Are you making the most common PowerPoint Presentation mistakes without realising?
Are you fed up of seeing your audience glaze over when you switch on the projector and start talking to them?
Microsoft PowerPoint has been given a bad reputation lately as many people dread walking into a room and seeing a projector set up, thinking they are going to be taken through a boring presentation with tons of slides that are of little interest and to be fair, I have sat through a fair few myself.
However, it is not PowerPoint that is at fault but the person who creates them, as this is merely a tool to help you deliver your talk.
Although, in this article, we are going to explore the 10 most common mistakes that people make when creating their PowerPoint Presentation slides, I do have to mention that this will not make you the next Brad Sugars as presenting skills are still needed. But what it will do is ensure that the tools you use are helping you rather than alienating your audience. So let’s take a look.
1) Too Much Text/Lack of Images
How many times have you sat through a presentation and the slides are jam packed with text and the presenter is reading the information verbatim? Quite often a simple image or diagram can explain the situation far more simply and will keep the viewers focussed. Research shows that the human brain consumes images 60,000 times faster than text, so if you are able to use an image to explain, do so.
Best practise is to have a maximum of 3 bullet points and people should be able to read all text within 5 seconds. If it’s longer, then you need to cut it back.
2) Don’t Use Animation
Another common mistake is that some presenters do the opposite and fill their slides with fun animations, thinking this will be more entertaining when the truth is, it is actually a distraction. Avoid animated clips at all costs if you want your presentation to be viewed as professional and informative.
3) White Borders Around Images
While we are still talking about images, there is nothing worse than one being added to a slide with its white border clearly showing (especially if your background is a different colour). This is just a sign of laziness and will not give a good impression to viewers. When using images use software to remove the white border or find .png images with transparent backgrounds.
4) Don’t Use Slide Transitions
Although there are an ever-growing number of funky ways to move from one slide to the next with each release of Microsoft PowerPoint, they do not enhance your talk and just cause another distraction. In addition, these can be very resource intensive on weaker machines and can cause your presentation to slow down.
5) Detailed Graphics That Can’t Be Seen
Although in point 1 we mentioned using graphs or images to reduce the amount of text on a slide, there is nothing worse than a detailed graph that viewers cannot see without the aid of a telescope. Keep all graphics clear and simple or you will find the audience not being able to digest the information being supplied
6) Bad Use Of Colours
When you are considering the design of your slides, be careful not to use colours that blend too easily together. Don’t use dark coloured text on dark backgrounds or light text on light background. A simple contract between text and background will be far easier to read and more enjoyable for the viewer. There is a reason why most books are black on white!
When choosing colours, consider where the presentation will be taking place. If the room is dark, dark background and light text works best. If the room is light, then white background and dark text works better.
The biggest mistake is to use red text on Blue background or vice versa. Research has shown that those two colours on top of each other on a digital format clash so much that people find them too vibrant and headaches occur. Now you don’t want people leaving your talk with one of those do you?
7) Design Inconsistency
Creating a design across all slides looks far more professional than different backgrounds on each one. Consider the ‘theme’ or your brand colours (if there is no clash) when deciding on the overall look.
8) Too Many Fonts & Colours
As with the design inconsistency, the fonts and colours play a major role. Text should be immediately legible and although you may not want to just use Times New Roman on every slide, if you fill it with tons of fancy fonts your presentation will look messy and unprofessional. Simple sans serif fonts give a little variety without straining the eyes.
The same goes for colours. Overuse of many colours just causes confusion and viewers won’t know what they should be paying attention to. Stick to one main colour for the bulk of the text and only use different colours for headlines and the occasional word that you want to highlight.
9) Important Points At The Edge Of The Screen
We’ve all seen it happen. Your sitting there watching a presentation and right at the bottom is an important note that you can’t see because there is a table or person in the way. If you have an important point to make ensure it is near the centre of the screen so that everybody, wherever they are sitting can see it.
10) Too Many Slides
The final point, and quite possibly one of the most important is DON’T USE AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF SLIDES. Just because you are trying to keep the amount of text on each slide to a minimum, it doesn’t mean you have to create 5 slides to make one point! A PowerPoint presentation is meant to be there to enhance your talk, not to BE your talk.
In summary, if you are not sure how your presentation will be received, test it out with a friend or work colleague and get their feedback. You may be surprised at the response you get.
Are there any other mistakes you have seen that have annoyed or confused you? Let us know in the comments below.
Would you like help creating your PowerPoint presentation to WOW your audience? Then we are here to help. For more information or a quote, call Lyn on 01329 481202 or click on the ‘Request Call Back’ button below.
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