I imagine that a lot of you would agree that ridding the world of bullet points and unnecessary text on PowerPoint slides is a good thing, right? But what do we do instead? What can we put on our slides to fill the space, or – to go one better – make the content even more compelling? At BrightCarbon we believe effective visual communication is the answer, and so we write about it a lot.
Read on to find out how to become a visualisation champ by turning text into visuals, learning why visuals make our presentations far more effective, as well as picking up some tips and tricks to doing it all in PowerPoint.
Most presentations are a cascade of text-heavy Death-by-PowerPoint slides. Online learners suffer the torture of brochures converted to click-through-eLearning. Most people now recognize that using visuals is the way to go. But how do you make visual presentations and eLearning that work? We think there are six steps you need to follow.
What's the difference between a presentation and a speech? Many people use the words interchangeably, but there are two main areas of difference. Speeches shouldn't be held up as examples of what those giving presentations should emulate.
What shortcuts and words of wisdom can we impart to you to make your presentations look different (and better!) than everyone else’s? The short answer is simple – don’t design your slides like everyone else. Here are some things you can leave off that will transform both your approach to presentations and your presentations themselves in no time.
Should you ever use clichés in your presentations? What do you gain by using them, or by not using them, and how can you successfully integrate them into your stories?
Why when we come out of a presentation can we sometimes not remember a thing? Are there simple ways to avoid wiping your audiences' memory? Here are five ways you can improve your next presentation just by doing some thinking of your own…
Whenever we see a presentation filled with bullet points - either as audience members or presenters - our hearts sink. We just know it's going to be a one-way ticket to boredom central. Deep down we all know that bullet points simply don't belong in a presentation, but why do they always manage to worm their way back in? Well, let's figure out why, and how we can stop them!
What's the difference between a presentation and a speech? Many people use the words interchangeably, but there are two main areas of difference. Speeches shouldn't be held up as examples of what those giving presentations should emulate.
Too many self-styled experts don't clearly recognise that there are many different types of presentations. What works in the ballroom may not work in the meeting room.
The concept of worldbuilding is a helpful tool to use when creating presentations, not only to manage audience attention, but to make sure that no noise distracts from your message.
Love the idea of visual slides, but feel you can’t use a visual approach as your content is too technical? Find yourself falling back on bullet points, as your ideas are too complex for simple visuals? Think again!
Your presentation style shouldn't be based on Steve Jobs' presentation style. If you mostly deliver presentations to small groups, for heaven's sake, don't model your approach on someone who was great at doing something completely different.
If you want a quick and free way to create pretty presentations on your iPad - that can be exported to PowerPoint - you’ll be hard pressed to find a simpler solution than this. But just remember that not every presentation topic lends itself to slides that just show pretty pictures behind short bullet points.
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