MAKING POWERPOINT SLIDES
Avoiding the Pitfalls of Bad Slides
TIPS TO BE COVERED
Outlines Slide Structure Fonts Color Background Graphs Spelling and Grammar Conclusions Questions
OUTLINE FORMATS ARE EASIER TO FOLLOW
OUTLINE Make your 2nd slide an outline of your
presentationEx: previous slide
Follow the order of your outline for the rest of the presentation
Only place main points on the outline slideEx: Use the titles of each slide as main
points
USE THE 6 X 6 RULE: 6 lines of text 6 words per line
USE BULLETS, NOT NUMBERS
Bullets imply no significant order
Use numbers only to show rank or sequence
NO MORE THAN ONE TOPIC PER SLIDE
What about them Sox hey?
SLIDE STRUCTURE – GOOD Use 1-2 slides per minute of your
presentation Write in point form, not complete
sentences Include 4-5 points per slide 6 * 6 Rule
6 words per line6 lines per slide
Avoid wordiness: use key words and phrases only
SLIDE STRUCTURE - BAD 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.
SLIDE STRUCTURE – GOOD Show one point at a time:
Will help audience concentrate on what you are saying
Will prevent audience from reading aheadWill help you keep your presentation
focused
SLIDE STRUCTURE - BAD Do not use distracting animation
Do not go overboard with the animation
Be consistent with the animation that you use
SELECT READABLE TYPE SIZETHIS IS 40 POINT
Minimum 36 point for titles 24 point for body text
This is 32 point
45 point40 point35 point30 point25 point20 point 15 point 10 point
USE A READABLE TYPEFACE AND FONT
Use Sans serif (no curly feet) such as Arial or universal for body text
Use San serif (no curly feet) such as Arial or universal for body text
Use serif such as a roman for titles only
Use a Readable Typeface and Font
TYPEFACE EXAMPLES TYPEFACE EXAMPLES
Typeface Examples
Typeface Examples Typeface Examples
Typeface Examples
Arial Times New Roman Courier New GillSans
ADJUST LETTERING TO DISCRIMINATE OR EMPHASIZE
Make titles a larger type size than body elements
emphasize important statements or words with bold, italic, larger size or
different fonts.
FONTS - GOOD Use at least a 24-point font Use different size fonts for main points and
secondary points 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 The bigger the better
FONTS - BAD 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 - GOOD Use a color of font that contrasts sharply
with the backgroundEx: blue font on white background
Use color to reinforce the logic of your structureEx: light blue title and dark blue text
Use color to emphasize a pointBut only use this occasionally
COLOR - BAD Using a font color that does not contrast
with the background color is hard to read
Using colour for decoration is distracting and annoying.
Using a different color for each point is unnecessaryUsing a different color for secondary points
is also unnecessary Trying to be creative can also be bad
CHOOSE COLOR CAREFULLY
Use the same color consistently throughout the presentation
Use light letters on a dark background
To determine if a slide is legible when projected, hold it up to a light;if it is readable, it is probably fine
COLORS Avoid placing saturated primary colors
(red, green or blue) adjacent to each other.
They may create a third color where the two colors meet.
USE SOLID COLORS INSTEAD OF FILL PATTERNS ON CHARTS Patterns on
bars or pie slices cause confusion.
Solid colors convey a clear bold message
0
10
20
30
40
50
1st Qtr 2ndQtr
3rd Qtr4th Qtr
Blue Red Hatch Other
BACKGROUND - GOOD 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 – BAD Avoid backgrounds that are distracting
or difficult to read from Always be consistent with the
background that you use
ADJUST LETTERING TO DISCRIMINATE OR EMPHASIZE
Make titles a larger type size than body elements
emphasize important statements or words with bold, italic, larger size or
different fonts.
GRAPHS - GOOD Use graphs rather than just charts and
wordsData in graphs is easier to comprehend &
retain than is raw dataTrends are easier to visualize in graph form
Always title your graphs
GRAPHS - BAD
January February March AprilBlue Balls 20.4 27.4 90 20.4Red Balls 30.6 38.6 34.6 31.6
GRAPHS - GOODItems Sold in First Quarter of 2002
0102030405060708090
100
January February March April
Blue BallsRed Balls
GRAPHS - BAD
20.4
27.4
90
20.4
30.6
38.634.6
31.6
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
January February March April
Blue Balls
Red Balls
GRAPHS - BAD Minor gridlines are unnecessary Font is too small Colours are illogical Title is missing Shading is distracting
SPELLING AND GRAMMAR Proof your slides for:
speling mistakes the use of of repeated wordsgrammatical errors you might have make
Please have someone else check your presentation!
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
presentationSuggest future avenues of research
QUESTIONS?? End your presentation with a simple
question slide to: Invite your audience to ask questionsProvide a visual aid during question periodAvoid ending a presentation abruptly
POSITION TEXT To move text box, drag the cursor over
the box until a 4-point arrow appears. Hold down the mouse button and drag. To resize a text box, drag the cursor over
the box until a 2-point arrow appears. Hold down the mouse button and drag. To set text, click outside text box.
CLIPART Add Clipart
where appropriate
If ever
PICTURES AND BITMAPS
INSERT CLIP ART Click Insert. Select Picture. Select Clip Art. Choose an image. Click Insert. Save.
POSITION ART To move an image, drag the cursor over
the image until a 4-point arrow appears. Hold down the mouse button and drag. To resize an image, drag the cursor over
the image until a 2-point arrow appears. Hold down the mouse button and drag. Or click Format and select Picture to
adjust image size, position, color, and line.
CREATE NEW SLIDE Click Insert. Select New Slide. Or click New Slide on Common Task bar. Or click new slide icon on tool bar. Choose the blank slide.
ANIMATE TEXT Insert text. Highlight text. Click Slide Show. Select Custom
Animation. Choose desired effect options. Choose desired timing options. Click Preview. Click OK. Save.
ANIMATE CLIP ART Insert Clip Art. Click Slide Show. Select Custom
Animation. Choose desired effect options. Choose desired timing options. Click Preview. Click OK. Save.
INSERT TRANSITION ACTION
Click forward or backward arrow. Click Slide Show. Select Slide Transition. Choose desired slide transition. Click Apply to All. Save.
PRESENT SLIDE SHOW Click Slide Show. Select View Show. Enjoy!
YOUR SLIDES ARE NOT YOUR PRESENTATION
Your slides are a focus for your presentation
Your presentation is not proof of your thesis
Your paper is proof You present your proof with slides to
focus interest on what you think is important