is distracting
Spelling and Grammar
- Proof your slides for:
speling mistakes
the use of of repeated words
grammatical errors you might have make
- If English is not your first language, please have someone else check your presentation!
- Read your work aloud to be sure it flows well and make sense
Conclusion
- Use an effective and strong closing
Your audience is likely to remember your last words
- Use a conclusion slide to:
Summarize the main points of your presentation
Suggest future avenues of research
Questions??
- If appropriate, you can also end your presentation with a simple question slide to:
Invite your audience to ask questions
Provide a visual aid during question period
Avoid ending a presentation abruptly
References
- Include in-text citations throughout your presentation to credit sources and include the full reference list in APA format at the end.
Burke, L. A., James, K., & Ahmadi, M. (2009). Effectiveness of
PowerPoint-based lectures across different business disciplines: an investigation and implications. Journal of Education for Business, 84(4), 246–251.
Friedman, K. (2007). Avoid a PowerPoint slumber party. Global
Cosmetic Industry, 175(5), 23.
JanuaryFebruaryMarch April
Blue Balls20.427.49020.4
Red Balls30.638.634.631.6
Items Sold in First Quarter of 2002
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
JanuaryFebruaryMarch April
Blue Balls
Red Balls
20.4
27.4
90
20.4
30.6
38.6
34.6
31.6
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
JanuaryFebruaryMarch April
Blue Balls
Red Balls
