As a self-taught graphic designer, I learned on Microsoft Powerpoint and I haven’t stopped working in PowerPoint since.
Powerpoints are a huge piece of the pie for branding and communications design. It’s another way to get information across. Some brands overlook the value of a well-designed, informative presentation.
With 15 years of experience with top executives, award-winning marketing teams and strategists concerning strategy and design for presentations, I know a bit about strategy and design for presentations.
Following are some tips for getting people’s attention from the start to the end of a presentation.
Your story should be clear- What is the story you want to share and why?
Make sure you only use keywords- This keeps the audience’s attention as well as helping to simplify your presentation. I say treat the copy on a presentation like notes. Tell the people what they need to hear.
Practice Consistent Formatting- Presentation templates should be used for every presentation. Consistently formatting the presentation tells the story more effectively.
Take advantage of strong visuals- Photography and video are key. You can say a lot with little.
Summarize the request- Tell your audience why they came, and offer a quick overview of what you presented.
The final message I want to leave you with is this: if you learned nothing else from today’s reading, remember presentation design should extend your brand. Your copy team, design team, and production team should treat storyline, content design, and follow-up as such. Say less with words and rely on power images/videos. Empower your audience with your voice.
You can find more details in my final video from The Comms Design Fellow series:
