Used creatively and intelligently, PowerPoint is a useful tool – and this month it celebrated its 25th anniversary of aiding business presenters.  However, we’ve also all endured terrible presentations that have sent us virtually to sleep. So, here are some tips to help you avoid committing the same crimes against presentation…

Designing your slides

Don’t give too much away! If your slides provide the full content of your presentation, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t just e-mail everyone the slides and stay home; you have made yourself redundant. A good set of slides will engage your audience’s interest but also require your spoken explanations to make sense.

Lose the agenda slide. Your audience will really pay attention if they can’t predict what you’ll say next. What’s more, you’ll appear more in command of your subject if you seem to be moving organically from point to point, even if you’re privately following a linear structure.

Remember that PowerPoint is a visual medium, so use it to display images. Charts and graphs work better than tables. Your own drawings or sketches are a better and more personal choice than Clip Art, even if you’re not a professional illustrator. Colour and good, simple design help too. However, too much animation can be distracting.

If you do use text, keep to a maximum of 5 words per slide. More than 5, and you will force your audience to focus on reading. If they’re reading, they won’t be listening to you. Think slogans, not paragraphs.

If your audience needs information to take away, provide them with this in hard copy afterwards instead of cluttering your slides with lots of detail. (If I were making a presentation on this subject, for instance, only the highlighted phrases here would appear on my slides, while you’d receive the article in full as a handout.)

Presenting your slides

Don’t spend your presentation reading your slides out loud with your back to the audience. Unfortunately, many people use PowerPoint slides as reminders of what to say. This is a ghastly mistake which may fatally undermine the impact of your presentation. The slides are for your audience’s benefit, not yours. If you need reminders, print out your own handheld notes, or use note cards.

Take time over the introduction to build rapport.

Make sure you make eye contact, pause after significant points to let the message sink in and, most importantly of all, remember to breathe!

Don’t forget that adrenaline will alter your perception of time, so while you may feel that you’re speaking at a reasonable pace, your audience hears you rushing through your words. You may need to slow down more than you think so your audience can keep up.

You’ll find your audience will enjoy your presentation, and that you’ll enjoy delivering it too!