what are good presentations

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Blog Beginner Guides How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

Written by: Krystle Wong Jul 20, 2023

A top-notch presentation possesses the power to drive action. From winning stakeholders over and conveying a powerful message to securing funding — your secret weapon lies within the realm of creating an effective presentation .  

Being an excellent presenter isn’t confined to the boardroom. Whether you’re delivering a presentation at work, pursuing an academic career, involved in a non-profit organization or even a student, nailing the presentation game is a game-changer.

In this article, I’ll cover the top qualities of compelling presentations and walk you through a step-by-step guide on how to give a good presentation. Here’s a little tip to kick things off: for a headstart, check out Venngage’s collection of free presentation templates . They are fully customizable, and the best part is you don’t need professional design skills to make them shine!

These valuable presentation tips cater to individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, encompassing business professionals, sales and marketing teams, educators, trainers, students, researchers, non-profit organizations, public speakers and presenters. 

No matter your field or role, these tips for presenting will equip you with the skills to deliver effective presentations that leave a lasting impression on any audience.

Click to jump ahead:

What are the 10 qualities of a good presentation?

Step-by-step guide on how to prepare an effective presentation, 9 effective techniques to deliver a memorable presentation, faqs on making a good presentation, how to create a presentation with venngage in 5 steps.

When it comes to giving an engaging presentation that leaves a lasting impression, it’s not just about the content — it’s also about how you deliver it. Wondering what makes a good presentation? Well, the best presentations I’ve seen consistently exhibit these 10 qualities:

1. Clear structure

No one likes to get lost in a maze of information. Organize your thoughts into a logical flow, complete with an introduction, main points and a solid conclusion. A structured presentation helps your audience follow along effortlessly, leaving them with a sense of satisfaction at the end.

Regardless of your presentation style , a quality presentation starts with a clear roadmap. Browse through Venngage’s template library and select a presentation template that aligns with your content and presentation goals. Here’s a good presentation example template with a logical layout that includes sections for the introduction, main points, supporting information and a conclusion: 

2. Engaging opening

Hook your audience right from the start with an attention-grabbing statement, a fascinating question or maybe even a captivating anecdote. Set the stage for a killer presentation!

The opening moments of your presentation hold immense power – check out these 15 ways to start a presentation to set the stage and captivate your audience.

3. Relevant content

Make sure your content aligns with their interests and needs. Your audience is there for a reason, and that’s to get valuable insights. Avoid fluff and get straight to the point, your audience will be genuinely excited.

4. Effective visual aids

Picture this: a slide with walls of text and tiny charts, yawn! Visual aids should be just that—aiding your presentation. Opt for clear and visually appealing slides, engaging images and informative charts that add value and help reinforce your message.

With Venngage, visualizing data takes no effort at all. You can import data from CSV or Google Sheets seamlessly and create stunning charts, graphs and icon stories effortlessly to showcase your data in a captivating and impactful way.

5. Clear and concise communication

Keep your language simple, and avoid jargon or complicated terms. Communicate your ideas clearly, so your audience can easily grasp and retain the information being conveyed. This can prevent confusion and enhance the overall effectiveness of the message. 

6. Engaging delivery

Spice up your presentation with a sprinkle of enthusiasm! Maintain eye contact, use expressive gestures and vary your tone of voice to keep your audience glued to the edge of their seats. A touch of charisma goes a long way!

7. Interaction and audience engagement

Turn your presentation into an interactive experience — encourage questions, foster discussions and maybe even throw in a fun activity. Engaged audiences are more likely to remember and embrace your message.

Transform your slides into an interactive presentation with Venngage’s dynamic features like pop-ups, clickable icons and animated elements. Engage your audience with interactive content that lets them explore and interact with your presentation for a truly immersive experience.

8. Effective storytelling

Who doesn’t love a good story? Weaving relevant anecdotes, case studies or even a personal story into your presentation can captivate your audience and create a lasting impact. Stories build connections and make your message memorable.

A great presentation background is also essential as it sets the tone, creates visual interest and reinforces your message. Enhance the overall aesthetics of your presentation with these 15 presentation background examples and captivate your audience’s attention.

9. Well-timed pacing

Pace your presentation thoughtfully with well-designed presentation slides, neither rushing through nor dragging it out. Respect your audience’s time and ensure you cover all the essential points without losing their interest.

10. Strong conclusion

Last impressions linger! Summarize your main points and leave your audience with a clear takeaway. End your presentation with a bang , a call to action or an inspiring thought that resonates long after the conclusion.

In-person presentations aside, acing a virtual presentation is of paramount importance in today’s digital world. Check out this guide to learn how you can adapt your in-person presentations into virtual presentations . 

Preparing an effective presentation starts with laying a strong foundation that goes beyond just creating slides and notes. One of the quickest and best ways to make a presentation would be with the help of a good presentation software . 

Otherwise, let me walk you to how to prepare for a presentation step by step and unlock the secrets of crafting a professional presentation that sets you apart.

1. Understand the audience and their needs

Before you dive into preparing your masterpiece, take a moment to get to know your target audience. Tailor your presentation to meet their needs and expectations , and you’ll have them hooked from the start!

2. Conduct thorough research on the topic

Time to hit the books (or the internet)! Don’t skimp on the research with your presentation materials — dive deep into the subject matter and gather valuable insights . The more you know, the more confident you’ll feel in delivering your presentation.

3. Organize the content with a clear structure

No one wants to stumble through a chaotic mess of information. Outline your presentation with a clear and logical flow. Start with a captivating introduction, follow up with main points that build on each other and wrap it up with a powerful conclusion that leaves a lasting impression.

Delivering an effective business presentation hinges on captivating your audience, and Venngage’s professionally designed business presentation templates are tailor-made for this purpose. With thoughtfully structured layouts, these templates enhance your message’s clarity and coherence, ensuring a memorable and engaging experience for your audience members.

Don’t want to build your presentation layout from scratch? pick from these 5 foolproof presentation layout ideas that won’t go wrong. 

4. Develop visually appealing and supportive visual aids

Spice up your presentation with eye-catching visuals! Create slides that complement your message, not overshadow it. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words, but that doesn’t mean you need to overload your slides with text.

Well-chosen designs create a cohesive and professional look, capturing your audience’s attention and enhancing the overall effectiveness of your message. Here’s a list of carefully curated PowerPoint presentation templates and great background graphics that will significantly influence the visual appeal and engagement of your presentation.

5. Practice, practice and practice

Practice makes perfect — rehearse your presentation and arrive early to your presentation to help overcome stage fright. Familiarity with your material will boost your presentation skills and help you handle curveballs with ease.

6. Seek feedback and make necessary adjustments

Don’t be afraid to ask for help and seek feedback from friends and colleagues. Constructive criticism can help you identify blind spots and fine-tune your presentation to perfection.

With Venngage’s real-time collaboration feature , receiving feedback and editing your presentation is a seamless process. Group members can access and work on the presentation simultaneously and edit content side by side in real-time. Changes will be reflected immediately to the entire team, promoting seamless teamwork.

7. Prepare for potential technical or logistical issues

Prepare for the unexpected by checking your equipment, internet connection and any other potential hiccups. If you’re worried that you’ll miss out on any important points, you could always have note cards prepared. Remember to remain focused and rehearse potential answers to anticipated questions.

8. Fine-tune and polish your presentation

As the big day approaches, give your presentation one last shine. Review your talking points, practice how to present a presentation and make any final tweaks. Deep breaths — you’re on the brink of delivering a successful presentation!

In competitive environments, persuasive presentations set individuals and organizations apart. To brush up on your presentation skills, read these guides on how to make a persuasive presentation and tips to presenting effectively . 

Whether you’re an experienced presenter or a novice, the right techniques will let your presentation skills soar to new heights!

From public speaking hacks to interactive elements and storytelling prowess, these 9 effective presentation techniques will empower you to leave a lasting impression on your audience and make your presentations unforgettable.

1. Confidence and positive body language

Positive body language instantly captivates your audience, making them believe in your message as much as you do. Strengthen your stage presence and own that stage like it’s your second home! Stand tall, shoulders back and exude confidence. 

2. Eye contact with the audience

Break down that invisible barrier and connect with your audience through their eyes. Maintaining eye contact when giving a presentation builds trust and shows that you’re present and engaged with them.

3. Effective use of hand gestures and movement

A little movement goes a long way! Emphasize key points with purposeful gestures and don’t be afraid to walk around the stage. Your energy will be contagious!

4. Utilize storytelling techniques

Weave the magic of storytelling into your presentation. Share relatable anecdotes, inspiring success stories or even personal experiences that tug at the heartstrings of your audience. Adjust your pitch, pace and volume to match the emotions and intensity of the story. Varying your speaking voice adds depth and enhances your stage presence.

5. Incorporate multimedia elements

Spice up your presentation with a dash of visual pizzazz! Use slides, images and video clips to add depth and clarity to your message. Just remember, less is more—don’t overwhelm them with information overload. 

Turn your presentations into an interactive party! Involve your audience with questions, polls or group activities. When they actively participate, they become invested in your presentation’s success. Bring your design to life with animated elements. Venngage allows you to apply animations to icons, images and text to create dynamic and engaging visual content.

6. Utilize humor strategically

Laughter is the best medicine—and a fantastic presentation enhancer! A well-placed joke or lighthearted moment can break the ice and create a warm atmosphere , making your audience more receptive to your message.

7. Practice active listening and respond to feedback

Be attentive to your audience’s reactions and feedback. If they have questions or concerns, address them with genuine interest and respect. Your responsiveness builds rapport and shows that you genuinely care about their experience.

8. Apply the 10-20-30 rule

Apply the 10-20-30 presentation rule and keep it short, sweet and impactful! Stick to ten slides, deliver your presentation within 20 minutes and use a 30-point font to ensure clarity and focus. Less is more, and your audience will thank you for it!

9. Implement the 5-5-5 rule

Simplicity is key. Limit each slide to five bullet points, with only five words per bullet point and allow each slide to remain visible for about five seconds. This rule keeps your presentation concise and prevents information overload.

Simple presentations are more engaging because they are easier to follow. Summarize your presentations and keep them simple with Venngage’s gallery of simple presentation templates and ensure that your message is delivered effectively across your audience.

1. How to start a presentation?

To kick off your presentation effectively, begin with an attention-grabbing statement or a powerful quote. Introduce yourself, establish credibility and clearly state the purpose and relevance of your presentation.

2. How to end a presentation?

For a strong conclusion, summarize your talking points and key takeaways. End with a compelling call to action or a thought-provoking question and remember to thank your audience and invite any final questions or interactions.

3. How to make a presentation interactive?

To make your presentation interactive, encourage questions and discussion throughout your talk. Utilize multimedia elements like videos or images and consider including polls, quizzes or group activities to actively involve your audience.

In need of inspiration for your next presentation? I’ve got your back! Pick from these 120+ presentation ideas, topics and examples to get started. 

Creating a stunning presentation with Venngage is a breeze with our user-friendly drag-and-drop editor and professionally designed templates for all your communication needs. 

Here’s how to make a presentation in just 5 simple steps with the help of Venngage:

Step 1: Sign up for Venngage for free using your email, Gmail or Facebook account or simply log in to access your account. 

Step 2: Pick a design from our selection of free presentation templates (they’re all created by our expert in-house designers).

Step 3: Make the template your own by customizing it to fit your content and branding. With Venngage’s intuitive drag-and-drop editor, you can easily modify text, change colors and adjust the layout to create a unique and eye-catching design.

Step 4: Elevate your presentation by incorporating captivating visuals. You can upload your images or choose from Venngage’s vast library of high-quality photos, icons and illustrations. 

Step 5: Upgrade to a premium or business account to export your presentation in PDF and print it for in-person presentations or share it digitally for free!

By following these five simple steps, you’ll have a professionally designed and visually engaging presentation ready in no time. With Venngage’s user-friendly platform, your presentation is sure to make a lasting impression. So, let your creativity flow and get ready to shine in your next presentation!

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How to give a good presentation that captivates any audience

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What are the main difficulties when giving presentations?

How to create an effective presentation, after that, how do i give a memorable presentation, how to connect with the audience when presenting.

If you’ve ever heard someone give a powerful presentation, you probably remember how it made you feel. Much like a composer, a good speaker knows precisely when each note should strike to captivate their audience’s attention and leave them with a lasting impression.

No one becomes a great public speaker or presenter without practice. And almost everyone can recall a time one of their presentations went badly — that’s a painful part of the learning process.

Whether you’re working within a small creative team or a large organization, public speaking and presentation skills are vital to communicating your ideas. Knowing how to present your vision can help you pitch concepts to clients, present ideas to your team, and develop the confidence to participate in team meetings.

If you have an upcoming presentation on the horizon and feel nervous, that’s normal. Around 15-30% of the general population experience a fear of public speaking . And, unfortunately, social anxiety is on the rise, with a 12% increase in adults over the last 20 years . 

Learning how to give a good presentation can dismantle your fears and break down these barriers, ensuring you’re ready to confidently share your point of view. 

It’s the week before your presentation, and you’re already feeling nervous . Maybe there’ll be an important mentor in the room you need to impress, or you’re looking for an opportunity to show your boss your value. Regardless of your countless past presentations, you still feel nervous. 

Sharing your vision and ideas with any sized group is intimidating. You’re likely worrying about how you’ll perform as a presenter and whether the audience will be interested in what you offer. But nerves aren’t inherently negative — you can actually use this feeling to fuel your preparation.

It’s helpful to identify where your worries are coming from and address your fears. Here are some common concerns when preparing for an upcoming presentation:

Fear of public speaking: When you share your ideas in front of a group, you’re placing yourself in a vulnerable position to be critiqued on your knowledge and communication skills . Maybe you feel confident in your content, but when you think about standing in front of an audience, you feel anxious and your mind goes blank.

It’s also not uncommon to have physical symptoms when presenting . Some people experience nausea and dizziness as the brain releases adrenaline to cope with the potentially stressful situation . Remember to take deep breaths to recenter yourself and be patient, even if you make a mistake.

Losing the audience’s attention: As a presenter, your main focus is to keep your audience engaged. They should feel like they’re learning valuable information or following a story that will improve them in life or business.

Highlight the most exciting pieces of knowledge and ensure you emphasize those points in your presentation. If you feel passionate about your content, it’s more likely that your audience will experience this excitement for themselves and become invested in what you have to say.

Not knowing what content to place on presentation slides: Overloading presentation slides is a fast way to lose your audience’s attention. Your slides should contain only the main talking points and limited text to ensure your audience focuses on what you have to say rather than becoming distracted by the content on your slides.

Discomfort incorporating nonverbal communication: It’s natural to feel stiff and frozen when you’re nervous. But maintaining effective body language helps your audience stay focused on you as you speak and encourages you to relax.

If you struggle to incorporate body language into your presentations, try starting small by making hand gestures toward your slides. If you’re working with a large audience, use different parts of the stage to ensure everyone feels included. 

Each presenter has their own personal brand and style. Some may use humor to break the ice, while others might appeal to the audience’s emotional side through inspiring storytelling. 

Watching online presentations, such as TED talks, is an excellent way to expose yourself to various presentation styles and develop your own. While observing others, you can note how they carry themselves on stage and learn new ways to keep your audience engaged.

Once you’ve addressed what’s causing your fears, it’s time to prepare for a great presentation. Use your past experience as inspiration and aim to outshine your former self by learning from your mistakes and employing new techniques. Here are five presentation tips to help you create a strong presentation and wow your audience:

1. Keep it simple

Simple means something different to everyone.

Before creating your presentation, take note of your intended audience and their knowledge level of your subject. You’ll want your content to be easy for your intended audience to follow.

Say you’re giving a presentation on improving your company’s operational structure. Entry-level workers will likely need a more straightforward overview of the content than C-suite leaders, who have significantly more experience. 

Ask yourself what you want your audience to take away from your presentation and emphasize those important points. Doing this ensures they remember the most vital information rather than less important supporting ideas. Try organizing these concepts into bullet points so viewers can quickly identify critical takeaways.

2. Create a compelling structure

Put yourself in your audience member’s shoes and determine the most compelling way to organize your information. Your presentation should be articulate , cohesive, and logical, and you must be sure to include all necessary supporting evidence to strengthen your main points.

If you give away all of your answers too quickly, your audience could lose interest. And if there isn’t enough supporting information, they could hit a roadblock of confusion. Try developing a compelling story that leads your audience through your thought processes so they can experience the ups and downs alongside you. 

By structuring your presentation to lead up to a final conclusion, you’re more likely to keep listeners’ attention. Once you’ve reached that conclusion, you can offer a Q&A period to put any of their questions or concerns to rest. 

3. Use visual aids

Appealing to various learning styles is a great way to keep everyone on the same page and ensure they absorb your content. Visual aids are necessary for visual learners and make it easier for people to picture your ideas.

Aim to incorporate a mixture of photos, videos, and props to engage your audience and convey your key points. For instance, if you’re giving a presentation on anthropology subject matter, you could show your audience an artifact to help them understand how exciting a discovery must have been. 

If your presentation is long, including a video for your audience to watch is an excellent way to give yourself a break and create new jumping-off points for your speech.

4. Be aware of design techniques and trends

Thanks to cutting-edge technology and tools, you have numerous platforms at your disposal to create a good presentation. But keep in mind that although color, images, and graphics liven things up, they can cause distraction when misused.

  Here are a few standard pointers for incorporating visuals on your slides: 

• Don’t place blocks of small text on a single slide
• Use a minimalistic background instead of a busy one
• Ensure text stands out against the background color
• Only use high-resolution photos
• Maintain a consistent font style and size throughout the presentation
• Don’t overuse transitions and effects

5. Try the 10-20-30 rule

Guy Kawasaki, a prominent venture capitalist and one of the original marketing specialists for Apple, said that the best slideshow presentations are less than 10 slides , last at most 20 minutes, and use a font size of 30. Following this strategy can help you condense your information, eliminate unnecessary ideas, and maintain your audience’s focus more efficiently.

Once you’re confident in creating a memorable presentation, it’s time to learn how to give one. Here are some valuable tips for keeping your audience invested during your talk: 

Tip #1: Tell stories

Sharing an anecdote from your life can improve your credibility and increase your relatability. And when an audience relates to you, they’re more likely to feel connected to who you are as a person and encouraged to give you their full attention, as they would want others to do the same.

Gill Hicks utilized this strategy well when she shared her powerful story, “ I survived a terrorist attack. Here’s what I learned .” In her harrowing tale, Hicks highlights the importance of compassion, unconditional love , and helping those in need.

If you feel uncomfortable sharing personal stories, that’s okay. You can use examples from famous individuals or create a fictional account to demonstrate your ideas.

Tip #2: Make eye contact with the audience

Maintaining eye contact is less intimidating than it sounds. In fact, you don’t have to look your audience members directly in their eyes — you can focus on their foreheads or noses if that’s easier.

Try making eye contact with as many people as possible for 3–5 seconds each. This timing ensures you don’t look away too quickly, making the audience member feel unimportant, or linger too long, making them feel uncomfortable.

If you’re presenting to a large group, direct your focus to each part of the room to ensure no section of the audience feels ignored. 

Tip #3: Work on your stage presence

Although your tone and words are the most impactful part of your presentation, recall that body language keeps your audience engaged. Use these tips to master a professional stage presence:

• Speak with open arms and avoid crossing them
• Keep a reasonable pace and try not to stand still
• Use hand gestures to highlight important information

Tip #4: Start strong

Like watching a movie trailer, the first seconds of your talk are critical for capturing your audience’s attention. How you start your speech sets the tone for the rest of your presentation and tells your audience whether or not they should pay attention. Here are some ways to start your presentation to leave a lasting impression:

• Use a quote from a well-known and likable influential person 
• Ask a rhetorical question to create intrigue
• Start with an anecdote to add context to your talk 
• Spark your audience’s curiosity by involving them in an interactive problem-solving puzzle or riddle

Tip #5: Show your passion

Don’t be afraid of being too enthusiastic. Everyone appreciates a speaker who’s genuinely excited about their field of expertise. 

In “ Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance ,” Angela Lee Duckworth discusses the importance of passion in research and delivery. She delivers her presentation excitedly to show the audience how excitement piques interest. 

Tip #6: Plan your delivery

How you decide to deliver your speech will shape your presentation. Will you be preparing a PowerPoint presentation and using a teleprompter? Or are you working within the constraints of the digital world and presenting over Zoom?

The best presentations are conducted by speakers who know their stuff and memorize their content. However, if you find this challenging, try creating notes to use as a safety net in case you lose track.

If you’re presenting online, you can keep notes beside your computer for each slide, highlighting your key points. This ensures you include all the necessary information and follow a logical order.

Tip #7: Practice

Practice doesn’t make perfect — it makes progress. There’s no way of preparing for unforeseen circumstances, but thorough practice means you’ve done everything you can to succeed.

Rehearse your speech in front of a mirror or to a trusted friend or family member. Take any feedback and use it as an opportunity to fine-tune your speech. But remember: who you practice your presentation in front of may differ from your intended audience. Consider their opinions through the lens of them occupying this different position.

Tip #8: Read the room

Whether you’re a keynote speaker at an event or presenting to a small group of clients, knowing how to read the room is vital for keeping your audience happy. Stay flexible and be willing to move on from topics quickly if your listeners are uninterested or displeased with a particular part of your speech.

Tip #9: Breathe

Try taking deep breaths before your presentation to calm your nerves. If you feel rushed, you’re more likely to feel nervous and stumble on your words.

The most important thing to consider when presenting is your audience’s feelings. When you approach your next presentation calmly, you’ll put your audience at ease and encourage them to feel comfortable in your presence.

Tip #10: Provide a call-to-action

When you end your presentation, your audience should feel compelled to take a specific action, whether that’s changing their habits or contacting you for your services.

If you’re presenting to clients, create a handout with key points and contact information so they can get in touch. You should provide your LinkedIn information, email address, and phone number so they have a variety of ways to reach you. 

There’s no one-size-fits-all template for an effective presentation, as your unique audience and subject matter play a role in shaping your speech. As a general rule, though, you should aim to connect with your audience through passion and excitement. Use strong eye contact and body language. Capture their interest through storytelling and their trust through relatability.

Learning how to give a good presentation can feel overwhelming — but remember, practice makes progress. Rehearse your presentation for someone you trust, collect their feedback , and revise. Practicing your presentation skills is helpful for any job, and every challenge is a chance to grow.

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Elizabeth Perry, ACC

Elizabeth Perry is a Coach Community Manager at BetterUp. She uses strategic engagement strategies to cultivate a learning community across a global network of Coaches through in-person and virtual experiences, technology-enabled platforms, and strategic coaching industry partnerships. With over 3 years of coaching experience and a certification in transformative leadership and life coaching from Sofia University, Elizabeth leverages transpersonal psychology expertise to help coaches and clients gain awareness of their behavioral and thought patterns, discover their purpose and passions, and elevate their potential. She is a lifelong student of psychology, personal growth, and human potential as well as an ICF-certified ACC transpersonal life and leadership Coach.

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How to Give a Killer Presentation

• Chris Anderson

For more than 30 years, the TED conference series has presented enlightening talks that people enjoy watching. In this article, Anderson, TED’s curator, shares five keys to great presentations:

• Frame your story (figure out where to start and where to end).
• Plan your delivery (decide whether to memorize your speech word for word or develop bullet points and then rehearse it—over and over).
• Work on stage presence (but remember that your story matters more than how you stand or whether you’re visibly nervous).
• Plan the multimedia (whatever you do, don’t read from PowerPoint slides).
• Put it together (play to your strengths and be authentic).

According to Anderson, presentations rise or fall on the quality of the idea, the narrative, and the passion of the speaker. It’s about substance—not style. In fact, it’s fairly easy to “coach out” the problems in a talk, but there’s no way to “coach in” the basic story—the presenter has to have the raw material. So if your thinking is not there yet, he advises, decline that invitation to speak. Instead, keep working until you have an idea that’s worth sharing.

Lessons from TED

A little more than a year ago, on a trip to Nairobi, Kenya, some colleagues and I met a 12-year-old Masai boy named Richard Turere, who told us a fascinating story. His family raises livestock on the edge of a vast national park, and one of the biggest challenges is protecting the animals from lions—especially at night. Richard had noticed that placing lamps in a field didn’t deter lion attacks, but when he walked the field with a torch, the lions stayed away. From a young age, he’d been interested in electronics, teaching himself by, for example, taking apart his parents’ radio. He used that experience to devise a system of lights that would turn on and off in sequence—using solar panels, a car battery, and a motorcycle indicator box—and thereby create a sense of movement that he hoped would scare off the lions. He installed the lights, and the lions stopped attacking. Soon villages elsewhere in Kenya began installing Richard’s “lion lights.”

• CA Chris Anderson is the curator of TED.

Partner Center

How to make a great presentation

Stressed about an upcoming presentation? These talks are full of helpful tips on how to get up in front of an audience and make a lasting impression.

The secret structure of great talks

The beauty of data visualization

TED's secret to great public speaking

How to speak so that people want to listen

How great leaders inspire action

How to Make Effective Impactful Presentations (Tips & Tools)

Learn how to make a good presentation great - step-by-step with examples. Learn the principles, guidelines & qualities needed to prepare captivating slides.

Dominika Krukowska

12 minute read

Short answer

Short answer: how to make a good presentation.

Start with a surprising statement, a bold promise, or a mystery

Provide context with a bit of background information

Structure your presentation within a story framework

Make every word count, and use as few as possible

Use visuals only to support your presentation text

Use interactive design to make your audience active participants

End by telling your audience what they can do with what they’ve learned

Boring presentations are instantly forgotten. How’s yours?

Lifeless presentations can spell doom for your message, leaving your audience disengaged and your goals unreached.

The price of a mediocre presentation is steep; missed opportunities, unimpressed prospects, and a bad rep.

In a world where everyone has grown to expect a good story, a boring presentation will be instantly forgotten. Like a drop in the ocean.

But not all is lost.

This post will teach you how presentation pros create compelling narratives and leverage the latest tech tools to command attention, drive a powerful message, and get shared like gossip.

Let’s get started!

How to prepare a presentation?

The successful presenter understands the value of small details and thorough preparation like the seasoned chef knows the importance of quality ingredients and careful technique for serving a 5 star dish

But where do you start?

Step-by-step guide for preparing a presentation:

1. Define your objective

Every presentation needs a clear goal. Are you looking to persuade, educate, or motivate? Perhaps you aim to showcase a product, or share insights about a recent project.

Defining your objective early on will guide your content creation process, helping you to focus your message and structure your presentation effectively. Think of your objective as the North Star guiding your presentation journey.

2. Analyze your audience

Next up, who are you talking to? Your audience should shape your presentation as much as your objective does. Understanding their needs, interests, and background will enable you to tailor your message to resonate with them.

Are they experts in your field, or are they novices looking for an introduction? What questions might they have? The more you know about your audience, the more compelling your presentation will be.

3. Research your topic

Once you've defined your objective and analyzed your audience, it's time to delve deep into your topic. Comprehensive research lays the groundwork for a robust, credible presentation.

Don't just scratch the surface – explore different perspectives, recent developments, and key statistics. This will not only enhance your understanding but also equip you with a wealth of information to answer any questions your audience might have.

4. Choose the right delivery format

Finally, consider the best format to deliver your message.

The right format can make all the difference in how your message is received, so choose wisely!

PowerPoint presentations are classic and easy to work with. But PowerPoint and Google slides are not so versatile in terms of their content experience. They're static, packed with information, and all look alike.

Our own presentation maker offers interactive, personalized, and multimedia content experience.

Data from our research of over 100K presentation sessions shows that audiences engage with Storydoc presentations 103% better than PowerPoint.

How to create an effective presentation?

There’s part art and part science in creating high-engagement high-impact presentations.

An effective presentation is the painstaking result of well-organized content, visuals that support and elevate your message, simplifying complex information, and personalizing wherever possible.

I wrote this post to teach you how to do all these, and a few things more.

Ready to learn? Let's dive in!

How to organize your presentation content?

Crafting a compelling presentation is like writing a page-turner.

You need to captivate your audience, maintain their interest, and guide them effortlessly through your narrative.

But how do you transform a heap of information into a well-structured presentation you can’t stop reading? There’s a structure you can follow.

3-step process for organizing a magnetic presentation:

1. Prioritize content

Your presentation should immediately capture interest and demonstrate relevance before moving on to establish understanding .

A) Build interest:

Begin with a strong hook that grabs your audience's attention. This could be an intriguing statistic, a powerful image , or an engaging question. It should stir curiosity and make your audience eager to hear more.

B) Establish relevance:

Once you have their attention it's time to establish why your presentation matters to your audience.

Address your audience's main concerns. Make sure your content directly speaks to these pain points, and address them in order of importance.

2. Build anticipation

A great presentation is like getting a new car – it builds anticipation, takes you on a thrilling ride, and ends with you wanting to share the experience with all your friends.

Start with a compelling problem your audience relates to and follow up with a promise of an amazing way they can solve it. This problem-solution dynamic creates a suspense that keeps your audience glued to your presentation.

3. Use a story framework

Finally, use a story framework to give your presentation structure and flow.

Begin with a big idea that underpins your presentation. Then delve into the problem, showcasing why it needs attention. Present your solution, painting a vision of a better future for your audience.

Weave in concrete examples of how your solution changes lives.

Tell the story of WHO you helped, WHAT the situation was before and after your solution, WHERE and WHEN it happened, WHY it worked and HOW it made them feel.

If you’re writing a business presentation you should follow this with an execution plan that outlines how the solution will be implemented.

Finally, close with clear next steps, guiding your audience on what they should do after the presentation to bring meaningful change into their lives.

Our recommended story framework:

How to design your presentation?

A good presentation is more than just making it look pretty ; it's about communicating your message effectively and creating a lasting impression.

Good presentation design grabs attention, and leads it to where it’s needed most. It takes your hand and leads you through the easiest and most pleasant path to understanding.

Good presentation design supports your message rather than steals the spotlight. Good design is narrated design.

What is narrated design (Scrollytelling)?

Scrollytelling, where "scroll" meets "storytelling", is an interactive content experience that guides readers through a narrative journey with a simple scroll. It connects text, images, videos, and animations into integrated “scenes” where content is both shown and narrated.

Scrollytelling breaks complex content into digestible chunks and gives the reader control over pace. It has been scientifically shown to enhance engagement, understandability and memorability.

Scrollytelling came up as a central thing when Itai Amoza, our Founder and CEO was building the foundations for Storydoc.

He partnered with one of the world’s leading visualization scientists , prof. Steven Franconeri , to help him bring to Storydoc the means to reduce the complexity, friction, and information overload so characteristic of business presentations.

Scrollytelling is part of the solutions that came up, which led to specialized storytelling slides like our narrator slide (in the example below).

An example of Storydoc scrollytelling:

How to design presentation visuals to support your story

Presentation visuals can be unsung heroes or sloppy distractions.

Visuals can bring your message to life, make complex concepts easy to understand, and engage your audience in ways that words alone cannot. Or… they can sit there looking all pretty and distract you from what’s really going on.

4 elements of great presentation visuals:

Support your message: Your visuals should support your text, highlight your main message, and align with your objective. They should reinforce your points and help your audience understand your message.

Represent your audience: The best visuals are relatable. They should resonate with your target audience and reflect their world of associations. Use images and graphics that your audience can identify with – this can enhance their engagement and make your presentation more memorable. Equally important is using clean images - an effective way to do this is by using tools that allow you to remove your image backgrounds . By eliminating distractions and focusing on your subject, you create images that are more impactful and, therefore, can potentially increase audience engagement.

Introduce your product, outcomes, and clients: Wherever possible, use visuals to demonstrate your product, illustrate outcomes, and represent your clients. This can remove doubt and misunderstanding by letting your audience see (and make obvious) what words sometimes struggle to describe.

Follow your branding guidelines: Your presentation is an extension of your brand, so your visuals should conform to your branding guidelines. Consistent use of colors, fonts, and styles not only enhances brand recognition but also creates a cohesive, professional look.

Here’s an example of a well-designed presentation:

How to communicate complex information?

Did you ever have to read a presentation where you felt like you're lost in a maze of jargon, data, and complex concepts?

Are you giving others this same experience?

Communicating complex information is a common challenge in presentations. But there are ways you can simplify your presentation and reengage your audience.

Here’s how you can get complex information across:

1. Use interactive content

Interactive content is your best friend when it comes to simplifying complex information and getting deeply engaged with your content.

It gets the readers more involved in your presentation by letting them play an active part; like choosing the content route they wish to take and controlling the pace.

It keeps your presentation textually lean - giving readers the choice to expand more details on demand (in tabs, live graphs, sliders, accordions, and calculators).

Beyond that, live graphs can illustrate trends, animations can demonstrate processes, and videos can bring concepts to life.

Calculators, questionnaires, and chatbots provide personalized and specific answers to readers as part of your presentation, without them having to get in touch with you or your team.

Elavating your presentations from static to interactive has been tied to increasing the number of people who read your presentation in full by 41% !

Making interactive used to be hard, but now you can just use Storydoc. Go make your first interactive presentation. It’s easy as pie.

2. Show don’t tell

A picture is worth a thousand words. Because no one will read a presentation with a thousand words, do everyone a favor and use images.

Images can be super effective at communicating complex information and save you a lot of needless text.

In fact, visual representation of data and concepts can often convey what words cannot. Use diagrams, infographics, and images to illustrate your points and simplify the complex.

The goal is to create a visual narrative that complements your verbal one.

3. Narrate your content

Storytelling is another powerful tool for communicating complex concepts.

Whether it's through text to speech AI, video bubbles, or a scrollytelling narrator slide, narrating your content can help guide your audience through the complexity.

By giving your information a narrative structure, you can make it more digestible, engaging, and memorable.

According to Sales Hacker’s data, people remember up to 10% of numbers and 25% of images they see. When you center your presentation around a story, this rises to 60-70% .

4. Use examples and allegories

Examples and allegories help unravel the complexity of ideas.

They scaffold your message with concepts we already know and understand, and can easily imagine in our mind. This makes them less new and intimidating and more familiar.

Critically, the real secret lies in selecting examples that are not just familiar but also deeply relevant—those are the ones that will truly ring with your listeners.

If you tailor the allegory to your audience's world, it is guaranteed to lead to an “aha” moment.

5. Open a line of communication

Finally, invite dialogue. This could be through a chatbot or an option to book a meeting for further discussion. This not only helps clarify any confusion but also encourages engagement and deepens understanding.

For example, finishing your presentation with an interactive calendar to book a meeting instead of a generic “Thank you” slide has proven to boost conversion rate by 27% !

How to personalize your presentation?

Imagine attending a party where the host doesn't remember your name or anything about you. Not a great experience, right? The same holds true for presentations.

In a sea of generic content, personalization can be a lifeline that connects you to your audience on a deeper level. It’s also the single most important predictor of success, getting 68% more people to read your presentation in full .

But how do you add that personal touch?

1. Address reader by name

Just as you wouldn't start a conversation without a greeting, don't start your presentation without acknowledging your audience.

Using your audience's name can make your presentation feel like a personal conversation rather than a generic monologue. It's a simple yet powerful way to engage your audience from the get-go.

2. Use their company logo

Including your audience's company logo in your presentation can make them feel seen and valued. It shows that you've taken the time to tailor your presentation to them, enhancing its relevance and appeal.

Plus, it's a subtle way to reinforce that your message is specifically designed to address their needs and challenges.

3. Add a personal message (video or text)

A personal message can go a long way in building a connection with your audience.

It could be a video message from you, expressing your enthusiasm for the opportunity to present to them, or a text message highlighting why the presentation matters to them.

This personal touch can make your audience feel special and more invested in your presentation.

4. Personalize your Call-to-Action

Finally, cap off your presentation with a call to action that speaks directly to your audience.

Swap out the generic 'Contact us' with something that gets to the heart of their needs, something like, 'Let's roll up our sleeves and tackle your [specific issue] at [their company].'

By tailoring your call to action, you show your audience you've truly got their back, that you're not just here to talk, but to make a real, positive impact on their world.

Here’s an example of a personalized slide:

How to measure the effectiveness of your presentation

Imagine if you could peek into your audience's mind, understand what resonated, what fell flat, and what drove them to action?

Presentation analytics is essential in order to guide you on how to fine-tune it for maximum impact.

But how do you get your hands on presentation analytics?

Any presentation you create with Storydoc comes with an out-of-the-box analytics suite , ready to track and provide insights.

We give you 100% visibility into how people engage with your presentations and send you real-time engagement alerts.

Here’s a video explaining how you can track performance with our analytics panel:

4 critical presentation engagement metrics to keep track of

1. Reading time

Storydoc gives you the precise time prospects spend reading your presentation so you can quickly figure out what's hitting the target and what's not.

Are they soaking up every word or just quickly skimming through? This can help you shape your content to hit the bullseye.

NOTE: Keep in mind that reading time alone might not show you a full picture. A better way is to use a smart engagement score that brings together different metrics like time spent and depth of reading. You can get this kind of total score in Storydoc.

2. Reading completion

Another basic metric we track is how many people read your content from start to finish.

This metric is a strong sign of the prospect’s interest and your content quality. It shows you if they're finding the information relevant, but also worth sticking with till the end.

3. Next step conversion rate

This one tracks how many people take the next step after they check out your presentation. This could be filling out a form, setting up a meeting, or downloading more files.

For business presentations, measuring this can show how well your presentation is pushing people further down the sales funnel.

At the top of your analytics dashboard, you can find a tab that shows you how many people clicked on your CTA divided by presentation, date, and location. If you scroll down to the list of readers, next to each person you can also see whether they clicked on the CTA or not.

Here's what it looks like:

4. Number of shares

This metric is particularly important for B2B sales teams . As more people are getting involved in buying decisions, this measure helps you see if and when your content is being passed around inside your prospect’s company.

On the analytics dashboard, under each presentation version, you can find detailed information on how many people read it. So, the higher the number, the more your presentation has been shared internally.

We'll notify you when your presentation has been shared, and who opened it, so you can time your follow-up perfectly to your buyer’s readiness to advance further.

Here's where you can find this information:

Best tool for making an effective presentation

In the realm of presentation tools, classics like Google Slides and PowerPoint offer simplicity and ease, while Canva and Pitch add a dash of design flair and collaboration.

If you're seeking to elevate your presentations to new heights you’ll need to do better than simple PowerPoints or flashy Canvas. Next-gen AI presentation tools like Storydoc are your game-changer.

They break free from the static concept of slides and offer the creation of interactive, immersive content experiences that sweep us along like a good story.

Grab a template - create your best presentation to date

Ever wished for a secret recipe to whip up a killer presentation? We've got something even better! Our interactive presentation templates are your shortcut to success.

Say goodbye to hours of formatting and hello to captivating, interactive presentations, all with a few clicks.

Grab a template and turn presentation woes into wows!

Hi, I'm Dominika, Content Specialist at Storydoc. As a creative professional with experience in fashion, I'm here to show you how to amplify your brand message through the power of storytelling and eye-catching visuals.

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14 effective presentation tips to impress your audience

Get your team on prezi – watch this on demand video.

Anete Ezera July 15, 2022

An effective presentation can communicate key ideas and opinions, save time, and contribute to your overall success as a business, but good presentation skills don’t come naturally to everyone. In this blog post, you’ll find 14 effective presentation tips you can implement in your next presentation to make it a success. 

Whether you’re preparing for an important presentation at work or school, or you’re looking for ways to generally improve your presentation skills, you’ll find these presentation tips useful. We’ve gathered a list to help you impress your audience from the get-go. You’ll find tips for creating and presenting your slides, talking in front of an audience, and other effective presentation techniques to help you stand out. 

Most common presentation mistakes

Before we list our top effective presentation tips, let’s explore the most common presentation mistakes. If you’ve made one or more mistakes in this list, you’re not alone. Most people have made at least one mistake. However, what’s important is to be aware of these errors and try avoiding them next time.

#1 A poor start

One of the most common mistakes people make is undermining the importance of the first few minutes or seconds of their presentation. 

Let’s say you’ve practiced your key talking points meticulously and gone over your slides a million times, but when you’re in the spotlight and need to say your first line, do you know exactly what to say to wow the audience? 

The start of your presentation is crucial. Not only because how you start sets the tone for the rest of your presentation, but also because people generally require around 8 seconds to decide whether they find the subject interesting enough to keep listening. Starting your presentation with a captivating intro is even more important than you think. To ensure you start off right, read our guide on how to start your presentation . 

#2 Lack of preparation

Yes, even though it’s clear that you should prepare before giving a presentation, it’s still a common mistake amongst presenters. Preparing content and talking points is an obvious start, but there are other steps that you might be overlooking.

Before you even join a meeting or walk into a room where you’re going to present, consider the technical requirements and get familiar with the equipment. If you’re presenting online, make sure to test-run your presentation and the visual aids you’re going to use. The last thing you want is a broken video link, poor audio, or a weak connection when you’re presenting. 

Also, consider the questions your audience might want to ask you about the topic. Think about how you’d answer those questions, or do even further research to really impress the audience with your answers. 

Explore other ways to prepare for a presentation to feel even more confident when presenting.

#3 Losing track of time

It’s great to feel passionate about your topic. However, you’ll have to consider your audience’s level of interest and knowledge. Some details might seem fascinating to you, and you’d like to talk about them for hours, but for your audience, too much information will drain their energy and lose their attention. 

Therefore, make sure to keep track of time. Also, consider your audience’s interests. A concise presentation is always better than a long one with a ton of information. Plus, you’ll have a higher chance of keeping your audience’s attention throughout the presentation. 

Effective presentation tips

Now that we’ve looked at some of the most common presentation mistakes – let’s dive into effective presentation tips that’ll help you excel in future presentations. 

#1 Tell a story

Stories connect, inspire, and empower people. Telling a story can entice action, help understand an idea, and make people feel connected to the storyteller. It’s also one of the most effective presentation tips. A study by organizational psychologist Peg Neuhauser found that a well-told story is easier to remember than facts, which makes it a highly effective learning technique. 

With that in mind, telling a story when you’re presenting can engage your audience and make it a more memorable experience. You can either share a personal story or a historical event, just make sure to have a clear connection between the story and the topic you’re presenting. 

#2 Work on your body language

Body language can make a huge difference in how your presentation is perceived. It’s one of the presentation tips you definitely shouldn’t overlook. 

Body language says a lot about a person’s confidence level, emotions, state of mind, and even credibility. For the audience, it’s a way to understand what the person is saying and how interested they are in the topic. 

Therefore, work on your body language to better convey the message you’re trying to communicate. Practice in front of a mirror before your presentation and be conscious of your hand gestures and facial expressions. 

#3 Understand your audience

Before crafting your presentation, you must know who you’re speaking to. Understanding the interests, demographics, professional background, and other valuable information of your audience is crucial in making your speech successful. 

If you’re speaking at an event, contact the organizers to get more information about other speakers and the audience. If you’re presenting at work, you may already know your audience fairly well. Use this information to your advantage and create content you know they’ll resonate with.

#4 Use high-quality visuals

What’s one of the most effective presentation techniques? Use of visuals. They play a crucial role in your presentation. However, only high-quality visuals will make a good impression and effectively communicate your message. Use high-quality visuals like images, videos, graphs, maps, and others to really land your point. 

Using visuals is a great way to convey your ideas as they’re easier to process than text. If you’re not sure where to find great visuals, check out our blog post on presentation visuals for five free resources.

P.S. the Prezi library holds a variety of images, videos, GIFs, stickers, and other visuals, including different charts and maps to spice up your presentation. It’s all available in your dashboard .

#5 Use data visualizations

Do you want to showcase statistics or other datasets in your presentation? Use data visualizations to make your data stand out and impress your audience. 

There’s nothing more boring than a bunch of data presented in a flat way. If you want to tell a story with your data, use interactive infographics or slides enriched with eye-catching visuals. Showcasing data will make your ideas appear more trustworthy and credible. 

Prezi Design offers a range of templates to choose from. You can start creating data visualizations from scratch or choose a template and edit the data there. 

#6 Make it engaging with interactive elements

It’s not easy to deliver an engaging presentation. People can easily get distracted or try to multitask, especially in the virtual environment. Sometimes, it’s difficult to focus on the speaker and the written text. Other times, the content just isn’t impressive enough to hold the audience’s attention. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

You can make your presentation more engaging for everyone by including interactive content like graphs and charts. With interactive data visualizations, you’ll make the data discovery process more engaging and exciting for your audience. 

Your audience will be able to hover over data points and click on certain icons or datasets to discover information on their own. Interactive visualizations will make the presentation more memorable and impressive. 

As you can see in the example below, you can discover different data by engaging with the infographic. 

#7 Stay consistent with fonts and color styles

You want your presentation to look visually appealing and highlight essential information. To make that happen, stay consistent with font styles and color schemes throughout your presentation. 

Use one or two fonts max to make the text easy to read and understand. Also, use a carefully selected color scheme that’s not too distracting. If you’re using Prezi Design, you can easily copy and paste styles by right-clicking on your data visualizations and selecting “copy styles.” This makes it easier to stay consistent and saves time when picking matching colors. 

#8 Structure your presentation properly

Before creating your presentation, think about its structure. What’s the main idea you want to convey? Use that as your starting point, and only include information that adds value to the narrative. 

Plan out the first topics carefully to properly introduce your argument. Add the essential information in the middle part of your presentation. Lastly, close your presentation with a summary of the main points and leave your audience with an afterthought. Also, plan when you’re taking questions and for how long. 

For more insight, watch this tutorial on how to structure your presentation:

#9 Practice your public speaking skills

Public speaking may not be your forte, but you can get better with practice. Don’t decline a great opportunity to share your ideas with a larger audience just because you feel nervous speaking in front of a group of people. 

One of the best ways to improve your public speaking skills is to practice in front of your family or friends – people you feel comfortable with. Also, focus on the topic you’re presenting and get excited about the idea you want to convey. This way you’ll appear more confident and feel less nervous about public speaking. 

Explore other public speaking tips from Jessica Chen, the founder, and CEO of Soulcast Media: 

#10 Show your slides next to you on-screen

If you’re presenting on Zoom or in a virtual meeting , think twice before you share your screen. The days of hiding behind slides are over. People want to see and connect with other people, not sit through another run-of-the-mill screen share. To do that, use Prezi Video to showcase all your content right next to you in your video feed. 

As a result, your presentation will look more engaging than a traditional virtual presentation . Also, your audience will have the chance to read your body language and follow along with what you’re saying even better. 

If you already have your slides prepared, don’t worry – you can easily integrate them into Prezi. 

See Prezi Video in action and check out our video templates to get started.

#11 Calm down before presenting

Being in front of an audience can feel nerve-racking. However, there are ways to calm down before presenting that will make you feel more centered and confident. The last thing you want is all your hard work to go to waste just because of stress. 

Try breathing exercises or a five-minute guided meditation before presenting. The trick is to remove all distractions and focus on the present moment so you’re not overthinking right before starting your presentation. Also, be fully prepared and know exactly what to say and when which will help you feel more collected. If you want to discover other ways to feel and look more confident, read how not to be nervous before a presentation . 

#12 Use transitions and animations 

Add movement to your slides with transitions and animations. You’ll make your presentation more visually appealing and engaging. However, be careful not to overwhelm your audience with your choice of transitions and animations. 

Choose a transition that matches your presentation visually and use it throughout your presentation. Consider what animations will be relevant to your audience and select a few to add to your slides. Don’t overdo it. Keep the focus on the message you’re trying to convey, and use animations to only support that message. 

#13 Be enthusiastic 

When you’re in a room with a positive and enthusiastic person, you can’t help but feel uplifted as well. High-energy people have this effect on others. Most importantly, a lot of people tend to mimic people’s behavior and mirror their energy when they feel a connection or relate to them. That’s called the chameleon effect . 

When you’re presenting, you want your audience to feel curious about what you’re presenting. You may also want to leave your audience feeling uplifted, interested to know more, or inspired. To have that effect on others, try to convey those emotions when presenting. Practice your speech, slow down your narration at times, or take a pause after you’ve delivered a statement, and use different presentation techniques to present your project and really drive your points home. 

#14 End your presentation in a memorable way

The first few minutes of your presentation are crucial for captivating your audience’s attention. However, don’t underestimate the importance of ending your presentation as powerfully as you started it. 

The way you end your presentation will play a crucial part in how your audience will remember it. You want to make a memorable impression by closing your presentation with a summarizing statement, a rhetorical question, a call to action, or another impactful way. Discover 10 ways you can end your presentation in our guide.  

There are a lot of factors to consider when creating and delivering a presentation. You want your slides to look professional and visually appealing while conveying your main points. You also want to look and sound confident even if you’re nervous about public speaking. Whatever your concerns may be, remember that preparation is essential. Practice and dedication are the keys to giving a successful presentation . Make sure to follow these effective presentation tips to excel in your future presentations. If you’re interested in creating a captivating presentation with Prezi, contact us to learn more or try it for free . 

Elevating presentations with Prezi AI

Embrace the innovation of Prezi to bring your presentations to life. With its unique platform, Prezi AI offers more than just visually appealing templates; it provides an immersive narrative experience, engaging your audience with a story-driven approach. By integrating Prezi AI , our platform’s capabilities are further enhanced, offering intelligent design suggestions and optimizing content layouts to ensure your presentations are not only beautiful but impactful. This integration is a perfect example of effective presentation techniques in action, using technology to create a more engaging presentation.

Interactive elements: transforming passive listening into active engagement

Prezi revolutionizes the way information is presented by incorporating interactive elements that invite audience participation. With Prezi AI, these features become even more accessible, suggesting ways to make your presentation more engaging through clickable areas, zoomable images, and dynamic visualizations. This level of interaction encourages exploration, making your message more memorable and transforming a standard presentation into an effective presentation.

Adding a personal touch in digital presentation with video

Prezi Video stands out by seamlessly integrating your content alongside your video feed, bridging the gap between traditional presentations and personal engagement. This feature is crucial for those looking to follow presentation tips that emphasize the importance of connecting with your audience on a more personal level. Prezi AI enhances this experience, ensuring your content is displayed in the most effective way possible, making your virtual presentations feel as though you’re directly conversing with your audience.

Mastering presentation artistry with Prezi

The journey to becoming a skilled presenter involves continuously refining your approach and embracing tools that elevate your ability to communicate effectively. Prezi, enriched with Prezi AI, is one such tool that transforms ordinary presentations into captivating experiences. By leveraging these advanced features, you can deliver presentations that are successful, memorable, and truly unforgettable, embodying the essence of tips for presentation mastery.

Whether you’re an experienced speaker or preparing for your first presentation, Prezi equips you with the tools to succeed. Engage your audience, tell compelling stories, and deliver your message with confidence and creativity. Following effective presentation tips and exploring how Prezi AI can transform your next presentation is a step towards mastering the art of impactful communication. Delve into the features and begin your journey to presentation mastery today.

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Microsoft Office vs. Google Docs, Sheets, Slides: Which Is Best?

6 steps to ensure you never lose a microsoft office file again, the new photos app is coming to windows 10, quick links, table of contents, start with a goal, less is more, consider your typeface, make bullet points count, limit the use of transitions, skip text where possible, think in color, take a look from the top down, bonus: start with templates.

Slideshows are an intuitive way to share complex ideas with an audience, although they're dull and frustrating when poorly executed. Here are some tips to make your Microsoft PowerPoint presentations sing while avoiding common pitfalls.

It all starts with identifying what we're trying to achieve with the presentation. Is it informative, a showcase of data in an easy-to-understand medium? Or is it more of a pitch, something meant to persuade and convince an audience and lead them to a particular outcome?

It's here where the majority of these presentations go wrong with the inability to identify the talking points that best support our goal. Always start with a goal in mind: to entertain, to inform, or to share data in a way that's easy to understand. Use facts, figures, and images to support your conclusion while keeping structure in mind (Where are we now and where are we going?).

I've found that it's helpful to start with the ending. Once I know how to end a presentation, I know how best to get to that point. I start by identifying the takeaway---that one nugget that I want to implant before thanking everyone for their time---and I work in reverse to figure out how best to get there.

Your mileage, of course, may vary. But it's always going to be a good idea to put in the time in the beginning stages so that you aren't reworking large portions of the presentation later. And that starts with a defined goal.

A slideshow isn't supposed to include everything. It's an introduction to a topic, one that we can elaborate on with speech. Anything unnecessary is a distraction. It makes the presentation less visually appealing and less interesting, and it makes you look bad as a presenter.

This goes for text as well as images. There's nothing worse, in fact, than a series of slides where the presenter just reads them as they appear. Your audience is capable of reading, and chances are they'll be done with the slide, and browsing Reddit, long before you finish. Avoid putting the literal text on the screen, and your audience will thank you.

Related: How to Burn Your PowerPoint to DVD

Right off the bat, we're just going to come out and say that Papyrus and Comic Sans should be banned from all PowerPoint presentations, permanently. Beyond that, it's worth considering the typeface you're using and what it's saying about you, the presenter, and the presentation itself.

Consider choosing readability over aesthetics, and avoid fancy fonts that could prove to be more of a distraction than anything else. A good presentation needs two fonts: a serif and sans-serif. Use one for the headlines and one for body text, lists, and the like. Keep it simple. Veranda, Helvetica, Arial, and even Times New Roman are safe choices. Stick with the classics and it's hard to botch this one too badly.

There reaches a point where bullet points become less of a visual aid and more of a visual examination.

Bullet points should support the speaker, not overwhelm his audience. The best slides have little or no text at all, in fact. As a presenter, it's our job to talk through complex issues, but that doesn't mean that we need to highlight every talking point.

Instead, think about how you can break up large lists into three or four bullet points. Carefully consider whether you need to use more bullet points, or if you can combine multiple topics into a single point instead. And if you can't, remember that there's no one limiting the number of slides you can have in a presentation. It's always possible to break a list of 12 points down into three pages of four points each.

Animation, when used correctly, is a good idea. It breaks up slow-moving parts of a presentation and adds action to elements that require it. But it should be used judiciously.

Adding a transition that wipes left to right between every slide or that animates each bullet point in a list, for example, starts to grow taxing on those forced to endure the presentation. Viewers get bored quickly, and animations that are meant to highlight specific elements quickly become taxing.

That's not to say that you can't use animations and transitions, just that you need to pick your spots. Aim for no more than a handful of these transitions for each presentation. And use them in spots where they'll add to the demonstration, not detract from it.

Sometimes images tell a better story than text can. And as a presenter, your goal is to describe points in detail without making users do a lot of reading. In these cases, a well-designed visual, like a chart, might better convey the information you're trying to share.

The right image adds visual appeal and serves to break up longer, text-heavy sections of the presentation---but only if you're using the right images. A single high-quality image can make all the difference between a success and a dud when you're driving a specific point home.

When considering text, don't think solely in terms of bullet points and paragraphs. Tables, for example, are often unnecessary. Ask yourself whether you could present the same data in a bar or line chart instead.

Color is interesting. It evokes certain feelings and adds visual appeal to your presentation as a whole. Studies show that color also improves interest, comprehension, and retention. It should be a careful consideration, not an afterthought.

You don't have to be a graphic designer to use color well in a presentation. What I do is look for palettes I like, and then find ways to use them in the presentation. There are a number of tools for this, like Adobe Color , Coolors , and ColorHunt , just to name a few. After finding a palette you enjoy, consider how it works with the presentation you're about to give. Pastels, for example, evoke feelings of freedom and light, so they probably aren't the best choice when you're presenting quarterly earnings that missed the mark.

It's also worth mentioning that you don't need to use every color in the palette. Often, you can get by with just two or three, though you should really think through how they all work together and how readable they'll be when layered. A simple rule of thumb here is that contrast is your friend. Dark colors work well on light backgrounds, and light colors work best on dark backgrounds.

Spend some time in the Slide Sorter before you finish your presentation. By clicking the four squares at the bottom left of the presentation, you can take a look at multiple slides at once and consider how each works together. Alternatively, you can click "View" on the ribbon and select "Slide Sorter."

Are you presenting too much text at once? Move an image in. Could a series of slides benefit from a chart or summary before you move on to another point?

It's here that we have the opportunity to view the presentation from beyond the single-slide viewpoint and think in terms of how each slide fits, or if it fits at all. From this view, you can rearrange slides, add additional ones, or delete them entirely if you find that they don't advance the presentation.

The difference between a good presentation and a bad one is really all about preparation and execution. Those that respect the process and plan carefully---not only the presentation as a whole, but each slide within it---are the ones who will succeed.

This brings me to my last (half) point: When in doubt, just buy a template and use it. You can find these all over the web, though Creative Market and GraphicRiver are probably the two most popular marketplaces for this kind of thing. Not all of us are blessed with the skills needed to design and deliver an effective presentation. And while a pre-made PowerPoint template isn't going to make you a better presenter, it will ease the anxiety of creating a visually appealing slide deck.

• Microsoft Office

Blog > Tips for good PowerPoint Presentations

Tips for good PowerPoint Presentations

08.14.21   •  #powerpoint #tips.

If you know how to do it, it's actually not that difficult to create and give a good presentation.

That's why we have some examples of good PowerPoint presentations for you and tips that are going to make your next presentation a complete success.

1. Speak freely

One of the most important points in good presentations is to speak freely. Prepare your presentation so well that you can speak freely and rarely, if ever, need to look at your notes. The goal is to connect with your audience and get them excited about your topic. If you speak freely, this is much easier than if you just read your text out. You want your audience to feel engaged in your talk. Involve them and tell your text in a vivid way.

2. Familiarize yourself with the technology

In order to be able to speak freely, it is important to prepare the text well and to engage with the topic in detail.

However, it is at least as important to familiarize yourself with the location’s technology before your presentation and to start your PowerPoint there as well. It is annoying if technical problems suddenly occur during your presentation, as this interrupts your flow of speech and distracts the audience from the topic. Avoid this by checking everything before you start your talk and eliminate any technical problems so that you can give your presentation undisturbed.

• Don't forget the charging cable for your laptop
• Find out beforehand how you can connect your laptop to the beamer. Find out which connection the beamer has and which connection your laptop has. To be on the safe side, take an adapter with you.
• Always have backups of your presentation. Save them on a USB stick and preferably also online in a cloud.
• Take a second laptop and maybe even your own small projector for emergencies. Even if it's not the latest model and the quality is not that good: better bad quality than no presentation at all.

3. Get the attention of your audience

Especially in long presentations it is often difficult to keep the attention of your audience. It is important to make your presentation interesting and to actively involve the audience. Try to make your topic as exciting as possible and captivate your audience.

Our tip: Include interactive polls or quizzes in your presentation to involve your audience and increase their attention. With the help of SlideLizard, you can ask questions in PowerPoint and your audience can easily vote on their own smartphone. Plus, you can even get anonymous feedback at the end, so you know right away what you can improve next time.

Here we have also summarized further tips for you on how to increase audience engagement.

4. Hold eye contact

You want your audience to feel engaged in your presentation, so it is very important to hold eye contact. Avoid staring only at a part of the wall or at your paper. Speak to your audience, involve them in your presentation and make it more exciting.

But also make sure you don't always look at the same two or three people, but address everyone. If the audience is large, it is often difficult to include everyone, but still try to let your eyes wander a little between your listeners and look into every corner of the room.

5. Speaking coherently

In a good presentation it is important to avoid jumping from one topic to the next and back again shortly afterwards. Otherwise your audience will not be able to follow you after a while and their thoughts will wander. To prevent this, it is important that your presentation has a good structure and that you work through one topic after the other.

Nervousness can cause even the best to mumble or talk too fast in order to get the presentation over with as quickly as possible. Try to avoid this by taking short pauses to collect yourself, to breathe and to remind yourself to speak slowly.

6. Matching colors

An attractive design of your PowerPoint is also an important point for giving good presentations. Make sure that your slides are not too colorful. A PowerPoint in which all kinds of colors are combined with each other does not look professional, but rather suitable for a children's birthday party.

Think about a rough color palette in advance, which you can then use in your presentation. Colors such as orange or neon green do not look so good in your PowerPoint. Use colors specifically to emphasize important information.

To create good PowerPoint slides it is also essential to choose colors that help the text to read well. You should have as much contrast as possible between the font and the background. Black writing on a white background is always easy to read, while yellow writing on a white background is probably hard to read.

7. Slide design should not be too minimalistic

Even though it is often said that "less is more", you should not be too minimalistic in the design of your presentation. A presentation where your slides are blank and only black text on a white background is likely to go down just as badly as if you use too many colors.

Empty presentations are boring and don't really help to capture the attention of your audience. It also looks like you are too lazy to care about the design of your presentation and that you have not put any effort into the preparation. Your PowerPoint doesn't have to be overflowing with colors, animations and images to make it look interesting. Make it simple, but also professional.

8. Write only key points on the slides

If you want to create a good presentation, it is important to remember that your slides should never be overcrowded. Write only the most important key points on your slides and never entire sentences. Your audience should not be able to read the exact text you are speaking in your PowerPoint. This is rather annoying and leads to being bored quickly. Summarize the most important things that your audience should remember and write them down in short bullet points on your presentation. Then go into the key points in more detail in your speech and explain more about them.

9. Do not overdo it with animations

Do never use too many animations. It looks messy, confusing and definitely not professional if every text and image is displayed with a different animation. Just leave out animations at all or if you really want to use them then use them only very rarely when you want to draw attention to something specific. Make sure that if you use animations, they are consistent. If you use transitions between the individual slides, these should also always be kept consistent and simple.

10. Use images

Pictures and graphics in presentations are always a good idea to illustrate something and to add some variety. They help keep your audience's attention and make it easier to remember important information. But don't overdo it with them. Too many pictures can distract from your presentation and look messy. Make sure the graphics also fit the content and, if you have used several images on one slide, ask yourself if you really need all of them.

11. Choose a suitable font

Never combine too many fonts so that your presentation does not look messy. Use at most two: one for headings and one for text. When choosing fonts, you should also make sure that they are still legible at long distances. Script, italic and decorative fonts are very slow to read, which is why they should be avoided in presentations.

It is not so easy to choose the right font. Therefore, we have summarized for you how to find the best font for your PowerPoint presentation.

12. Do not use images as background

In a good presentation it is important to be able to read the text on the slides easily and quickly. Therefore, do not use images as slide backgrounds if there is also text on them. The picture only distracts from the text and it is difficult to read it because there is not much contrast with the background. It is also harder to see the image because the text in the foreground is distracting. The whole thing looks messy and distracting rather than informative and clear.

13. Never read out the text from your slides

Never just read the exact text from your slides. Your audience can read for themselves, so they will only get bored and in the worst case it will lead to "Death by PowerPoint". You may also give them the feeling that you think they are not able to read for themselves. In addition, you should avoid whole sentences on your slides anyway. List key points that your audience can read along. Then go into more detail and explain more about them.

14. Don't turn your back

Never turn around during your presentation to look at your projected PowerPoint. Not to read from your slides, but also not to make sure the next slide is already displayed. It looks unprofessional and only distracts your audience.

In PowerPoint's Speaker View, you can always see which slide is currently being displayed and which one is coming next. Use this to make sure the order fits. You can even take notes in PowerPoint, which are then displayed during your presentation. You can read all about notes in PowerPoint here.

15. Do not forget about the time

In a good presentation, it is important to always be aware of the given time and to stick to it. It is annoying when your presentation takes much longer than actually planned and your audience is just waiting for you to stop talking or you are not able to finish your presentation at all. It is just as awkward if your presentation is too short. You have already told everything about your topic, but you should actually talk for at least another ten minutes.

Practice your presentation often enough at home. Talk through your text and time yourself as you go. Then adjust the length so that you can keep to the time given on the day of your presentation.

16. Avoid a complicated structure

The structure of a good presentation should not be complicated. Your audience should be able to follow you easily and remember the essential information by the end. When you have finished a part, briefly summarize and repeat the main points before moving on to the next topic. Mention important information more than once to make sure it really gets across to your audience.

However, if the whole thing gets too complicated, it can be easy for your audience to disengage after a while and not take away much new information from your presentation.

17. Choose appropriate clothes

On the day of your presentation, be sure to choose appropriate clothing. Your appearance should be formal, so avoid casual clothes and stick to professional dress codes. When choosing your clothes, also make sure that they are rather unobtrusive. Your audience should focus on your presentation, not on your appearance.

18. Adapt your presentation to your audience

Think about who your audience is and adapt your presentation to them. Find out how much they already know about the topic, what they want to learn about it and why they are here in the first place. If you only talk about things your audience already knows, they will get bored pretty soon, but if you throw around a lot of technical terms when your audience has hardly dealt with the topic at all, they will also have a hard time following you. So to give a successful and good presentation, it is important to adapt it to your audience.

You can also ask a few questions at the beginning of your presentation to learn more about your audience and then adapt your presentation. With SlideLizard , you can integrate polls directly into your PowerPoint and participants can then easily answer anonymously from their smartphone.

19. Mention only the most important information

Keep it short and limit yourself to the essentials. The more facts and information you present to your audience, the less they will remember.

Also be sure to leave out information that does not fit the topic or is not relevant. You will only distract from the actual topic and lose the attention of your audience. The time your audience can concentrate and listen with attention is rather short anyway, so don't waste it by telling unimportant information.

20. Talk about your topic in an exciting way

Tell compelling and exciting stories to make your presentation really good. If you speak in a monotone voice all the time, you are likely to lose the attention of your audience. Make your narration lively and exciting. Also, be careful not to speak too quietly, but not too loudly either. People should be able to understand you well throughout the whole room. Even if it is not easy for many people, try to deliver your speech with confidence. If you are enthusiastic about the topic yourself, it is much easier to get your audience excited about it.

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About the author.

Helena Reitinger

Helena supports the SlideLizard team in marketing and design. She loves to express her creativity in texts and graphics.

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• Presentations

15 Pro Tips to Design a Good (Vs Bad) PowerPoint (That Doesn't Suck)

Over the years, PowerPoint has gained a bad reputation. There's even a trending hashtag #DeathbyPowerPoint on Twitter and Instagram. Why? There are hundreds of bad PowerPoint presentation examples that went a little like this presentation:

Don't let your next PowerPoint presentation fall victim to one of several missteps. This collection of tips from experts will set you on the right path. Learn how to avoid death by PowerPoint by following the good PowerPoint design tips in this article. 

Good PowerPoint presentations can be a great way to connect with your target audience and improve your bottom line. Bad PowerPoint slides are easier to avoid than you might think.

In this article, we’ll share what makes a bad PowerPoint presentation. You'll also learn why you should avoid making people sit through one at all costs. Then, we'll give you a handful of tips from the presentation pros that'll help you design a good PowerPoint . Best of all, you'll learn how to avoid death by PowerPoint.

What Makes a "Bad" PowerPoint Presentation?

As rude as it might sound, in most cases, PowerPoint isn't the main reason behind a bad presentation. After all, PowerPoint is just a tool. It's used to create great slides, and it's also used to create  bad  PowerPoint slides.

Our Envato authors have designed hundreds of PowerPoint templates. According to their expertise, the main reason for bad PowerPoint presentations is design-related.

Slide design with poor layout that uses fonts and colors that detract from the message on the slide is one of the main reasons why PowerPoint gets such a bad reputation . 

A classic mistake in PowerPoint slideshow design is to include too much information on a single slide. Take a look at this presentation on Lung Cancer  from SlideShare. Not only will you find information overwhelm, but they also decided to add 100 charts on one slide!

A couple of other reasons that lead to bad PowerPoint presentations include:

• a topic that's got nothing to do with your audience’s interest
• failing to make a connection with your audience
• reading directly from the slides

Envato author, Celsius Designs , recommends paying extra attention to the layout and sketching out the presentation on the paper before going into PowerPoint and creating the final presentation. They also suggest studying successful presentations online.

Another team of our Envato authors, AQR Studio , says that every bad presentation they witnessed had the same thing in common:

"...too much text on individual slides and bad layout." 

Their advice is to take a look at presentation templates created by professionals and study them to find common elements that make for an attractive presentation. They also suggest adding in your own style instead of copying someone else’s.

Lastly, don’t forget that nerves and knowing your audience plays an important role in your presentation delivery as well. According to David Beckett , a TEDx speech coach,

“[...]two major reasons for poor presentations: nerves, and not paying enough attention to the audience.”

Now that you know what makes a bad PowerPoint presentation, let’s discuss why you should avoid making your audience sit through it.

Why a Bad PowerPoint Presentation Hurts Your Message

A bad presentation will not only leave a sour taste in your mouth, but it'll also bore your audience. Once your audience gets bored, chances are they'll disengage from the presentation. They'll stop paying attention to what you've got to say (also known sarcastically as death by PowerPoint).

Also, once your audience becomes disengaged, chances are they won’t remember the topic, much less the content of your presentation. If you’re presenting in front of potential business partners or investors, you run the risk of not closing the deal or getting the necessary funding.

Ultimately, a bad presentation will result in a bad impression of your brand and business. Luckily, we’ve gathered the best PowerPoint design tips from the experts that'll help you create good PowerPoint presentations and avoid death by PowerPoint.

15 Tips from Professionals for Creating Good PowerPoint Presentations

No matter how experienced you are, the truth is, bad PowerPoint presentations can happen to anyone. Even successful speech coaches aren’t immune to delivering bad presentations.

Consider this story from Michelle Mazur, speech coach from  Communication Rebel :

“Once I was invited to give a presentation on cultural trends. I worked closely with the meeting planner. In fact, she approved every slide I was going to present. This was an executive-level audience and she wanted the content to be perfect. I researched, I prepped, I practiced, I had great examples.  

Five minutes into my presentation, one executive raised his hand and asked “Are these trends based on quantitative research?” My reply was, “No, they are qualitative cultural trends.” He and half the room tuned out. The presentation flopped. My mistake was basing my whole speech on information from one person. That question killed me and there was no way to save the presentation in the moment...

I recovered. You can too when your presentation sucks. The most important point is: Keep Speaking. Learn from your mistakes and don't let them hold you back.”

As Dr. Mazur says, the good news is that you can recover from a bad presentation and go on to successfully create good PowerPoints that don’t suck. Below, you’ll find 15 tips from the experts that'll help you rock your PowerPoint design and your presentation skills.

1. Graphics for Visual Aid

Bad PowerPoint slides are cluttered, wordy, and boring. They lose sight of the focus of a PowerPoint presentation. Remember, your goal is to present information in clear, understandable ways. By adding graphics for visual aid, you can do exactly that. For example, consider infographics. These are illustrations built to share ideas.

Rather than packing a slide with words to explain a concept, map it out with an infographic. This might be a process flow chart, or a 3D hierarchy diagram. In fact, premium infographic templates from Envato Elements offer thousands of options. Choose one that works well for your topic, then drop in your details.

2. Stick to Readable Fonts

Top examples of bad PowerPoint slides often share something in common: strange fonts . Sure, unique fonts can be fun and amusing. But they don’t have a place in a professional slide deck. It’s bad PowerPoint form to use these fonts.

Instead, you need to choose a clear, stylish font that’s easy to read. Remember, audiences might be reading your slides from the back of a large room.

This doesn’t mean fonts have to be boring. Far from it - and again, Envato Elements is here to help. As a member, you've got access to thousands of custom font designs with unlimited downloads.

Each one will work in your PowerPoint. Avoid becoming an example of bad PowerPoint form and choose a premium custom font today! They look great and help you succeed.

3. Consistency Is Key

The number one tip for your PowerPoint design is to be consistent. This simply refers to using the same fonts and colors throughout your presentation instead of changing them up every other slide.

It’s a good idea to use the same fonts and colors used in the rest of your brand assets. But if you aren’t sure which colors and fonts are a part of your brand identity, you can’t go wrong with keeping it simple.

Speaker and author Hugh Culver is proof that simplicity works:

“A consistent theme pulls together the variety in your images and message, as you move from problem to solution. You could use the baked-in themes supplied in PowerPoint or Keynote – I don’t because I want a simpler, more unique look.

I create a custom theme simply with my titles, a consistent white background, and sometimes with my logo or my client’s logo.”

4. When It Comes to Text, Less Is Always More

As mentioned earlier, too much text will overwhelm your audience. Another downside of using too much text is that your audience will read the content of the slide before you’re done talking about it and then tune you out.

TEDx in-house presentation expert, Aaron Weyenberg , makes an excellent argument for using less text in your PowerPoints:

“With text, less is almost always more. One thing to avoid—slides with a lot of text, especially if it’s a repeat of what you’re saying out loud. It’s like if you give a paper handout in a meeting—everyone’s head goes down and they read, rather than staying heads-up and listening. If there are a lot of words on your slide, you’re asking your audience to split their attention between what they’re reading and what they’re hearing. That’s really hard for a brain to do, and it compromises the effectiveness of both your slide text and your spoken words. If you can’t avoid having text-y slides, try to progressively reveal text (like unveiling bullet points one by one) as you need it.”

5. Use the Presentation as an Aid, Not the Main Tool

Don’t forget that you, the presenter, are the star of the presentation. Your presentation is there to reinforce your ideas and help you sell your point. Take advice from  Seth Godin :

“[...]make slides that reinforce your words, not repeat them. Create slides that demonstrate, with emotional proof, that what you’re saying is true not just accurate.”

6. Use Guides to Make Sure Everything Aligns Properly

PowerPoint experts from Nuts and Bolts Speedtraining firmly believe you should add guides to your slides.

“When creating a template in PowerPoint, add guides around the placeholders of the parent slide layout.

That way if you accidentally made a mistake or if you want to make things easier to align in the normal view, then you can just turn those on again and see where everything is supposed to be placed.”

7. Contrast Always Wins

Bad PowerPoint presentation examples don’t stand out. They’re hard to follow, both in style and delivery. You need your slides to stand out to succeed.

Contrast is your best design bet to do exactly that. By styling with contrast, your key ideas will be instantly recognizable.

They’ll never fade into the background. This keeps your audience focused and engaged. Plus, it looks great. This is crucial to remember.

Your slides go beyond real-time viewing while you’re presenting. They need to be stylish and understandable for later too.

8. Memorize the Concepts & the Scripts

Inc.500 entrepreneur and speaker, Kevin Daum says you should memorize both your presentation content and script. Memorizing your script and the concept also helps in case there are technical difficulties with your presentation.

“Audiences know an amateur the second the notes come out or the presenter looks at the screen as a reminder. This is your material. If you don't own it, you can't expect the audience to respect you as an expert.”

9. Use Relevant Imagery

There is no doubt that images and visual elements can enhance your presentation and make it even more impactful. But those images and other visuals need to be relevant. According to visual communications expert, Curtis Newbold :

“You may, for instance, need to give a presentation on dairy production in your community.[...]What I need to see are images that tell a story about the dying industry and its challenges, and infographics that explain processes for overcoming the hurdles. You need a lot of visual information, yes. But it also needs to be relevant.”

10. One Message Per Slide

Your presentation needs to pique curiosity in your audience and get them interested in the topic. Once you've got their attention, you need to keep it and the best way to do that is to stick to one message per slide.

Professional training and coaching expert David JP Phillips even goes so far to state presenters should focus on one key message per slide and include no more than six objects (or lines) on each.

11. Use Animation Carefully

Animation can certainly make a good PowerPoint design more dynamic, but only when used correctly. Otherwise, it’s a distraction that can ruin the impression of your presentation. Learn from Konrad Schroth , PowerPoint expert:

“Like a lot of other PowerPoint features, animation can be distracting if used badly. However, if used rationally, animation can grab your audience's attention at strategic points, allow you to "chunk" information for better comprehension, and help explain complex systems and relationships. After all, we are "wired" to pay attention to movement.”

Learn the basics of using animation:

12. Pay Attention to the Structure

Your presentation needs to have a good flow. It’s important to include all the necessary elements if you want your presentation to be compelling. More specifically, a good presentation resembles a stage production, according to leadership development and executive coaching expert Jeff Black .

“You have to have all the elements: You’ve got to have a great opening act, you’ve got to have something in the middle to pull it through and you’ve got to have a great curtain’s finale at the end.”

13. Practice Is the Key to Success

Don’t forget to practice, practice, and then practice some more the delivery of your presentation. Nancy Duarte , the author of Resonate , shares this as her best advice for new presenters:

“Nothing worthwhile is easy, and the best communicators aren’t always born that way. Many of them saw the importance of improving their skills and put the work in. It will be work. But if you become a golden communicator, your life is in your hands.”

Learn some valuable tips for practicing your presentation:

14. Build for Online Sharing

Learn about online-focused slide decks, and look at some of the best templates now:

15. Build Presentations to Engage

Examples of bad PowerPoint slides may take many forms. But they all tend to bore an audience. Maybe they’re overloaded with content, hard to understand, or just aren’t interesting. That’s why you should always engage with your audience.

This can take many forms. If nothing else, always include a Q&A slide at the end of your deck. This gives your audience the chance to clarify anything they might’ve missed.

An even better option is to be engaging and interactive throughout. By using a game or quiz, you can make presentations fun! And a happy audience is always a more engaged audience.

Learn more about interactive quiz game PowerPoints with the help of this tutorial:

How to Quickly Customize Good PowerPoint Designs (With Premium Templates)

Want to know the ultimate way to avoid bad PowerPoint slides? Two words: premium templates.

By using a premium Envato Elements PowerPoint template , you can impress any audience. Elements has thousands of stunning options available now.

Premium templates offer stunning styles, unlike free templates. Plus, they save you time thanks to their ease of use. In fact, you can customize one in just five quick steps. Let’s look at how.

Want to follow along and learn more? Download the great Virtually PowerPoint template  from Envato Elements now.

1. Select Your Key Slides

Bad PowerPoint examples are often overloaded with dozens of slides in a row. Even the most fascinating topics will eventually lose an audience if they drag on too long. That’s why you should choose only a few key slides to get your points across.

This is easy with a premium template in PowerPoint. Find the View tab, then click on Slide Sorter. Here, you’ll see a thumbnail for every slide in the deck. You can remove unwanted slides by right-clicking on them and choosing Delete Slide . Once you’re finished, click Normal on the View tab to start editing.

2. Edit Text Features

Words are the backbone of winning PowerPoint decks. And thanks to premium templates, they’re easy to add. Notice how slide layouts have text already in place. To change it out, click into one of the text boxes. Select the contents, then type over them using your keyboard. Repeat throughout your slide deck.

Keep in mind: bad PowerPoint presentation examples are often too wordy. Avoid this by deleting any unwanted text boxes to free up some space on your slides.

3. Explore Font Effects

Once you’ve added text, you can customize it. Go to the Home tab on PowerPoint’s ribbon and find the Font section on the left. Here, you’ll see many buttons and dropdowns.

The dropdowns control the size and style of your font. The buttons drive custom effects like underlines, italics, and more. Click through them and watch your choices apply to the text that you have selected.

4. Customize Photos

Another example of bad PowerPoint technique: a lack of images. Don’t forget to add illustrations at regular intervals. These boost visual interest and keep viewers and readers focused on you.

Premium templates, once again, make this easy. On many slides, you’ll see shaped image placeholders. Browse to a stored image file on your computer, then drag it over your slide.

Drop it into place, and watch PowerPoint import it. Notice it'll scale to fit perfectly. It’s an effortless way to build a good PowerPoint slide.

5. Style Shapes with Color

A bad PowerPoint deck often will lack in color and style. A bland aesthetic is a quick way to lose an audience. That’s why the use of color is so important. And a premium template like Virtually makes creative use of color.

You can also change shape colors in PPT to fit your own style. Click on a shape, then find the Shape Format tab on the ribbon. On it, you’ll see the Shape Fill dropdown color chooser. Explore the countless options and click one to apply it. This is one of the top ways to build a great slide layout with plenty of cool colors. 

Find Even More Good PowerPoint Examples

If you're trying to make a PowerPoint that doesn't suck, you'll want plenty of good PowerPoint examples for inspiration. Here are some good PowerPoint designs to inspire you:

The Top Source for Great PowerPoint Templates (To Build Good Presentations)

Want the best source for great PowerPoint templates? Envato Elements is your answer. For a flat monthly rate, you’ll have access to unlimited downloads of the world’s best PowerPoint templates . These help you make great slides every day. Plus, you’ll find other resources like stock photos, custom fonts, and much more.

Elements is the top creative value today. The unlimited downloads included give you unlimited possibilities. You can try out as many stunning PowerPoint designs as you want to find the one that’s right for you.

Envato Elements helps you build great PowerPoint slides. It avoids the pitfalls of bad PowerPoint designs. That’s because every template is designed by creative experts. You’ll benefit from:

• pre-built text placeholders
• room for images and illustrations
• custom infographics to illustrate data
• unique fonts used throughout
• animated options for smooth transitions

As you can see, Elements templates save you from building bad PowerPoint slides. In moments, you can build amazing layouts that audiences will adore.

Check Out Our Free Online Presentation Guide

Do you want to learn even more about making great PowerPoint presentations? We've got the resource for you! We'll take you through the complete process to get you ready for your next business presentation—from start to finish.

Don't miss our free online presentation guide, The Complete Guide to Making Great Business Presentations . It's chock full of powerful business presentation advice to help you make your next business presentation your best yet.

Avoid Making PowerPoints That Suck By Applying These Pro Tips

Death by PowerPoint is a real thing that can happen to anyone. If you want to make sure that your presentations leave a positive impact, keep these tips in mind. Great content and stellar design pair together to help you avoid bad PowerPoint presentation examples. Follow the PowerPoint design tips and good PowerPoint examples in this article.

If you need a good PowerPoint design template for your presentation, make sure to check out our sites. Grab PowerPoint templates and design away today. Both are sure to help you avoid the curse of bad PowerPoint slides!

Editorial Note: This post has been updated with contributions from Andrew Childress . Andrew  is a freelance instructor for Envato Tuts+.

120 Presentation Topic Ideas Help You Hook Your Audience

Updated: August 15, 2024

Published: August 09, 2023

Cooking is easy. The puzzle is figuring out what to eat. As soon as you know that, you can get started. The same holds for presentations. The sooner you can whip up a good, informative, and catchy topic, the easier the rest of the process becomes.

Pick a good topic that resonates with you and your audience to set a strong foundation. But select the wrong topic, and it becomes difficult to connect with your audience, find mutual interests, or hold their attention.

So, let’s learn how to develop thought-provoking and relevant topics for your presentations. You’ll also find some best practices to make your presentation memorable.

Free Presentation & Public Speaking Kit

Everything you need to become more comfortable and effective during your next presentation, including:

• Free Guide on Best Practices
• PowerPoint Presentation Templates
• Video Examples of Great Speakers

Table of Contents

How to Choose a Great Presentation Topic in 5 Steps

120 presentation topic ideas, 5 presentation tips.

Presentation Topics Ideas for Business

• Optimizing collaborations to save time across all departments
• Eight time management tools and apps for businesses
• 12 common skills of successful businessmen
• 10 tips and techniques for a successful marketing strategy
• Harnessing the power of influencer marketing
• Allocating a marketing budget to maximize ROI in five steps
• Five manufacturing techniques to minimize costs
• Understanding ethical issues in business and marketing
• 10 ways to minimize your company’s carbon footprint
• Three old business models making a comeback
• Seven ways Google developed a strong company culture
• 12 strategies for building a sustainable and responsible business in 2023

The best presentation topics always put their audience first, offer direct solutions, and fill in some knowledge gaps. But there’s more.

Don’t think of your presentation as a mere speech — it’s a ride you’ll take your audience on. There should be highs, lows, and revelations with a bang for an ending.

That being said, use these five tips to ace your presentation.

4. Choose an appropriate presentation style.

There are many ways to present a topic. Your personality, the topic at hand, and your audience’s personas will help you determine which style would best fit you and your audience.

Select a presentation style that will communicate the main idea clearly and have a lasting impact on your audience.

For instance, explore a freeform style presenter by Sir Ken Robinson.

5. Engage with your audience.

Work on your presentation skills to make a strong connection with your audience, get through to them and leave a mark.

Think of the presenter as the link between the topic and the audience. A strong or a weak presenter can make a difference between a presentation being a thriving success or a boring failure.

Hone your skills by engaging and interacting with your audience. Make them feel like a part of the presentation and not just spectators. 70% of marketers have found presentations with interactive content to be more effective than those without.

Here are a few ways you can make your presentation interactive:

• Start your speech with uncommon questions to your audience. Involve them from the get-go, like ask to raise their hands if X.
• Make eye contact to build credibility and show confidence. Don’t stare at your slides or notes. Smile occasionally and talk to the audience directly.
• Have an active and confident body language. Don’t stand in the same place the entire time. Move around the stage.
• Don’t be monotonous. Speak as you would to a colleague — with enthusiasm.
• Ask close-ended questions in between to keep the audience engaged without losing time. Address them using their names to keep things interesting.
• Share personal experiences and stories that your audience will find fascinating and relatable.
• Practice thoroughly before you present so you’re fluent with the material and delivery.
• Energy and excitement can be quite contagious. Make sure you exude enough to spread some to your audience.

Feeling Inspired Yet?

Now you have all the right ingredients for choosing amazing topics and a hundred ideas to drive inspiration from. So, go ahead and start cooking presentations that will blow your audience away.

Don’t forget to choose a super-relevant topic and add meaty information. Do it with excitement to make it enjoyable for you and your audience. Best of luck!

Don't forget to share this post!

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20 Really Good PowerPoint Examples to Inspire Your Next Presentation

By Sandra Boicheva

3 years ago

You may also like Show related articles Hide

You might have the most amazing idea that you wish to share with the world, but you might not get the results you want if the delivery isn’t good. Although as a tool, PowerPoint is pretty easy to use and intuitive, creating a good PowerPoint presentation is not a simple task. There is a lot of things to consider when designing your slides from the words you use, to the copy structure, data visualization, and overall design. This is why today we gathered 20 really good PowerPoint examples of presentations that flawlessly deliver their messages. These creative ideas will surely inspire you to make your next presentation your best one, as they all share good design and engaging storytelling.

“If you don’t know what you want to achieve in your presentation your audience never will.” – Harvey Diamond

1. Idea to Identify: The Design of Brand

This is a long one. Here we have a 242 slides presentation that exposes the myriad facets of design and how they impact the brand identity. The presentation has a lot of data to show and spreads it throughout more than 200 slides to make it easy to read and follow. In all, this is the best way to present a lot of information: instead of overwhelming the viewers with text walls, the presenter simply adds more slides.

• Author:   Sudio Sudarsan

2. Jeunesse Opportunity Presentation 2021

This is a great example of brand presentation with company profile, product system, plan, and reward. It gives a similar experience to browsing a website.

• Author:   DASH2 – Jeunesse Global

3. Accenture Tech Vision 2020

A short and sweet presentation about how companies prepare for data regulation and how this impacts the customer experience. 

• Author:   Accenture

4. APIs as Digital Factories’ New Machines

A comparison presentation of how companies capture most of the market value. It explains well how to view the economy from a different perspective and adopt customer-centric thinking. The presentation has a lot of value, it’s well structured and it’s a good read in only 28 slides.

• Author:  Apidays

5. 24 Books You’ve Never Heard Of – But Will Change Your Life

This is a great example of how repeating slides design for the same type of content isn’t a synonym for being unimaginative. It’s pretty straightforward: it promises 24 titles, an inspirational introduction, and a slide for each book that will change your life.

• Author:   Ryan Holiday

6. 10 Memorable David Bowie Quotes

Not always presentations must have a specific educational or conventional goal. Sometimes, it could be a cool personal project meant to inspire your audience. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t love David Bowie? A presentation with 10 memorable quotes by him is worth watching. 

• Author: Stinson

7. Creative Mornings San Diego 

• Author:   Anne McColl

8. Digital 2020 Global Digital Overview

A report heavy-data presentation about everything you need to know about mobile, internet, social media, and e-commerce use around the world in 2020. It’s a long read but comprehensive and well-illustrated with data visualization.

• Author:   DataReportal

9. Blitzscaling: Book Trailer

One of the most well-made presentations about informative topics such as startup’s life-cycle and where the most value is created. It’s designed as a book, consistent, with lesser text as possible, and imitates animation by adding new content on copies of the same slide. 

• Author:  Reid Hoffman

10. Poor Self-Esteem: Just Beat It!

A very valuable presentation that takes on the reasons for low self-esteem and how to overcome it. The design is very simple and comprehensive and even suitable for social media carousel posts.

• Author:   SlideShop.com

11. You Suck At PowerPoint!

This presentation is more than a decade old and still checks out. After all, you could expect great presentation design from someone who talks about design mistakes and how to overcome them.  61 slides of a fun experience and a great read.

• Author:  Jesse Desjardins

12. Pixar’s 22 Rules to Phenomenal Storytelling

Pixar’s 22 Rules to Phenomenal Storytelling, originally tweeted by Emma Coats, in a 24-slides presentation with a custom design. 

• Author:   Gavin McMahon

13. A Complete Guide To The Best Times To Post On Social Media

A fun little presentation with great value. It takes on the most effective times to post on social media, send an email, or publish a blog.

• Author:   TrackMaven

14. Fix Your Really Bad PowerPoint

The next presentation honors Seth Godin and his wisdom. It uses his book’s insights to visualize all the tips in 45 engaging slides.

• Author:   HighSpark

15. 10 Lessons from the World’s Most Captivating Presenters

This presentation is for presenters who wish to become better. And what better way than getting inspired by the world’s greatest presenters and accessing some of their secrets. 

• Author:   HubSpot

16. Crap. The Content Marketing Deluge

For starters, this presentation has a very captivating title and opening. Winning the attention from the very start, it continues with consistent clean design and great content. It delivers exactly what it promised. 

• Author: Velocity Partners

17. Displaying Data

More insightful advice and tips from professional presenters that check out to this very day. It’s a great presentation about visualizing your data in the best way possible and it also delivers it with design.

• Author:   Bipul Deb Nath

18. 5 Storytelling Lessons From Superhero Stories

Custom-made presentation with illustrations made specifically for the occasion, and brilliant execution. It shows it’s definitely worth it to spend time making your presentation more personal and from scratch. 

19. 10 Things your Audience Hates About your Presentation

Another custom presentation with icons-style illustrations about how to avoid cringe when making presentations. 

• Author:   Stinson

20. The Designer’s Guide to Startup Weekend

You will work hard all weekend long but you will also find new friends, mentors, and the chance to promote yourself. A pretty wholesome presentation with a custom design where the presenter shares her own experience in the world of startups.

• Author:  Iryna Nezhynska

That’s It!

These 20 presentations prove that PowerPoint is never out of date and it’s a great tool to deliver your message across. We hope you got inspired for your next presentation and make your audience fall in love with your concepts.

In the meantime, why not take a look at the related articles to get some more inspiration or grab a couple of freebies:

• [Freebies] 17 Really Good Sources For Free Vector Images For Commercial Use
• [Inspiration] 85 Really Good T-Shirt Design Ideas to Inspire You for Your Next Project
• [Insights] The 5 Top Online Tools for Custom YouTube Banners (and YouTube Thumbnails)

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Presentation Skills: The Essential Abilities You Need to Deliver Engaging and Impactful Presentations

Delivering a powerful presentation isn’t just about having great content. It’s about how effectively you communicate your ideas, engage your audience, and leave a lasting impact.

Mastering presentation skills is key to succeeding in business meetings, sales pitches, conferences, or any other scenario where you need to deliver information clearly and confidently. Here’s a breakdown of the essential presentation skills that will help you elevate your performance.

1. Effective Communication: The Core of Every Successful Presentation

Clear and concise communication is the foundation of any presentation. Your ability to express ideas in a way that’s easily understood and remembered is what differentiates a good presenter from a great one.

Simplifying complex ideas and presenting them in a structured, logical flow.

How to Develop it:

Practice speaking clearly and at a moderate pace. Use straightforward language and avoid jargon unless your audience is familiar with it.

2. Storytelling: Engage and Captivate Your Audience

Humans are wired to respond to stories. Incorporating storytelling into your presentations helps you connect with your audience on an emotional level, making your message more relatable and memorable.

Crafting a compelling narrative that aligns with your presentation’s goals.

When structuring your presentation, think about how you can weave real-life examples, anecdotes, or success stories into your content to make it more engaging.

3. Audience Engagement: Keeping Their Attention from Start to Finish

Even the best content won’t matter if your audience loses interest. Strong presentation skills include the ability to keep your audience engaged throughout your talk.

Using techniques like asking questions, incorporating interactive elements, and responding to audience feedback.

During your presentation, periodically check in with your audience. Use polls, ask questions, or invite them to share their thoughts, keeping the session dynamic and interactive.

4. Body Language: Conveying Confidence and Authority

Non-verbal communication plays a crucial role in how your message is received. Your posture, gestures, and facial expressions can either enhance or detract from your message.

Using open body language, maintaining eye contact, and leveraging gestures to emphasize key points.

Practice presenting in front of a mirror or record yourself. Pay attention to your posture, hand movements, and facial expressions. Aim for a confident stance with controlled, purposeful gestures.

5. Adaptability: Adjusting on the Fly

Even the most carefully planned presentations can run into unexpected issues. Being adaptable allows you to handle disruptions, audience questions, or technical glitches with composure.

Thinking on your feet and modifying your approach based on audience reactions or unforeseen circumstances.

Prepare backup plans for potential issues and practice scenarios where things go off-script. Stay flexible and be ready to shift your focus if necessary.

6. Visual Design: Enhancing Your Message with Compelling Visuals

Visual aids, when used correctly, can significantly enhance your presentation. Good presentation skills include designing slides and other visuals that are clear, appealing, and support your message.

Creating slides that highlight key points without overwhelming your audience.

Use tools like Canva or PowerPoint to design clean, minimalist slides. Stick to key visuals and avoid cluttering your presentation with too much text or overly complex graphics.

7. Time Management: Staying On Track and Respecting Your Audience’s Time

Effective time management ensures that you cover all your content without running over or rushing through important points.

Pacing your presentation to fit within the allotted time while delivering all key information.

Rehearse with a timer to refine your pacing. Plan buffer time for questions or discussions, and be prepared to adjust your delivery based on real-time conditions.

8. Handling Questions and Feedback: Navigating Interactions with Ease

Q&A sessions or spontaneous audience questions are common in most presentations. Handling these interactions gracefully is a critical skill.

Listening carefully, responding clearly, and managing difficult or unexpected questions professionally.

Prepare for likely questions in advance. Practice maintaining your composure when addressing challenging or unexpected queries, and always keep your responses respectful and concise.

Mastering these presentation skills takes practice, but they are essential for anyone looking to deliver impactful presentations consistently. Whether you’re presenting to a small group of colleagues or addressing a large audience, honing these skills will help you communicate your ideas effectively, engage your listeners, and leave a lasting positive impression.

Table of contents

• Current Students
• Online Only Students
• Faculty & Staff
• Parents & Family
• Alumni & Friends
• Community & Business
• Student Life

• How to Make an Oral Presentation
• Office of Research

Undergraduate Research

• Research Academic Calendar
• Student Support
• Frequently Asked Questions

Steps to Plan Your Presentation

Delivering an effective oral presentation is an essential skill for sharing your research findings with an audience. Tailoring your presentation to your audience, preparing for technical issues, and engaging your listeners with clear, concise content are crucial for the success of your research project. This guide provides comprehensive advice on how to prepare, what to include, and common pitfalls to avoid, ensuring your presentation is impactful and memorable.

For further assistance, contact the Office of Undergraduate Research for individual consultations.

What You Need To Know

 Purpose

The purpose of an oral presentation is to share your research with an audience, typically through PowerPoint or Prezi. It is typically a synopsis of your research. If you've conducted a study, you will probably address the following topics:

• Background research on your topic (with citations to past studies)
• The rationale for your study (how does your study address a gap in the literature?)
• Hypotheses/research questions
• Methodology
• Results (graphs are more interesting than tables or words)
• Conclusions (for example, the implications or applications of your research, limitations, future research directions, a concise summary of your main findings, concluding thoughts)
• References and Acknowledgements (such as grant support, a faculty advisor if he/she is not an author on the presentation, assistance from others who are not listed as authors)

If your scholarship is in a different form (e.g., a film analysis, a presentation of a creative work), the structure will likely be a little different, but in all cases, it should be clear to the audience what the main goals of your research are, why it's important to do this work, and what you found in your research.  

Preparation

• First, make sure you know how much time you have; it is common for oral presentations at conferences to exceed the time limit. Prepare a presentation that is a little shorter than the allotted time to allow for questions and other comments.
• Think about your audience: Will they understand technical terms, jargon, and acronyms? Will they be mostly undergraduates or professors in the field? You should tailor your presentation to your expected audience.
• Think carefully about your central message. What do you want the audience to know by the end of your presentation? Most people will only remember a few take-home points from your carefully constructed presentation (if that!). There's no point in getting bogged down in minutia that the audience can't really process anyway.
• The most important parts are the beginning (to draw the audience in) and the ending (to wrap up, to inspire). Put some thought into how to make these parts of your presentation have impact.
• Think about your speaking style; can you speak loudly and clearly? Can you modulate your voice appropriately, or do you tend to sound monotone when you give presentations? Consider working on your public speaking skills if it's needed; consider joining Legacy Owls Toastmasters Club  for this purpose and check out Toastmasters International public speaking tips .

 Plan for the Unexpected

• Will the conference provide computers or do you bring your own laptop?
• Will there be internet available?
• How reliable is the internet?
• Will there be speakers or a way to use audio (if necessary)?
• Back up your presentation in at least two places (e.g., flash drive, Dropbox, email it to yourself).
• When you prepare a presentation on a Mac and then use a PC (or vice versa), be aware that sometimes things look different.
• Bring a printed copy in case the technology fails, or have a tablet/laptop with you.
• Find the room early, and check out the technology so you’re familiar with it.

What to Avoid

It is usually not required that you use visuals for your presentation, but a PowerPoint or Prezi can often help the audience follow along with your research.

If you use PowerPoint or Prezi:

• Avoid the temptation to put too much text on your slides; the audience can get bored or overwhelmed and might not be able to clearly see all the words if you've used a small font (less than 20-pt is considered "small"). 
• Avoid font types that are hard to read or look unprofessional.
• Avoid putting words on a busy powerpoint background that makes the words hard to read.
• Avoid using font color that doesn't contrast with the background (in other words, your audience can't read gray text on a black background). 
• Avoid tables and graphs that have too much information - you can recreate those tables and graphs with just the most important information instead.

Also, consider your verbal and physical presentation:

• Avoid reading your slides to the audience.
• Avoid reading from prepared notes; the audience will maintain interest better if you can speak extemporaneously directly to them. It's also hard to make eye contact with the audience if you are reading.
• Avoid distracting behaviors or verbal tics (“um,” “like,” “uh”).
• Dress appropriately for the occasion.
• Consider your body language (e.g., arms crossed can come across as you not wanting to be there).

Ways to Stand Out

• Embrace a "Presentation Zen" style: simple (not simplistic), clean, and powerful.
• Have interesting, high-resolution images on your slides.
• You could connect your research to recent events (perhaps asking the audience to summarize the recent event).
• You could ask specific questions throughout the presentation.
• You could poll the audience on a topic relevant to your presentation (perhaps even using a free resource such as Socrative or Poll Everywhere ).
• You could insert a powerful quote into your presentation (perhaps at the beginning or end).
• You can show a short video to illustrate something important about your topic.
• The point is not to be gimmicky; the point is to keep your audience interested and engaged (especially when the audience has been listening to oral presentations all day and might be tired). Be aware, though, that different disciplines have different conventions regarding what is and is not appropriate for an oral presentation; be sure to ask your research advisor for advice first.
• Showing enthusiasm for their work
• Being energetic
• Using emphasis on certain words
• Using hand gestures to keep the audience engaged

Handling Audience Questions

• Be sure to leave some time at the end.
• If a questioner is soft-spoken, repeat the question so everyone hears.
• Avoid long, meandering answers.
• Don’t make something up if you don’t know an answer. Offer to look it up and get back to the person, and be open to someone in the audience knowing the answer.
• Give positive reinforcement to questioners (smiling, nodding, “that’s a good question”).
• If someone is attacking you or otherwise being rude, remember that this usually comes from someone who wants to show off or appear smart in front of everyone The other audience members will recognize the rudeness and be on your side! Stay calm, answer as best you can, and acknowledge it when he/she makes a good point (smiling and nodding can disarm an attacker).
• People will often talk to you right afterwards; try to avoid running out right after your presentation if you can help it.
• Audience members may email for a copy of your presentation or to ask further questions; be sure to follow up with them.

Conclusions

If you have been accepted to present your research at a conference, congratulations! This is a great honor, and you should be proud of this accomplishment. If you would like an individual consultation with someone from the Office of Undergraduate Research about your presentation, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected] .

Other online resources to check out include:

• Presentation Tips (Prepare, Design, Deliver)
• 18 Tips for Killer Presentations

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50+ Fun Icebreakers For Your Next Presentation

If you’re looking for the perfect icebreaker to open your presentation and connect with your audience from the get-go, look no further! With the help of our presentation experts here at 24Slides, we have compiled the ultimate list of icebreakers you can use in your next presentation, meeting, or conference. 

We’ll also go through some quick icebreakers 101, solving questions like:

What is an icebreaker?

• Why should I start my presentation with an icebreaker?
• What makes a good icebreaker for presentations?

And, of course, you’ll get our compilation of over 50 icebreaker examples for your next presentation. Since there’s no one-size-fits-all, we’ve divided our presentation ice breakers into categories depending on the context of your presentation, so you can go straight to the ones that will work the best for you!

In this article, you’ll find:

Icebreakers for one-on-one presentations

Icebreakers for small group presentations (2-10 people), icebreakers for medium group presentations (11-30 people), icebreakers for large groups (31+ people), icebreakers for business and sales presentations, icebreaker ideas for training sessions and workshops.

• Virtual presentations icebreakers
• Fun icebreaker examples for playful presentations
• Great simple icebreaker questions  

So, are you ready to become an expert in using icebreakers in your presentations?

Imagine you’re in a room with a bunch of people where you know only a few of them or even none at all. You’d probably start feeling awkward and self-conscious, uncertain to interact with those around you. When you’re uncomfortable, your attention will probably be divided between wanting to listen to the speaker and making sure your elbows don’t touch your unknown neighbor. 

And, if you’re the speaker, you might feel pretty awkward too. Speaking in front of an audience is never easy, and you might wonder how to approach your presentation’s topic, especially if it’s dense or very important. 

An icebreaker is precisely what its name suggests: it breaks the ‘ice’ of uncomfortableness between you and everyone else around you. Icebreakers are usually short activities meant to help your audience to connect first as people before approaching your presentation’s topic - making your audience more relaxed and likely to hear out your ideas. 

Icebreakers can take many forms and shapes, from simple questions to engaging games. They can require people to talk with each other, answer a poll, or even move around the room. Anything that will make your attendees open up could be an icebreaker as long as it makes people feel more at ease! 

Benefits of icebreakers

The main objective of using an icebreaker in a presentation is to help people get more comfortable and avoid the common awkwardness when first speaking to a new audience. 

Icebreakers can accomplish many things - presenting yourself, getting people more at ease, and even as an introduction to your presentation’s topic. But they also offer a wide array of side benefits, like getting people more involved with your presentation and making it more memorable. 

If you’re thinking to yourself, ‘Why should I add an icebreaker to my presentation? I’m just fine without one!’ here are 6 of the top benefits of using an icebreaker in your next meeting. 

• It breaks down the awkwardness

For people who aren’t 100% an extrovert, presentations and meetings are likely to create a certain degree of awkwardness. And having a room full of people who feel uncomfortable around each other can be detrimental to your presentation. Icebreakers help lessen this feeling in your presentation – making people relax and be more at ease so they can put all their energy into listening.

• Icebreakers help people relax and have fun

When people relax, they’re more likely to entertain new ideas. An icebreaker may be the turning point to make them feel more receptive to what you’re going to say. It also opens up more possibilities for inviting your audience to participate and ask questions. Icebreakers are a great way to make them feel welcomed and more likely to volunteer or join whatever activity you’ve prepared for them onstage.

• Help you connect with your audience

A presentation where the speaker starts right away can feel a little jarring. Icebreakers are the perfect way to introduce yourself and your topic without throwing your audience headfirst into the presentation. A good icebreaker can help you connect better with your audience – making them, in turn, more likely to hear you out!

• Gives your audience an energy boost

Some presentations can feel like they take forever. When you’ve been sitting down for what seems like hours, you might feel yourself starting to nod off. An icebreaker doesn’t necessarily happen just at the start of the presentation. It can be a great way to wake up your audience after a quick break and bring them back to the topic at hand. 

• Gives a chance to network with others

The right icebreaker can get your audience talking and help them find things in common. After all, your audience is all in the same meeting for a reason! By giving them the opportunity to interact with one another, you are also giving them the extra value of finding people who can work with them in the future. 

And, of course, icebreakers are great ways to get the ball rolling, so by giving your audience a chance to talk with one another, you might also get more interesting and unique takes on questions and ideas later on. 

• Creates a positive atmosphere

A positive atmosphere is created when people lower their barriers and defense mechanisms, making it more conducive to learning. A negative atmosphere, on the other hand, is felt when people don’t feel at ease and give their neighbors the cold shoulder. ‘Breaking the ice’ needs to get done as soon as possible!

5 Practical Tips for a Good Icebreaker 

What makes a good icebreaker? This is a tricky question to ask. Many icebreakers that work in certain situations will not work in others, as their use depends on context. 

Here are key factors to consider when planning your next presentation’s icebreaker: 

• Know your audience

Take the time to research your audience. The most important thing when planning your presentation’s icebreaker is to remind that you want your audience to feel less awkward  — not more.

Taking your time to learn about the people in front of you is the easiest way to avoid doing or saying something that could potentially offend your audience. Even if you do it unintentionally, the damage will still be done. 

• Identify your presentation objective

The right icebreaker will help you achieve your presentation objective, so take some extra time to think about it. For example, if you’re giving a presentation on cooperation and teamwork, you can do a game where your audience needs to rely on one another. Or conduct a poll to ask your audience how confident they are in their teamwork skills. 

Making your icebreaker closely relate to your presentation’s topic will not only open up your audience but also allow you to transition smoothly to the rest of your presentation. 

• Involve everyone

The icebreaker should be inclusive, meaning it shouldn’t exclude anyone from joining. For instance, if you have a disabled person in the crowd, then you wouldn’t want him or her to feel awkward for not being able to join. 

Have a backup icebreaker just in case the first one excludes someone. The point is that fun icebreakers should make everyone feel more at ease  — and not at the expense of the outliers of the crowd.

• Make sure you understand the context

To pick the right icebreaker for your presentation, you must know the overall setting in which it will take place. A presentation to the board of directors where you need to explain where the sales have been going down is probably not the best place to use a joke as an icebreaker. Or, if you’re giving a quick 15-minute presentation, you might not want to begin with a game that will take at least 10 of them. 

Taking into consideration general setting cues like time frame, space and resources availability, and presentation tone, will help you pick the perfect icebreaker. 

The Ultimate Presentation Icebreakers List

Here you’ll find the perfect icebreaker for your presentation. Since not every icebreaker will work on every situation, here you’ll find them divided into several categories: 

• Icebreakers depending on your audience size
• Icebreakers depending on your presentation’s tone and context
• Quick and easy questions to break the ice

Do feel free to browse through the entire list: most icebreakers will be easy to adapt to fit your specific needs and your presentation!  

Presentation Icebreakers for Every Audience Size

While in a small crowd, you might be able to ask person by person their input, this will most likely not be the case in large groups. On the flip side, a game that needs the audience to divide into teams might be a good pick for a medium-sized crowd, but not a one-on-one presentation. 

Among the many options of icebreaker options all over the web, we’ve compiled and edited a list of which ones will work the best for each audience size: 

• Introduce yourself. Unless you already know each other, introducing yourself is the easiest way to look proactive and get your presentation going. After all, it’s in your best interest for your prospect to warm up to you before your pitch or presentation!
• Have a conversation . Don’t go straight to your topic. Always warm up your prospects and engage them in conversation first. Try to ask open-ended (instead of just ‘yes’ or ‘no’) questions. You can tackle topics like current events, or even just the weather! Just talking in a more casual way will make the person feel more at ease and more likely to give you their undivided attention. 
• Ask them about their personal life. If it’s someone you already know, build rapport by showing you care about them. You can ask about their kids, vacations, or even their favorite sports team. Remembering what they care about can be a huge plus when building a better atmosphere! 
• Let them tell you what they expect from your presentation. It’s the easiest way to make sure you live up to your expectations! It also allows you to introduce the topics of your presentation seamlessly. Even better, you’ll feel and look more confident and under control by taking charge of the presentation’s rhythm and agenda. 
• Ask something related to your presentation topic. Ask them if they know anything about your company, product, competitors, or something to that effect. It’s not only a great way to start your presentation without spending too much time on what they already know, but it’ll also help you gauge their knowledge so you can decide how in-depth you need to get in your presentation.
• Give them a small present just for showing up. Especially if the meeting is not an obligation for them, being appreciative if they show up can go a long way. After all, they’re investing their time and energy into you!
• Compliment them. It’s always nice to get compliments. But don’t overdo it, and always, always be genuine. If your prospect feels like you’re using flattery to get the sale, then it can seriously backfire on you later on. You’ll lose face and credibility.
• Introductions but with a twist. Ask everyone to introduce themselves and state something unusual or a fun fact about them. Towards the end of the presentation, ask them if they remember anything other people said during the introduction. If they get something right, reward them.
• Ask people to line up alphabetically . You can do this with their first names or last names. Or even their nicknames. This gets people talking and getting to know each other’s names.
• Charades . This is one of the best fun icebreakers on this list. It’s a party favorite but can also be used in presentations, meetings, and conferences. You probably already know how this works, but if not, here’s a funny charades video on Jimmy Fallon’s show.

• String a story together . Storytelling is a powerful element in presentations. But for this icebreaker, you’ll need everyone’s help to create a story. Start the first sentence yourself and then ask the first person in front of you to continue the story. Each person gets to decide the direction the story takes, one sentence at a time.
• Play word games . There are many different kinds of word games. But this is something you may find useful. Identify the subject or category the words should belong to, like animals or food. If the first person chooses ‘DOG,’ the next person must identify an animal that starts with the last letter of the previous word. In this case, it would be something that starts with the letter G, like GOAT.
• One word to describe him or herself . Give your audience one minute to think about the perfect word that describes them. And let the others assess if they agree with that word or not.
• Social media icebreaker . Let people open up their favorite social media accounts and then share a photo they’re most proud of. Ask them to share a line or two about why they love that photo.
• Switcheroo. Ask everyone to stand up and switch seats with the people in front of them. Do this when you notice people are starting to get drowsy and need some stimulation.
• Human bingo. This is a fun way to get to know people. Prepare the cards and the pen/pencil. The cards should already be filled out with various traits, characteristics, hobbies, etc. Then, your participants will need to go around and interview each person and check off a box that applies to them. The person who completes their card first gets a prize.
• Friendly debate. Group your participants into two. One should be the ‘pro’ group and the other is the ‘anti’ group. For instance, you can choose pizza lovers and pizza haters. Give them a few minutes to present their arguments and let the great debate begin!
• Two truths, one lie. Just like the title says, make your participants come up with 3 things about themselves, in which one of them is false. Then, in groups or pairs, the others would have to try and guess which one is the lie. It’s a great icebreaker to make your audience interact more with one another.
• Guess game. Just like the last one, it’s easier to make participants interact with one another through a game. Make everyone write on a piece of paper something fun, like an unlikely hobby or the oddest job they ever had. Your audience must try to guess who wrote which one. It’s not only a fun icebreaker, but it also helps people find out the things they have in common.
• Going to the beach. It’s an easy game, but a fun one! Each person will start by saying ‘I went to the beach and I took…’ plus an object, like a beachball, a towel, or a surfboard. Then, the next person must repeat the same sentence and add a new object to the list. The more people, the more the list will grow, and the first person who forgets an item loses! It’s also a good icebreaker for making attendees learn each other’s names by adding who brought what to part of the list they need to repeat. 
• Paper planes.  Make your audience write something about themselves on a piece of paper, and then instruct them to make a paper plane out of it and throw it! When they pick up a new paper plane, their goal will be to find the correct person. It’s the perfect icebreaker to get people moving and getting to know each other!
• Stretch. This one’s easy and straight to the point, but it does help break the boredom. Ask people to stand up and stretch for a few minutes. You can lead the exercise or play a short video on stage. After this short exercise, you can expect to see a bunch of awake and attentive faces.
• Treasure hunting. Hide a few prized items throughout the venue and send your participants on a treasure hunt. It’s always exciting to look out for a prize! Even better, by making them solve clues, you’d encourage your audience to work on their teamwork skills. 
• Stress buster. Hand small slips of paper to everyone and ask them to write down the things that are causing them stress lately. Then, during or after the presentation, ask them to rip it to shreds.
• Snowball fight. Divide your group into two sides, and give each person 3 pieces of paper to crumple. Give them 1 or 2 minutes to try to get as many ‘snowballs’ into the other team’s side. A healthy amount of competitiveness will help you break the ice in no time!
• This or that.  Another great icebreaker to highlight the things in common! Ask your audience to stand in the middle of the room, and ask them questions that will make them pick a side of the room. Things like ‘Dogs or cats?’ or ‘Night Owl or Early Bird?’ will have them jumping from one side to the other. 

Icebreakers depending on your presentation’s tone

When planning your next icebreaker, you must always take into account the context of your presentation. After all, giving a sales report to your boss is not the same as giving a fun workshop on teamwork.  

If you’re looking for the perfect icebreaker for a specific situation, here you might find the one you’re looking for!

If you’re looking for a more professional way to warm up your audience for your work presentations, these icebreakers are the one for you. Most business presentations are more serious and straight to the point, just like these icebreaker ideas!

• Storytelling. This one is the king of icebreakers for business presentations and for a good reason! Storytelling is an incredibly powerful tool to add to your presentations, as it helps to both exemplify your point and connect emotionally with your audience. And of course, this makes it the perfect option to break the ice and get their entire attention from the get-go. 
• The highlight of the week. This icebreaker is great for getting your audience into a positive mood. When planning your next business presentation, take some extra time to find something good that happened that week or that month. Maybe you record sales for that month, or you got an exceptionally good review from a customer.  
• Would you rather?  When planning your sales presentation icebreaker, this one will help to get your potential customer right where you want it. Highlight the value they’ll get from your product, and how they are missing out on it. From our experience, asking, ‘What do you prefer, struggling 5 hours per week on PowerPoint, or getting your presentations done by a professional team of designers in 24 hours or less ?’ really puts things into perspective!  
• Give kudos. The best way to put people in a good mood is to spread out some positivity!  Giving the spotlight to someone who has done outstanding work recently can be a great way to break the ice. 
• Brainstorming session. Group brainstorming is another great way to get people to exchange ideas. You hit two birds with one stone – an icebreaker and an idea generator rolled into one!

The best icebreakers for training presentations and workshops are those that incentivize teamwork and learning skills. These icebreakers will help your team get to know each other better and work together in tandem. 

• Live polls. There are many apps that allow your audience to make live polls and display the results immediately. This is a great icebreaker, as it can be as serious or lighthearted as you want. You can use it to ask the audience’s mood, their favorite food, and how much they know about the topic at hand.  
• Word cloud.  Just like a poll, a word cloud can be a great option to explore what your audience thinks about a prompt or concept you give them and to get the ball rolling. You can make them write down in groups, have them add their ideas to a board, or even make one through an app ! 
• Problem-solution icebreaker. Present a real or hypothetical problem, and ask people to pitch in their solutions. You can ask them for their input individually, or you can divide them into pairs. As the saying goes, two heads are better than one.
• Finish a puzzle together. This is great for group work as everyone can contribute. For example, you can give them a few pieces each, and they’ll then work as a team to complete the puzzle.
• Pop quiz. This icebreaker is the best to keep your audience on their toes and on a learning mood. You can add it at the end of your presentation, before or after a coffee break, or even at the beginning to see how much previous knowledge your audience has. 

Virtual presentation icebreakers

Not sharing a physical space can make breaking the ice even more of a challenge, especially since many icebreaker ideas would not fit an online presentation. So here you’ll find some icebreaker options that are specifically designed for virtual meetings!

• Drawing battle. You don’t have to be a professional artist to enjoy this one! There are many apps and websites that allow you to add this game to your virtual meetings. Just propose a topic and let people try to guess what one of them is drawing! You can even divide them into teams to make it more interesting. 
• Try a virtual escape room. If you have time, try giving your audience this challenge to build cooperation and teamwork. It’s not only great for learning to work together but also to have fun and loosen up. 
• Count till 20. Your team must try to count to 20 by shouting one number each… but without agreeing in which order they’ll go. This icebreaker will definitely make people wake up, and probably also laugh as they try to avoid talking at the same time. 
• Emoji movies. Just like charades, your audience must try to guess the movie or book. But instead of someone acting, they must guess it from the emojis. It’s a great adaptation of a classic game for virtual meetings!   

Fun icebreaker ideas for playful presentations

Icebreakers can also help your presentation be more playful and fun! If you like your icebreakers a little silly to make sure people loosen up their inhibitions, then take a look at these ideas. 

• The no smiles challenge. If you’re making a fun, playful presentation, a great way to make it even funnier is to tell people smiling and laughing aren’t allowed in your presentation. This will most likely have the opposite effect, making people even more ready to laugh at your jokes! 
• Human rock paper scissors. This is a fun, high-energy game, but may not be feasible for older participants. Check this video to see if this is something you can use in your presentation.

• GIFs mood barometer. If you want your audience to be a little bit playful, having them share their mood as a GIF is the perfect way. If you want to keep some control of what they share, you can also use a live poll to give them options to choose from. It’s the perfect lightweight activity that still gives you valuable insights into your audience and their energy levels. 
• Bad jokes contest.  The only thing funnier than a good joke is an extremely bad one. Have your audience try to use their best dad jokes on each other while avoiding laughing at the jokes of the rest.  

10 Great Icebreaker Questions for Any Presentation 

Sometimes simpler is better, and the easiest way to get people talking is to ask them to do so! These icebreaker questions will help your audience open up without taking much time or extra preparation. 

• If you could have any superpower, what would it be, and what would be your superhero name?
• What's the most random piece of trivia you know and why?
• What is the oddest job you ever had, and how did you end up working there?
• If you could make a reality show, what would it be about?
• What cartoon character would you like to hang out with?
• Where is the most embarrassing place you ever fell asleep?
• If they made a sitcom about your life, what would the theme song be?
• What were the best and worst workshops/meetings/conferences you ever attended?
• If the zombie apocalypse began, what three people in this meeting would you want on your team?
•  If you had to teach a class right now, what would the subject be?

As a speaker or presenter, it’s important that you prepare fun icebreakers for your audience. You want people to be comfortable not just with you, but with their neighbors and groupmates as well. The icebreakers in this list are just the tip of the iceberg concerning the wide array of possibilities you can choose from. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and get creative with your icebreakers!

Need more time to prepare for your presentation? 24Slides has you covered!

Now that you’ve begun thinking about your presentation, and the best way to break the ice with your audience, you might wish to have more time to prepare for it. Luckily, 24Slides can help with that !

You can focus on your presentation’s content and how to make your audience as comfortable as possible, and 24Slides professional designers will tackle the visual aspects of it all. In less than 24 hours , you can get a custom-made, fully editable presentation that will wow your audience and make it even more memorable. 

You might also find these articles interesting:

• 7 Essential Storytelling Techniques for Your Business Presentation
• How to Deliver the Perfect Online Presentation
• Improve Your Presentations' Body Language!

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Home Blog Design 8 Best Canva Alternatives for Presentations in 2024

8 Best Canva Alternatives for Presentations in 2024

Canva is credited with being the go-to platform for creating graphic design projects. We can make banners, infographics , social media posts, business cards, and, why not, presentations. The main problem users tend to find is that due to Canva’s extensive reach worldwide, creating presentations in Canva becomes repetitive—almost as if the same person built all slide decks.

Pricing and tool capabilities are also important, especially when comparing Canva to a dedicated presentation software such as PowerPoint. In this article, you will find what, in our experience, are the best Canva alternatives—not just websites like Canva—to create professionally designed slide decks for your presentations. Some of these tools will be standalone applications, others third-party add-ins for existing software. Without further ado, let’s get started.

Table of Contents

What is the Best Alternative for Canva?

7 extra alternatives to canva, what platform is better than canva, could i use canva for business purposes, is there a more professional version of canva, final words.

As presenters, we require specific features or functionalities to craft different kinds of slides. SlideModel stands out as the number one Canva alternative, especially if you want to create polished, data-rich presentations. 

SlideModel’s library contains over 50,000 PowerPoint and Google Slides templates, including diagrams , charts , timelines , infographic templates , icons , and so much more. They cater to business professionals, educators, hobbyist presenters, and anyone who needs to communicate a message in a visual format. All this while retaining full control of the graphic and text assets so users can work with pre-designed slide layouts that can be customized in the blink of an eye. 

Saving Time and Effort with Pre-Designed Slide Layouts

Imagine you need to deliver a presentation about the results of your company’s expansion strategy in an emerging market. Rather than populating your slides with hard-to-read text walls, you can use infographic slides, maps, and diagrams to express the data you gathered in an easy-to-understand format. 

This kind of visual communication technique aims for maximum efficiency when delivering information to an audience, not assuming their potential knowledge level on the topic. Complex data can be transformed into a series of customizable graphics, which can even be repurposed for updates on the same topic or to present to a different audience.

Don’t Work from Scratch – Mix and Match PPT Templates

One of the main advantages of using professional PowerPoint templates is that you are in charge of which graphics you want to integrate into your slide deck. For instance, you can find a powerful diagram that’s exactly what you need, but it doesn’t bear the same aesthetic as your previous slides. Presentation software like PowerPoint easily allows us to copy/paste slides and apply a common presentation theme to reach a cohesive design.

This degree of customization offered by SlideModel takes the burden off of designing slides from scratch. It’s a mere question of finding the graphics you need to tell your story and merging them into a common PPT theme. In this way, countless hours of designing your layouts get reduced to minutes, allowing users to focus on the content and the presentation speech.

Compatibility Across Multiple Platforms

If you were concerned that your presentation software isn’t PowerPoint, then put that worry to rest, as SlideModel products are compatible with Google Slides and Keynote. Each and every product available at SlideModel.com gives accurate information about their compatibility, with over 80% of its catalog being fully compatible with other presentation software (only complex shadow effects, complex shape placeholders, and some animation effects may not be available in other software, hence the reason why it won’t display the compatibility).

SlideModel’s designers know presenters’ needs, especially when securing compatibility for a presentation delivered on a different device than your personal computer. That’s why you won’t find hard-to-come-by font families, premium images to buy, and any other restrictions platforms like Canva throw on users. Any element of the slide deck is entirely editable, giving users a smooth experience regardless of the computer, operating system, or presentation software of their choice.

AI Tools for Presenters

If all the perks we’ve mentioned weren’t enough, SlideModel recently launched its Gen-AI presentation software, SlideModel AI , targeting users who strive to populate their slides with content. This project is driven by users’ feedback, especially those who must create presentations in a hurry and may feel blocked when it comes to picking a design, making their presentations shorter, or just needing guidance to start their work.

SlideModel AI is an intuitive tool that integrates LLM technologies and AI image generation. Users simply select the number of slides, give the tool a detailed prompt to generate the presentation’s outline, select the design to apply, and that’s it. A presentation is crafted in a matter of a couple of minutes – which is also fully customizable and can be further edited in presentation software like PowerPoint or Google Slides.

A Free Canva Alternative

If you don’t want to commit to a subscription or you’re looking for Canva alternatives free, SlideModel also offers a library of free PowerPoint templates covering a wide range of topics. These products were made for presenters by seasoned presenters, so you won’t feel held back by not having a premium subscription. This is ideal when you’re on a tight budget and need to bring a project to life with a powerful presentation.

If all this isn’t enough, you can learn about the most common questions asked by presenters in fully detailed guide formats through the SlideModel blog . PowerPoint and Google Slides how-to articles, detailed case studies with slides, how to prepare and present specific kinds of talks, and so much more. 

Get to know seven different apps like Canva that can do wonders for your presentations. Some of these tools are intended for graphic designers, but with the proper learning time, you can master these tools and go beyond the limits of your imagination when creating new slides.

When we need to deliver a presentation in a non-sequential format, Prezi is the tool to use. It allows users to create zoomable presentations that allow for a more dynamic storytelling experience.

Prezi’s interface is built around the concept of a large canvas on which you can place all your presentation content. Instead of moving from slide to slide linearly, Prezi allows the presenter to zoom in and out of specific canvas sections. This feature is handy for presentations where flexibility in content delivery is key, as it allows users to explore ideas more organic and non-sequentially.

• Visual Engagement: Zooming in and out of different areas of the canvas helps highlight key points and can leave a lasting impression, making it ideal for presentations where engagement is a priority.
• Cloud-Based: Like Canva, Prezi is cloud-based, which means users can create, edit, and present their materials from anywhere with internet access. This offers convenience, especially for users who travel frequently or work remotely.
• Collaboration: Prezi allows for real-time collaboration, meaning multiple team members can work on the same presentation simultaneously, similar to Canva’s team collaboration feature.
• Limited Design Capabilities: Prezi primarily focuses on presentation design, which means it lacks the broader design features offered by Canva or other presentation software.
• Subscription Costs: Prezi offers a free version, but its more advanced features, such as offline access, branding options, and analytics, are only available with paid subscriptions. While Canva also offers paid plans, its free tier is more feature-rich, making Canva a better choice for users who want more flexibility without upgrading to a paid plan.
• Overwhelming Effects: While Prezi’s zooming feature is visually appealing, it can be overused, causing dizziness or distraction for some audiences.

Adobe Express

This application, formerly known as Adobe Spark, is a direct competitor to Canva in terms of tools and usage. As part of the Adobe family, it integrates well with other Adobe products, so it’s ideal for creative professionals who need to create graphics for different channels, such as social media and presentations.

Like Canva, Adobe Express provides users with an easy-to-use interface, a library of templates, and customization options for creating social media graphics, flyers, presentations, and more. However, Adobe Express distinguishes itself with some unique features and integration within the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, giving it an edge for certain users, especially those needing advanced photo editing, typography control, and branding options.

• Integration with Adobe Creative Cloud: One of the standout advantages of Adobe Express is its seamless integration with other Adobe tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Lightroom. This integration allows users to easily transfer assets between platforms, making it a great choice for those who may want to tweak images in Photoshop or create vector elements in Illustrator and then import them into Adobe Express for simpler, quick design tasks.
• Advanced Photo Editing Features: While Canva offers basic photo editing tools, Adobe Express provides more advanced features for editing images. Users can adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, and more with greater precision. Adobe Express offers a simplified solution for those requiring more detailed photo adjustments but don’t want to switch between multiple platforms.
• Custom Branding: Adobe Express allows users to create custom branding kits, including logos, fonts, and color palettes, which can be applied consistently across all designs. This is especially beneficial for businesses that need to maintain a cohesive brand image across multiple types of content, from presentations to social media graphics.
• Subscription Model: While Adobe Express offers a free plan with basic features, many more advanced features, such as additional templates, branding kits, and premium fonts, are only available through the paid subscription plan.
• Learning Curve for Adobe Tools: While Adobe Express is designed to be user-friendly, the broader Adobe ecosystem may have a steeper learning curve for those unfamiliar with Adobe’s software. Users accustomed to the simplicity of Canva might find Adobe Express slightly more complex due to its Adobe Creative Cloud connections and more advanced features.
• Limited Offline Access: Like Canva, Adobe Express is a cloud-based platform, meaning an internet connection is required to use the service. For users who need to work offline or in areas with limited connectivity, this can be a drawback.

CorelDRAW is an industry-standard vector graphics editor that serves as an excellent Canva alternative for users who need more advanced graphic design capabilities. While Canva is great for basic design needs and offers an intuitive, template-driven approach, CorelDRAW gives users far more control over every aspect of their design, making it particularly useful for professionals and businesses looking for custom presentation designs.

• Custom Design Flexibility: Unlike Canva’s template-driven approach, CorelDRAW offers total creative freedom. Users can start with a blank canvas and design every detail from scratch. This flexibility is ideal for professional designers and businesses that need unique, custom visuals not bound by pre-set templates. You have more control over every element, from shapes and colors to typography and layout, providing greater creativity.
• Multi-Page Layout Capabilities: CorelDRAW is also equipped with tools for creating multi-page documents like brochures, magazines, and catalogs. Canva, while user-friendly, does not offer the same level of functionality when it comes to handling complex layouts, making CorelDRAW a better choice for businesses that need detailed printed materials with multiple pages.
• Professional Photo Editing: CorelDRAW includes Corel PHOTO-PAINT, a powerful photo-editing software. This allows users to perform detailed image retouching and manipulation within the same suite. Canva offers basic photo-editing features, but they pale in comparison to the professional tools available in CorelDRAW. If you need to combine high-quality photo editing with graphic design, CorelDRAW is a better option.
• Instability: CorelDRAW is famous across the graphic design community for its erratic behavior, particularly when working with heavy-sized files containing numerous layers. This can cause Corel Draw to crash randomly when trying to save a file or because it triggers a RAM overload.
• Overkill for Simple Projects: For users who only need to create basic designs like social media posts, posters, or presentations, CorelDRAW may be overkill. Its robust feature set is unnecessary for simple, template-based designs that Canva handles quickly and easily. Canva’s drag-and-drop interface and vast template library make it better suited for users with minimal design needs or tight deadlines.
• System Requirements: Current versions of CorelDRAW may be taxing on RAM, video graphics card, and processor requirements, which can limit its usability on older computers.

Affinity Designer

Affinity Designer is another strong Canva alternative, particularly for users seeking professional vector design tools without the cost of a monthly subscription. Unlike Canva, which is based on templates and offers limited control over design elements, Affinity Designer allows users to create custom graphics and presentation elements from scratch.

It is ideal for professional designers, marketers, and businesses needing complete control over visual elements. It’s perfect for users who must create custom illustrations, icons, or other graphics for presentations without relying on pre-made templates. Its affordability and advanced tools make it one of the best alternatives to Canva for those needing more flexibility.

• Cross-Platform Compatibility: Affinity Designer works on macOS and Windows and even offers a mobile version for iPads. This cross-platform functionality provides flexibility for designers working on their projects from different devices. Canva, though cloud-based and accessible from any device, doesn’t offer the same level of offline editing capabilities that Affinity Designer provides through its desktop and iPad apps.
• Precision and Performance: Affinity Designer is designed for professional-level precision, offering advanced features like gradient controls, Boolean operations for shapes, and precise alignment tools. These features enable designers to create intricate and polished designs with ease. Additionally, Affinity Designer is known for its smooth performance, even with large files or complex projects, something Canva struggles with when handling high-resolution or intricate graphics.
• No Subscription Model: One of the biggest advantages of Affinity Designer over Canva (and Adobe Illustrator) is its pricing structure. Affinity Designer offers a one-time purchase model, providing users with a full suite of design tools without needing a monthly or annual subscription. This can be a significant benefit for users seeking a powerful design tool on a budget compared to Canva’s subscription-based pricing for premium features.
• Not Cloud-Based: Affinity Designer is a desktop application, meaning it does not offer the cloud-based functionality that Canva does. Canva allows users to access and edit their designs from any device with an internet connection. At the same time, Affinity Designer requires the software to be installed on each device, with no cloud-based collaboration features. This could be a drawback for teams or users who prefer real-time collaboration.
• Limited Collaboration Features: Canva offers robust collaboration tools that allow multiple users to work on the same design in real-time, making it great for teams or collaborative projects. Affinity Designer, while powerful for individual use, lacks this built-in collaborative functionality. For users who frequently collaborate with others, Canva’s team features may be more appealing.

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator is another powerful Canva alternative for users who need high-quality, scalable vector graphics. While Canva is ideal for simple, quick designs, Illustrator provides industry-standard tools for creating custom, intricate designs, making it a favorite among professionals who need more flexibility and precision.

Adobe Illustrator offers detailed control over every design aspect, including vectors, shapes, typography, etc. This makes Illustrator the preferred tool for users who need to create logos, icons, and custom illustrations inside their slides.

• Advanced Vector Editing: One of Illustrator’s main advantages over Canva is its ability to create and edit vector graphics. Vector images are scalable, meaning they can be resized without losing quality, which is essential for projects like logos, icons, and print materials. Canva primarily works with raster-based images, which can become pixelated when resized. Illustrator’s vector editing tools offer complete flexibility and precision, making it ideal for professional design work.
• Custom Typography: Illustrator provides advanced typography tools that allow designers to precisely create and manipulate text. Users can customize fonts, add effects, and control spacing, kerning, and alignment in ways that Canva’s text tools cannot match. This is essential for branding projects where typography plays a key role in conveying the brand’s identity.
• Steep Learning Curve: Adobe Illustrator is a professional-grade tool with a much steeper learning curve than Canva. Due to its vast array of tools and features, users with no prior design experience may find Illustrator overwhelming. Canva, on the other hand, is much easier to use and is designed for users of all skill levels.
• No Ready-Made Templates: Illustrator doesn’t provide ready-made templates, unlike Canva, which offers thousands of templates for quick designs. Everything is created from scratch, which can be time-consuming for users who need to produce designs quickly.

For users who want to create presentations focusing on data and storytelling, Piktochart is another fantastic option among Canva alternatives. Piktochart specializes in infographics and visual storytelling, making it one of the top design sites like Canva, but with more emphasis on data visualization.

• Ease of Use: Piktochart’s intuitive interface is very similar to Canva, making it easy to pick up for users who are familiar with design platforms. You don’t need to have graphic design skills to create polished visuals.
• Flexible Templates: Like Canva, Piktochart offers a variety of templates that you can easily modify to fit your needs. However, its library focuses more on infographics and data-driven visuals, making it a better choice if that’s your primary focus.
• Fixed Layouts: While Piktochart offers pre-built templates for ease of use, the layouts are often rigid, making it harder to fully adapt designs to specific needs without distorting the overall aesthetic.
• Limited Animation Options: Piktochart lacks robust animation features, making it unsuitable for users looking to create animated presentations or highly interactive designs.

Movavi Video Editor

While Movavi Video Editor and Canva are both tools aimed at creators, their core functionalities differ. Canva focuses on graphic design, allowing users to create images, social media posts, presentations, and various visual content, while Movavi is specifically designed for video editing. If you’re looking to create video content rather than still images, Movavi Video Editor serves as a strong alternative to Canva when your focus shifts from static designs to dynamic, engaging video content.

Movavi Video Editor is a beginner-friendly yet feature-rich tool for video creation and editing. It’s perfect for individuals and businesses that need to create professional-looking videos without diving into overly complex software. With Movavi, users can create polished video presentations , promotional clips, tutorials, and other visual content quickly and easily.

• User-Friendly Interface: Like Canva, Movavi Video Editor is designed for ease of use. Its intuitive drag-and-drop interface makes it easy for beginners to get started, even if they have no prior experience with video editing. The platform’s simplicity is comparable to Canva’s ease of use for graphic design, making it accessible to a wide range of users.
• Comprehensive Video Editing Tools: Movavi offers a vast selection of video editing features, including trimming, cutting, joining clips, adding transitions, and applying filters. While Canva allows users to add basic animations and create simple videos, Movavi provides more control over the timeline and more advanced video editing capabilities, such as working with audio tracks, adjusting video speed, and adding special effects.
• No Cloud-Based Collaboration: Unlike Canva, which operates as a cloud-based platform, Movavi is a desktop application. This means users cannot easily collaborate in real-time or access their projects from multiple devices unless the software is installed on each one. Canva’s cloud-based approach is more convenient for team collaboration and remote access.
• Watermark in Free Version: The free version of Movavi Video Editor comes with a watermark on exported videos, which can be a drawback for businesses or individuals looking to create professional content without branding limitations. Users would need to upgrade to the paid version to remove the watermark, which is similar to Canva’s limitations in its free plan.

The answer to this question entirely depends on the niche in which you work. If you are a creative professional, some of the tools mentioned in this article, like Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, and Affinity Designer, are by far more proficient tools to create jaw-dropping graphics. On the other hand, if you lack a graphics design education and just need software to make your presentations, we highly recommend you work with either PowerPoint or Google Slides paired with SlideModel templates for static graphics or Movavi Video Editor for video presentations.

Yes, Canva is an excellent tool for business purposes, especially for small businesses, marketers, and professionals who need quick, visually appealing designs without advanced design skills. 

Canva’s user-friendly interface, assets library, and versatility make it an ideal platform for creating various business assets such as presentations, social media graphics, marketing materials, and business cards. Still, users need to consider that some of Canva’s features are restricted to Canva Pro, such as resizing designs to other outputs, images, typefaces, templates, and more.

While Canva Pro offers several features aimed at businesses and advanced users, more professional design platforms are available that provide greater control and more advanced capabilities. Adobe InDesign, for instance, is a more professional tool than Canva, specifically designed for creating layouts, print designs, and publication-quality documents. For users who need precision in their designs and work in industries like publishing, marketing, or graphic design, InDesign offers far more versatility and control than Canva.

Adobe InDesign is widely regarded as the industry standard for desktop publishing. It’s particularly powerful for creating multi-page documents, such as brochures, magazines, and annual reports, where layout consistency and precision are critical. InDesign offers many advanced tools, including paragraph styles, master pages, and advanced typography options, making it ideal for users who need professional-quality layouts. Unlike Canva, which is template-based and geared toward simplicity, InDesign gives users complete freedom to design from scratch, offering fine-tuned control over every element.

For businesses or professionals working in content creation, advertising, or publishing, InDesign is a more professional choice than Canva. It integrates seamlessly with other Adobe Creative Cloud applications, allowing a smooth workflow between tools like Photoshop and Illustrator. This makes it easier for designers to incorporate complex graphics, retouched images, or custom illustrations into layouts. InDesign also supports high-resolution output, making it ideal for creating print-ready documents.

Another option for professionals seeking a more advanced tool than Canva is Affinity Designer or Affinity Publisher. Both provide high-quality design tools at a more affordable price point. Affinity Publisher is an excellent alternative to InDesign, offering professional-grade publishing tools with a one-time purchase model, making it an affordable yet powerful option for businesses.

As we can see, there are multiple options for creating a powerful workflow for presentation design. Most of these applications will be strictly tied to your graphic design skill levels, but all of them can be approached if you give them enough time to learn their basic functionality.

Additionally, you can learn more about how to use Canva and PowerPoint for presentations . The linked article is a comprehensive guide on our experience and how to maximize compatibility within both platforms in terms of graphic assets.

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51 Best Presentation Slides for Engaging Presentations (2024)

Written by: Chloe West

When you're creating a presentation for a live audience or embedding it on a webpage for visitors to access on their own time, you want it to be engaging. And unfortunately, too many presentation slides are boring and forgettable.

But with Visme, we've put together 51 of our top presentation slides to help you find the perfect template for your next presentation.

To make navigation easier, we've broken them down into six categories. Browse through each below to find your next presentation slides.

Here's a short selection of 8 easy-to-edit presentation templates you can edit, share and download with Visme. View more below:

51 Best Presentation Slides for Engaging Presentations

Business Presentation Slides

Finance presentation slides.

• Sales & Marketing Presentation Slides

Education Presentation Slides

Pitch deck presentation slides, nonprofit presentation slides, presentation slide faqs.

There are so many reasons you might need to give a presentation in your business or career. And we’ve got just the right templates to get you started.

After all, you’re probably spending enough time creating the content and rehearsing your presentation deck. You don’t need to worry about your presentation slide design at the same time.

Here are a few of the best presentation slide ideas based on topic material, like the ones you’re regularly using. And if you're racing against the clock, tap into Visme's AI presentation maker to create eye-catching presentations in seconds. Just input your prompt, provide more context, select your preferred style and watch the tool generate your slides. Customize every part of your presentation with our intuitive editor.

1. Meeting Agenda Template

Customize this presentation template to make it your own! Edit and Download

Sick of seeing team members nod off or lose focus during your team meetings?

Put together your meeting agenda ahead of time using these presentation slides to help keep your team engaged and informed throughout.

This template comes with 15 premade presentation slides that cover everything from project management to charts showing performance and overall meeting objectives. Whatever you need to share in your meeting, you can find in this theme.

Plus, you can completely customize these business slides to match your company colors directly in Visme!

2. Company Goals Template

It’s important to ensure everyone on your team knows and understands the company’s goals. After all, everyone’s work should be geared towards achieving those goals.

You can use these nice business slides to put together a background of your company and how far it’s come, as well as detail your upcoming goals, launches and more.

3. Company Overview Template

If you’re speaking to a networking group about your company or pitching to investors, you likely need to give an overview of your company, its leadership team and its offerings.

These are the perfect presentation slides to help you put together a minimalistic design that draws focus towards your company and its mission.

Plus, all of these good-looking slides are perfectly set up to highlight your company’s most important assets.

And best of all, they’re completely customizable. Add in your own brand fonts and colors to create the perfect presentation for your business.

Make the goal-setting or design process a collaborative activity with the help of Visme’s collaborative feature . Team members can edit your presentation, leave feedback and draw annotations in real-time or at their own pace.

4. Project Status Report Template

When it comes to project management, you could always just send over a boring email or report update, but a better way would be to put together a presentation updating your team and/or your supervisors on the status of the project and the remaining timeline.

This presentation theme comes with 14 different slides to help you put together a status report that covers all aspects of your project: the various phases and how far along each one is, the timeline for your project, a project health card and more.

You can also gain even more inspiration for your project timeline slides from these timeline infographic ideas .

5. Business Annual Report Template

Want to show your boss how the company is doing? Or share how your team’s efforts have affected the bottom line? Put together a presentation that shows your business’s results over the year.

While this presentation template comes with a fun geometric accent pattern, you’re able to swap out any of these shapes for ones that more accurately represent your business or your message right in Visme’s design dashboard.

Working on this design with your team? Effectively manage the process with Visme’s workflow management tool . You can assign different sections of the slide to your team members to work on set deadlines, manage progress, track corrections and more.

6. Business Plan Template

Are you starting a new business? You might be looking for investors, or perhaps you want to pitch the idea to a potential cofounder. You need to deploy the best presentation slides possible.

You can use this theme to put together a polished business plan presentation that showcases your business idea, the market summary, the industry opportunities and more.

You can also use Visme’s color themes to find the perfect color scheme for your presentation and your upcoming business. After all, your brand colors can say a lot about your business.

7. Product Introduction Template

Put together a presentation that introduces a new product idea to your boss, your board of directors or your investors. Take advantage of the charts and graphs in Visme’s design dashboard to showcase various studies and statistics that prove why your idea will be profitable.

Or you can utilize this presentation theme to introduce a product to the public. If your company is in the process of developing a new product to release, a presentation introduction can be a great and engaging way to share it with your audience.

8. Product Presentation Template

Whether you’re launching a new product or sharing the features of an already existing one, you can show off your product through a presentation with nice slides.

You can share your presentation on social media, on your website or at a large company event to announce it to your audience. Include bright, high-quality photos of your product and a list of its best features to really highlight your new release.

9. Visual Brand Identity Template

There are many different ways to create a brand style guide for your business. One great way is with a presentation.

These presentation example slides allow you to seamlessly input your fonts, colors and other visual guidelines into a single presentation so that you can easily share your brand with the designers, marketers and other members of your team.

10. Special Business Presentation Template

These presentation slides can help you easily put together a business introduction template for a conference or networking event.

Just click above to edit in Visme, switch out your background with one of the thousands of options in our photo library, add in your own key facts, vision and values and download!

If you’re running out of ideas for your presentation , you can use Visme’s Writer AI to produce high-quality drafts, proofread your content or adjust its tone.

11. Industry Trends Template

Put together a presentation to showcase upcoming trends in your industry. You can leave the patterns and colors the way they are in these existing presentation slides, or you can add in your own brand colors or product colors.

Understanding developing trends in your industry each year is important so that you know where your business should focus its efforts.

Sharing a presentation with your team is a great way to stay ahead of the curve.

12. Services Template

Use these slide presentation examples to showcase your services and what you can offer your clients/customers. If you have a visual business, a presentation is an excellent way to highlight your work and show it off to prospective leads.

Swap out each photo in the example slides with photos of your work, update the fonts to match your brand voice (or upload your brand fonts) and add in the services you offer.

13. Slideshow Template

A slideshow presentation is a great way for you to showcase photos of your work alongside your service offerings. This template even includes social media icons on the last page so that viewers know how to find the business online.

Again, you’ll want to swap out all of the photos with your own work, but this presentation theme is a great way to get started.

14. How To Presentation Template

Are you presenting a tutorial or step-by-step guide on how to do something? Using example slides to put together your content is a great idea.

It’s a disservice to your company and your customer to assume that everyone automatically knows how to use your product or service. Showing your audience exactly what to do is essential to your customer service strategy.

Spice up your presentation by adding stunning, high-resolution images and stock photos , videos , icons , widgets and other design elements.

Didn’t find any photos that caught your eye? We’ve got you. Use Visme’s AI image generator to whip up captivating images that match your presentation theme and design.

Even if you have photos that need editing, use Visme's AI Edit tools to touch up, unblur, upscale, erase and replace images with one click.

15. Survey Results Template

Putting together a customer survey is a great idea to understand how your audience feels about your industry or even your company. Grab those results and insert them into these presentation slides to share with your team.

You can also put together a blog post or webpage with survey results and embed this presentation directly into it so your audience can understand the state of the industry as well.

Visme’s design dashboard allows you to add in various charts and graphs that adjust automatically based on the numbers you input. After all, ain’t nobody got time for manually adjusting the sizes of bar graphs and pie charts.

16. Company Overview Presentation Template

Utilize these beautifully designed presentation slides to create a brief overview of your company and its offerings.

Having a readily available presentation overview of your company is a great idea for when you’re pitching investors, journalists for coverage and more. You don’t need to recreate a presentation each time. Instead, put together a visually appealing and informative one-size-fits-all overview.

You can add in your own photos or choose from Visme’s photo library to keep the same beautifully minimalistic appeal.

When sharing financial information, it’s always helpful to put together some kind of visual aid. This can be used to further emphasize your content, whether it’s about going over budget, showing off exciting revenue increases and more.

Check out these finance slide presentation examples to find the perfect template for your goals.

17. Financial Report Template

Use this template to put together a presentation that goes over your company’s expenses, sales, profits and more.

The built-in data visualization options allow you to showcase your point with more than just numbers. Add in a table of contents to keep your report organized and cohesive, letting your team know exactly what information they’ll find inside.

18. Statistical Presentation Template

Need to report some financial statistics and data? These presentation slides are perfect for helping you insert cold, hard facts into your presentation.

Each slide includes a different type of chart or graph for you to choose from to fully represent your data and statistics. You can easily switch your color scheme by inputting your own brand colors or by choosing a preset color theme from Visme’s dashboard.

19. Map Presentation Template

It’s important to know where it makes the most sense to market your product geographically. Showcase sales and overall company growth and profitability by location.

Knowing your revenue based on geographic location is essential for a global company, and this presentation template is perfect for the job.

Create a stunning presentation in less time

• Hundreds of premade slides available
• Add animation and interactivity to your slides
• Choose from various presentation options

Sign up. It’s free.

Sales and Marketing Presentation Slides

When it comes to sales and marketing for your company, there is a lot of data and information that can be represented visually. Creating sales and marketing presentations helps with keeping your team on the right track, but can also be a great way to make a pitch.

Learn more about creating essential sales and marketing presentations with these templates.

20. Visualization for Sales and Marketing Template

When you’re putting together a sales and marketing plan, you have to present it to your boss for approval, then to your team for implementation.

Use these presentation slides to help visualize your sales and marketing plan , including each of the upcoming tactics and strategies and the steps for putting them in place.

Having a presentation to refer back to allows your team to ensure they’re implementing the strategies properly.

21. Simple Marketing Presentation Template

Whether you’re introducing new marketing ideas to your team, pitching a new marketing strategy to your boss or to a new client, a presentation with nice slides is the perfect format.

Grab this presentation template that helps you to define your new ideas and share specific tactics for how they should be implemented for the business. Then get ready to rock your pitch and share your awesome new ideas.

22. Market Analysis Template

Review market trends with your team so you know where to take your company’s marketing messaging. You can send out a customer survey or take a look at a few studies that have been done surrounding your industry to put together your market analysis report.

Input all of your findings into this presentation template so you can easily present it to your team or grab the link and send it in an email. Even if you’re not standing up to give a presentation, these presentation slides are still an engaging way to share necessary information.

23. Marketing Plan Template

Building a new marketing plan for your business? Put together  great presentations for your marketing plan to share with your team.

Presenting your new marketing plan to the company is a great way to get everyone motivated and on board with new strategies and ideas.

You can add in your goals, objectives and even user personas with this ready-made marketing plan template.

24. Sales Report Template

Your sales team should be regularly providing insight on how much revenue the company is generating. And a great way to do that is through a sales report presentation or slideshow.

It’s important to stay informed of sales growth throughout the year. Share graphs of sales quarter-over-quarter or year-over-year to see where the company/sales team needs to improve.

25. Press Release Template

Don’t just write a boring old press release to send out to journalists and media publications. Instead, create an interactive press release showcasing your launch.

A presentation press release will help your business stand out from the dry press releases most publications receive, offering even more incentive for them to highlight your business and its products/services.

Edit this business slide to add in your own brand touches, voice and launch information before grabbing the link and sending it off.

26. Social Media Report Template

Sharing results of any marketing strategy is always essential. This is how you keep your team updated of any strategies that are working, and any strategies that need some adapting.

This presentation theme is a great way to share your current strategy and results. Input your platforms, your strategies and your metrics before presenting it to your team. Customize the presentation slides so that they cater perfectly to your company’s strategy.

27. Social Media Strategy Template

Pitching a social media strategy to your boss can also be done well with a presentation. Showcase why social media is important to invest in, what your plan is and how it will affect the bottom line.

This presentation template already gets you started in perfectly pitching your own strategy. Simply adjust it to your brand colors and fonts and update the information with your own.

Presentations are huge in educational settings.

Whether you’re a teacher looking for an interactive way to share your lesson plan or a student trying to finish up a school project, we’ve got the presentation templates for you.

Take a look at our education presentation slide options to find one that works for you.

28. Training Plan Template

When working one-on-one with a student or mentee, it can be a good idea to put a training or education plan into place. These presentation slides are the perfect start to your lesson and can help to visualize the content and learn in a different way.

Putting together educational content in a presentation helps offer different formats for learning. Students are often not provided with all of the tools they need to learn the material, and an interactive presentation is a great place to start.

29. Book Report Template

Putting together a book report to present for your class? Get started with a presentation theme that you can fully customize for your specific book.

These presentation slides allow you to seamlessly enter in the information about your main characters, the theme of the book, its timeline and any other pertinent information you need to share with the class.

Don’t worry about presentation design in your next project. We’ve already got it all put together for you! Simply click edit, insert your book content and download your presentation.

30. Trivia Template

Help your class remember fast facts before a text with this trivia template. It’s a great way to host a study session in your classroom, and the content is easily interchangeable.

Or if you’re a student, put together a presentation study guide to help you memorize the most important key facts and information from class. A trivia presentation format can make for a fun study sesh before the test.

31. Lesson Plan Template

Don’t waste time putting together a dry Microsoft Word or PowerPoint lesson plan. Instead, create an interactive lesson plan that helps you stay on message during your class, and helps your students to know exactly what’s going to come next.

32. Group Project Template

Group presentations just got a little more exciting. Blow the rest of your class’s projects away by using these presentation slides to compile your overall project objectives and results.

You can easily adjust colors and fonts, add in your team members and insert copy relevant to your class and your group project.

Don’t forget to thank your classmates and your teacher for listening in the end.

A pitch deck is an essential presentation for all businesses and entrepreneurs to have. There are many times you might need to pitch your business, whether it’s to investors for funding, journalists for media coverage and more.

Using a presentation template to put together your pitch deck is a great idea so that you can focus on pitching your business without having to worry about the design.

Browse through the pitch deck presentation slides below to find one that works for your business and its goals.

33. Airbnb Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Give this Airbnb-inspired pitch deck presentation theme a go when putting together a slideshow for your business. In your company slide, include the solution that your business provides its customers, product/service information, and excerpts from press acknowledgements.

34. Front Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Showcase your business with this geometric pitch deck template inspired by Front. Add in the planned acquisition channels for your business, your leadership team and more.

Your pitch deck is meant to showcase your business to people who may want to work with you, so it’s important to share the most imperative information.

35. Buffer Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Showcase the state of the industry and your business’s role in it with this pitch presentation slides idea inspired by Buffer. The information these presentation slides include helps you to share the impact your company has had on your industry.

Since industries are ever-changing, you can easily update the information within your pitch deck in Visme and it will automatically sync to the webpage where you embed this presentation.

36. Comms Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Use these presentation slides inspired by Intercom to give your audience an idea of what your product is going to look like and how it will work.

This is the perfect pitch deck template to take advantage of when launching a new SaaS product or app so that you can share what the technology will look like and how it will work.

Showcasing specific features and tutorials is a great way to get people talking about your product.

37. WeWork Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Is your company helping to fuel a movement? Share how your company is changing the industry with this pitch deck template inspired by WeWork.

It’s exciting when your business is doing more for your industry than simply adding another product or service. Focusing on a movement that really switches up the way your industry does things is an incredible feat.

Utilize a pitch deck template like the one above to showcase how your company is involved.

38. Buzzfeed Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Does your business focus on content? Or perhaps you’re creating a new kind of media outlet?

Show off your content and analytics with this Buzzfeed-inspired pitch deck presentation template. Getting advertisers on board and other media outlets to talk about you is important for success.

This is why you need to be putting together a pitch deck that shares that kind of information. No one will want to work with you if you keep your analytics in the dark.

Use dynamic fields to ensure your brand information and other key details stays consistent across slides and other projects. These fields are customizable and change automatically based on input or predefined conditions.

39. Investor Pitch Deck Template

Starting a new venture that you need funding for? Use these presentation slides to put together a pitch for investors in your business.

From showcasing the problem in the industry to your business’s solution, along with your business plan and pricing table is a great way to get potential investors interested in what you’re selling.

40. LinkedIn Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Compare and contrast what processes look like with and without your business with this pitch deck template inspired by LinkedIn.

It’s a great idea to take care of this in your pitch deck so that you make the job of any media outlet or writer covering your business even easier. After all, you’ve done the hard work for them.

They were going to share how your business helps. You’ve already visualized this in your pitch deck. This increases the chances that people will cover your business.

41. Mattermark Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Use this pitch deck presentation theme inspired by Mattermark to put together key questions about the industry that showcase why your business is so essential.

Launching a startup is hard work, and that’s why a pitch deck is an essential marketing tool to have. Creating a pitch deck that already answers the why and how questions of your business is a great way to introduce who you are and what you’re doing to investors and reporters.

42. Foursquare Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Put together an overview of how your product works with this pitch deck presentation template inspired by Foursquare.

With presentation slides already in place to showcase a step-by-step tutorial, all you have to do is input your content and publish your presentation.

43. Fyre Festival Pitch Deck Presentation Template

If your company has been doing some awesome stuff lately, you want your potential investors and those looking to work with your business to know about it.

Show off your company achievements with this pitch deck presentation template inspired by the famous Fyre Festival pitch deck.

44. Biogrify Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Use these presentation slides inspired by Biogrify to excite people about how they can use your product. If you have a unique product or service, you just need to drum up a little excitement and attention!

A pitch deck is the perfect way to do that. Add in your company’s logo, mission and unique selling proposition to get people looking forward to becoming customers/users.

45. Launchrock Pitch Deck Presentation Template

Influencer marketing is a huge marketing strategy that can generate some serious results. What better way to pitch influencers about your business than with this pitch deck inspired by Launchrock?

Don’t email off some boring PDF or Google Doc. Create enticing pitches to influencers with this pitch deck theme, and start watching the replies from influencers pour in.

Working with influencers to promote your product is a great way to increase your audience base and word of mouth about your company.

When you’re running a nonprofit, there is a lot of pitching your organization, talking to donors and working on events to increase donations. This is why you need great slide presentations.

Putting together a presentation for your nonprofit is a great way to showcase what your organization does and why people should donate to it.

Here are a few nonprofit presentation slides to choose from, where all you have to do is insert your information, change colors and fonts and present.

46. Nonprofit Report Template

Put together a report that covers what your nonprofit is working against as well as your nonprofit’s achievements each year.

47. Nonprofit Art Template

Use this presentation slides idea to provide an overview of your nonprofit and its main projects. To generate even more support and donations, it’s important to provide clear insight into your key products and objectives.

48. Nonprofit Environmental Template

This presentation theme is perfect for showcasing the key issues your nonprofit fights for and its process for doing so.

Being transparent about what your nonprofit works on is important so that your donors know exactly where their money is going. Being secretive can generate some bad press, so it’s better to be open with your supporters.

49. Nonprofit Animals Template

These presentation slides use earthy colors to convey their nonprofit’s connection to animal rights. Use this to showcase your nonprofit. You can use the current colors or update it to match your nonprofit’s brand/industry.

50. Wildlife Conservation Template

Use these presentation slide examples to cover why your nonprofit matters and why donors should consider contributing.

A nonprofit only exists when people donate, so putting together a compelling pitch deck showcasing why your nonprofit is so important to your main issue is important. These slides are perfect for sharing your goals and mission.

51. Pet Adoption Slideshow Template

If you're looking for stunning presentation slide ideas , we've got more than enough. This pitch deck presentation template is perfect for SPCAs and other animal societies working on finding forever homes for their animals.

However, it can also be adapted to any other nonprofit or business need. The great thing about these presentation slides is how versatile they are. Each one is completely customizable to fit your specific needs. For example, you can turn it into a video presentation .

Q. What is a PowerPoint Slide Deck?

A PowerPoint slide deck is a collection of slides that are created using an online presentation maker. These slides are used to create presentations for various purposes, like sales , marketing , research , case studies , webinars , onboarding and business in general.

PPT presentation slides typically consist of a series of slides that contain text, images, charts, graphs, and other multimedia elements that are used to communicate information to the audience in an engaging and visually appealing manner.

So why is it called a slide deck? In the early days, presenters would create slides by photographing images or text onto transparent film. These slides would then be loaded into a slide projector and displayed on a screen. The collection of slides was referred to as a "deck," and the presenter would advance through them one by one. Today, the term "slide deck" is still used to refer to a collection of slides or presentation materials, even though most presentations are now created and displayed digitally.

Q. What is a good presentation slide?

A good presentation slide is one that engages your audience and effectively communicates your message.

Here are some key characteristics of a good presentation slide:

1. Keep your slides simple and uncluttered: Avoid excessive text and use bullet points or concise phrases to convey your main points. Use clear and legible fonts, and maintain a consistent design throughout the presentation.

2. Visual appeal: Incorporate visually appealing elements such as relevant images, charts, graphs, or diagrams. Use high-quality visuals that enhance understanding and make the content more engaging

3. Make it readable: Use a readable font size. Stick to a maximum of two or three font styles and sizes. Blend bright and dark colors for the text and background to ensure visual contrast and good visibility.

4. Consistent structure: Use consistent formatting, such as font styles, colors, and alignment, throughout the presentation.

5. Make it interactive: Include animation and interactivity to add flair to your presentation. It can make your presentation powerful and memorable.

Q. How do you make a good presentation slide?

There are lots of presentation software available for creating presentations. But Visme offers users a wide range of features to create visually stunning and engaging presentations.

All you need to do is choose a template from our extensive library of over 500 presentation templates and customize it with your text. You can edit content, change image(s), apply custom colors, input your own fonts and logo, and more. You can visualize data using our wide range of customizable charts and widgets.

Spruce up your presentation by adding audio, video, animations and other interactive elements. Download it as a PDF, PPTX, MP4, and HTML5 to share with your recipient , or generate a shareable link for online sharing.

Q. How do you design a presentation?

Here's a step-by-step guide to help you design some of the best business presentations:

1. Define Your Objective: Determine the purpose of your presentation and identify the main message or key points you want to convey

2. Plan Your Content: Outline the structure and flow of your presentation. Divide it into sections or key topics to ensure a logical progression. Read this article to learn more about creating an effective presentation outline .

3. ​​Create a Storyline: Craft a compelling narrative that ties your key points together. Storytelling can help engage your audience and make your presentation more memorable.

4. Choose a Design Theme: Select a visually appealing design theme or template that aligns with your topic and audience. You can use the ones we've shared above as your presentation inspiration.

Visme’s branding kit streamlines on-brand content creation and ensures you stay consistent across all channels. With our AI-powered brand wizard , you can automatically generate branded templates fitted with your brand elements.

5. Use Visual Elements: Incorporate relevant visuals such as images, charts, graphs, icons, or diagrams to enhance understanding and engagement.

6. Maintain Visual Hierarchy: Organize your content with a clear visual hierarchy. Use headings, subheadings, and bullet points to guide the audience's attention and emphasize key points.

7. Use Transitions and Animations: Apply transitions and animations to enhance the flow and engagement of your presentation.

8. ​​Practice and Test: Review and rehearse your presentation to ensure a smooth delivery. Test your presentation on the actual equipment or platform you'll be using to ensure compatibility and optimal display.

9. Seek Feedback: Before delivering your presentation, consider sharing it with a trusted colleague or friend for feedback. Ask for their input on the content, design, and overall effectiveness. Incorporate their suggestions to improve your presentation.

Q. Which slide is best for presentation?

The best slide for a presentation highly depends on the topic and the target audience. For example, if it's a pitch deck presentation, the financial projections or business model slide would be the best.

However, here are some of the most common slides you should know about:

1. Title Slide: It announces the presentation's topic and introduces the speaker. It grabs the audience's initial attention.

2. Agenda Slide : This gives the audience an idea of what to expect throughout the presentation.

3. Content Slide : These are dense with information. They're best when broken down into bullet points for readability.

4. Visual Slide: Slides with infographics, charts, or other visuals can improve understanding and retention of complex data.

5. Interactive Slide: Encourages audience participation and engagement, especially in virtual presentations.

6. Conclusion/Summary Slide: Reinforces your presentation's key points or takeaways.

7. Question & Answer Slide: Allows interaction and clarification, ensuring the audience fully grasps the presented materials.

8. Contact Information Slide: Provides follow-up information for further questions or networking.

Q. What are the 3 main types of presentation slides?

While there's no one-size-fits-all rule for making presentation slides, you can group them into three main categories:

Introduction and Closing Slides

These slides bookend your presentation. The introduction slide typically includes the title of your presentation, your name and any relevant introductory information. The closing slide summarizes key points, provides a conclusion and often includes contact information or a call to action.

Content Slides

Content slides make up the core of your presentation and contain the primary information you want to convey to your audience. They can include text, images, charts, graphs and other visual or textual elements supporting your presentation's message.

Transition Slides

Transition slides signal a change in topic or create a smooth flow between different sections of your presentation. They often feature a brief title or heading that previews the upcoming content. Transition slides help guide your audience through the presentation and make it easy to follow.

Q. What are the 4 types of presentation?

The four types of presentations are informative, instructional, persuasive and arousing.

1. Informative Presentations: These are used to educate the audience on a particular topic. They present facts, data and information to increase the audience's knowledge and understanding.

2. Instructional Presentations: These presentations provide step-by-step guidance or training on a specific task, process or concept. You can use this type of presentation for teaching or coaching purposes, emphasizing learning and development.

3. Persuasive Presentations: The primary goal of these presentations is to influence the listeners' attitudes, beliefs or behaviors. Use this presentation type when you want your audience to accept certain arguments or propositions.

4. Arousing Presentations: These presentations aim to evoke interest and awaken curiosity about the topic among the audience. They often aim to inspire, motivate or raise awareness about an issue.

Q. How do you make a 5-minute presentation interesting?

Creating an intriguing 5-minute presentation may be challenging due to the time constraint. Yet, you can deliver an impactful and engaging presentation with a focused approach and attention to detail.

Here are some of the ways to do it:

1. Focus on a single core message : Since you have limited time, choose a specific topic and stick to it. Present only the crucial information that will help the audience understand your point.

2. Engage from the start: Start your presentation with a compelling story, anecdote or a surprising fact. This will grab the audience's attention and spark curiosity.

3. Keep slides simple and visual: Avoid cluttered slides with too much text. Use visuals such as images, graphs or infographics to illustrate your points clearly and concisely.

4. Tell a story: A narrative structure engages the audience and helps them follow your message. Consider using metaphors or anecdotes to explain complex ideas.

5. Encourage questions or interaction: Since time is limited, you might opt for a brief Q&A session, ask a rhetorical question or request audience feedback for further discussion later.

6. Finish strong: Conclude with a powerful statement, call-to-action or takeaway summarizing your main point. Leave your audience with a lasting impression of your message.

Q. How many slides should a 20 minute presentation be?

The number of slides you should have for a 20-minute presentation can vary depending on several factors, such as the complexity of the topic and the pace of your speech.

However, the general rule of thumb is to allocate at least 1-2 minutes per slide, which suggests 10-20 slides for a 20-minute presentation.

Q. What Is the 5 5 5 Rule for Presentation?

The 5 5 5 rule is a framework that ensures your presentation is clear and remains engaging. A presentation should have no more than five words per line of text, five lines of text per slide and five slides that apply the first two rules in a row.

Q. How Do You Make a Presentation Slide?

With Visme’s presentation software, creating a presentation slide is a breeze. Follow these steps to create a presentation slide with Visme.

Step 1: Log in to Visme and choose from hundreds of beautifully designed presentation templates . Each template is equipped with various intuitive layouts, typography, color themes, data widgets and graphics. Or Use Visme’s AI presentation maker to swiftly create a presentation based on your specific needs.

Step 2: Customize your presentation with your company’s logo, colors and other brand items. Upload your own creative collateral or use our assets library to add photos, images, graphics, icons and animations to your content.

Step 3: Once you have finished editing and are ready to share, download your presentation as a live webpage, video, PDF, or HTML file, a customizable PPTX, or embed it on your website.

Q. What Is the 10 Rule for Slides?

The 10 rule for slides is part of Guy Kawasaki’s 10/20/30 rule which emphasizes that no presentation should have more than 10 slides, last longer than 20 minutes, and contain fonts smaller than thirty points.

Q. Which is better Google Slides or PowerPoint?

When it comes to PowerPoint vs Google Slides , both have they're pro's and con's. You'll need to decide what's worth the trade if you should pick one over the other, or simply choose Visme.

Ready to Create Engaging Presentation Slides?

Ready to get started with creating your presentation? Choose from any of these 51 slides for presentation, or browse Visme’s complete template library to find the perfect match for creating your own presentation.

Each one of these presentation themes can be adapted to match your business, school, nonprofit and other needs so that you can create something perfect for your goals and objectives. Create your free account to start customizing with our drag-and-drop presentation maker.

And once you’ve finished creating your presentation, check out our video to help you present like a pro and wow your audience.

Create beautiful presentation slides with Visme

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About the Author

Chloe West is the content marketing manager at Visme. Her experience in digital marketing includes everything from social media, blogging, email marketing to graphic design, strategy creation and implementation, and more. During her spare time, she enjoys exploring her home city of Charleston with her son.

• Google Slides Tutorials

How to Lower the Size of a Google Slides Presentation: Simple Hacks

Crafting a captivating Google Slides presentation is an art form. But sometimes, your masterpiece can become a bit… cumbersome. Sharing a presentation that’s too large can lead to slow loading times, frustrated recipients, and even email bounce-backs. This blog dives deep into simple tips and tricks to effectively reduce your Google Slides file size without sacrificing visual impact. It will ensure smooth sharing and audience engagement.

Why Does File Size Matter?

Large file sizes can create hurdles for both you and your viewers. Uploads take longer, emails bounce back, and some platforms restrict file size. A streamlined presentation ensures seamless delivery, especially for online presentations or remote collaboration.

Trimming the Fat: Image Optimization Is Key

Images are often the biggest culprits behind bulky presentations. Here’s how to tame those pixels:

• Resize Images: Most images don’t require their original high resolution for a presentation. Use the “Crop” or “Resize” function within Google Slides to reduce image dimensions without sacrificing quality. Aim for a balance between clarity and file size.
• Compress, Don’t Squash: Google Slides offers built-in image compression. Go to “Format” > “Images” > “Compress Images.” Choose “High quality” for a good balance. Avoid “Low quality” as it might noticeably degrade the image.

Pro Tip: Many online tools offer free image compression while maintaining quality. Explore these options for further optimization.

Lighter Links, Happier Audience

Embedding large videos directly into your slides can inflate the file size considerably. Consider these alternatives:

• Link to the Source: If the video resides on YouTube or Vimeo, simply embed a link. Viewers can click the link to watch the video directly on the platform.
• Upload to Cloud Storage: Upload the video to Google Drive or another cloud storage service and share the link within your slide. This keeps the presentation itself lightweight and offers viewers easy access to the video.

Beyond Images: Streamlining Other Elements

While images are a primary focus, other aspects can contribute to file size:

• Fonts: Fancy fonts are visually appealing, but some can be resource-intensive. Stick to standard fonts like Arial or Calibri for a professional look without file size bloat.
• Animations and Transitions: While these can add pizazz, excessive use can lead to a larger file size. Use them strategically for emphasis, not as a constant feature.

Housekeeping: The Art of a Clean Presentation

• Delete unused slides: Evaluate each slide and remove anything that doesn’t directly contribute to your message.
• Tame those animations: Excessive animations can bloat your file size. Use them moderately and strategically for maximum impact.
• Clean up after yourself: Remove unnecessary formatting like extra spaces or unused text boxes.

Exporting for Efficiency: Choosing the Right Format

Once you’ve optimized your presentation, it’s time to export! While Google Slides (.pptx) is the native format, other options can lead to smaller file sizes:

• PDF Power: Exporting as a PDF is a great option for presentations that won’t be edited further. PDFs are generally smaller than .pptx files and ensure consistent formatting across devices.
• Presentation for the Web (.odp): This format is specifically designed for web presentations and can result in a significantly smaller file size compared to .pptx. However, keep in mind that some formatting elements might not translate perfectly.
• PNG Images (Slides Individually): If you only need to share specific slides, exporting them as individual PNG images provides maximum control over file size.

Presentation Powerhouse: Leverage Pre-Made Themes

Smart presenters know the value of pre-made themes. High-quality free Google Slides themes , available online, offer visually appealing layouts with pre-formatted elements.  These themes not only elevate your presentation’s design but can also help maintain consistency, reducing the need for extensive customization and potentially lowering file size.

A captivating presentation doesn’t rely solely on file size. Focus on delivering a clear, concise message with impactful visuals. For a deeper dive into presentation mastery, explore our tips & tricks page , where you’ll find valuable resources to learn more hacks. Also, check out our guide on How to Change Your Google Slides Template Size in Minutes to learn the steps for changing the size of Google Slides.

Let’s Conclude

Reducing the size of your Google Slides presentation doesn’t have to be a daunting task. By following these tips, you can create a streamlined, efficient presentation that’s easy to share and perform seamlessly. Keep your presentations light and effective with these strategies, and you’ll be well on your way to impressing your audience with not just your content but also your technical prowess. Go forth and present with confidence, knowing your audience will receive your message loud and clear and without any file-size roadblocks!

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Arockia Mary Amutha

Arockia Mary Amutha is a seasoned senior content writer at SlideEgg, bringing over four years of dedicated experience to the field. Her expertise in presentation tools like PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Canva shines through in her clear, concise, and professional writing style. With a passion for crafting engaging and insightful content, she specializes in creating detailed how-to guides, tutorials, and tips on presentation design that resonate with and empower readers.

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SIGNUP FOR NEWSLETTER

Elton John praises Trump's 'hilarious' nickname for Kim Jong Un: 'Good on you, Donald'

by JACKSON WALKER | The National Desk

WASHINGTON (TND) — Legendary singer Elton John on Sunday told Variety former President Donald Trump’s previous use of his popular song “Rocket Man” was “hilarious.”

Trump during his presidency referred to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as "Rocket Man." The leader at the time was amassing and testing an arsenal of missiles.

Trump used the barb frequently, even while addressing the U.N.

“Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime,” he said in 2017 before the UN General Assembly. “The United States is ready, willing and able [to respond], but hopefully this will not be necessary.”

John explained Monday he was amused by the use of “Rocket Man.”

I laughed, I thought it was brilliant,” he said. “I just thought ‘good on you, Donald, I’m the Rocket Man.’”

“Donald’s always been a fan of mine, and he’s been to my concerts many, many times,” John continued. “I’ve always been friendly toward him, and I thank him for his support. Yeah, when he did that, I just thought it was hilarious.”

President Joe Biden in 2022 awarded John the National Humanities Medal after hosting him for a performance at the White House.

“Seamus Heaney once wrote, and I quote, ‘Once in a lifetime, the longed-for tidal wave of justice can rise up, and hope and history rhyme,'" Biden said at the time. "Throughout his incredible career, Sir Elton John has been that tidal wave, a tidal wave to help people rise up and make hope and history rhyme.”

Trump had asked John to perform at his 2017 inauguration, but the singer declined, saying he didn’t think it was appropriate given his British roots.

Follow Jackson Walker on X at @_jlwalker_ for the latest trending national news. Have a news tip? Send it to [email protected].