what is meaning video presentation

How to Make an Eye-catching Video Presentation in Minutes | InVideo

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Video is now the undisputed king of mediums in business communication. HubSpot reports that 85% of companies use videos in their marketing efforts. From webinars to demos, from sales presentations to investor pitches, and from welcome videos to online tutorials, videos are the go-to channel. Clearly, video marketing  is on the surge.

And video presentations are among the most widely used formats for video marketing. But how exactly can you create winning video presentations, to begin with?

Simply by signing up to InVideo for business where you get tailor-made template and video editing services on demand so you can spend your time running your business. Sign up for a free demo here. 

Video Presentations Q&A

Before we get into the meat of our guide, let’s quickly answer a few commonly asked questions.

1. What is a Video Presentation?

A video presentation is a form of communicating with an audience with the aid of a video or completely using a video. The video could be made of PowerPoint slides , still images, animation, or actual video footage.

2. Why Should I use Video Presentations?

Common reasons for using videos as presentation aids include:

- Overcoming space/time limitations - Using video as a visual aide to drive your point home - Video enables you to compress a lot of information into a digestible size

3. How do I make a Video Presentation?

Thanks to the advancements in technology, making video presentations has become very easy. It has also become more affordable than it was a couple of years ago. While different video makers have different steps to take when making a video , here are the basic steps to follow:

- Come up with a concept for your presentation. - Craft an engaging script . - Decide on the visual assets (and format) you’ll use. - Use a professional video editing app to bring it all together. - Promote the video.

Pro tip: To make things even easier, you could sign up to InVideo for business and get presentations made for your brand using the editing-on-demand services.  Sign up for a free demo here. 

4. How do you begin a Presentation?

You can open your presentation in 7 ways:

1. Share an anecdote or short personal story. 2. Kick-off with a provocative statement. 3. Present a startling statistic or data. 4. Tell a good clean joke that suits the audience. 5. Ask a loaded rhetorical question. 6. Show the audience a compelling visual. 7. Hook people with a fascinating quotation.

5. How do you Make a Video Presentation with PowerPoint?

Turning a PowerPoint presentation into a video is easy. Just follow these steps:

Step 1: On the File  menu, select Save  to make sure you have saved all your recent work in PowerPoint presentation format (.pptx).

Step 2: On the File  menu, select Save As .

Step 3: Select the folder location where you want to store your PowerPoint Show file.

Step 4: In the Save as type  box, choose PowerPoint Show (*.ppsx) .

Step 5: Select Save . That’s it.

Now that we’ve answered a few basic questions, let’s dig deeper into why videos are so powerful.

What Makes Video Presentations so Effective?

Why do they increase the impact of your message?

Well, it’s simple, really – people are visual creatures. This means we take in more information by watching than by reading. Remember the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words”? Besides that, here are 4 other reasons video is so effective:

1. Conveys emotions better

No other communication channel conveys emotions better than video. That’s because video caters to the brain’s visual and auditory systems, helping the viewer pick up on cues like body language, facial expressions, imagery, and music.

2. Cements information better

According to research , people remember 10% of what they hear and 20% of what they read. However, they remember a staggering 80% of what they experienced. In short, visuals are easier to remember than text or audio because they help your audience “experience” your message. It makes video an essential part of creating presentations your audience will remember for a long time.

3. Makes it easier to digest information

Especially when explaining complicated concepts, video is a great way to present information in an easy-to-understand way. Not only is the format easy to take in, but it also makes breaking down concepts easier.

4. Builds relationships fast

I’m sure you know the marketing mantra: people buy from people they know, like, and trust. Nothing beats video in making prospects or your audience know, like, and trust you…   fast. Video is an instant relationship builder. It’s the next best thing to live face-to-face communication.

A video is a great tool that has made it easier to communicate thoughts and ideas with people – not just in a room, but even across the globe.

6 Types of Video Presentations You Need to Know

Video presentations come in different flavors, depending on their purpose.

1. Educational Presentations

These are mainly used in teaching and learning sets online or in a classroom setting. These make it easier for the teacher to convey information and the students to grasp the concepts.

Use this template

2. Sales Presentations

The field of sales has evolved tremendously in the past decade. With customers being savvier, sales reps must play the game well if they’re to bag sales. One way they can do that is by creating story-based sales video presentations.

Sell more with pro video presentations

Use 5000+ InVideo templates to get started

3. Investor Pitches

Need to woo an investor? One of the best ways to do that is by using a video pitch. This will help you present your business plan in a visually appealing way so they can easily grasp your business concept.

4. Promotional Videos

Whether you’re promoting an existing product or a new one, video is your best bet for getting eyeballs on your product (or cause). People relate better to what they can see, making video the best medium for presenting your promotions (like product reviews, for example).

5. Employee Training and Onboarding

Video presentations are great for conducting employee training and onboarding. One of the main reasons for this is that video helps reduce the resources spent on these 2 important aspects of employee relationship management.

6. Informational Videos

As the name suggests, the informational/how-to type of presentation serves to pass on important information. Why video in this case? Because it’s more engaging and can pack a lot of information in a short clip.

Pro tip: You can get tailor-made templates to create any kind of presentation for your brand or business using InVideo for business. Sign up for a free demo here. 

How to create killer Video Presentations – 4 Tips

Now you know why video presentations are important and which scenarios to use them in. Now to the fun part – tips on creating killer video presentations. Let’s get to it, shall we?

Tip #1 - Know your Audience

The most important aspect of creating a stellar presentation is to know and understand your audience. Even if you use the best video presentation maker , if you don’t target a specific, clearly defined audience, your presentation will flop. Understanding your audience will help you:

A. Communicate effectively

Effective communication involves knowing the language and examples that resonate with your audience.

B. Choose the right visuals

Certain visuals are more impactful when used on a particular audience. Study those that your audience will easily understand and relate to.

C. Connect on an emotional level

No matter the type of presentation, it’s crucial to connect with your audience on an emotional level. And to do that, you need to understand the emotional triggers to push in your video presentation.

Invest in adequate audience research. While it may be time-consuming (and a bit costly), it will pay off in the end.

Idea #2 - Brainstorm video content ideas

Now that you have gathered enough audience data, it’s time to brainstorm some content ideas. Whether you’re creating your talk solo or as a team, 3 crucial questions will lay the foundation of your brainstorming session:

1. What do you want the video to achieve? 2. Which emotions do you want the video to evoke? 3. What will visual elements help your video achieve its goal?

The answers to these questions will help guide your ideas. They are key to creating a killer video that your audience will love.

Tip #3 - Craft engaging scripts

Audience research? Check.

Great idea? Check.

Now we get to another interesting stage of creating great video presentations  – crafting an engaging script. Whether it’s a live presentation, a webinar, or even a product review, you’ll need a great script to ensure you keep your audience engaged.

Even if you love creating impromptu videos, having a script for your video presentations is important. And no, you need not be Quentin Tarantino to produce a great video script (although it won’t hurt to learn how to become a good copywriter). Here are 3 reasons a good video script is a must:

1) Helps structure your video

To ensure your video has a smooth and progressive flow, you’ll need a good script.

2) Eliminates “dead spots”

Dead spots, or moments of inactivity, are a great turn-off in a video. They reek of unprofessionalism and can lead to your audience disengaging. The best way to eliminate dead spots is to craft a solid video script .

3) Keeps you on track

It’s very easy to get sidetracked when creating a video . However, with a script, you minimize the instances of going off-topic.

Creating scripts for your videos is a best practice that shouldn’t be overlooked. If anything, invest more in your script than the visuals as a good script can save a video with poor visuals.

Pro-tip: Once you’re confident about your script, it is time to make things even more clear. A  storyboard will allow you to break down your video visually, scene by scene, describing what is happening in it.

Tip #4 - Invest in the Right Tools

With video, one thing you should never skimp on is the tools you use, particularly your video editing software. While there is a gazillion free video editing software on the market, it’s highly recommended that you use a professional video editor . And that means going the paid route.

Why should you spend on a video editor when there are countless free options available? Here’s why:

A. Get more (professional) features

Creating professional-looking videos requires a lot of resources and features. Most free video editors lack the features that will enable you to create professional videos.

B. Avoid branding and ads

With video editing software, free is never free. That’s because you pay through being forced to include the video editors brand in your work. In other words, you pay by advertising for them. Besides branding, some free video editors may subject you to irritating in-app ads.

If there’s one thing that’s inevitable when it comes to software, it’s that one time or another you’ll encounter glitches. This is where paid video editors have a great advantage over their free counterparts – you’ll have access to customer support.

From hardware (like cameras) to software (like video editing software), the tools you use will determine the quality of your videos. Invest in professional tools, and your presentations will sweep your audience off their feet because they’ll be more polished.

Pro tip: If you don't have the time or bandwidth to find your way around an editing tool, simply sign up to InVideo for business and get presentations created using tailor-made templates and on-demand editing services. Sign up for a free demo here. 

Tip #5 - Adopt Video Presentation Best Practices

There’s no need to reinvent the wheel when creating presentations . Most winning video presentations are based on common fundamental principles that work. Here are some you need to know:

1) Create impactful intros (and outros)

Your intro is the most important part of your presentation as it sets the tone for the rest of the talk. If you can’t engage your audience with your intro, you probably won’t get another chance to engage them.

2) Keep it short, sharp, and sweet

No matter how engaging your video is, always remember it’s not a movie. The point is to keep your audience engaged enough to pass on your information, no more no less.

3) Be professional

Don’t throw out your professional etiquette just because you’re on (or using) video. Maintain professionalism in your video presentations by, for example, using clean language and maintaining a good posture.

4) Use quality sound

Sound plays an integral part in presentations. Whether it’s music or speech, make sure it’s crisp, clear, and audible.

By following these (and other) video presentation best practices, success is inevitable. Remember, the presentation is not about you; it’s about your audience. So, ensure that your presentations provide a good user experience for your audience.

Make video presentations in minutes

With customizable InVideo templates

Looking for a great Video Presentation Template? Here’s what you should consider

Templates are lifesavers. They help you create a decent presentation in a snap, even if you are a newbie.

Here are 3 simple questions to help you determine if a template is good:

1) Is it editable? – Are you able to change things like playback speed, effects, or text, so you produce something you like? Stay away from rigid templates that don’t give you the freedom to create with ease.

2) Is it customizable? – Can you design brand-specific clips using your company’s colors, fonts, and styling? Good templates give you wiggle room to include your brand’s specific needs.

3) Is it campaign-specific? – Different videos fit different scenarios. Ideally, you want templates tailored to your current campaign.  That way, you have less tweaking to do because the templates are close to what you want.

Pro Tip: Get more tailor-made templates for your video presentations by signing up to InVideo for business. Sign up for a free demo here. 

5 Awesome Video Presentation ideas to bring The House Down

Presentation is both an art and science. Get the balance right, and you have the audience eating out of the palm of your hand. Here are some ideas to help you do just that.

Idea #1 - Tickle them with humor

Humor is a powerful learning tool.

According to studies by Physiology Org humor leads to learning because of it:

- Attracts and sustains attention. - Relieves tension and produces a relaxed atmosphere. - Enhances participation. - Increases retention and motivation. - Bonds the student and the teacher.

However, to reap all these benefits, the humor must be appropriate and on-topic. So spice up your presentation with a joke or two. The result? Your audience will laugh and learn.

Idea #2 - Use Relevant Examples

Effective presenters use timely, powerful illustrations.

The word illustration comes from the Latin term ‘illustration,’ which means illumination. So practical examples are like windows of your presentation. They let light in. They help people see or understand the material better.

Here are 5 questions to ask about your illustrations:

1. Are they relevant to the topic? 2. Are they suited to the audience? 3. Are they suited to the time limit? 4. Are they enlightening? 5. Are they well told?

Grab compelling examples from books, movies, TV shows, history, children, current events, and captivating real-life incidents. Use good illustrations ram your points home.

Idea #3 - Wield Questions like a Ninja

Questions are an integral part of learning.

Sharp questions aid learning. Plus, they keep listeners highly engaged.

Ask questions:

- At the beginning of your presentation to draw your audience in. - In the middle of the presentation to revive waning audience interest. - At the end of the talk, so the audience reflects on the material.

Also, allow the audience to ask questions. When your audience asks questions, they switch from passive spectators to active participants.

Idea #4 - Be Minimal

Have you ever sat through a presentation and felt:

- Dazed? - Confused? - Strained?

More than likely, the reason is the presenter drowned you in a blaze of inessential stuff. There was too much going on you couldn’t cope with.

Minimalism is removing all unnecessary material, leaving only the bare minimum needed to put your points across. It means using just enough text, visuals, scenes, or slides to make the point and no more. A minimal presentation is clean and uncluttered.

Simple yet intriguing. Plain but profound. Basic but punchy.

Most importantly, it makes learning easy and enjoyable.

Idea #5 - Connect emotionally with a story

Stories are speakers’ most powerful weapons. That’s because stories play a dual purpose –

- Engage intellectually - Connect Emotionally

And an emotional connection is key to bringing the house down with your presentation. Why?

An emotional connection:

- Endears you to your audience - Makes your presentation memorable - Inspires your audience to take action

By using a relevant story in your video presentation, you’ll ensure that your audience walks the entire journey with you from intro to outro.

6 PowerPoint Presentation tips to wow your audience

No business video guide is complete without PowerPoint, the staple software for business presentations.

Here are 6 golden rules to help you nail your next PowerPoint presentation and leave your audience crying for more:

1. Keep Things Simple

Legendary artist Leonardo da Vinci once said something profound:

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication".

With the plethora of apps and templates at your disposal, you will be tempted to complicate things. Don’t. Keep things simple.

Simple design. Simple colors. Simple story.

People get swamped and confused by complicated stuff but easily absorb and appreciate straightforward material.

2. Good visual contrast

What use is your blockbuster presentation if the audience can’t see it?

You want people to enjoy your presentation, not endure it. If you use dark fonts on dark backgrounds or light fonts on light backgrounds, you’ll strain your audience’s eyes. They’ll struggle to see your lovely slides.

Classic black-on-white color contrast does just fine. You can use colors like red, blue, or yellow for headings and images. If you don’t like black and white, you can use other colors you prefer as long as the contrast of your combination is bold and strong.

3. Use a few words and animations

It’s easy to go overboard with fancy animations and a gushing stream of words. Only use as many words as it takes to get your point across and no more.

Too many words cause the audience to read rather than listen. Remember, your slides are there to compliment your talk, not substitute it. Also, a lot of words will fill up many slides that wear your audience down.

Ruthlessly cut out senseless animations that don’t add value to your talk.

4. Use excellent images

Images are to a presentation, what water is to fish. Without them, your presentation becomes bland. It lacks the needed fizz to keep your audience hooked. But only include relevant images.

Not only that. Above all, make sure all pictures are of high quality. Amateur-looking clip art causes the audience not to take you seriously.

Pro-tip: Get access to millions of stock assets and tailor-made templates with InVideo for business. Sign up for a free demo here. 

5. Smooth and fast transitions

While PowerPoint transitions can make your presentation engaging, don’t overdo them, especially the advanced ones. Not only do they quickly drain power on weaker machines, but they also distract the audience. Stick to simpler and faster transitions like wipe or slide.

6. Avoid overloading your slides

In presentations, less is more.

Having a lot going on your screen confuses and overwhelms listeners.

Cramming too much info into your slides is a big no-no. Clutter is your enemy. Strip your slides down to essential words and images. Your audience will love you for it and leave you with many takeaways.

Pro looking Video Presentations – No longer an option

With Industry 4.0 fast coming into its own, going digital is no longer an option for businesses and speakers.

And one of the most important communication mediums in the digital age is video. That’s why you can’t afford to ignore video any more. Whether you’re speaking before a live audience or seeking to disseminate information to a global audience, video presentations are the way to go.

Need a great tool to create stunning video presentations? Then make sure to schedule a demo and see just how much you can do with InVideo for business. 

Let’s create superb videos

Home Blog Presentation Ideas Video Presentations: A Guide for Engaging Content

Video Presentations: A Guide for Engaging Content

In a time when the Millennials’ attention span can be measured as little as 12 seconds, how can we create genuinely engaging presentations? Is continuously changing slides the answer these days?

A skilled presenter has to master different techniques; therefore, we will examine the potential for video presentations. Join us to discover what video presentations are, the reasons why you should use them amongst your presentation tools, and exciting tips on how to drive engagement from them. 

Table of Contents

What video presentations are

Video presentation stats to consider, different types of video presentations, why should you use video presentations, what are the components of a winning video presentation, the role of accessibility: advanced research on video presentations, 5 tips on how to make your video presentations engaging.

• How to create a video presentation

Do you need special software to create video presentations?

Closing thoughts.

Presentations are a crucial part of business and academic environments. Thousands of presentations are delivered each day in different environments; still, many are doomed to fail. Although we can blame this on a lack of proper presentation skills , reality tells us there’s a change in how people prefer to see the content.

As a general rule, consider 10 minutes the Goldilocks Zone for traditional presentations in what comes to audience engagement . Inspirational presentations like the ones we see on TEDx don’t follow this rule, as the objective here is to share a compelling story as detailed as possible so the audience can relate. In some cases, academic presentations of the thesis defense style remain loyal to a specific format. Still, trends are also changing, and video presentations have much to offer in terms of exposing complex concepts more plainly.

A video presentation can be represented in multiple formats: as a compendium of animated slides in video format, video files and audio sources packed on a single video file, a video recording made in interview format, a video documentary, etc. Although this definition may sound redundant, the concept behind a video presentation is that they don’t require a presenter to change between slides or windows to browse different assets . Hence, the importance to create a story behind the video presentation, so the various elements don’t feel segregated without logic.

We can say people use the video format to convey information in courses, job training, edutainment, conferences, and any kind of message-sharing purpose that requires connecting with the audience for engagement.

Before dwelling on the specifics of building a video presentation, here we share some video presentation stats that speak about the importance of video presentations these days from a marketing perspective.

• Online search continues to be the most common way (45%) for users to find instructional and informational video content. ( source )
• The most commonly-created types of videos are explainer videos (72%) , presentation videos (49%), testimonial videos (48%), sales videos (42%), and video ads (42%). ( source )
• 57% of consumers said that product videos make them more confident in a purchase and less likely to return an item ( source )
• Millennials’ attention span can be measured as little as 12 seconds ( source )
• A minute of video is worth 1.8 million words in terms of information retention ( source )

As you can see, the effort of building a video presentation is well-paid in terms of consumption and content information retention from the audience.

Depending on the requirements of the presentation itself, we can classify video presentations as follows:

In-Company Video Presentations

These video presentations belong to the business and corporate world, but their purpose is to distribute information among coworkers or to coach the personnel for a specific requirement. In-company video presentations are used in workspace training, as part of internal recruitment processes, or other kinds of internal presentations.

In-company video presentations usually carry the company branding; they have restricted access for people outside the organization, so their distribution methods happen in meeting rooms dedicated to these purposes. 

Business Video Presentations

Business video presentations are used for a variety of business purposes: business pitches, workspace training, advertisement, product releases, recruitment, and more. Business video presentations also include the ones dedicated to  B2B or B2C relationships. 

Like In-Company Video Presentations, they carry branding to identify the video presentation’s author quickly. They are shared through official mediums for the company (like a brand’s social media channels and website), during corporate meetings with investors or potential business partners, and through 3rd. party channels.

Examples of these kinds of videos are product launch sessions, much like what tech giants like Xiaomi do.

Another kind of business video presentation is the explainer video. Explainer videos can be defined as short online marketing videos that are used to explain the company’s product or service. Explainer videos are commonly used for sales, marketing, and training purposes. Here is a real example of a 1-minute video presentation introducing SlideModel.com.

Another application of business video presentations is when sponsorship deals are involved, as brands can present their value to influencers through short reels.

Resume Video Presentations

This is a relatively recent but incredible turn of resume presentations. In resume video presentations , the candidate offers a detailed introduction of their capabilities, skills, interests, and potential value to the employer in a visually engaging format.

Unlike traditional CV presentations, the video format gives little room for anxiety, answering most of the interviewer’s questions or even driving admiration for the effort and dedication to this job-hunting adventure. 

We recommend the usage of resume presentation templates for this purpose, as they save tons of time in crafting a high-quality resume video presentation. 

Educational Video Presentations

This category can be divided into three different sub-categories:

Academic Video Presentations

Intended for University-level presentations or post-Doctorate work, these presentations follow strict format guidelines. They are mainly designed to distribute data comprehensively, with proper documentation backup. Animations usually don’t take part in these video presentations.

Despite being commonly associated with business events, conferences also belong to the academic video presentations category, as the live sessions are recorded to spread the message about important research discoveries. 

Teaching & Training Video Presentations

Teachers introduce the presentations to their students on various topics to understand abstract issues better. Chemistry, Physics, and Geography are typical examples of subjects that use video presentations. However, subjects like History and Philosophy can save countless hours of whiteboard sessions by using educational video presentations. 

Webinars fall under this category, either being released to the public or in-company webinars, as they share common aspects in their structure. Do keep in mind that educational content recorded as video presentations is not the same as a webinar, as the latter requires the presence of a live audience, a moderator, and usually a Q&A session at the end of it. If we talk about educational content being recorded and released as a course platform, then we can say it is a workshop.

According to recent studies, visualizations through video presentations and video-based learning can enhance understanding. It is demonstrated that students who watched learning videos on Statistics, influenced engagement and motivation positively .

Student Video Presentations

Finally, students also make video presentations as requested by their teachers to present a lesson or project exhibition. These presentations vary as the students grow older, becoming less dependent on animated effects, setting the bases for future work or academic presentation formats.

Informal Video Presentations

If you remember seeing videos in situations like 50th birthday parties, baptisms, wedding anniversaries, etc., then you have already experienced informal video presentations. 

These informal presentations are free from any format restriction. As the term implies, they are used for any kind of meetup, making it simpler to share a story rather than to tell a lengthy story.

Inspirational & Motivational Video Presentations

The final category belongs to the video presentations with a strong emotional component. They are built to connect, to empathize with the audience in specific situations or problems. Examples of this are TEDx , Evan Carmichael, or similar influencing platforms.

In general lines, motivational video presentations are recordings of live events shared with the purpose of getting the message to the biggest audience possible (internet consumers). Another possible format for these presentations is recorded interviews or testimonials intended to speak about a person’s contributions to society. An example of this, from an organization’s point of view, are the videos produced by the UK’s NHS to highlight and thank their medical personnel for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Inspirational video presentations share common aspects with motivational speeches. A list of requirements for these video presentations would be:

• Have a clear purpose
• Make it personal
• Get the message tailored for the target audience
• A strong conclusion

Compared with traditional presentation methods, such as presentation slides or speaking in front of an audience, video presentations can offer a series of advantages. 

For starters, as you write the “ story ,” you are also rehearsing the points to be covered. In that way, anxiety or shyness won’t trigger you to forget about essential points or lose track of time. The length of the presentation can be predetermined, depending on the external requirements of the organization party, or how comprehensive or concise you need it to be. 

In the case of people struggling with camera shyness , an animated video presentation with voiceover is the answer to deliver quality work. Since psychologists and doctors agree the common point on fear of public speaking is the delivery of the presentation itself, video presentations shall reduce work-induced anxiety to a great degree. Since psychologists and doctors agree the common point on fear of public speaking is the delivery of the presentation itself, video presentations shall reduce work-induced anxiety to a great degree. You can also convert images to video online using video editor platforms to easily create video from images and voiceover on video.

Video presentations can be persuasive thanks to the usage of graphics and audio. It is far easier to convey emotions through video presentations than to put them in the presentation design. Also, research by Dr. James McQuivey proved that a minute of video is worth 1.8 million words in terms of information retention.

Regarding engagement, the popularity that both TikTok and YouTube gained among the younger generations reflects the behavioral changes in content consumption . It has come to the point that even professionals use TikTok to demystify health hoaxes and help users worldwide. Therefore, using video format for presentations can help to boost your presentation performance, making it attractive for your audience and less effort-demanding. 

The most significant factor in delivering a successful video presentation is keeping the audience engaged. To ensure this, make sure the presentation doesn’t feel robotic-like but that it conveys a personal message. Don’t get this point wrong if we talk strictly about business or academic scenarios; making video presentations to deliver your personal touch can become as simple as selecting the proper color combination to enforce your message . Other solutions come from watching your voice tone not to make it too monotonous. 

Structure your presentation accordingly. In business or academic video presentations is a good idea to introduce a slide in the fashion of a table of contents . It is an extra touch that brings the audience closer to the topics due to be discussed. 

Consider the audience’s perspective as a vital element in video presentations. Check relevant examples of the topic discussed on platforms such as YouTube or DailyMotion. Compare their approach to yours and assert if you would watch your presentation as a spectator or not. This simple test gives insights into which aspects you should work on.

Winning video presentations never miss the usage of CTAs. It’s a good method to direct the audience’s interest to a specific goal.

Video presentations can become an incredible tool for driving engagement, yet there is a problem that not so many presenters address: accessibility. Think about how many times a presenter ends a phrase like “over here,” assuming the audience is watching the item being shown. But what if members of the target audience have visual impairments?

Much like we consider the importance of adding Closed Captioning (CC) to our videos, accessibility in terms of the narrative is a must. On this behalf, we want to introduce an interesting research that led to the production of a tool named Slidecho . Using state-of-the-art technology like video scene detection, AI, and OCR, Slideshow follows these very steps:

• Step 1: Extract slide frames
• Step 2: Selecting slide elements
• Step 3: Detecting described elements from the slide elements
• Step 4: Aligning slides with the speech

Therefore, Slidecho uses an algorithmic methodology to extract the visual elements from the slides, converting them to an audio reading format whilst aligning it with the original speaker’s narration. Moreover, its interface instantiates new interactions that augment the plain video interface with synchronized slide information and audio notifications to alert users to undescribed elements.

This technological advance helps the audience better understand what is being presented, regardless of the context of the presentation. Imagine an award ceremony where many references apply to visual cues. People with visual impairments get half of the message, with luck, when presenters fall into colloquial language usage, not understanding the context or having to ask for clarification. If instead, the synced narration is available, we then talk about making presentations available for everyone. This is an accurate definition of enriching an event experience.

If we talk about attending to the needs of people with hearing impairments, we have to consider the social factor as a motivator in presentations. It is a common mistake to leave slides filled with text and voiceover narration in the background providing detailed information. A study made by Stanford University speaks about the value of having the presenter’s face available through these slides, as it delivers both social cues plus helps users through lip reading. The human factor also reduces distractions since the audience must check the presenter’s input on written slides.

Tip #1 – Be mindful of the presentation topic

It’s not the same to create a presentation for a business audience as an inspirational presentation. The category of the presentation shall determine items like

• Background music
• Color theme
• Visual hierarchy
• Videos to include

Tip #2 – Limit the number of words to include

The whole idea behind the video presentation is to make a dynamic presentation, not having to pause every 5 seconds to allow the spectator to read.

Instead, use words to transmit powerful messages, such as quotes relevant to the presented topic, key information, or CTAs. Use the 7×7 rule: no slide should have more than 7 lines of text, and no sentence should have more than 7 words. 

Tip #3 – Voiceovers can become your best friends

The whole point behind a video presentation is not to create a boring one-person video speaking in front of the camera. Use voiceovers effectively to introduce charts, data feedback, etc., with your voice connecting the points of the entire presentation.

Be mindful of the tone. A monotonous or flat tone can divert attention and induce people to ignore your work. Your voice skills should articulate the importance of the point being discussed as well as your interest in it.

Tip #4 – The power of transitions

Adding suitable transitions and animations makes the presentation more engaging . However, this isn’t equal to adding countless effects. Less is more.

Ask a professional for guidance if you don’t have experience with animation effects. The transition can be part of the conversation, being subtle if the presentation is flowing between data sets or similar topics, or contrasting and powerful to deliver a persuasive message. You may also want to insert a transition when you’ve used a video cutter to remove an unwanted part to smooth out the video flow. Don’t abuse any of the two extremes, or the audience may find it uncomfortable.

Tip #5 – Make video presentations accessible

As we mentioned before, quite often presenters assume the audience can understand every part of a video presentation. Reality tells us to attend to the needs of people with visual and auditory impairments by making audio and video media accessible .

Subtitles or translator screen-over using sign language is a perfect opportunity to help people with auditory impairments feel part of the presentation, making the message available to them as well. 

For people with visual impairments, be mindful about how you create the narrative for your presentation, in particular, avoiding visual cues like: “over here,” “this,” and “there” and gesticulating over an object or person, assuming everyone can get the same reference information. Instead, opt to be descriptive in your speech; software solutions can help a great deal, but you can also use native PowerPoint or Google Slides tools such as voiceovers .

How to create a video presentation & recommended video presentation templates

You can create your own video presentations as easily as using Microsoft PowerPoint, Apple Keynotes, or Google Slides.

Check these links for relevant information on how to create a video presentation:

• How to Convert a Google Slides Presentation to a Video
• How to Convert a PowerPoint Presentation to a Video
• How to Embed a YouTube Video in PowerPoint

In case you feel stuck about which content to input or how to make your video presentation outstanding, a brainstorming technique can do wonders for interactive presentations and creative thinking. It is known as the SCAMPER technique .

Since video presentation templates make our life easier, we also recommend you check the following product categories to access extremely visually appealing designs created by professionals to help you deliver your message in style:

• Animated PowerPoint Templates
• Animated Text Banner Templates
• Academic PowerPoint Templates
• Business PowerPoint Templates
• Marketing PowerPoint Templates

Additionally, here you can preview some of our presentation templates that you can use to create a video presentation in PowerPoint.

1. Animated PowerPoint Charts Collection Template

Present data in a visually appealing format by using this collection of animated charts in PowerPoint. Fully customizable, this template brings ease to speak about data-driven presentations; hence becoming a vital asset for any presenter in the corporate world.

Use This Template

2. Animated Network Diagram PowerPoint Template

Simplify the different streams that take part in your project or product release with the help of this animated template design. This Animated Network Diagram template can help you expose the processes that, with integrated effort, evolve into a successful outcome. It has animations applied to the objects, plus transitions to make the presentation more fluid.

Fully editable with any version of PowerPoint.

3. Free Animated Editable Professional Infographics PowerPoint Template

Infographics are a powerful tool that every presenter must consider for their work. This Free Animated Infographics template allows presenters to communicate complex data pieces, build marketing strategies, or prepare professional-looking reports.

You can find a broad variety of charts and graphs. These are fully editable by using the chart filter option to edit on a spreadsheet.

4. Free Animated Editable Infographic PowerPoint Slides

If you intend to present financial data or KPIs for your marketing projects, look no further: this Free Animated Editable Infographic Template for PowerPoint has it all.

Arranged in an 8-slide deck, we find a compendium of graphic elements to represent complex data in a visually compelling manner. Fully editable in all versions of PowerPoint

5. Free Animated Business PowerPoint Template

This versatile free presentation template for PowerPoint makes the perfect tool for more than business presentations: it works perfectly for educational video presentations and even inspirational video presentations.

With 9 fully editable slides, you can build your video presentation by using a unique combination of graphic elements, animations, and transitions. The graphics elements on this template are oriented to highlight leadership concepts.

6. Free Animated Business Infographics PowerPoint Template

Use this free template to create powerful statements backed by data in your video presentations. With a broad selection of graphs, diagrams, and charts, this fully editable template can help presenters to discuss topics ranging from demographics, economy, marketing indicators, or other relevant research results in an easy-to-understand format.

Compatible with all versions of PowerPoint, Google Slides, and Keynote.

You also need to consider the output format of your video presentations. For maximum compatibility, you can use  MP4 or MOV. Other alternatives include:

• MKV : The native format of most 4K videos due to being able to store multiple audio tracks. Ideal for presentations with different voiceover languages that presenters can pick from.
• WMV : It’s a quality format for rendering videos to be shared via e-mail, although not compatible with some devices. Installing codecs is advised. 
• WebM : This format is one of the preferred choices for online video libraries or live streaming services, but it can present compatibility issues. 

The answer to this question entirely depends on your aim for creating video presentations. For most presenters, PowerPoint and Google Slides will do a good job, allowing them to use features such as voiceovers, transitions, animations, and high-quality graphics.

If instead, you desire to make advanced effects, screen recordings, or toon-like animations with voiceovers, then you should check the following list of solutions:

• Camtasia (Techsmith) : It is a professional video editing software, much lighter and easier to use than Adobe Premiere or Sony Vegas. You can create professional transition or animation effects, work with layers to add multiple sounds or video sources and create screen recordings.
• Adobe Premiere Pro : The industry-leading software in video editing. This often intimidating software by Adobe has all the requirements for professional video editing, plus full integration with third-party plugins or other software from the Adobe suite to enhance the video result.
• Sony Vegas Pro : It is considered a direct competitor to Adobe Premiere Pro, less demanding in hardware requirements, and somewhat more user-friendly.
• Final Cut Pro : For Mac users, this is the option to consider if we talk about video editing. Powerful and tailored for the hardware the Mac device has.

As we have seen in this article, video presentations are far from obsolete. It is a truly engaging method to divulge our ideas, especially if we target a younger audience. 

Take your time to write a compelling story to tell rather than spilling animations and transitions along the way. Professional-made video presentations always care about details and the takeaway message for the spectator. Alternatively, check our article about how to insert a video into PowerPoint .

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Presentation Videos, Video Filed under Presentation Ideas

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What is a video presentation?

Why is video presentation increasingly popular, presentations, videos, video presentation stats and numbers, different types of video presentations, what is a video presentation maker, how to make a video presentation using powerpoint, how to save a powerpoint presentation as a video, step by step guide on how to video record yourself presenting a powerpoint, how to create video presentations, video presentation templates:, video presentation ideas, video presentation tips, tips to create an engaging powerpoint video presentation, best presentation recorder in 2023, ultimate video presentations guide with tips & examples.

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best video presentation maker , how to create video presentation , how to record a powerpoint presentation with audio , powerpoint video presentation , video presentation , video presentation ideas , video presentation maker , video presentation tips , video presentation types , Video Presentations

Let’s all agree, presentations have been there for quite a period of time. Infact the first presentation program was launched way back in 1987 and was available only in Mac. Later Microsoft acquired it and rebranded it as Microsoft Powerpoint. Nowadays presentations are everywhere, be it in educational institutions, companies, organizations, and so many other places. As we evolved over the years, the importance of video also started to grow rapidly which has now lead to presentations take a new format which is Video presentations . 

In this blog, we’ll look at everything that you need to know about video presentations right from the definition to examples,presentation templates, and the best presentation video maker to create video presentations.

Here’s what we’ll be covering in this presentation video ultimate guide:

• Why video presentations are increasingly popular and effective 
• Video presentations stats 
• Types of video presentations
• What is a video presentation maker
• Video presentation template
• How to make a video presentation with PowerPoint
• How to create a personalized video presentation
• Powerpoint video presentation tips
• Best video presentation maker/Software 

A video presentation could be defined as a video in which multiple slides are used along with audio, video narration along with animation, images to communicate certain specific information with an audience in an engaging manner. 

Even after putting a lot of effort into static presentations to make them interactive and engaging there was always a problem of static presentations are lengthy and most cases boring failing to capture the audience’s attention. To give you a perspective, 79% of the audience feel most presentations to be boring.

This particular problem is solved with the usage of video presentations as the size of the duration of a video presentation is brought down drastically. Plus video presentations are easy to consume. Viewers can watch it at their pace and it doesn’t mandate all the stakeholders to be present in a physical or virtual place at the same time. 

• There are over 35 million PowerPoint presentations created every day and presented to an audience of 500 million people.
• 89% of people still use PowerPoint to create presentations out of which 43% say they don’t have an alternative.
• 87% of marketing people use video in their marketing efforts.
• 78% of people consume videos online in a week with 55% consuming videos every day.
• 70% of businesses are creating more videos in 2021 compared to 2020.
• 69% of people prefer to learn about a product through a video.
• Most people turn out of a PowerPoint presentation after 10 minutes. 

Presentation videos are now used for various use cases across different fields. Here is a list of seven different types of video presentations.

1. Sales presentation videos 

Sales video presentations or video prospecting involves sales folks giving a quick outline of what the company and product has to offer to their prospects. Another type of sales presentation video also includes sales enablement presentation videos done by Marketing teams to upskill sales folks for better selling. 

2. Educational presentation videos

Educational presentation videos involve lectures and courses taught by teachers in a live in-person or virtual classroom which are then converted into video lessons for anytime access. 

3. Employee training and development presentation videos 

Employee training and development presentation videos are an essential part of a new employee getting trained and used to the system in place. The training presentation being available in video form helps anyone to access them without any dependency enabling better productivity. 

4. Business planning and review presentation videos 

Business presentations are it planning, review, performance analysis could all be boring and time-consuming. Getting them done as a video version helps in getting key information to all the stakeholders involved. 

5. Fund Raising and Company Pitch presentation videos 

CEOs and founders look for VC funding to take their company to the big stage.  A great presentation video selling the core value proposition of the company and project growth in the upcoming years will help catch the eyes of the investors and land the required funding.

6. Product usage explanation and How to presentation videos

New customers generally require onboarding guidance which includes walkthroughs and how-to presentations. Videos for the same enables users to take a look at them and learn to use the product at their own pace without being overwhelmed.

7. Employee onboarding and orientation presentation videos 

Now with employee onboarding happening virtually, employee onboarding presentation videos are of much importance. Employees get to understand company culture, guidelines, roles, and responsibilities better and in a calmer manner through presentation videos. 

8. Promotional and Marketing presentation videos

Product promotion presentations are often used by Marketing teams in various fields and virtual events. A video presentation, especially an animated video presentation, comes in handy for promoting products. 

The common trend across all these different types of presentation videos is that all of them aren’t just one-time recording and usage but also could be used multiple times which brings down the resource requirements for all of the above use-cases. 

A video presentation maker or a video presentation software is an app that lets you create presentation videos by using existing presentation slides or by creating new presentation slides and then converting them into videos.

There are two types of video presentation software . One that lets you screen record existing presentations and the other one that lets you create presentations by using existing templates which users can customize by adding voice, videos, images, characters, animation, etc. 

Powerpoint being the most used presentation software for creating presentations we are going to look at how to make a video presentation using PowerPoint. There are multiple ways in which you can create a video out of your presentation and we have mentioned the same below. 

Different methods to save a Powerpoint presentation as a video

• Directly saving Powerpoint file as a video presentation 
• Using a screen recorder to record the presentation in slideshow mode
• Using a screen recorder to record the presentation in the slideshow mode with a webcam overlay 

Method one:

Microsoft enables you to directly save your PowerPoint presentation as a video. Once you’re done with your presentation you’ll have to select > File > Export > Video . You can also decide to save it at the video quality of your choice which ranges from 4K HD to 480P. But remember the videos aren’t uploaded to the cloud so the better resolution you choose, the bigger will be the video size. The default video format will be MP4 or WMV.

Few things to know while saving PowerPoint presentations using this method:

• Users can choose the time spent on each slide. By default, the time spent on each slide will be five seconds. So if your video is 20 slides and you choose the default five seconds per slide the PowerPoint presentation video will be of 100 secs.
• Alternatively, you can choose manual slide timing if you feel you need to narrate more/less in a few specific slides.
• You can decide to add narrations, audio, annotate on screen, clear annotations, record webcam as well. The webcam recording is however available only in Office 365.
• You can also upload it to Microsoft streams for quick access within your organization. 

Method two:

Alternatively, you can save the presentation in PowerPoint Show format(.ppsx) . This directly opens the presentation in a slideshow format for viewers. 

Using a screen recorder to record the presentation in slideshow mode 

Although Powerpoint lets you record presentations with narration and even video in some versions, it’s quite a complex process that takes a lot of time and effort. This is where PowerPoint screen recording tools come in handy. The PowerPoint recorders enable you to quickly and easily record your presentation, customize them based on your expectations, and share it with others. 

Here is a list of the Best PowerPoint screen recorders for you to choose the best tool. 

One of the best PowerPoint screen recorders is Vmaker as it’s completely free to record an unlimited number of recordings, and comes without any watermarks. Let's take a look on how to record PowerPoint presentations using Vmaker.

Here is a step by step guide on how to screen record PowerPoint presentations with audio

• Step 1: Sign up or Sign in to Vmaker and install the chrome extension .If you’re a Mac or Windows user, you can download and install the Vmaker's Screen Recorder for Mac or Vmaker's Screen Recorder for Windows .
• Step 2: Open the PowerPoint presentation that you want to record.
• Step 3: Launch the Vmaker app or chrome extension.
• Step 4: Choose screen recording mode with audio enabled and click on start recording to begin recording your presentation.
• Step 5: Add audio through narration, annotate screen, mute/unmute microphone, pause/resume recording as you wish.
• Step 6: Click on finish recording to complete your PowerPoint screen recording.
• Step 7: The video gets uploaded to the cloud in a few seconds irrespective of the video size. You can then edit, fine-tune, and then share it.

Adding a live webcam video to a PowerPoint presentation is also easier through Vmaker.

The steps and flow are pretty much the same with only the mode being different.

• Step 1: Sign up or Sign in to Vmaker and install the Mac application  
• Step 4: Choose screen plus webcam recording mode with audio enabled and click on start recording to begin recording your presentation.
• Step 6: Click on finish recording to complete your PowerPoint screen recording. 

Video guide on how to record PowerPoint presentation with audio and video

As mentioned earlier you can also create video presentations from scratch up by using online presentation makers. Online presentation makers enable you to create stunning video presentations by adding a range of things right from the text, audio, video, background, avatars, video screen recording , animations, transitions, effects, and much more. 

Users can decide either to start with a blank presentation or choose an existing template and start personalizing it based on their needs. 

Video presentation templates come in handy, especially for ones looking to create quick video presentations. You can choose any one of the templates based on your requirement and quickly edit the essential details to produce your video presentation.

Bonus: Screen Recording 101: Ultimate Resource Guide

Now that we have understood the importance of video presentations and learned how to create video presentations let’s take a look at some video presentation ideas and tips to create engaging video presentations.

Video presentations can further be enhanced by implementing certain ideas that will enable them to be engaging, seamless, and smooth for the audience. Here are some ideas that will help you create visually engaging video presentations.

• Give your first slide a powerful statement that resonates with your entire presentation video 

Use characters, images, and illustrations throughout your video presentation

Ensure all slides tell a story and connect with the powerful first statement , maintain similar font size consistently throughout the presentation videos.

• Use transitions and motion graphics to make your presentation visually appealing 

Ask Questions, polls, share quotes in between the video to keep viewers engaged

Conclude strongly proving or supporting your first statement, give a powerful statement that resonates with the video.

Keep the first slide of your presentation video short concise and to the point resonating with what is the key topic being covered in the video. In the example above you could see the video is about avoiding single-use plastics and that is clearly mentioned to set the tone for the video.

Using Animations, videos, images, illustrations adds value to the video presentation and helps convey the message clearly to the audience. In the above example, there is a video of a plastic bag flying to support the text given in the slide.

Ensure that the messaging in all slides of the video presentation connects with the message in the first slide. Here in this example, you can see that the slide talks about plastic taking a long time to break down which directly connects with the why you should avoid single-use plastics message in the first slide.

To offer a great visual experience for the viewers it is important to use fonts, colors, and text consistently in the video. Here in this sample presentation video, you could see font, text, spacing, amount of content, and color being uniform throughout offering a great visual experience for viewers.

Use transitions and motion graphics to make your presentation visually appealing

Transitions and motion graphics help while presenting the video presentation as the time in between helps the presenter prepare what to convey and also builds curiosity amongst the audience. In the example above you could see a wide range of transitions being available for usage on the video presentation. 

One of the major factors that differentiate a good and great PowerPoint presentation is how engaged the audience are throughout the presentation. Usage of stats, quotes, polls, questions in a video presentation enables the viewers to be engaged throughout the presentation. For instance, in this presentation video above the creator has used stats along with the right illustration which is a great hook in keeping the audience engaged.

The conclusion to a video presentation is as important as the first statement and it is important to finish the video presentation by supporting or proving what was conveyed in the first slide. In this reference, the creator has brilliantly made a powerful statement to support the need to avoid single-use plastic.

Following up on what we offered in the above section here are some tips to keep in mind while creating video presentations.

• Define the purpose of the video

Identify the target audience for the video

• Decide on the script, images, and illustrations for the video

Avoid using complex language and tone for the video 

Ensure you have a good video presentation maker for creating the video, avoid trying to convey too much of information in one go , make the intro and conclusion as powerful as possible, define the purpose of the presentation video.

Often ignored but the most important step in presentation video creation is the purpose definition stage. List out the key goals that you want to achieve by creating the presentation video and then pick up the most important goal that resonates with the video creation as your purpose. By defining the purpose of the video the next steps will be simplified. The purpose of the video will also automatically help in identifying the target audience of the video, brainstorming ideas for the video.

The target audience are the group of people who’ll potentially watch your videos once you publish them. Identifying and getting to know your audience enables you to decide on what exactly you’ll convey in the video, how you’ll convey the message, and not just that but also define the length of the presentation video.

Decide on the Script, Images, and Illustrations 

Write the script keeping in mind the purpose of the video and the target audience you are creating the video. Decide on the relevant images, videos, gifs, and illustrations to support the text on the script. By doing so early allows creators the time to make any changes to text based on the creatives and vice versa.

The sole purpose of PowerPoint presentations is to convey information in a simpler and meaningful manner. Using complex language, data and tone defeats the purpose. Keep the language simple, break down, visualize data as much as possible, and use a subtle tone throughout the presentation video.

Earlier presentation videos were being made using multiple tools which included a presentation tool, video editor, video hosting platforms. But now we have all-in-one video presentation makers that lets you do everything right from creating to sharing the video presentation. Ensure that you pick up the right PowerPoint video maker based on your video creation needs.

Here is an elaborate list of the best PowerPoint presentation makers for you to choose from.

The beauty of presentation videos is that you get to present them. So with that being the case adding too much stuff that you have to talk about as content on each slide doesn’t make any sense. Keep the content less and break down the information to be conveyed based on each slide so that you don’t end up sharing too much information in one particular slide alone.

The opening and closing slides of your video presentation hold the key to making an impact. Make the intro and conclusion as powerful as possible by interconnecting them. By doing so anyone watching the video presentation will have a takeaway from the presentation which creates a lasting impression.

Here are a few tips specifically for creating PowerPoint video presentations. The below tips are tailored to help you improve your PowerPoint video creation. 

• Decide on the font, color, and text content in each slide 
• Keep the content in each slide as short as possible 
• Support your content in each slide with powerful illustrations and data

Use transitions and effects but ensure that they’re not overused

Use high-quality images that are rich .

• Visualize charts, graphs, tables and add color to them 

Decide on the font, color, and text content in each slide

The minor details like font, sizing, color, and the volume of content in each slide play a key role in video presentations. Define the fonts and the size of the fonts that will be used in the presentation. Ensure that the amount of content on each slide is uniform. Making sure small details like this are looked into aids in the creation of the best PowerPoint video presentations. 

Keep the content as short as possible

Ensure that there is a lot of empty space in the slide and the content is kept minimum. This ensures a pleasant viewing experience when the presentation is converted into a video. As there will be narration in video presentations the explanation can be done over voice rather than adding texts in the PowerPoint slides.

Support your content with powerful illustrations and data

Adding illustrations and highlighting key data will help in engaging your audience as they’ll be paying key attention to what is being presented. Illustrations also enable you to offer a visually engaging video presentation keeping your audience engaged and hooked.

Using the built-in transitions and animations in Powerpoint is the quickest and easiest way to add an extra dimension to your presentation. Smartly ensure that you use the animations and transitions effectively so that it adds to the quality of your presentation. Also, overusing them by making excessive use of it in every slide will make the presentation look clumsy.

It’s important to have images across the presentation and the usage of images adds immense value to the presentation. Also, it is key to use high-quality ones as the usage of not-so-great ones really brings down the quality of video presentations.

Visualize charts, graphs, tables and add color to them

Using charts, tables and graphs helps the audience visualize data better. The video viewers can easily resonate with the insights shared in the narration with the visuals available on the video. Powerpoint comes with a built-in data visualization feature that enables you to create charts, graphs, tables with ease and convert them into videos.

Here is our list of the five best PowerPoint recorders for creating video presentations mainly using screen recording.  

• Vmaker 
• Panapto 
• Techsmith Camtasia 
• Ispring 

If you’re looking to create video presentations by using templates, animations, characters, transitions, voiceovers, images, etc then the best option would be Animaker Deck . Animaker deck is a free avatar-powered presentation video maker. 

This guide should have given you a comprehensive idea about presentation videos, the different types of presentation videos, and how to go about it in terms of planning, creation, and sharing. Do check out and start using Vmaker presentation video maker and create stunning presentation videos with ease. 

If you enjoyed reading the above article, then here are a few more cherry-picked articles you might be interested in reading further!

The Ultimate Guide to Create an Instructional Video Without a Script

A Complete Guide On Product Videos ~ Definition, Types and Tips

Ultimate How-to Video Guide with Examples, Tips, and Ideas

Step by Step Guide: How to record Skype calls

How to screen record on Mac with audio

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How to make a show-stopping video presentation in 5 simple steps

Learn how to make a show-stopping video presentation to engage your audience, using Dropbox Capture to record your screen, voice, and camera simultaneously.

Whether you’re a teacher, student, business professional, or even a YouTube content creator—for many of us, delivering presentations quickly becomes a standard part of everyday life.

But what happens if you can’t be there to deliver your presentation in person, need a key point to land perfectly, or you need your audience to watch it asynchronously in their own time? Have no fear, video presentations can be a great solution to all these challenges.

In this guide, we’ll cover everything there is to know about creating your own high quality video presentations, so your audience can benefit from your content whenever they need it.

Jump to section

• What is a video presentation

What makes a good presentation video?

What tools do you need to make a video presentation, how to make a video presentation.

• Making a video presentation in PowerPoint
• Making a video presentation in Keynote

Starting from the top: What is a video presentation?

A video presentation is a method of communication through which information is delivered partially or entirely through video. In other words, it’s the process of using video to deliver a message or presentation.

Common formats for video presentations might include pre-recorded slide presentations, instructional videos, sales material, inspirational talks, entertainment, or anything you can think of.

While the reaction to a video presentation will be subjective, there are a few general qualities that can be beneficial to keep in mind:

• Make your video valuable —have a clear intended outcome for the viewer and be sure to reach it
• Make sure your audio and video are clear —you want your audience to focus on your message, not your video quality
• Bring your key points to life —use stories, questions, and examples to illustrate key concepts and engage viewers
• Establish expectations —use your introduction to set clear expectations, either with an agenda or teasing where the session is heading
• Don’t rely on slides —if the slides added all the value, you could just send your audience a PDF. Ask yourself: what are you adding to the content by presenting it?
• Keep an eye on time —don’t make your video presentation longer than it needs to be.
• Mix it up —break the monotony and change pace at appropriate intervals
• Don’t start over for the sake of perfection —if you make a mistake during recording, you can always edit it out later

Before you can start creating your own video presentations, you’ll first need a few basic tools.

Hardware for a video presentation

Let’s start with the basics, your tech. In most cases, you’ll have everything you need if you have a standard laptop or desktop computer.

Here’s what you’ll need to start making video presentations:

• A laptop or PC —you’ll need something to make the presentation recording on
• A microphone —to record your voice-over, either built-in or USB
• A camera —if you want to include video of yourself, either as a built-in webcam or a USB camera

Video recording software

With your tech set up, you’ll need software to record your presentation. Depending on your needs, this might be something to record your screen, record your voice, or record yourself with your camera.

With Dropbox Capture , you can do all three at the same time .

Dropbox Capture is video and screen recording technology, designed to make it easy to quickly capture whatever you need. All without needing advanced editing skills or specialist equipment.

With Capture, it’s easy to:

• Record your screen, webcam, and microphone simultaneously
• Create GIFs
• Draw on or annotate recordings
• Automatically generate closed captions
• Share in just a few clicks

While presentation applications like PowerPoint and Keynote have some built-in screen and presentation recording capabilities, they only allow you to record the presentation.

Whereas with Dropbox Capture, you’re free to jump between windows and applications throughout your presentation recording—giving you greater freedom on what you present. 

File storage and sharing tools

Ultimately, you’re going to want to make your video presentation available for viewers somewhere.

With Dropbox cloud storage , this is as easy as copying a link , with full control over access and permissions for your files.

We’ll now cover all the steps to create an impactful video presentation, starting from the very beginning—your plan.

1. Plan your topic, examples, and intended audience

You likely already have an idea of what you’ll want to cover in your video presentation, but it can help to formally get this down on paper:

• Presentation aim —what do you want your audience to understand by the end of the video?
• Approach —broadly, what will you cover to help them understand this concept?
• Resources —what examples will you be able to share to illustrate the key concepts?

To help with the planning process, Dropbox Paper has a number of pre-built templates to get your creative juices flowing, like the brainstorming template .

2. Create your presentation slides and your video presentation storyboard

If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to create your slides.

While doing this, you should also think about the overall storyboard of your video presentation—what are the key beats, how will you present them, and what slides do you need?

A storyboard is a visual tool, used by video producers to map out the narrative flow of a video and the visuals that will accompany it. In many cases, your presentation will almost act as a storyboard, but it might help to get this down on paper first.

You can learn more about the storyboarding process in our in-depth guide to storyboards .

3. Record your video presentation

With your storyboard and presentation ready, it’s time to go about creating your recording.

You can record your screen first, then later record a voice-over or video narration and edit the two together. Or with Dropbox Capture , you can record your screen, webcam, and microphone simultaneously. Using Dropbox Capture makes it easy to create your pre-recorded video lesson in one take. Perfect, if you don’t have access to advanced video editing software.

To record with Dropbox Capture , it’s a simple as the following steps:

• Open Dropbox Capture
• Click Screen recording & camera
• Choose which part of your screen you’d like to capture
• Click the Record icon to start recording, click it again to stop recording
• Click the Pause icon in the side panel while recording to pause or resume recording
• Click the Draw icon in the side panel while recording to draw on your recording

4. Edit your video presentation

If you’re already happy with your recording, there is no further editing required.

In any other cases, you can use video editing software to apply finishing touches to your video as you see fit. These edits might include:

• Editing your screen recording and voice-over together (if you have separate files)—with Dropbox Capture you can record your microphone and camera simultaneously, without the need to use editing software
• Cut and delete unwanted sections of video—like an awkward pause or a dog barking, with Dropbox Capture you can do this directly within the app, no editing software required!
• Remove awkward filler words—clean up those pesky “ums” and “ahs”, with Dropbox Capture you can do this automatically, directly in the app
• Adding text overlays to emphasize key points of video sections
• Additional flair and visual elements
• Adding background music to create an atmosphere

5. Share your video presentation

With your video presentation finished, you’ll need a way for your viewers to access it.

If you're using Dropbox Capture, sharing your presentation couldn’t be easier, simply click the Share button and the sharing link will automatically copy to your clipboard.

If you’re not using Capture, Dropbox cloud storage makes it easy to share your video files with anyone and see who’s viewed your video presentation. All you need to do is copy a link to the file.

If you want to send a copy of the full video, complete with its cumbersome file size, Dropbox Transfer makes it easy to send large files securely. 

How to record a video presentation in PowerPoint

It’s worth keeping in mind that, when recording directly within PowerPoint, you can only record your slides and your editing options will be limited. The best way to give yourself complete control over what you record—and how you edit it afterwards—is with a purpose-built screen recording app like Dropbox Capture .

If you’d still prefer to record directly in PowerPoint, you can do this by following these steps:

• Open PowerPoint and open your presentation file
• Navigate to the slide you’d like to start recording from
• Select Record in the top-right corner of the PowerPoint window
• Click the red Record button, wait for the countdown, then start your presentation

With your presentation recorded, you can then save it to your Dropbox cloud storage , making it easy to share your video files with anyone and see who’s viewed your video presentation.

How to record a video presentation in Keynote

If you’re a Mac user and would prefer to record directly in Keynote, here’s how to do it:

• Open Keynote and open your presentation file
• Select Record Slideshow from the Play menu at the top of the screen

With your Keynote presentation recorded, you can then save it to your Dropbox cloud storage and share it simply by copying the link.

Again, your control over what you record and how the final edit turns out will be limited when recording directly within the Keynote app. To give yourself complete control over how your video presentation turns out, a purpose-built screen recording app like Dropbox Capture will be more suitable.

Elevate your video presentations with Dropbox Capture

It’s never been so simple to create an engaging and memorable video presentation, with Dropbox.

With Dropbox Capture , it’s never been easier to get your message across with video recordings of your presentations. So you can clearly say what you mean and nail the delivery, every single time.

Capture your audience’s attention.

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How to Make a Video Presentation With Audio in 8 Steps

Written by: Orana Velarde

Wondering how to make a video presentation with audio?

You're in the right place.

In this guide, we’ll cover the 8 steps to creating video presentations with voiceovers, pictures and music. We've also included tips for powerful presentations to help you get maximum results.

Here’s a short selection of 8 interactive presentation templates you can edit, share and download with Visme. View more templates below:

Jump to your desired section in the table of contents below.

8 Steps to Creating a Video Presentation

What is a video presentation, what makes a good video presentation, step #1: plan and strategize, step #2: organize your content, step #3: log in to visme and choose a template, step #4: input your content into the slides, step #5: add animations and transitions, step #6: add audio to your presentation, step #7: review and edit, step #8: download and share.

A video presentation is a presentation that can be shared and viewed as a video. Technically, for a presentation to be a video presentation, it must be an MP4 or MOV file type.

A video presentation can be shared online on YouTube, Vimeo and other social media platforms . The best part of a video presentation with audio is that you can share it widely without the need of being there to present the information in person.

Even a live presentation can be improved with a video slideshow. Simply give a live introduction during your webinar or summit, and then play your video presentation to the audience.

A video presentation becomes even more valuable and high-quality when you add audio to it. For example, adding a music clip or a narrated voiceover can do wonders to help you get your message across and leave a lasting impact.

Check out this "2021 Year in Review" video presentation we created at Visme.

Made with Visme Presentation Maker

Make your own video presentation in Visme! Create Now

A good video presentation will capture your audience’s attention until the very end.

When it comes to creating a video presentation, there is no definite checklist as to what constitutes a good video presentation. But there are some things you can do to make sure that yours is good enough to keep the viewer engaged.

For example:

• Think of your presentation as a video from the very beginning.
• Take the time to create an outline or storyboard of your slides.
• Make sure the information flows from one slide, or scene, to another.
• Preview your presentation as you put it together, making sure it flows well.
• Add animations and motion graphics only if they bring visual value.
• Stay balanced with animations and transitions throughout the scenes.
• Tell a story to improve content retention.

Using the tips above, you’re well on your way to creating a video presentation that is sure to make an impact.

Ready? Let’s get started with a step-by-step tutorial!

If you prefer watching over reading, here's a short video tutorial on how to create engaging presentations in Visme.

For any successful project to be a success, including your new video presentation, you must plan and strategize. You and your team need to know the purpose of the video presentation before you even start putting together content or visuals.

Because you need to know the reason, the why, behind the project. That way, the creation process will reflect those goals and take you in the right direction faster.

For example, if you want to create an explainer video about your new product line, do you want the goal to be brand awareness or sales, or both?

If it’s sales, then the messaging and visuals must be created for that purpose. If it’s awareness, then you can take a different approach at how to portray the new product line.

If you want both, then you can do a bit of both and tell a story about the product that explains how it’s made and how it will improve your customers' lives.

Hey marketers! Need to create scroll-stopping visual content fast?

• Transform your visual content with Visme’s easy-to-use content creation platform
• Produce beautiful, effective marketing content quickly even without an extensive design skillset
• Inspire your sales team to create their own content with branded templates for easy customization

Sign up. It’s free.

Questions to ask before you create a video presentation.

Here are the most important questions to ask yourself and your team before you create a video presentation:

• Why do you need a video presentation?
• Who will watch this video presentation and where?
• What are you planning to convey?
• What story are you telling?
• Who do you want to convince, of what?
• How would you like the audience to feel when seeing your video presentation?
• Will it be in-house and private or public for the world to see?
• How can your company or brand sound like an expert in the topic?
• Do you want the audience to engage when they are done watching?
• Do you need a voiceover or maybe a music track will be enough?
• Is it necessary to hire voice talent or maybe a presenter you can film?
• Will you need to write a video script or not?

Write down a list of goals for your video presentation and make sure they are on-hand during every step of the process. Use these goal-setting worksheets and templates to get started.

Every person involved in the creation of the video needs to know about the purpose, goal and plan at all times — from stakeholders and designers to content creators, marketers and social media managers.

Here's a sample plan template you can use to keep up with your project goals, target audience, tactics and more. Share it with your team to help everyone stay on the same page.

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

Now that your team is on board and you know the purpose of your video presentation, it’s time to get organized.

This is a step with more value than you can imagine. In fact, it should be an un-skippable step to every visual project you create, along with the first step of planning and strategizing.

Start by organizing all the content for the presentation into a folder on your desktop. Include all the graphics, photos, video clips, audio bites and any brand assets. Create a document with all the written content and make notes on what the audio will be.

• For a voiceover, draft a script.
• For music, choose the perfect track.

Altnertiavely you can work smarter by using AI voice generator for your voiceovers or use Visme AI writer to craft a script if you're pressed for time.

With the written content, draft a simple outline or storyboard. For a video presentation, in particular, you should try a storyboard.

This step is especially important if you have stakeholders invested in seeing the final product and want to see the process.

How to create a storyboard in Visme.

It's easy! Use one of the Visme storyboard templates to put one together.

Remember, storyboards don’t need to be too detailed. The purpose of making one is to give an idea of what will be created. Don’t invest too much time in trying to perfect it.

Here are some templates to get you started.

Microwave Lunch TVC Storyboard

Web Development Storyboard

Tree Plantation Program Storyboard

Real Estate Business Customer Journey Storyboard

Art Therapy Storyboard

Mobile App Pros and Cons Storyboard

Create your storyboard View more templates

It’ll be easier to create a storyboard once you’ve already created the outline. The slide layout for a video presentation is much like the layout of a regular presentation.

For example, here is a broad outline for a regular presentation with sections:

• Slide1: Title and Subtitle
• Slide 2: Introduction - Table of Contents
• Slides 3: Section 1 Title
• Slides 4-7: Section 1 content
• Slide 8: Section 2 Title
• Slide 9-11: Section 2 content
• Slide 12: Summary or Review
• Slide 13: Conclusion and Closing

If your presentation doesn’t have defined sections to separate the content in, choose a good flow from one slide to another . For example:

• Chronological Order
• Problem and Solution
• Before and After
• Hero’s Journey progression

Browse presentation templates in Visme! Create Now

Now that you have a good idea of the purpose of your video, an outline or even a storyboard, it’s time to put it all together.

Log in to your Visme account and select a starting point for your video presentation. This could be:

• One of the four presentation themes with hundreds of slides and layouts to mix and match.
• A full-scale pre-designed presentation template with animation effects.
• One of our animated video templates.
• A previously created and imported PowerPoint presentation.
• An existing Visme slideshow without animation, video or audio.

Use your outline or storyboard to set up your slide order in the editor. Make sure you have all the slides you need to fit your content.

Now, it’s time to add the content to your slides. If you are starting with a blank canvas, you can use content blocks to help you layout the content in balanced compositions.

When adding the content to your slides, remember that people don’t want to read slides on videos. Keep the text to a minimum and use more visuals instead.

If you’ll be using a voice over for the online video presentation, then you’ll need hardly any text on the slides apart from titles and section titles.

For complementary visuals like images and backgrounds, look through the library on the left side menu of your editor. It’s also likely that you have a selection of images from your company that you want to use in your slides. Upload them to your library.

Add some uniqueness to your images by placing them inside frames or cropping them to fit next to colored shapes and sections.

For backgrounds, you have lots of choices — from full colors to gradients to animated and video backgrounds. Try photographs with filters for a subtle background that doesn’t compete with the foreground elements.

You can also add videos inside your video presentation, either uploaded or with a link to YouTube, Vimeo or Wistia. We suggest you use short videos in this case so that your final project isn’t excessively long.

Do you know how to make a video presentation that is impactful and fun to watch?

Just add animations and moving elements!

Visme comes with built-in with the following animated assets:

• Animated icons
• Shapes and lines
• Animated illustrations
• Animated characters
• Special effects
• Animated gestures
• Animated charts and data widgets

It’s time to bring it all to life and go from regular static presentation to video presentation.

At this point, you might already have some animated elements in your slides, maybe some animated icons or animated characters. Before you go ahead and animate anything else, review all the transitions between slides.

It’s important to understand that the animated elements, embedded or background videos, and audio you use must all match the transition between slides.

This is the magic sauce for transforming a normal presentation into a video presentation.

Let’s look at all the animation and transition options in your Visme dashboard and how you can use them to your advantage.

Animated characters, icons, illustrations and special effects.

All these elements have options to select the number of repetitions of their action and the speed. The higher number of repetitions you choose, the longer it will take to finish its action. The speed will make the action faster or slower. You can toggle both to find the perfect combination.

The completed action of any of these animated elements will override a timed transition. The transition will wait until the animation is finished to go ahead and start. You can adjust the final length of your animated elements by previewing your slide and taking note of its length.

Additionally, you can customize the poses that the characters portray and also the color of their clothes and skin. These deep customization options will help you stay on brand when creating your video presentations.

Stock videos and video backgrounds.

Videos you add from the editor or import from your computer have the option to trim to a desired length, loop or autoplay.

Alternatively, use video as a background. Stretch it to fit the entire slide and position it behind all the other content. The edit settings are the same as a regular video.

Visme offers a large selection of quality video clips to use as backgrounds or as complementary visuals. it's also easy to upload your own video to the library.

Animated backgrounds.

These loop on their own and are ruled by the transition settings. Animated backgrounds stand out so make sure you are keeping a balance with the elements in the foreground.

Manual animations.

Animations can be added to everything on your slide, including the videos and animated icons. You can tweak the settings to control when elements enter and exit the slide.

There are lots of options for these animations and you can time them using the animation settings. Try to keep animations on the same slide to a minimum so they're not distracting.

Smooth transitions.

Transitions can be added slide by slide or to the entire presentation at once. If you don’t go into the transitions menu at all, Visme will apply a staggered enter from the side that already looks great for presentations that you have to click on to continue to the next slide.

For video presentations, you’ll need to edit your transitions to happen automatically according to what is going on in your slide.

In general, you can make the transition happen after a specific number of seconds but if you have an animated element or audio clip that lasts longer, the transition won’t happen until the longest one has finished its action.

For slides with added video, make the transition happen either when the video ends or at a calculated time after the video has ended. Both are available options in the transition settings.

Transitions can be set in different styles, slide from the side top or bottom, or a simple fade or zoom. For a balanced composition, use the same style of transition throughout.

But if you want to get creative, use different transitions to design a more creative flow. Just make sure you don’t go overboard.

In the section above, we already talked a little about how audio works together with the transitions for a seamless video experience.

Now, let’s take a look at how to add audio inside Visme.

As you work on your video presentation, you might feel the need to work on animations, transitions and audio at the same time so that it all fits together in the best way possible.

To add audio to your presentation in Visme, you have several options:

Adding audio in the background.

Adding audio to each slide., tweaking the audio inside video clips., adding a voice over or narration..

To add a background sound clip, click on the top-left hamburger menu and select “Publish Settings”. This is where you can tweak your project's main settings. Click on the third tab "Sound."

Toggle background music on to release a dropdown that shows the options inside the editor or any .mp3 file you’ve added to your library.

Adjust the volume of this clip and choose if it will loop, fade in or fade out. You can also choose if the background audio will play at a specific point in time.

Any background audio will play under all other audio or video you add to the presentation. So make sure these are balanced and make sense together.

Inside the editor, you have the option of adding individual audio clips to each slide.

Choose from any inside the editor or upload your own. You’ll have the option to trim the length of the audio, its volume and if it loops or fades in and out.

Similar to the background audio, you can choose to start at a specific time during that slide’s progression.

When you add a video file that has audio in it, you can choose to keep the audio or turn it off. The option is inside the video settings in the “muted” tab.

You can add voiceovers to your video presentation in three different ways;

• A track in the background
• An imported clip to each slide
• Recorded over every slide using the Visme voiceover recording feature

Whichever you choose, remember to calculate all the play lengths along with the transitions so that everything flows well.

Now it’s time to review everything and make sure it’s perfect.

First up, do some proofreading of your text to fix any typos or grammatical issues. Make sure all the text is in the correct font and size to stay on brand and maintain a visual hierarchy.

Use the Present button and watch the entire video presentation from start to finish. Take notes along the way of things you notice that need a fix or edit.

If you want to see what the final project will look like to your audience, download a video version and watch it on your video player. Once again, take note of any necessary edits.

You’re done! That was easy, wasn’t it?

It’s time to share your video presentation with its intended audience. Click on the download button and select the MP4 file option.

If your video is especially long or full of features, it will take a bit longer to download. We’ll send you an email when it’s ready so you don’t have to watch the progress bar.

Go get a coffee or take a break for a job well done!

Once downloaded, upload your video to YouTube, Facebook or any of your favorite social media platforms.

If you created the video as part of a larger Visme project, upload it back into your editor. Use your video as part of an interactive report, or for your website, landing pages or email campaigns.

Ready to Create Your Video Presentation with Audio?

Are you ready to create your video presentation with audio? Visme offers all you need to create professional-looking video presentations with audio for any purpose and industry.

With plenty of ready-made presentation templates , you don't need video editing experience. And, since Visme is a web-based app, it doesn't matter if you use a Mac or PC computer.

Video presentations with audio are great for projects like:

• Annual reports
• Explainer videos
• Sales pitches
• E-learning courses
• Pitch decks
• Informational reports
• Advertising
• Explanations
• School reports
• Medical reports

If you’re still doubting if you know how to make a video presentation, just remember to follow the steps in this guide and use the tips in the first section to guide you through the process.

Don’t forget that the ultimate goal for your video presentation with audio is to leave a powerful, lasting impact on your audience.

Sign up for our presentation software and get started right away. Make simple video presentations or rich, interactive and memorable video presentations with audio, animations, characters, links, embedded content and other exclusive features.

Create beautiful presentations faster with Visme.

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About the Author

Orana is a multi-faceted creative. She is a content writer, artist, and designer. She travels the world with her family and is currently in Istanbul. Find out more about her work at oranavelarde.com

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Everything you need to know about multimedia presentations

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

Anete Ezera May 25, 2023

Crafting a well-executed multimedia presentation can be the determining factor between success and failure when delivering presentations. The impact of a multimedia presentation is undeniable, but what exactly does it entail, and what are the essential considerations to keep in mind when creating one?

In this article, we’ll explore the key components involved in creating compelling multimedia presentations and delve into the strategies that can help you assemble these elements to craft the perfect presentation. We’ll discuss the importance of content structure, visual design, and engaging storytelling techniques that capture your audience’s attention and leave a lasting impact. Additionally, we’ll provide insights on leveraging Prezi’s features to enhance your multimedia presentations, making them more dynamic and interactive.

What is a multimedia presentation?

A multimedia presentation is a computer-based presentation that uses various forms of media to effectively communicate and engage an audience. In today’s fast-paced world, multimedia presentations have emerged as one of the most powerful and impactful means of communication. Complex ideas and information can be challenging to convey using only traditional tools. However, by harnessing the potential of visually engaging images, high-quality audio clips, and captivating video content, you can deliver a wealth of information that isn’t only clear, but also interesting, easy to understand, contextual, detailed, and engaging.

To facilitate the creation of multimedia presentations, Prezi offers a user-friendly and intuitive platform that empowers presenters to transform their ideas into attention-grabbing visual stories that move. One of the standout features of Prezi is its dynamic zooming capability. With this feature, presenters can seamlessly navigate between various levels of content, zooming in to emphasize critical details and zooming out to provide a comprehensive overview. This interactive zooming functionality not only adds visual interest to your presentation but also enables you to guide your audience’s focus and create a fluid and engaging storytelling experience. Furthermore, the presentation canvas allows for more creativity and freedom as you don’t need to be limited by the traditional slide-based presentation format. 

The psychology of multimedia

Multimedia presentations are not just about what you say but also how you make your audience feel and remember. Let’s discover how colors, visuals, and sounds can influence your audience’s perception and memory retention.

Color psychology

Colors evoke emotions and convey messages. For instance, red can signal urgency and passion, while blue suggests trust and calmness. Choose your color palette wisely to align with the emotions you want to portray to your audience.

Visual impact

Visuals are your secret weapon. The brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than text. Use attention-grabbing images and graphics that resonate with your message. For example, if you’re presenting about eco-friendly initiatives, images of lush forests and clear skies can speak volumes.

Soundscapes

Sound can set the mood and reinforce key points. Think about the background music in movies – it enhances the overall emotional impact of a scene. In your presentation, use background music or sound effects thoughtfully to complement your content.

Memory retention

Did you know that people tend to remember only about 10% of what they hear after three days? However, if you pair that information with relevant visuals, retention jumps to 65%. Craft your multimedia presentation with this in mind; use visuals to reinforce your message for better recall.

Incorporate these psychological cues effectively, and your multimedia presentation will not only capture attention but also leave a lasting imprint on your audience’s memory.

Which elements can be included in a multimedia presentation?

Multimedia presentations have come a long way from the relatively simplistic options of the past. Now a whole range of different elements can be used to ensure your stand-alone presentation wows your intended audience. Some of the examples of what you can add to your multimedia presentations include:

• Slides: Slides are the backbone of most multimedia presentations. They consist of visual elements like text, images, graphs, and charts. Slides help you organize information and guide your audience through your presentation. For example, in a business pitch, slides can showcase product images, market data, and key points.
• Videos: Videos add motion and life to your presentation. You can use them to demonstrate processes, showcase testimonials, or provide visual explanations. In an educational setting, a biology lecture might include videos of animal behaviors or experiments.
• Audio clips: Audio clips can range from background music to voiceovers. They enhance the auditory experience of your presentation. In a travel presentation, you might include the sounds of waves crashing on a beach to create a more immersive feel.
• Animations: Animations breathe life into static content. They can illustrate processes, emphasize key points, or add a touch of humor. In a marketing presentation, animations can show how a product evolves or highlight its unique features.
• Music: Music sets the mood and tone of your presentation. It can create excitement, relaxation, or suspense. In a fashion show presentation, music may compliment the models’ walk down the runway, enhancing the overall experience.
• Images: Images are powerful visual aids. They can create certain emotions, provide context, and simplify complex ideas. In a history lecture, images of historical events and figures help students visualize the past.
• Text: Text is one of the most crucial parts of your content. It provides information, explanations, and key points. In a scientific presentation, text can explain research findings or provide definitions of complex terms.
• Podcasts: Podcasts are audio presentations that offer in-depth discussions or storytelling. They are excellent for sharing interviews, discussions, or storytelling. In a business conference, you might use a podcast-style presentation to share insights from industry experts.
• Pop-ups: Pop-ups are interactive elements that can surprise and excite your audience. They can include clickable links, additional information, or even mini-quizzes. In an e-learning module, pop-ups can provide learners with instant feedback on their progress.

For any professional who wants to stand out from the crowd with multimedia presentations that truly dazzle and inspire, Prezi’s multimedia platform brings you everything you need.

Choosing the right multimedia for your presentation subject

When creating a multimedia presentation, it’s crucial to select the appropriate multimedia elements that align with your presentation subject. By choosing the right multimedia, you can effectively convey your message, enhance understanding, and captivate your audience. Consider the following factors when selecting multimedia for your presentation:

Content relevance: does it fit your message?

Evaluate the relevance of each multimedia element to your presentation subject. Determine how each element contributes to the overall message and supports your key points. Choose multimedia that directly relates to your topic and enhances the understanding and engagement of your audience.

Visual impact: how visually appealing is it?

Visual elements play a significant role in multimedia presentations. Assess the visual impact of different multimedia options such as images, videos, and animations. Opt for high-quality visuals that are visually appealing, clear, and reinforce your message. Balance aesthetics with substance to maintain a professional and engaging presentation.

Audio enhancement: does it complement your content?

Determine if your presentation would benefit from audio elements such as background music, sound effects, or voiceovers. Audio can evoke emotions, set the mood, and reinforce key points. However, use audio sparingly and ensure it complements your content rather than overpowering it.

Data visualization: can it simplify complex data?

If your presentation involves data or statistics, explore options for effective data visualization. Choose charts, graphs, or maps that you can find on Prezi and incorporate those into your presentation. These elements will help you present complex information in a clear and digestible format. Visualizing data will also help your audience grasp the main points quickly and facilitate better comprehension. 

Multimedia integration: do all elements work together?

Aim for a cohesive and seamless integration of multimedia elements into your presentation. Ensure that different multimedia components blend well together and create a unified visual and auditory experience. Avoid using too many diverse multimedia elements that may distract or overwhelm your audience.

Accessibility considerations: is it accessible to everyone?

Keep accessibility in mind when selecting multimedia elements. Ensure that any visual or audio content you include is accessible to individuals with disabilities. Provide captions or transcripts for videos and ensure that any audio content is accompanied by text summaries. Consider the needs of all your audience members to ensure an inclusive and engaging presentation.

Technical feasibility: will it work smoothly during your presentation?

Assess the technical feasibility of incorporating various multimedia elements into your presentation. Consider the equipment and software requirements for displaying and playing different multimedia formats. Test the compatibility and functionality of multimedia elements in the presentation environment to avoid any technical glitches during your actual presentation.

By carefully considering these factors, you can choose the right multimedia elements that enhance your presentation’s effectiveness and engage your audience. Remember, the key is to strike a balance between informative content, compelling visuals, and appropriate interactivity to create a memorable and impactful multimedia presentation. 

What makes an effective multimedia presentation?

An effective multimedia presentation is like a good book you can’t put down or a catchy new song you hear on the radio that you can’t stop humming to all day long – it has your audience instantly engaged and wanting more. 

Gone are the days when we were limited to presentations that only featured text and basic graphics. Nowadays, using a combination of audio, video, and images can help anyone effectively communicate their message to any audience.

Prezi enables users to create attention-grabbing presentations that move their audience. You can create your own presentation from scratch or start out with a template that you can find in Prezi’s template gallery.

8 things to consider when creating a multimedia presentation

Creating a multimedia presentation can be very straightforward. It just requires some basic planning and preparation and the correct tools to implement those plans. Follow these steps when enhancing a presentation with multimedia.

What is your message?

What exactly are you presenting, and what key messages do you wish to communicate to your audience? Take time to thoroughly think through these questions before constructing your multimedia presentation.

Who is your audience? 

You must understand who exactly your audience is. After all, there is likely a huge difference between what might work best with 20-something IT specialists or a group of senior management. Are you hoping to sell a product to potential investors? Delivering a quarterly report to your bosses? Or preparing a presentation for a job interview? Be very clear about who your audience is.

Preparation is vital, and with it comes research. You can’t wait to get started creating your new multimedia presentation. And the temptation is often to begin without first investigating fantastic examples of other people’s work for ideas or not taking advantage of Prezi’s awesome customizable presentations that are freely available to you, the user. Simply head over to Prezi’s Gallery and get inspired!

Create your content outline

What content do you wish to include in your presentation? Once you have decided, it’s time to create a content outline for your multimedia presentation. You can begin building the structure of your presentation by splitting your topic into separate ideas that run in a clear, logical sequence. If you want to learn more about how to create an effective presentation structure, watch the following video:

Decide which visualization mediums work best 

There are literally dozens of visualization mediums to choose from. The hard part sometimes is deciding which of these works best for you. Options include GIFs, short animation clips, audio clips, TED Talk video clips – the list goes on and on. The great news is that you can easily integrate all of these elements into your Prezi presentation. What’s more, Prezi has an extensive library of different multimedia elements like GIFs, stickers, images, icons, and more that you can pick and choose while creating your presentation.

Utilize templates

You might start entirely from scratch, building the presentation from the bottom up, which is great if you already have a clear idea in your mind. However, if you’re still trying to figure out what you want the end result to look like or want to spend less time on presentation design, explore the numerous tried and tested templates available on Prezi. You’ll discover various templates that are great for multimedia presentations.

It’s time to add your multimedia 

Don’t overdo the types of multimedia content you use in your presentation. Why? Because using too many different kinds can feel overwhelming and a little too ‘show offish’. Focus on 2-4 types of content that will work best with your target audience. Try to hit that balance between simplicity and style. If you are using video or animation, use it occasionally.

If you need to present online, take advantage of Prezi Video’s option to share your content next to you on-screen during your presentation. This will engage your audience and keep them hooked throughout your multimedia presentation even online.

Review and analyze your work

Your multimedia presentation is ready. Or is it? Invest some time reviewing your presentation. Is it clearly structured and cohesive? Do the multimedia elements you have added achieve what you wanted them to achieve? Be honest with yourself and trust your intuition. If something doesn’t feel right with your presentation, don’t be afraid to make changes! 

Best practices for delivering a multimedia presentation

Delivering a multimedia presentation requires careful planning and execution to effectively engage and captivate your audience. Follow these best practices to ensure that you leave a lasting impression on your audience.

Know your material

Familiarize yourself with the content of your presentation to make sure you can confidently deliver it without relying too heavily on notes. Thoroughly understand the key points, supporting evidence, and transitions between different sections. This will enable you to maintain a natural flow and deliver a confident presentation. Also, consider using Presenter Notes . They serve as a reminder of important talking points and additional information during your presentation. Only visible to you, the presenter, the notes remain hidden from the audience. This allows you to effectively communicate your points without any interruptions.

Practice timing

Time your presentation to ensure it fits within the allocated time frame. Practice transitions between different multimedia elements, such as slides, videos, and interactive features, to maintain a smooth flow. Keep in mind that pacing is crucial, so allocate sufficient time for each part of your presentation while maintaining an engaging pace.

Use visual aids strategically

Visual aids are a powerful tool for conveying information and enhancing understanding. However, it’s essential to use them strategically to support and highlight your message, rather than distract from it. Use visuals sparingly and ensure they’re clear, visually appealing, and easy to understand. Avoid cluttered slides and prioritize concise and impactful visuals that reinforce your key points. If you want to learn more about good presentation design practices when it comes to adding visual content, watch the following video on the topic: 

Speak clearly and confidently

Effective communication is key to delivering a memorable presentation. Project your voice to ensure everyone in the audience can hear you clearly. Maintain eye contact with your audience to establish a connection and demonstrate confidence. Speak with clarity and conviction, emphasizing key points and using appropriate pauses for emphasis. A confident and engaging delivery will help your audience connect with your message.

Incorporate storytelling techniques

Storytelling is a powerful way to engage and captivate your audience. Incorporate storytelling techniques to create a narrative structure for your presentation. Begin with a compelling introduction that sets the stage and grabs attention. Use storytelling elements such as anecdotes, examples, and personal experiences to illustrate your points and make the content relatable and memorable. A well-crafted story can evoke emotions and leave a lasting impact on your audience.

Practice with technology

Familiarize yourself with the multimedia tools and technology you will be using during the presentation. In particular, get to know the endless features and capabilities of Prezi, the powerful multimedia presentation tool. Take the time to explore its features and understand how it can enhance your presentation. Familiarize yourself with the different templates, transitions, and interactive elements available. By mastering Prezi, you’ll be able to create attention-grabbing presentations that move.

Adapt to the audience

Tailor your presentation to resonate with your specific audience. Consider their demographics, interests, and background when delivering your content. Use language that is accessible and appropriate for your audience, avoiding jargon or technical terms that may be unfamiliar. Incorporate relevant examples and references that relate to their experiences. By adapting your presentation to their needs and preferences, you can create a stronger connection and enhance their overall engagement.

Engage the audience

Use interactive features to involve your audience and make the presentation more engaging. Incorporate audience polling, where participants can vote or provide feedback on specific questions or topics. Additionally, include dedicated Q&A sessions to encourage active participation and address any queries or concerns. Engaging the audience in this way promotes interaction and makes your presentation more dynamic. 

Ask for feedback

You can practice your presentation in front of people to get honest feedback. This way you can make any changes or work on specific areas that may need tweaking before the real thing. After your real presentation, you may even want to seek feedback from your audience to gather insights on what worked well and areas for improvement.

Remember, a well-delivered multimedia presentation is a combination of interesting content, effective visuals, and confident delivery. By following these best practices, you can create an engaging experience for everyone in the room.

How to engage your audience with interactive multimedia presentations

In addition to the essential components and best practices we’ve discussed, incorporating interactive elements can take your multimedia presentations to the next level. By engaging your audience in an interactive experience, you can captivate their attention and create a memorable presentation. Let’s explore some strategies for incorporating interactivity into your multimedia presentations:

Interactive charts

Instead of static images, use interactive charts to convey data and complex information. Allow your audience to explore different data points, toggle between visualizations, and interact with the content. This hands-on approach enhances understanding and engagement.

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) 

If applicable, consider incorporating VR or AR elements into your multimedia presentations. These technologies provide immersive experiences that can transport your audience to different environments or allow them to interact with virtual objects. VR and AR can be particularly effective in fields such as architecture, education, and product demonstrations.

Gamification

Introduce gamification elements to make your presentation more interactive and enjoyable. Create quizzes, challenges, or interactive scenarios that require audience participation. Offer rewards or incentives for active engagement, such as badges or prizes.

Collaborative activities

Foster collaboration among your audience by including interactive activities. For example, you can divide your audience into small groups or pairs and provide specific tasks or discussions related to your presentation topic. Encourage participants to share their insights or findings with the larger group afterward.

Live demonstrations

If possible, incorporate live demonstrations of software, tools, or processes directly into your presentation. Showcasing practical examples in real-time can enhance understanding and engage the audience through active participation.

Remember, interactivity should align with your presentation goals and content. Incorporate interactive elements strategically to support your message and keep your audience engaged throughout the presentation. Prezi offers various interactive features and templates to help you create dynamic and immersive multimedia presentations.

By embracing interactivity, you can transform your multimedia presentations into memorable experiences that leave a lasting impact on your audience.

Common concerns with multimedia presentations

People often share some common concerns when diving into multimedia presentations. Here are a few of those concerns and simple solutions to tackle them:

Technical glitches

• Worry: Fear of technical issues derailing your presentation.
• Solution: Always have a backup plan in case technology decides to be temperamental. Test your setup beforehand to avoid unexpected surprises.

Media overload

• Worry: The fear of overwhelming your audience with too much media.
• Solution: Strike a balance by using multimedia elements strategically. Less can often be more when it comes to engaging your audience effectively.

The evolution of multimedia tools

The world of multimedia presentation tools has seen quite a transformation over the years, making the process more user-friendly and accessible than ever before. Platforms like Prezi are at the forefront of this evolution, continuously updating and improving the presentation creation process. With intuitive interfaces and a wide range of creative options at your fingertips, multimedia tools have truly democratized the art of multimedia presentations. Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a newcomer to the presentation scene, the evolution of multimedia tools has made it easier than ever to craft the perfect presentation.

Multimedia presentation examples 

Your audience will immediately lose interest if all you offer them is a traditional slide deck. Instead, take advantage of Prezi’s Gallery and get inspired by dynamic, interactive, and engaging presentations that include various multimedia elements.

Below are a few examples of attention-grabbing and creative multimedia presentations that you can get inspired by or even reuse as templates for your own presentation topic.

Summer Plans presentation

The summer plans presentation inspires and captivates. The template is perfect for delivering a story, sharing an experience, or presenting a plan. It features multiple media elements, such as animations, images, and data visualizations. 

Why Leaders Need to Get Out of Their Own Way presentation

This presentation grabs our attention with its visually appealing design and strategic use of visuals. The simple yet engaging layout divides the presentation into four parts, creating a well-defined structure that is easy to follow. You can reuse this presentation as a template for delivering a topic that you need to unpack in a certain order. 

Corporate Social Responsibility presentation

This multimedia presentation engages and captivates with animations, images, icons, and more. As a template, it’s perfect for creating and delivering informative presentations, where you need to dive into the details of certain topics.

Earth Day presentation

The Earth Day presentation is a great example of how one can create a timeline presentation with Prezi. It includes various media elements that make this multimedia presentation highly engaging and informative.

Future-proofing your presentations

To make sure your multimedia presentations stay useful and up-to-date in the long run, here are some straightforward tips:

Pick the right formats

• Use common file types like PDF, MP4, and JPEG since they’re likely to stay usable in the future.

Keep things fresh

• Don’t let your content get old. Update it regularly with new information and visuals to keep it interesting and relevant.

Fit different screens

• Make your multimedia presentations so they can work on big screens and small devices like phones or tablets.

Try new tech

• Keep an eye on new technologies like virtual reality and interactive features. They can make your presentations more exciting and modern.

Listen to your audience

• Pay attention to what your audience likes and dislikes. Their feedback can help you improve your multimedia presentations and keep them interesting.

With these easy steps, you can make sure your multimedia presentations will still be great in the future!

Create attention-grabbing multimedia presentations with Prezi

In conclusion, crafting a well-executed multimedia presentation is crucial for achieving success in delivering presentations. This article has explored the key components involved in creating compelling multimedia presentations and provided insights on how to assemble these elements effectively. By considering the importance of content structure, visual design, and engaging storytelling techniques, presenters can capture their audience’s attention and leave a lasting impact. Furthermore, leveraging Prezi’s features can enhance multimedia presentations, making them more dynamic and interactive. By incorporating these strategies and utilizing the right tools, presenters can elevate their presentations to a new level and increase their chances of achieving their desired outcomes. Ultimately, mastering the art of multimedia presentations opens up opportunities for effective communication and successful presentations in various professional and academic settings.

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Your Guide to Making a Video Presentation

If you’ve been in the video marketing industry for any length of time, you’ll know just how much of an impact video content has made. Even those outside the industry know its effects, with video content being so heavily integrated into the lives of billions. It is heavily used on social media, grants marketers a significant return on investment, and is influential in customers’ purchasing decisions. To say video reigns as the king of content would be an understatement, therefore making a video presentation a key skill in your ongoing Marketing repertoire.

One of the factors behind the surge of video content is its versatility. It can be applied in a great array of ways to marketing and entertainment, ensuring everyone can find some use in the medium. One of these applications is video presentations.

In this article, we will be focusing on video presentations, explaining what they are, why you should use them, and how you can get making them for your business. Let’s get started.

What is a video presentation?

A video presentation is an effective method of conveying a message while capturing the attention of your viewers. Unlike other types of presentations that rely more on images and the written word, a video presentation is much more engaging. It incorporates a range of different media, including images and stills, audio, animation, and recorded footage. With this combination, it’s a lot easier to keep your audience’s attention, be they in a meeting room or elsewhere.

Why you should use a video presentation

The reasons to use a video presentation are myriad. They offer marketers a range of benefits, most notably that the format is inherently engaging and attention-grabbing. This makes it much easier to keep your audience engaged with your presentation, which itself makes your message much more likely to stick with your audience. If you want employees to leave a meeting with a clear understanding of your message, or for potential customers to keep your brand in mind, then a video presentation is excellent for the job.

But attention-grabbing and information retention aren’t the only benefits provided by video presentations. They also cut down significantly on the required amount of space, equipment, or personnel. For example, video presentations need only the video player, method of display, and room for the speaker if necessary. No additional equipment will be needed, assuming you don’t intend to include other materials to complement the video presentation. Lastly, video presentations don’t need a presenter to accompany the video; the video acts as its own presenter. These factors make it much easier to organize the showing of a video presentation, and can even cut down on costs.

Video presentations are, of course, visual media. This kind of media is perfect for conveying emotion, with the visual element lending itself to showing particular emotions accompanied by appropriate audio, as opposed to only one element having to do all the work. As such, video presentations are much more personable, allowing the audience to relate on a deeper level than any other form of media. This makes it easier for your audience to engage with and retain your message, as we’ve mentioned, but also for you to form a stronger relationship with them. A loyal customer base that understands your brand well is invaluable to any business.

How to make an effective video presentation

Video presentations are a great way to convey your message, that much is clear. However, creating a video presentation that does the job isn’t quite so obvious. Let’s take a look at some tips that make creating video presentations a breeze.

Understand your audience

Having a solid grasp of your target audience’s preferences is vital for the success of any type of video marketing. You could create the best content the world has ever seen; if you don’t put it before the right audience, it isn’t going to realize its potential.

To understand your audience, you have a few options available. First, you can take a look at your previous content. See what worked, what didn’t, and what had a fairly muted response. This will clue you in to your audience’s preferences, making it a lot easier to produce something that can resonate with them. If you don’t have much of a content catalogue, you can take a look at someone who does. Do a bit of research into your competitors’ social media pages or websites, and have a look for the same performance indicators. If you occupy the same niche, there’s a good chance that your audiences’ preferences overlap.

If neither option is effective for you, holding a focus group is always an option. Ask your existing customers for their opinions on what you’re making; they won’t always be representative of your audience at large, but their opinions are better than going in blind.

Understanding your audience will make it much easier to create content that resonates with them. By knowing their preferences, you can make cultural references and inject humor that will strike a chord with them. It will mean you can communicate clearly, and forge a deeper connection with your audience than otherwise.

Draft thorough plans

Planning often acts as the foundation for a successful marketing strategy. While audience research certainly falls into this category, you’ll need to do a bit more for a brilliant video presentation.

To properly plan out your video presentation, you’ll need to draft a detailed script. You might find it helps to answer a few questions first, like what are the objectives of the video, what the audience should be feeling, and what could help achieve these two aims. With the idea of your video presentation crystallized, it’s time to move on to the script.

Creating a good script isn’t so hard. With the answers to the previous questions in mind, you need only write a few detailed sentences or paragraphs that help get the point across and achieve your goals. By taking the time to create a script, your video presentation will be much more organized, well structured, and keep any dead air to a minimum. Nobody likes to watch a video where the speaker isn’t sure of their own content, or keeps going off on barely connected tangents. A script will keep you on track, and your audience will thank you for it.

Consider your equipment and software

Professional-level software is never the key to success, but it can certainly make your job a bit easier. As long as you create good content, you can use whatever free software you can get your hands on. However, investing a little in some decent software can give your video presentations a quality finish, making the most of your efforts.

If you lack the skills to put together top-draw video content, you might want to hire a professional. Though it will cost you, professionals have their perks. Most notably, you’ll be able to rest assured that your content is of a high standard, created by someone that knows the industry and what to include or avoid. Additionally, professional staff and software can offer advice and help that you wouldn’t be privy to otherwise. This can help you spot issues that would escape the untrained eye, or advise you on how to make your great video presentation even better.

Wrapping up

In the digital age, businesses simply cannot afford to ignore video content. The same is true for speakers and presenters. Video presentations are the next step in the evolution of communications, and ignoring them would be to do yourself a great disservice. Regardless of whether you intend to inform your employees of a new protocol or you aim to give a talk on an interesting idea, video presentations are the right tool for the job.

Create a video presentation that wows your audience

If you’re like most people, you find a video more engaging than a blog post, PDF, PowerPoint slide, or just about any other form of static media. You’re much more likely to be intrigued by a video presentation than by a boring slide deck. So, when it comes to giving your own presentations, why wouldn’t you choose video?

A video presentation is a must to win over your audience and help you communicate your core message in an appealing and memorable way. But if you’ve never done one before, how do you create a video presentation?

With this guide, of course! We’ll cover what you need to know about making a killer video presentation. Get ready to wow your audience.

What is a video presentation?

A video presentation is a form of communicating with an audience using multimedia . It can last a few seconds or several minutes and show off a product , introduce your brand, onboard employees, pitch to investors, or just about anything else. Video presentations combine graphics, images, text, and narration to deliver a concise message.

You can use a variety of tools to make your video presentation, including animation, PowerPoint slides, screencasts, and more. They’re ideal for businesses, organizations, corporations, nonprofits, teachers, and anyone who wants to make sure their message sticks with their audience.

Advantages of a video presentation

Apart from being more engaging than your typical presentation, video presentations have several benefits:

• Compress information into a digestible format : Giving a good presentation requires communicating a lot of information in a simple, easy-to-understand way. Videos let you accomplish this goal better than most types of content, as you can use imagery, graphics, and text combined with narration and sound effects to get your point across. People retain information more easily in video format than when they’re reading a text as well.
• Accessible : Once you produce a video presentation, you have the potential to reach viewers anywhere, at any time. Post it on your social channels or your website so your audience expands every time someone hits that “play” button. Make it easy for your target viewers to find your video presentation to increase exposure.
• Time effective : With the right tools, making a video presentation takes little time for the payoff you get from it. You present information in small chunks, and viewers take less time overall to watch it. Videos are better at conveying emotions and cementing information in a short time span.
• Convincing : What makes videos more persuasive than other forms of content? They rely on audio-visual storytelling, appealing to our sense of visual learning. People are able to better retain the information they glean from videos, making them more convincing.
• Relationship building : People are more likely to trust you — and therefore buy from you — when they can build a relationship with you. The best way to do that is face to face, but in-person interactions aren’t always possible. The next best thing is video because you can use body language and facial expressions to humanize your presentation. Viewers will almost feel like they’re having a conversation with you, which establishes a solid foundation of trust.

Types of video presentations

Video presentations come in many styles and formats and are used for a variety of purposes. These five types are the most common.

1. Educational

Educational video presentations are generally for classroom use. They’re beneficial to students of all ages, from kindergarten up to grad students. Video presentations simplify core concepts, which is a key part of classroom learning. They’re also useful for online and hybrid classes. If you teach a course about wood carving, for example, include a video presentation to boost engagement and retention.

Teachings in Education, a teacher resource channel on YouTube, made an educational video presentation about how to create lesson plans. The whiteboard-style video keeps the visuals simple and easy to understand.

2. Promotional

Sales and promo videos are some of the most common types of video presentations. Consumer behavior has shifted dramatically in the last several years, and today, salespeople must find new ways to connect with consumers who are more skeptical. Video presentations that demonstrate the product and its features are more likely to capture customers’ attention .

The front door view cam company Ring made a promotional video showing people using their product. In less than a minute, Ring captured multiple use cases for their Door View Cam, and set each scene to a catchy tune to keep viewers engaged.

Read later: How to promote your live streams: Quick Guide 📍

3. Onboarding

Onboarding new employees can take a great deal of time and resources. One way to expedite the process is with a well-made video presentation. Rather than hiring a trainer for each batch of new hires, you can create an in-depth video presentation that goes over the core parts of your business and demonstrates the tasks you expect employees to carry out.

Including a video introducing your company to new hires is also a great way to show employees what your business values are. Atlassian did just that with an onboarding video presentation describing the culture change the company underwent as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A sales pitch should be concise, attention-grabbing, and persuasive. A video presentation checks all three boxes, letting you show off the best your company has to offer in an exciting way. You’ll leave a lasting impression with investors and make your company stand out with a sales pitch video presentation.

The nu company, which produces natural, vegan, plastic free chocolate bars and protein bars, made a video to pitch their bars as a replacement for traditional chocolate bars. The video is straightforward and simple, letting the powerful message take center stage.

5. Entertaining

Video presentations for entertainment have a wide scope. They can be just about any presentation that doesn’t fall into one of the above categories, like a music video, travel reel, comedy routine, or anything that entertains an audience. These types of video presentations tend to be informal as well.

Around the World in 4K is a video production company that creates 4K, 5K, 6K, and 8K video footage of places and people all over the globe. Their homepage on YouTube features a presentation reel showcasing some of their best footage from 2018. The presentation is both entertaining and highlights the company’s work.

How to create a video presentation

It’s useful knowing the benefits of a video presentation and which types you can make, but how do you create one? The steps you take will depend on the video-making tool you use. However, the following basic outline applies no matter which video maker you’re using.

1. Start with paper and pencil

As you develop ideas for your video presentation, don’t jump into PowerPoint or Google Slides immediately. Write things down by hand first so you can better understand what you want to say and how to move things around.

2. Prepare a concept

When developing a concept for your video presentation, ask yourself some important questions:

• What is the video for?
• Who do I want to watch this video?
• What will people take away from my video presentation?
• What actions do I want viewers to take after watching my video?

Once you know the goals of your video presentation, you can make your outline. Start by telling a story to draw people in, then develop the problem and offer your solution to the problem. Explain the benefits of your solution specifically, then call people to action.

3. Write a script

Video presentations involve narration, so you’ll need a script. Once you have a first draft, record yourself reading it out loud. The script is meant to be listened to , not read, so you can only evaluate it if you hear it. Listen for anything that sounds off and make corrections. Recording yourself reading your script is beneficial, even if you end up hiring a professional voice actor to record your video presentation, because it helps you make the script smoother.

Remember to include statistics, as well as analogies and anecdotes, in your video presentation. Cold, hard numbers can have a dramatic effect, but stories are easier for people to recall , especially when they connect the story to your brand.

4. Nail the opening

A strong opening can set the tone for your video presentation and determine if your viewers keep watching or not. Use one of these ideas to create an engaging beginning to your presentation :

• Provocative statement
• Alarming statistic
• An appropriate joke
• Rhetorical question
• Powerful visual
• Famous quote

5. Define the format and graphics

Decide on the imagery and visual assets for your video presentation. Will you make a PowerPoint slide deck into a video? Will you create an animated explainer video? Do you need custom, branded graphics for any part of the presentation?

The video is just as important as the audio in your presentation, so take the time to choose your format and visual assets wisely. Study your audience and choose visuals that will resonate more deeply with them. If you’re creating a video presentation aimed at corporate CEOs, a funny animated short may not be the most visually appropriate.

6. Bring it together with a professional tool

You’ve developed your concept, written your script, and chosen your visuals. You’re finally ready to produce your video presentation — but you need the best tool for the job. With Restream Studio , you can take advantage of all our live studio’s engaging features without having to go live . We introduced a “record-only” mode that lets you film your presentation in its entirety, then download the recording so you can make further edits.

Create stunning live videos

Restream Studio is the easiest way to create high-quality live videos on multiple platforms at once. It's user-friendly and offers an engaging viewer experience.

Why would you use a live streaming studio solution to record a video presentation?

• No download required : Restream Studio runs in your web browser, so you don’t have to download any software to start recording. All you need is a Restream account .
• Add and customize graphics : You can upload your brand’s assets, like logos, backgrounds, captions, and overlays, so your video presentation fits seamlessly with your other marketing materials.
• Play copyright-free background music : Music changes the entire tone of your video presentation, and with Restream Studio, you have access to infinite-loop background tracks in several genres.
• Play a local video file : Select a video file from your device to play during your recording to add depth to your presentation.
• Share your screen : If you’re demonstrating a process, sharing your screen can be a helpful visual tool for your viewers.
• Save and stream later : After you’ve recorded and polished your video presentation, you have the option to live stream it with Restream Studio. Using our tool Restream Events , you can schedule a pre-recorded video to go live on multiple platforms simultaneously.

Wrapping up

The benefits of creating a video presentation outweigh the time and resources it costs to make it. Reach your audience, deliver your message, and make an impression with a high-quality presentation. When you use an accessible and powerful tool like Restream Studio, producing a professional-looking presentation is a breeze!

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Video Presentation

What is a video presentation.

A video presentation combines narration, motion graphics, text, images, video clips, and other visuals into a slide-based video focused on communicating ideas around a specific topic. These are produced using presentation software or dedicated video tools.

What are the Benefits of Video Presentations?

Video presentations provide advantages like:

Visual Storytelling

• Clear Explanations -Visuals enhance understanding by illustrating complex concepts. Whether it’s a product demo or an educational lecture, visuals make your message more compelling.
• Dynamic Content -Video keeps viewers engaged. Movement, transitions, and visual variety prevent monotony.
• Attention Retention -Well-crafted videos hold attention longer than static text or slides.

Accessibility

• Inclusive Reach - Subtitles and sign language interpreters in video presentations cater to diverse audiences.
• On-Demand Viewing - Those unable to attend live sessions can access recorded videos anytime.

How Do Video Presentations Work?

The production process involves:

• Planning the presentation content and structure
• Creating visual slides and assets
• Scripting and recording narration audio
• Layering in text, motion graphics, and slide animations
• Adding interactive elements like quizzes and CTAs
• Assembling slides sequentially into a video timeline
• Exporting for different audience mediums - social, desktop, etc

When you use a video presentation tool like Trainn, you can simply upload your presentation, walk through the slides, record your screen, add your voice, and your video presentation is ready.

Challenges of Video Presentations

Potential issues to watch out for:

Engaging Visuals and Motion:

• Avoid static slides. Use animations, graphics, and transitions to maintain interest.
• Balance aesthetics with clarity.

Presenter Presence:

• Stiff or awkward delivery can detract from the message. Practice and relax on camera.
• Maintain eye contact with the lens.

Slide Density:

• Text-heavy slides overwhelm viewers. Simplify content and use visuals.
• Each slide should convey a single idea.

Transitions:

• Smooth transitions between concepts prevent jarring shifts.
• Avoid abrupt changes in tone or style.

Choosing Presentation Software

To simplify the creation, look for tools like Trainn offering:

• Animated templates to quickly build professional slides
• Drag-and-drop functionality for easily adding and arranging visual elements
• Bulk upload of slides, videos, and images to expedite assembly
• Auto text-to-speech with branded voices to generate narration
• Built-in analytics to see responses and optimize
• Collaborative workflows for real-time team input
• Auto clip generation to repurpose segments across needs

Trainn is the world’s most powerful and easiest video creation tool you need to create professional-quality videos of your digital product. You can record, edit, add voiceover , and share your AI-powered videos in 5 mins.

How do video presentations benefit customer education?

Video presentations in customer education offer visual clarity and engagement, making complex concepts easily understandable and enhancing information retention for effective learning.

What types of video presentations are commonly used?

Animated explainers, product demos, and live-action presentations are popular choices for diverse content creation needs.

What are some tips for creating engaging video presentations?

• Multilingual Approach - Enhance reach by adding subtitles and translations.
• Captivate Early - Engage viewers within seconds to retain their attention.
• Strategic CTAs - Include buttons for targeted actions (e.g., support inquiries, trials).
• Interactive Engagement - Encourage feedback through emojis, questions, and comments.

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A Deep Dive Into Virtual Presentations

Head of Product at Gloww

• Published on November 1, 2023

Virtual presentations are becoming increasingly common. With more businesses now embracing remote work, they’re an unavoidable adaptation that is essential for onboarding , employee development , and more. However, it’s not as straightforward as transplanting in-person presentation scripts into the virtual world. If you want to host virtual presentations that strike the right note, you need to think carefully about readying your material for online audiences. 

What is a virtual presentation? How can you keep online audiences engaged? These are the questions you should be asking yourself if you want to make effective use of the virtual format. 

How Are Virtual Presentations Different From Regular Presentations?

While the ultimate goal of virtual presentations is the same as in-person presentations, there are a lot of differences between the two formats . For starters, there’s generally less performance involved. When delivering an in-person presentation, a lot of focus is placed on keeping an audience engaged . A good presenter needs to be comfortable with public speaking and a master when it comes to body language. 

When presenting online, there’s far less pressure when it comes to performance. This is despite the fact that a presenter may be broadcasting to dozens, if not hundreds of people. An effective virtual presentation is generally more informal and relaxed. 

However, there are some downsides to delivering a presentation online. One of the biggest issues that presenters face is that they’ll have to contend with more distractions than if they were presenting to an in-person audience. These same distractions are what can render a standard conference call a challenge, and presenters often have to work extra hard to maintain audience engagement. 

What’s more, while the usual presentation skills aren’t always necessary, different proficiencies come into play. Body language doesn’t read as well when presenting online, but a speaker will still need to project a message virtually. Tone of voice is crucial, and a speaker needs to consider pauses carefully. Additionally, it’s important to constantly engage the audience if you want to maintain their interest levels. Relying too heavily on slides or failing to interact with an audience is a surefire way of dooming a virtual presentation to failure. For some inspiration you can find our employee engagement calendar on our blog too.

Why Are Virtual Presentations Important?

If your business operates in the virtual space and your teams are working remotely, you need to be thinking seriously about virtual presentations . It’s simply not practical to bring remote teams together for in-person training and team-building exercises, especially if employees are dispersed across the globe. 

Virtual presentations can be used as a learning tool to develop your workforce and introduce them to new ideas and ways of working. Some businesses utilize digital training documents for this purpose, but there’s little scope for interactivity here. With virtual presentations, you’re giving yourself the chance to connect with remote teams . As well as being a powerful tool for communication and instilling a sense of company culture , a live virtual presentation provides you with the chance to gauge engagement and understanding levels. 

How Do You Create a Virtual Presentation?

Is this your first time staging a virtual presentation ? Adapting your in-person approach to the virtual world might seem like a good idea, but you won’t achieve good results this way. To make your next virtual presentation a success , we’ve put together some handy tips. 

Start with Your Content 

This is the most important thing to consider when readying your presentation material for an online audience . While the bare bones of your in-person presentations can be used, they’ll need to be refined for the virtual space. Are you delivering training content to an online audience? All the key information can be captured here, but make sure it’s accessible and not overbaked. Is your presentation more client-facing? Make sure you’re capturing key selling points and considering what can be shared in other formats. 

Think About Your Slides 

Cramming too many slides into your presentation is a guaranteed way of sending your audience to sleep. If you want to maintain high engagement levels, keep slides sparse . During an in-person presentation, it’s easy to read the room and elaborate on complex slides if you feel the need to. When presenting online, this isn’t always possible. If your presentation has to be slide-heavy, try and stick to a single slide for every minute of speech. Ensure the slides you are using are concise and capture key information. 

Focus On Your Audience 

When presenting to an audience, you need to constantly reaffirm the fact that the information you’re discussing is relevant to them. Reading body language and audience responses can be a little tricky when presenting online, but keeping the focus on participants is crucial if you want to achieve good results. Regular interaction is a good way of keeping presentation material focused on your audience. Make a point of underlining how what you’re talking about applies to them and how it can help them achieve their everyday goals. 

Even if the material you’re covering in a presentation is pretty dense, you need to remain lively and dynamic to capture audience attention. Avoid leaning on your slides too heavily and make sure you’re not bound to a script. A little deviation can work wonders for audience engagement. 

Involve Your Audience to Avoid the Ringelmann Effect 

The Ringelmann Effect is something you might encounter if you’re presenting to a large audience. The bigger an audience gets, the less likely it is that individual participants are going to engage. By constantly involving your audience, you can overcome this. If you need to bring a hypothetical scenario into play , put someone on the spot. This way, everyone’s kept on their toes and constantly braced to interact. 

Remove External Distractions

While there’s not much you can do to ensure participants aren’t dealing with their own distractions, you can eliminate distractions from your presenting environment . Make sure your schedule is completely cleared to avoid any unwanted phone calls or interruptions. Are you presenting from an office location? Let anyone who is sharing your space know you need complete quiet so you can concentrate on delivering the best virtual presentation possible. 

Be Enthusiastic 

Even if the content of your presentation is on the dry side, you need to be able to sell it to your audience . If you’re not animated and engaged with the material, you can’t expect your audience to show an interest. Familiarizing yourself with presentation content will go a long way in ensuring you can deliver a lively and passionate event for participants. 

Professional Surroundings and Backgrounds 

No matter how animated you are during a presentation, you’ll still need to keep things professional . A low-key background will not only eliminate distractions but set the right tone for learning and development. Here’s our list of best backgrounds .

Best Virtual Presentation Tips

Now you’ve created a compelling outline for your virtual presentation , you’ll need to work on your presentation skills and deliver a memorable event. Below are some handy tips to get you started. 

Proper Webcam and Lighting 

Production values count when it comes to virtual presentations. A standard laptop webcam probably isn’t going to cut it if you want to make the right impression. An external webcam is therefore a must. You’ll also want to play around with lighting to make your presentation as effective as possible. 

Check Your Internet Connection 

Technical issues are sometimes unavoidable. However, even the slightest lag can render a virtual presentation pointless. Check your internet connection ahead of time to ensure you’re not going to have to contend with this issue. 

Talk to the Camera

It’s tempting to check the reactions of your online audience, but this isn’t really practical if you’re delivering a presentation to a large number of people. Rather than work overtime in an attempt to make a personal connection, talk to the camera instead. This gives you the best chance of making a connection with everyone who’s watching.  

Use Body Language 

Body language is very important when presenting online. While you won’t be able to make eye contact with individual audience members and use the space around you, you can make use of hand gestures and facial expressions to strengthen your message. However, remember to keep things simple.  

Engage Your Audience Members 

If you’re planning a longer virtual presentation or covering a lot of key topics, you need to make sure your audience is engaged . Constantly reach out to participants to hammer out specifics with examples or use quick-fire quizzes to keep everyone engaged. You can even use one of the 49 icebreakers to spice things up .

Be Yourself 

Authenticity matters when presenting online. It’s particularly important if you’re an employer presenting to remote teams. Make sure the persona you’re projecting is true to the one you’ve already established. The more authentic you are, the more credible your message will seem. 

What is the Optimum Amount of Time You Can Keep People Engaged Online? 

Most people will struggle to remain engaged with a single topic beyond five minutes. Your presentation is going to be longer than this, so avoid dwelling on specific topics for too long. For best results, try and keep your overall presentation no within 45 minutes . 

How Often Should Your Audience Share Their Thoughts?

Reach out to participants once every five minutes or so. You can ask individual participants to reflect on topics you’ve just covered, or break things up with more interactive elements like quizzes and polls. 

How Many Presenters Should There Be in a Virtual Presentation? 

With shorter presentations, it makes sense to keep things simple with a single presenter. If you’re planning a longer event and want to keep things as dynamic as possible, consider using two or three speakers. 

Host Your Next Virtual Presentation with Gloww 

Ready to unlock the potential of virtual presentations? Whether you’re presenting to prospective clients or need to reach out to remote teams, virtual presentations are the way forward . However, you’ll need a reliable video conferencing solution to stage a successful virtual presentation. 

With Gloww, you have everything you need to deliver memorable presentations that strike the right note with audiences. You can adapt your existing presentation material for the virtual space or explore brand-new elements to bring interactivity to your sessions. Add existing slide decks to readymade templates, make things more interesting with polls and quizzes, or integrate multimedia assets to take your presentations to a whole new level. You can get started with Gloww today. If you want to learn about Gloww can help you fine-tune your virtual presentations, explore our pricing plans , and discover more about our premium features. Do you still have questions about Gloww? Get in touch with the team.

Want to learn more? Here’s everything you need to record your meeting , a template for your monthly business review meetings , virtual meeting etiquettte , and all about how video conferencing works .

Ben Aflalo heads Gloww's product team with over two decades of leadership experience. Passionate about leveraging innovative technology, he is committed to building products for the greater good.

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How to Create a Video Presentation in PowerPoint

content creator

Helen Colman See full bio →

Have you ever gone on YouTube to watch just one video, only to find yourself stuck there a few hours later? You aren’t the only one. TechJury reports that last year the combined watch count on YouTube was 5 billion views per day.

People love watching videos. According to a report by Forrester Research , videos are 75% better at keeping the audience engaged than documents, articles, and other forms of plain media. This is why more and more companies are using them for video marketing and other business tasks. One of the more popular forms of video is a video presentation. 

In this article, we’ll explain what a video presentation is, show you how to create one, and share some helpful video presentation tips. Let’s dive in.

• What Is a Video Presentation
• Why Create a Video Presentation
• How to Create a Video Presentation

The Top 5 Tools for Making Video Presentations

How to turn your powerpoint presentation into a video, tips and best practices for making video presentations.

• FAQ on Video Presentations

What Is a Video Presentation?

A video presentation is a popular format of video content with a duration of several seconds or minutes that shows the benefits of a product, service, or a new idea with the help of relevant images, concise text, and appropriate audio narration.  

People use video presentations in various aspects of business to keep their audience engaged. As such, presentation videos can be used in marketing campaigns and sales presentations for new clients, employee training and onboarding, B2B communication, and even to present an enterprise at expos or conventions. 

Video presentations can take a variety of formats. They can include fully animated explainer videos, cartoons, invitation videos, screencasts, tutorials, video ads, promo videos, marketing videos, product demos, or a PowerPoint presentation narrated by a talking head. Ultimately, the choice of format is yours.

Why Create a Video Presenation?

Besides being more appealing than a basic cut-and-dry content piece, video presentations are also:

• Persuasive . Video presentations more effectively persuade your target audience through audio-visual design, storytelling, and bringing emotions, ideas, and sounds into the mix.
• Better for information retention . Invisia reports that viewers retain 95% of a message in video form, as compared to 10% when reading it in text. Thus, educators often use video presentations within the framework of the digital storytelling concept or when pre-installing new educational material. Here you will find detailed information about how you can apply digital storytelling in your lessons.
• Accessible anytime, anywhere . Most people like to spend time on their phones and tablets, and they prefer to browse videos on them. Emarketer found that 75% of all videos are played on cell phones and tablets.
• Time-efficient . They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Video presentations are meant to convey information in smaller chunks that are easy to process. This allows viewers to explore larger amounts of information more quickly and easily.

Video Presentation Examples

Do you need some inspiration for your video presentation? Take a look at some examples of quality video content created for different purposes and audiences.

Product/Sales video presentation

A good video presentation is a winning format if you want to present your product or service to potential customers to drive conversions and sales. You can highlight the key features, benefits, and value propositions of your offerings effectively and easily distribute the presentation via online platforms, such as your company website, social media channels, email newsletters, and video posting sites.

This is a short product presentation of Character Builder, one of iSpring Suite’s flagship features. The video is concise yet clear, explaining the feature and outlining its use in eLearning content creation. In just under 35 seconds, the viewers (aka potential or actual customers) can see how characters look and get an idea of how to create them.

Once the iSpring Narration Editor window appears, you can either record a new video narration or import an existing video file.

How to import a video file

To import an existing video file, click on the Video button in the Import tab.

Find the video file and click on the Open button.

Pro tip : You can insert multiple videos at the same time. To do that, press and hold the Ctrl key while selecting several files.

In the Import Video window, you have the choice of importing your video at the current cursor position or at the beginning of the slide of your choice.

Note: If you choose to import your video at the beginning of a certain slide, you will have the option of selecting the Adjust slide duration option. This will adjust the slide you have selected to the length of your video. 

How to record a video in PowerPoint

To film yourself on a webcam, you can use the video narration feature. Click on the Record Video button on the editor’s toolbar.

The Record Video Narration panel will appear.

You can add a video narration for one or several slides at a time. To start recording video for the current slide, mark Process current slide only.

Step 2. Synchronize video with slides

Now it’s time to synchronize your video with your slides and animation effects. The latter are displayed as yellow bars on the Slides timeline. The great thing is that you’ll be able to choose the exact moment when an animation will appear while watching the video. This way, the effects will perfectly correspond to the narration in your video presentation.

Note : This is only applicable if you have animation effects attached to your slides. 

The sync process is quite simple to use. Just place the cursor where the sync should begin and click the Sync button on the toolbar.

A Sync panel will appear above the timeline. Click on the Start Sync button to start the process.

The Start Sync button will be replaced with the Next Slide or Next Animation button, depending on the next element in the sequence. Click on those buttons at the appropriate moment. Hit the Next Animation button at the point in the narration where you would like to start the next animation. For example, if you are listing information, you can have each new item appear when the narrator mentions it in the video narration.

Once you have finished, click on Done to quit the Sync mode. Then hit the Save & Close button in the upper-left corner.

Step 3. Switch layouts in Slide Properties

iSpring allows you to publish materials using one of two players: the highly customizable Universal player or the Video Lecture player. The latter displays the video presentation in a 50/50 layout and allows viewers to change the proportion between video and slides at any time.

The Universal player features three layouts for a video presentation:

• The Full layout displays the slide, sidebar, and navigation panel.

The No Sidebar layout displays the slide and the navigation panel only.

The Maximized Video layout displays the video in the center, the slide on the sidebar, and the navigation panel.

Your presentation doesn’t have to have the same layout everywhere. You can highlight key points by changing the proportion between the on-screen information and the video for each slide. 

To do that, click on Slide Properties on the toolbar.

In the Layout column, pick the desired layout for a particular slide from the drop-down list.

The layouts for the Video Lecture player can be changed at any time during  playback. You can still preset them, and they will work as follows:

• The Full layout displays video and the presentation in equal proportions.

The No Sidebar layout displays the full slide with a miniaturized video.

The Maximized Video layout will show the enlarged video and a smaller slide.

It is recommended that you set slides to advance automatically during the entire presentation. To do that, in Presentation Explorer , select all slides and click on the Auto button .

Step 4. Customize your player template

The built-in presentation player has flexible customization options for creating presentation templates: you can provide your viewers with the presenter’s info, a brand logo, an outline, and more. First, let’s choose which player to use. Click on Player on the product ribbon, and choose whether to use the Universal or Video Lecture player, as shown in the image below.

For this guide on making a video presentation, we’ll use the Universal player. To customize it, click on Templates . There are several player templates to choose from. We’ll use the Online Lecture with Video template as an example.

You can also experiment with the settings, doing things like turning off the outline and notes by clicking on the Layout button on the ribbon. Here’s what our player will look like:

Additionally, you can customize a presentation to match your brand colors by choosing one of the built-in color schemes or creating your own.

When you have finished customizing the player, click on Apply & Close in the upper left corner. Well done! You’ve put the finishing touches on your video presentation. 

Step 5. Publish your video presentation

When your video presentation is ready, the last step is to publish it to a web format so it can be easily accessed via a browser.

In the Publish Presentation window, select the My Computer tab from the menu at the left. Enter the presentation title and select a local folder where the presentation will be saved. Under Output Options , choose a format. We’ll be publishing to the HTML5 format to make our video presentation play seamlessly across all platforms and devices. You can learn more about publishing presentations here .

In case you want to know more about other presentation software to create engaging video presentations, there are software solutions available that also come with a shallow learning curve. These apps range from video recording or video editing software to animating your cartoons. Here’s an overview of five of the most powerful yet easy-to-learn video presentation makers.

1. Camtasia 

If you want to create a video presentation but don’t have the time to put layouts together, you can use the Camtasia video recorder software. Camtasia offers a library of video presentation templates and assets that users can use to make their own presentation videos. Users can also create their own video templates and save them for future projects. 

Like iSpring, Camtasia is a video presentation maker that allows you to record both screen and webcam. You can’t create a slide deck in it, but it’s a good solution if you need to record and show yourself as well as everything you do on your screen.

2. PowToon 

Animation is a universal language without limits; it hooks any audience immediately. Promotional cartoons are now available to everyone, thanks to software like PowToon . This service can function as a video presentation maker that has an intuitive user interface and amazing comic-style graphics. You can start from scratch or use ready-made scenes and layouts that are editable with a drag-and-drop feature. The complete animated presentation can then be uploaded to YouTube channels or social media with a single click.

3. Biteable

Biteable  is a video presentation maker and video editing software that allows you to make professional-quality video presentations and animated videos online within minutes. It sacrifices the ability to capture video and record voice in favor of the creation of powerful animations. The ingredients are your photos, texts, pre-made templates, and stock video footage. Styles of presentation videos produced vary from animated illustrations to live action. What’s cool about this video presentation maker is its ability to create engaging video infographics.

With Emaze , spectacular video presentations are at your fingertips. With an intuitive creator interface and a number of ready-made templates available, creating a video presentation is no longer time-consuming. If you already have a PowerPoint presentation that you want to enhance, you can import it into Emaze and use its collection of tools to attach photos, GIFs, videos, and 3D images.

Animoto  is an online video presentation maker that allows you to create video presentations by simply dragging and dropping your own images and video clips into a pre-built video presentation template. To customize your videos, you can quickly adjust colors, fonts, background music, add your company watermark, and more. No video editing experience is required.

If you’d like to know more about other tools for making video presentations, read our article on the Top 10 Video Presentation Makers for Promotion and Education .

By default, you can make your PowerPoint presentation into a video by saving it as one. This can be a solid choice if you don’t need narration for your video. But if you need to, you’ll still be able to record narrations from that menu without going back to the original PowerPoint presentation.

Here’s what you need to do to download your slides as a video in PowerPoint:

• Click on the Create video tab to start downloading your video.

To make your presentation even better, consider the following tips for creating a successful video presentation:

• Make your videos short and sweet . Keep your video clips long enough to grab the attention of your target audience but short enough to incite curiosity. Your goal is to maintain the viewer’s interest. Remember, the optimal length of a video presentation is no longer than 4-7 minutes.
• Keep to the point . Make your goals and objectives known at the start of the presentation, and don’t stray from the message. Your text and visuals should relate to the subject matter and not detract from the goal of your video presentation.
• Add engaging elements . Enrich your video presentation with useful and interesting content. For example, add background music, colorful infographics, embed YouTube videos, or insert interactive quizzes to engage learners.
• End on a meaningful note . Leave your audience with something they can take away from the presentation. A new idea, a short story, a visual representation of your product, or even a link to your website works to provide the strong ending needed to create a lasting impression.

FAQ on Creating Video Presentations

Here are answers to a few popular questions about making a video presentation.

How do I make an effective video presentation?

First and foremost, think about your target audience before you create video presentations. What are their ages, genders, and occupations? What is their prior knowledge on a topic or their level of proficiency? After you define the audience, choose the way you will be presenting accordingly. You should connect with your audience emotionally and ‘speak their language.’ In this way, you’ll communicate the right message to the viewers.

Second, it will be useful to prepare a script for your video. Of course, the slideshow will support you, and you can base your speech on its content. But if you write an intro, outro, some key points, and transition words in advance, you will present more confidently and reduce rambling or unnecessary pauses. This will help you focus on the effectiveness of your message.

How can I prepare myself for a video presentation?

Make sure you’re physically and technically prepared. When delivering a presentation, prevent your mouth and throat from getting dry. You can use a lip balm and have a glass of water nearby to refresh during pauses. This will make you sound better, and your recording will be clearer. For recording, it’s better to choose a smaller, quieter space to avoid echoes and check your microphone’s sound.

Also read  →  How To Record PowerPoint Presentation With Audio  

What is the best video format for a PowerPoint presentation?

PowerPoint allows you to save your presentation in these video formats: MPEG-4 (or MP4 / .mp4) , Windows Media Video (.wmv), or MOV (if it’s PowerPoint on a Mac). MPEG-4 is the most common video format and is widely supported. Opt for this if you have PowerPoint versions 2013, 2016, or 2019. With PowerPoint 2010, the Windows Media format is preferable.

We hope this post will help you turn static slides into an engaging video presentation that captivates your audience. To start creating video presentations and other kinds of eLearning content, try iSpring Suite today. Get a 14-day free trial and access all of its advanced features without spending a cent.

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Helen Colman

She enjoys combining in-depth research with expert knowledge of the industry. If you have eLearning insights that you’d like to share, please get in touch .

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What Is a Digital Presentation & How to Get Good At It

Learn the basics of presentation decks and how to create one. Explore examples and tips to make your own deck more effective and engaging.

Dominika Krukowska

16 minute read

Short answer

What is a presentation.

A presentation is a slide-based visual storytelling aid. It’s used for transferring information and emotion to an audience with visual, vocal, and textual communication.

The purpose of a presentation is to help the audience understand a subject matter. Presentations are used in business, academics, and entertainment. They can be made in PowerPoint, PDF, or webpage format.

Why people hate presentations (including yours)

Have you ever sat through a digital presentation that felt like it was dragging on forever? Or worse, have you been the one giving the presentation when people’s eyes glazed over?

This feeling of agonizing boredom is called Death by PowerPoint, and it means losing your audience's attention. They won't remember anything you said, and probably couldn't care less.

I’m going to show you how to never again suffer from Death by PowerPoint by avoiding the common PowerPoint pitfalls, immediately engage your audience, capture their interest, and make them care.

Let's dive in!

What is the main purpose of a presentation?

The purpose of a presentation is to communicate information or ideas to an audience in a clear and effective manner. The reasons for making a presentation can be to inform, persuade, motivate, educate, entertain, or simply share knowledge or experiences.

The goal of a presentation can be to help your audience understand complex concepts, make informed decisions, or take action based on the information you present.

In business settings, presentations are often used to pitch products or services, report on progress or performance, or make recommendations to stakeholders.

What are the 2 main types of presentations?

When it comes to creating a presentation, there are 2 primary types: (1) speech presentations and (2) digital presentations (made for reading). There are key takeaways for nailing each presentation type. Take note of them if you intend to get good at both.

Reading presentations

Speech presentations

Digital presentations (Reading presentations)

Digital presentations, on the other hand, are presentations that the audience can access on their own computer or phone without the presenter being physically present. These presentations require a different set of skills and techniques to keep the audience engaged.

Essentials for improving your digital presentations:

• Written clarity is critical: Since your audience will be reading your presentation, it's essential to keep your content clear and concise. Say more with less.
• Show, don't tell: Use supporting visuals to help illustrate your points and make your presentation more engaging.
• Animation and annotation: Use animations and annotations to direct your audience's attention to the right place at the right time, keeping them engaged throughout. there are plenty of free animation software to help you create these.
• Personalization: Make your audience feel like you're speaking directly to them by personalizing your presentation. Use inclusive language and address their pain points, needs, and interests.

Speech presentations (Face to face)

Speech presentations are the classic type of presentation where a speaker presents to an audience in person. These presentations are usually given at conferences or meetings, and can now also take place virtually through platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, or Skype.

Essentials for improving your speech presentations:

• Less written, more spoken: Speech presentations are all about the spoken word, so it's crucial to avoid cramming too much text onto your slides. Focus on speaking to your audience instead.
• Body language and voice: In a speech presentation, your body language and tone of voice are essential to engaging your audience. Use humor, sarcasm, or suspense to keep your listeners interested.
• Rapport: Making eye contact and using real-time communication can help you build rapport with your audience and make them feel involved in your presentation.

What are the main types of digital presentations?

Digital presentations come in all shapes and sizes, but understanding the main types can help you choose the right format for your message.

Business presentations

Marketing presentations, sales presentations, education and training presentations, personal presentations.

Education & training

Business presentations are used for showcasing company performance updates, introducing new products or services, discussing future plans with clients and partners, or briefing investors.

Whether it's an internal meeting or an external one with stakeholders, business presentations are all about delivering a clear and compelling message that drives the company forward.

Marketing presentations are visual decks used to present your target audience, marketing strategies, and campaign outcomes to prospective clients, ad agencies, or stakeholders.

Sales presentations are decks that contain details about the features, pricing, and main benefits of your offering, and are used during in-person meetings or online sales calls. They’re designed to help sales reps close deals or land new clients.

Education and training presentations are slide decks designed to teach new concepts and best practices to a variety of audiences, including students, employees, or clients.

A personal presentation is used during networking events, business conferences, or public speaking engagements. It’s used to share your key accomplishments and demonstrate your passion and the main values you stand for.

What makes a good presentation?

A good presentation captivates by establishing trust, engaging the audience with interactive elements, and weaving data into an enthralling narrative that sparks emotions and inspires, leaving a lasting impact.

There are 3 things any good presentation must do:

1. Establish trust and credibility

Without your audience trusting you and your authority you will never get them to listen. And to really listen, some say, they have to like you.

To establish yourself as a credible source of information, use relevant visuals, stories, and examples that showcase your expertise and experience, earning the trust of your audience.

2. Interact with the audience

Static PowerPoint slides are no longer enough to engage anyone. Presentations need to be informative but also entertaining.

Therefore, incorporating interactive elements into your presentations like animations, videos, calculators, quizzes , polls, and live infographics is now essential to grab attention and keep your audience engaged start-to-finish .

3. Tell a good story

When it comes to digital presentations, it's not just about the information you share, but how you share it. That's where storytelling comes in! It's all about weaving a relatable narrative that resonates with your viewers, leaving them eager for more.

By blending your data and facts into an enthralling tale, you're not only dishing out knowledge but also sparking emotions and inspiration. It's a game-changer for grabbing your audience's attention and getting your message across effectively.example

How to create a good digital presentation?

To create a great digital presentation, you need to think beyond the slides and consider the experience you want your audience to have.

Think of your presentation as a journey that takes your audience from point A to point B - you need to ensure that every step of the way is memorable and captivating.

When creating a digital presentation, there's more to it than just putting together a few slides.

You can make it real-pretty, but to make it truly effective you need to have a clear understanding of where you want to take your audience, and tailor your content accordingly.

Good presentation example

This example shows how interactive content can make a presentation that pulls you in and makes you feel part of the journey.

What should a presentation include?

Most decks contain the following 3 elements:

• Introduction (the objectives and agenda of your presentation)
• Main body (key talking points that you want to cover)
• Conclusion (followed by a single, actionable call to action)

The specific outline of your presentation will depend on your particular use case.

Check out our dedicated guides for particular business presentations:

• What to Include in a Pitch Deck (Slides 99% of Investors Want)
• 7 elements of a great sales deck structure
• What should a one-pager include?
• What does a marketing deck include?

How to start and how to end a presentation?

Start your presentation with a strong hook that captures your audience's attention and makes them interested in what you have to say.

You can end your presentation with a thank you slide, but that would be too bad. For your words to carry beyond the last slide you’ll need to give your audience the next step.

And so, you should end your presentation with a singular, clear call to action that inspires your audience to follow through on your message.

What are the essential building blocks of a successful presentation?

Almost everyone nowadays makes beautiful presentations. But that’s not enough to make them successful.

5 key elements that every successful presentation includes:

1. Compelling (human) story: Your presentation should tell a story that connects with your audience on a personal and emotional level, making your message relatable and memorable.

Here are 5 quick storytelling tips to deliver engaging presentations:

2. Clear structure: A clear structure helps your audience follow along and understand the flow of your presentation. This can be chronological, sequential, before-after, problem-solution-resolution, or any other simple and easy-to-follow structure.

3. Problem and solution: Your presentation should address a problem that your audience faces and offer a solution that your product or service can provide.

4. Actionable takeaways: Your presentation should leave your audience with actionable steps or insights that they can use to apply the information you've presented.

5. Supporting visuals (product demo) and data visualization (graphs, charts, and infographics): Using visuals to support your presentation can reinforce your message and help your audience retain the information you presented.

6 biggest mistakes to avoid when creating a presentation

It’s easy to forget that the presentation is for your audience rather than for you. You may want to tell them everything from A to Z, but they may only want to know ABC.

It’s even easier to take for granted that the things you understand are clear to others. But for them, these things are horribly complex (look up the curse of knowledge).

1. Using too much text: Overloading your slides with text can cause your audience to lose interest and detract from your main points. Keep your text to a minimum and use visuals to reinforce your key takeaways.

2. Going too much into detail: attention is a limited resource so you can’t fit everything in a single presentation. Tell your audience only what they really want (and need) to know. Avoid any technical details or complex jargon that does not contribute to the core of your message.

3. Neglecting interactivity: Failing to include interactive elements can cause your audience to disengage. Use polls, quizzes, and other interactive tools, including email newsletter software , to keep your audience engaged.

4. Ignoring the power of storytelling: Telling a compelling story is critical to capturing your audience's attention and leaving a lasting impression. Use relatable stories and examples that support your key points.

5. Poor use of visuals: Using low-quality visuals, irrelevant images, or poorly designed charts and graphs can detract from your presentation and cause confusion. Use high-quality visuals that reinforce your key ideas and are easy to understand.

6. Lack of personalization: If you don’t tailor your presentation to your audience's needs, interests, and level of understanding, your message will fall flat. Make sure to consider your audience's perspective and adjust your deck accordingly.

You don't want your presentation to end up looking like this:

How to design a presentation?

Designing a presentation is a bit like decorating a cake - you want it to be visually appealing but also yummy to consume. You want it to leave your audience with a taste for more rather than a bad taste in their mouth.

Lucky for you there are practical steps for designing a presentation that truly wows your audience every time. There's also a more practical presentation maker for this than PowerPoint. You can use it to get much more engaging presntations.

Practical presentation design tips:

1. Choose a color scheme: Just like choosing the perfect icing color for your cake, selecting a color scheme that complements your brand can make your presentation feel more coherent. Or, if you’re pitching to a client, you can use their brand colors instead in order to impress them.

2. Use high-quality images: Using high-quality images is like adding a layer of delicious, rich frosting to your cake. It makes your presentation more visually interesting and helps support your key message.

3. Use consistent fonts: Using consistent fonts throughout your presentation can make it easier to read. Stick to two or three fonts that complement each other and use them consistently.

4. Incorporate visual aids: Visual aids like colorful sprinkles and creative cake toppers can take your cake to the next level. Similarly, graphs, charts, and infographics can help break text patterns and, therefore, make your presentation more memorable.

Check out our use-ready slide design with every type of slide you can think of designed according to our tips and best practices.

Where to find presentation templates?

Scouring the web for presentation templates can be a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack - it's time-consuming, frustrating, and can leave you feeling a bit lost. Most designs available look dull and samey, and are not optimized for engagement.

But don't worry, we've got you covered! Here are the best interactive presentation templates for different use cases:

Choose template by:

What tools to use to create presentations?

Unfortunately, there's no one-size-fits-all tool for creating a digital presentation. And with so many presentation tools out there, it can be hard to know where to start looking.

That’s why we've done the research for you - check out our article rounding up the best presentation software to pick the right one for your needs!

And, if you want to learn more about creating effective digital presentations, check out these posts:

• How to Make Effective & Impactful Presentations (12 Steps)
• How to Make a Multimedia Presentation (5 Easy Steps)

How to give a presentation?

Giving a presentation can be intimidating, but it's an excellent opportunity to showcase your knowledge and expertise. To deliver a successful presentation, you need to focus on engaging your audience, keeping their attention, and providing valuable information.

9 tips to help you give a memorable presentation:

1. Start with a strong hook

A strong opening is crucial to grab your audience's attention and pique their interest. Begin with a bold statement, a surprising fact, or a personal anecdote that relates to the topic of your presentation. This will immediately grab the audience's attention and make them want to listen to what you have to say.

2. Make your objectives and agenda clear

Engage your audience right from the start by letting them know what's in store for them. Outlining your objectives and agenda early on will keep your audience focused and ensure that they don't miss out on any crucial information. Let them know why it's important to pay attention to your presentation and what they can expect to learn from it. By doing this, you'll build anticipation and get them excited about what's to come!

3. Leverage storytelling

People love stories, and they are an effective way to connect with your audience. Use anecdotes, metaphors, and examples to illustrate your points and make your presentation more relatable. This will help the audience understand the concepts you're presenting and retain the information up to 60-70% better .

4. Ask questions, use humor, give simple directions that prove a point

Engage your audience by asking questions, using humor, and giving them simple tasks to perform that illustrate your point. This will keep their attention and make the presentation more interactive.

5. Direct the audience's attention

Use a pointer or built-in animation to draw the audience's attention to critical information. This will help them focus on what you're saying and avoid distractions.

6. Work on the delivery

Speak slowly and clearly, use positive language, and avoid reading from notes as much as possible. Use humor and engage with your audience to make the presentation more enjoyable. Ensure your body language is confident and relaxed, and maintain eye contact with your audience.

7. Add interactive elements

Incorporate interactive elements like polls, quizzes, or surveys to involve your audience and gather valuable feedback. This will make your presentation more engaging and ensure your audience retains the information presented.

8. Close with a CTA

End your presentation with a strong call to action (CTA). Inspire your audience to take the next step, whether it's signing up for a newsletter, buying a product, or visiting your website. Make it clear what you want your audience to do after the presentation.

9. Leave time for a Q&A session

Finally, leave ample time for a Q&A session. This will allow your audience to clarify any doubts and ask questions. It's also an excellent opportunity for you to engage with your audience and get valuable feedback on your presentation.

Create amazing digital presentations from templates

Creating a digital presentation that grabs your audience's attention and drives results may feel like a daunting task.

After all, a strong digital presentation can be the difference between leaving a lasting impression on your audience or falling flat and losing their attention.

It's like trying to teach a class without proper preparation - you're not giving your knowledge and expertise a chance to shine, and your audience might not retain the information you're presenting.

To make things easier, try using our customizable digital presentation templates that will help you create an engaging and impactful digital presentation in no time!

Where can I see examples of good presentations?

If you’re looking for real-life examples that drove results for other companies from different industry sectors, check out highly effective presentation examples by our clients .

Alternatively, if you want to see the best presentation examples that you can replicate to create your own, here are our dedicated guides:

• 10 Perfect Presentation Examples That Win Over Anyone
• 9 Unique Sales Deck Examples that Outsell the Rest
• 10 Top Pitch Deck Examples to Inspire Your Fundraising Efforts
• Top Product Presentation Examples That Wow Everyone
• Marketing Deck: What It Is & How to Make It Win (Examples)
• 6 Elevator Pitch Examples for Any Scenario (Ready for Use)

Where can I find good presentation templates?

If you’re looking for snazzy presentation templates, Storydoc should be your go-to place. We offer a fantastic selection of visually stunning designs to make your digital presentation pop.

All components have been designed with best practices in mind and optimized for engagement. Thanks to the built-in analytics panel, you can also check how your presentations perform in real-time.

Click on any of these categories to see the best presentation templates for your specific use case:

• One-pager templates
• Sales deck templates
• Pitch deck templates
• Business proposal deck templates
• Marketing decks templates
• Case studies templates
• Report templates
• White paper templates

What are common types of business presentations?

The most common types of business presentations are:

• Sales decks
• Pitch decks
• Business proposal decks
• Marketing decks
• Case studies

Is a presentation the same as a slideshow?

Technically, a slideshow is a type of presentation, but not all presentations are slideshows.

A presentation can take many different forms, from a speech to a product demonstration, and can use various tools, including slideshows, to deliver the message. So while a slideshow is certainly a popular choice for presentations, it's not the only option out there.

What is death by PowerPoint?

Death by PowerPoint is the phenomenon of boring, uninspired, and ineffective presentations that use an overabundance of bullet points, text-heavy slides, and monotonous delivery. It's a surefire way to put your audience to sleep and leave them counting down the minutes until your presentation is over.

To avoid death by PowerPoint, aim to create presentations that are visually engaging, incorporate storytelling, and use multimedia elements like images, videos, and interactive features. Remember, a presentation should be a tool to enhance your message, not a crutch to lean on.

What are common types of presentation delivery formats?

There are 5 popular types of presentation delivery formats to choose from:

• Powerpoint: A classic choice, PowerPoint offers a range of design and animation options to create static slide-based presentations.
• Google Slides : As a cloud-based tool, Google Slides makes it easy to collaborate with others in real-time. It's an excellent option for static team presentations and remote work situations.
• Keynote : Exclusive to Apple devices, Keynote is known for its sleek and elegant design options. It's an ideal choice for visually appealing presentations on Mac or iOS devices.
• PDF: For a simple, static, and easily shareable format, PDF presentations are a reliable option. They ensure consistent formatting across different devices and platforms.
• Storydoc : Taking presentations to the next level, Storydoc provides immersive and interactive templates that are sure to captivate your audience and leave a lasting impression.

What are common types of presentation speech formats?

There are 4 common types of presentation delivery formats:

• Memorized: In a memorized delivery, the presenter memorizes the entire presentation word-for-word and delivers it without notes. This format can be effective for short presentations or speeches but can be challenging to execute for longer presentations.
• Manuscript: In a manuscript delivery, the presenter reads from a written script or teleprompter. This format is great for delivering complex or technical information but can come across as less engaging.
• Impromptu: In an impromptu delivery, the presenter delivers a presentation without prior preparation or planning. This format is often used in situations like interviews or meetings and requires quick thinking and adaptability.
• Extemporaneous: In an extemporaneous delivery, the presenter delivers a presentation using notes or an outline, but not a fully scripted presentation. This format allows for flexibility and engagement with the audience while still maintaining structure.

Why is a presentation important for my business?

Here are the main reasons why presentations are essential for your business:

• Be the expert: Presentations provide a platform to showcase your expertise and share your unique perspectives with your audience, establishing you as a thought leader in your industry.
• Build connections: Presentations provide an opportunity to connect with your audience, building relationships that can lead to future business opportunities.
• Leave a lasting impression: An engaging and memorable presentation can leave a lasting impact on your audience, increasing brand awareness and improving message retention.
• Achieve your goals: Presentations can be used to achieve business goals, from generating leads to securing funding or closing deals.

How to measure the effectiveness of a presentation?

Measuring the effectiveness of a presentation is crucial to ensure it hits the mark with your audience and achieves its goals. Here are some ways to measure the effectiveness of a presentation:

Ask for feedback: Don't be afraid to ask your audience for feedback after the presentation, either through surveys or live feedback. This feedback can provide valuable insights into what worked well and what could be improved, helping you refine your approach for future presentations.

Monitor engagement: Keep a pulse on engagement metrics such as views, shares, or the average reading time if the presentation is delivered online. These metrics can give you a sense of the level of interest generated by the presentation and which parts resonated with your audience. Our own presentation maker comes with built-in analytics tracking and reporting .

Track business outcomes: If your presentation is designed to drive business results, track metrics such as lead generation, sales, or conversion rates to assess its effectiveness in achieving these goals.

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.

Perfect Presentation Examples That Win Over Anyone

Top Product Presentation Examples That Wow Everyone Sales and Marketing Presentations Statistics Marketing Presentation Examples that Engage & Convert

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Engage your audience with powerful visual presentations.

Visual tools are critical to have in any presentation as they’re one of the key presentation aids that will help enhance your overall presentation .

We’ll give you tips on how to develop a sense of good presentation design whether you’re using PowerPoint, Prezi, Google Slides or any presentation software under the sun. The secret to creating a great presentation does not lie in a superior software, but understanding a few universal design concepts that can applied for all types of visual presentations.

Don’t be afraid to use a few presentation templates – there are ways to make the presentation ideas in those templates your own ideas and advance it in several different ways. Let’s make your next presentation on point and designed beautifully.

Presentations Are The Visual Communication Tool To Your Story

In the age of information, people remember facts faster through stories. Keep your bullet points and information short. You can use a rule of thumb to not put more than a paragraph and 3 points per slide to start.

Make your presentation the visual component of your story, but not something your audience has to read. Something that is short and succinct on screen will capture your audience’s attention and make sure they retain the main points of your message.

This does not mean incomplete slides. A common mistake presenters make is putting too little information on a slide in the name of simplicity when in fact they’re leaving out the main context.

A well designed visual presentation has a great story behind it and a well rehearsed voice telling it as well. Engaging the audience is also a great way to associate meaning or connection to the content of your slide decks. Ask questions and tell stories while showing off a great visual presentation! Think of writing the copy like writing for social media – you only have a certain amount of characters to use and a short audience attention span.

General Tips For Visual Presentations

Before you begin creating your presentation, you first need to know what makes effective presentations – storytelling. Such presentations target the audience’s emotions leading to a stronger connection to the audience member and the main point of the presentation.

Below are some storytelling tips for your slides, but remember to keep the presentation itself simple and practice makes perfect. And again, these are more for your spoken component that accompanies the visual component. These tips can be useful because they can be applied to all your presentations in general.

Step 1 is to ask yourself who your audience is and how to convey the key message you have in mind to them. Once you settle on your message, you can start designing your slides with that direction in mind.

You may wonder how to connect with an audience with your slides. Look to your own experiences, your own speaking style and tailor your message to what you know. Not many people want to hear others recite facts with no real meaning driving the story. Ask yourself, “Why does this matter to the audience and why should they care?”.

There is a lot of trust that can be built when the audience has a genuine connection to the presenter. Overall, if you have something that can solve a problem or teach someone complex things, that is enough to form a connection with your audience.

Think of the last app you used, the last email you read or perhaps the last business you purchased from. What was the content or visual elements that pulled you in?

Are you making a PowerPoint, Prezi or other form of visual presentation but it’s taking too much of your time? Enlist the help of Presentation Geeks and consider outsourcing your presentation design . Outsourcing your presentation slides allows you to free more of your time while still getting the results of an interesting presentation. You’ll have the support of expert slide designers who know what presentation visuals work and don’t work thanks to years of presentation feedback and background knowledge.

Color Design Tips For Presentation Slides

When designing your presentation, make sure you take into consideration the colors you’re using. We’ve listed a few background color combinations you might want to consider when developing the overall slide deck and the font to use.

Color Wheel Alignments:

Primary Colors: Red, yellow, blue

Secondary Colors: Green, orange, purple

Tertiary Colors: Yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple, blue-purple, blue-green & yellow-green

Analogous Colors: These are any three colors which are side by side on a color wheel. (Think green, lime green, yellow)

Complementary Colors: These are colors that are directly opposite of a color wheel. (Think green vs. purple, red vs. blue)

Monochromatic Colors: This is when you use one color and various shades or hues of it. It works well for minimal looks.

Color moods:

Red/Orange/Yellow: Generally these convey a sense of energy, are warm colors and catch your attention. Yellow is a happy warm color on one end and red is very striking and can warn of danger, and symbolizes importance, passion and sometimes violence.

Blue/Purple/Green: These colors are calming, reserved, elegant and often used for corporate slides. Think of how indigo blue is used for many large corporate entities. Green often is branded with earth or medical brands. Purple often conveys a sense of royalty, money and creativity.

Use The Power Of Photography Or Video

Pictures and videos are great visuals to incorporate into any presentation. Remember the saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words”? Well, it’s true! Photos help visualize complex information. You’ll often come across a lot of photos in research presentations as they help the audience understand examples better.

They can also save you from having to put a thousand thoughts into the PowerPoint presentation slide!

The first tip we can give to make a great visual presentation is to choose all your photos before you start. This way you can keep the consistency of the images across your slide deck and make sure they’re somewhat alike in terms of composition, mood and brand.

Use free stock photos

You don’t have to take the photos or videos yourself.

There are plenty of free resources and web pages for stock photos online – Unsplash , Pexels , Pixabay , Free Range , Creative Commons and some photos from Freepik are free to use with some accreditation.

Effective photo use

Make sure you pick an image that will focus on the main theme of the slide. One image is usually enough if the image choice is very relevant to the slide. If you have multiple photos, avoid poor or loose placement of photos all over the slide. Try to use a grid or gallery placement and it will immediately enhance the layout of the slide.

If you pick great images, making presentations can be faster. Instead of having to create an elaborate template with multiple elements, a photo with a couple of bullet points can go a long way in terms of capturing attention and making your presentation slides look professional. This is true on any presentation design platform – whether its PowerPoint, Google Slides, etc.

You can also embed videos whether they’re located on your computer, YouTube, Vimeo or other major video streaming sites. If you’re feeling nervous about your presentation or have a complex message that would be hard to condense in one slide, a video is a dynamic way of conveying your message in any type of presentation.

The Typography You Use Matters

Typography is how you will arrange and present the words in your presentation. An audience can engage when text is readable, functional and works well with the other elements in the presentation. Fonts and sizing are a good place to start establishing the tone of your presentation.

Overview of Font Choices

Elegant fonts often denote a sense of luxury or lifestyle tone. Use script fonts sparingly, but as titles they immediately give this polished and high-end look. This should not be used as body text or something lengthy to read. Think about if you sent an email in that text – it would be tedious to read. However, maybe if it were a title or a way to name email, the choice may be more correct.

Corporate fonts often are traditional, serif fonts or clean sans serif fonts that evoke a sense of trust and a clear message. Think of the fonts Lato, Helvetica or Arial – they’re go-to fonts that are easy to read, and work across many systems. This is especially helpful if you are working across teams when creating content or having to approve the content, idea or visuals.

Of course, you can incorporate more stylistic or playful fonts if you want to give your presentation a personal feel. Much like the scripted font, when used sparingly but in large titles, this choice of font can be very effective at conveying a certain personality.

Adding Symbols & Icons To Your Presentation

You can consolidate information by using symbols or icons to direct your eye to information such as an arrow symbol. What if you used a symbol instead of a bullet point? Think of symbols as anchors for the eye to quickly find information. You can collect symbols off free stock sites or use the built-in ones in PowerPoint that are free to use!

Depending on if your presentation is formal or informal , you may also want to consider adding emojis! Emojis are fun ways to express different emotions and can help connect with a younger demographic.

Overall Branding, Tone of Voice & Consistency

Another tool you may have at your disposal is if your brand, business or company has brand guidelines. It will be the guide and compass to your presentation’s information that goes within it. By keeping consistent you can achieve a polished look even if it looks very simple.

Use your business voice to communicate ideas and set the tone for your presentation. Are you in an investment banking business and want people to rely on the information given to you? That would inform perhaps using blues and purples, which are calmer colors and a cleaner look. Are you an influencer who’s buying power and spending choices matter to your audience? Maybe choosing bright colors with personal touches will make the connection. Are you designing an innovative app? Maybe more interactive slides would do the trick.

Use these questions to make sure your text and tone is consistent as this is a foundation of a well articulated brand or personal identity.

Consistent Hierarchy

Visual hierarchy is how you will arrange objects and text in relation to one another to guide your user and not confuse the objects and how they should read them in your slides. Setting rules helps differentiate and prioritize what’s important in order.

Look at the difference between these two.

Snoop Dogg just launched a wine and it’s coming to Canada

Daily hive branded content | aug 11 2020, 6:30 am.

Australian winery 19 Crimes recently announced that its new Cali Red wine, created in collaboration with Entertainment Icon, entrepreneur, and hip-hop artist Snoop Dogg, will be hitting shelves across Canada later this summer.

The collaboration offers a refreshing take on celebrity partnerships as the apparent shared values and history between the brand and famous rapper make for a perfectly organic pairing.

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You can see a clear distinction in the example below:

Think of hierarchy of a form of narration or story structure. Your eye goes to the title, then to the subtitle, then to the body copy in a logical manner. Where the eye travels is one of those things we don’t think about often. But you can also utilize eye lines in photos. Is your subject in the photo looking left or right? Consider placing text to where your subject is looking and see how effectively your eye travels to that text.

We’ll look at hierarchy strictly as sizing of words for now, but note you can establish hierarchy with type, white space, alignment, etc. As a general rule of thumb, you should have consistent sizing for your Header (or title slide / slide title), your subtitles and your body text. That’s it! If the sizing in your PowerPoint is consistent, your words will look uniform and clean. Everything will be much easier to read and the eye will be trained to move each slide.

Don’t Forget Your Own Style

Also don’t forget to incorporate your own style and what kind of visuals you like. Even if your early visuals may seem simple, build up that design muscle with the basics and design techniques that look clean and consistent.

You’ll find as you design these basics, you’ll probably start noticing other visuals and things you like in other mediums and presentations. Keep a note or screenshot the presentation that inspired you. Create a mood-board that you can refer to in the future for quick idea inspiration. Copying gets a bad rap, but learning how to design something you like even if it’s a clone copy will teach you many things about design. Build a collection of images that informs everything you do: for your color scheme, your designs, the cadence of images, etc.

That being said, you can also use free stock websites like Freepik for some design layouts inspiration. Creative Market is a paid website but the site offers a ton of design inspiration. This site has design templates for what’s currently in and trending. You can subscribe to an email newsletter on either site to get bite sized design influence each day that goes straight to your inbox.

However, don’t be afraid to try something new!

Once you get to a level of comfortable designing, these new ideas will be much easier to execute with the technical knowledge you amassed when you started. You could even try using a new app to design your ideas to keep your knowledge fresh! (Keep in mind that most online apps like SlideShare use cookies to improve functionality and performance.)

Ask your friends or people at your organization to give you feedback and critique, as that’s also crucial to honing your design skills. The people around you also represent different audiences!

The above image looks boring, right?

That’s because there are no visual elements!

Powerful visual presentations can engage audiences psychologically with both the presentation itself and the energy of the presenter. By understanding a few universal design concepts, you can begin your journey creating wonderful visual presentations and becoming a better presenter ! Thanks for reading this blog post, tell us your tips in the comments below.

Author:  Content Team

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What Is a Presentation? Everything You Need To Know

Do you want to know the basics of a presentation?

Learn to deliver a clear and concise presentation by discovering its essential elements and goals.

In this article, we will discuss the following:

What is a presentation ?

Elements of a presentation

Parts of a presentation.

Goals of a presentation

Frequently asked questions about presentations

What is a presentation?

A presentation is a communication method for delivering information to an audience . It typically involves a demonstration, illustration, or speech crafted to inform, persuade, inspire, or share a new idea .

Presentations require every speaker to deliver their message with compelling elements. To ensure effectiveness, you need to know the basic preparation steps. Moreover, as a speaker, you must carefully consider the methods of presenting the information.

When delivering a presentation, you must convey your thoughts and ideas. As such, you must remember the following key points:

Presentation content and slides

Your presentation content must include key points and structured details. Moreover, it would be best to create slides with relevant and eye-catching elements, including images and videos. These visual details serve to support your message.

Creating visually appealing presentation slides shouldn't be difficult. Simple Slides has over 10,000  customizable templates, slides, and infographics  that can suit your need!

Speakers' voice

Your tone, speed, pacing, volume, and pauses will contextualize your presentation. So, you must be careful with your voice and ensure it will deliver the right message.

Get inspiration from other superb presenters with engaging speaking voices. Even with tone subtleties, you can effectively capture your audience's attention while sharing important information. 

Body language

Good posture, eye contact, and appropriate body movements are some ways you can exude confidence. Being conscious of your body language can directly influence how your audience will understand your message.

Take it from TED speaker and renowned social psychologist Amy Cuddy . She mentioned how body language could change how other people perceive you.

Authenticity

Knowing the purpose of your content is another key element of good presentations. The speaker's voice, body language, and the context of the presentation slides reflect authenticity. So, to capture your audience's attention and keep them engaged, you must be sincere. 

It's crucial to build rapport and trust with your audience. One of the most common pieces of advice in public speaking is to stop glancing at the presentation slides. Instead, you should imagine the entire content while dialoguing and conversing with your audience.

An effective presentation consists of three main parts: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion.

Introduction

Your presentation introduction must take 10 to 15% of your presentation time. Your opening prepares your audience to receive the message while drawing their interest. 

We recommend reading our innovative presentation ideas to get inspiration on how to open your speech. 

The body of a presentation provides your core context. So, it would be best if you organized it logically and coherently. As the speaker, you must explain the subject and the relevant details. Oregon State University says the body takes 75% of the presentation . 

Remember that the body consists of visual aids and key presentation elements. After all, this is where your audience will get the important details of your content.

Your conclusion takes 10% of your presentation time. So, it must be concise. Moreover, it must summarize the critical points of your message. 

The conclusion provides information about what your audience can learn from your presentation.

The goal of a presentation

There are three main objectives of providing and conveying a formal presentation:

Share information

In the corporate setting, presentations inform their audience about any progress and new product within the organization.

To convince

Presentations also persuade the audience to take action or convince people to believe a piece of information. Whether you're speaking in front of a large or small group, your presentation must persuade each person in the event.

Build trust

Business presentations help build a good reputation for brands and organizations.

Final Thoughts on "What Is a Presentation?"

Learning the key elements of a good presentation can be helpful for anyone. With our tips, you can deliver an effective and persuasive speech.  Moreover, you can speak with confidence while connecting with your audience.

Check out  our how-to-do blogs  for more updates about PowerPoint and Google Slides presentations! Remember to follow us on  Facebook .

Frequently Asked Questions About The Presentation:

What are the factors affecting an effective presentation.

The factors affecting presentations are the speakers' appearance, visuals, audience analysis, communication environment, and more. 

What are the different types of presentations?

Some presentation examples include:

• Storytelling
• Instructional
• Takahashi-Lessig method

What are the categories of communication?

The four classifications of communication are:

• Visual representation
• Written communication

Related Articles:

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What is a Presentation?

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The formal presentation of information is divided into two broad categories: Presentation Skills and Personal Presentation .

These two aspects are interwoven and can be described as the preparation, presentation and practice of verbal and non-verbal communication. 

This article describes what a presentation is and defines some of the key terms associated with presentation skills.

Many people feel terrified when asked to make their first public talk.  Some of these initial fears can be reduced by good preparation that also lays the groundwork for making an effective presentation.

A Presentation Is...

A presentation is a means of communication that can be adapted to various speaking situations, such as talking to a group, addressing a meeting or briefing a team.

A presentation can also be used as a broad term that encompasses other ‘speaking engagements’ such as making a speech at a wedding, or getting a point across in a video conference.

To be effective, step-by-step preparation and the method and means of presenting the information should be carefully considered. 

A presentation requires you to get a message across to the listeners and will often contain a ' persuasive ' element. It may, for example, be a talk about the positive work of your organisation, what you could offer an employer, or why you should receive additional funding for a project.

The Key Elements of a Presentation

Making a presentation is a way of communicating your thoughts and ideas to an audience and many of our articles on communication are also relevant here, see: What is Communication? for more.

Consider the following key components of a presentation:

Ask yourself the following questions to develop a full understanding of the context of the presentation.

When and where will you deliver your presentation?

There is a world of difference between a small room with natural light and an informal setting, and a huge lecture room, lit with stage lights. The two require quite different presentations, and different techniques.

Will it be in a setting you are familiar with, or somewhere new?

If somewhere new, it would be worth trying to visit it in advance, or at least arriving early, to familiarise yourself with the room.

Will the presentation be within a formal or less formal setting?

A work setting will, more or less by definition, be more formal, but there are also various degrees of formality within that.

Will the presentation be to a small group or a large crowd?

Are you already familiar with the audience?

With a new audience, you will have to build rapport quickly and effectively, to get them on your side.

What equipment and technology will be available to you, and what will you be expected to use?

In particular, you will need to ask about microphones and whether you will be expected to stand in one place, or move around.

What is the audience expecting to learn from you and your presentation?

Check how you will be ‘billed’ to give you clues as to what information needs to be included in your presentation.

All these aspects will change the presentation. For more on this, see our page on Deciding the Presentation Method .

The role of the presenter is to communicate with the audience and control the presentation.

Remember, though, that this may also include handing over the control to your audience, especially if you want some kind of interaction.

You may wish to have a look at our page on Facilitation Skills for more.

The audience receives the presenter’s message(s).

However, this reception will be filtered through and affected by such things as the listener’s own experience, knowledge and personal sense of values.

See our page: Barriers to Effective Communication to learn why communication can fail.

The message or messages are delivered by the presenter to the audience.

The message is delivered not just by the spoken word ( verbal communication ) but can be augmented by techniques such as voice projection, body language, gestures, eye contact ( non-verbal communication ), and visual aids.

The message will also be affected by the audience’s expectations. For example, if you have been billed as speaking on one particular topic, and you choose to speak on another, the audience is unlikely to take your message on board even if you present very well . They will judge your presentation a failure, because you have not met their expectations.

The audience’s reaction and therefore the success of the presentation will largely depend upon whether you, as presenter, effectively communicated your message, and whether it met their expectations.

As a presenter, you don’t control the audience’s expectations. What you can do is find out what they have been told about you by the conference organisers, and what they are expecting to hear. Only if you know that can you be confident of delivering something that will meet expectations.

See our page: Effective Speaking for more information.

How will the presentation be delivered?

Presentations are usually delivered direct to an audience.  However, there may be occasions where they are delivered from a distance over the Internet using video conferencing systems, such as Skype.

It is also important to remember that if your talk is recorded and posted on the internet, then people may be able to access it for several years. This will mean that your contemporaneous references should be kept to a minimum.

Impediments

Many factors can influence the effectiveness of how your message is communicated to the audience.

For example background noise or other distractions, an overly warm or cool room, or the time of day and state of audience alertness can all influence your audience’s level of concentration.

As presenter, you have to be prepared to cope with any such problems and try to keep your audience focussed on your message.   

Our page: Barriers to Communication explains these factors in more depth.

Continue to read through our Presentation Skills articles for an overview of how to prepare and structure a presentation, and how to manage notes and/or illustrations at any speaking event.

Continue to: Preparing for a Presentation Deciding the Presentation Method

See also: Writing Your Presentation | Working with Visual Aids Coping with Presentation Nerves | Dealing with Questions Learn Better Presentation Skills with TED Talks

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The Complete Guide to Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing Definition

What is Video Conferencing?

Video conferencing  is a live video-based meeting between two or more people in different locations using video-enabled devices. Video conferencing allows multiple people to meet and collaborate face to face long distance by transmitting audio, video, text and presentations in real time through the internet.

• 80% of executives say turning on video for internal communications is becoming the norm; 84% say the same for external meetings  1
• 87% more people use video conferencing today than two years ago
• 75% of remote workers experience increased productivity and an enhanced work-life balance
• 64% of companies have video conferencing setups in small huddle rooms

What Other Tools Go Well With Video Conferencing? 

Project Management

Project management tools like  Asana  and  Monday.com  are designed to help teams organize, track and manage tasks and projects. All projects go through a customized task workflow that controls the status of the project as well as the rules by which it transitions to other statuses. These tools make it easy to see project due dates, assignees and progress to ensure every project is completed correctly and on time. 

Communication Tools

Instant messaging tools like  Microsoft Teams  and  Slack®  are great for quick, impromptu, text-based conversations to help keep your team connected throughout the workday. In addition to texts, you can also send GIFs and videos on the platforms, making the messages more exciting. All files and chats are synced, archived and searchable, so you can find chats and documents in the future. You can also create unique channels so smaller groups of people or departments can work together on tasks and projects. 

Whiteboarding

Whiteboards are great for quickly sharing ideas, brainstorming with your team and making visual concepts easier to understand, but if you’re calling into the meeting over video it’s easy to feel left out.  Lifesize Share™ with the Kaptivo™ whiteboard camera system  lets you digitally capture and share content from any standard whiteboard. Kaptivo removes people, reflection and glares from the whiteboard session and presents a clear and sharp digital image to everyone on the call in real time. After the meeting you can easily download or share your whiteboard session with your entire team or people outside your organization. 

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Business Jargons

A Business Encyclopedia

Presentation

Definition : A presentation is a form of communication in which the speaker conveys information to the audience. In an organization presentations are used in various scenarios like talking to a group, addressing a meeting, demonstrating or introducing a new product, or briefing a team. It involves presenting a particular subject or issue or new ideas/thoughts to a group of people.

It is considered as the most effective form of communication because of two main reasons:

• Use of non-verbal cues.
• Facilitates instant feedback.

Business Presentations are a tool to influence people toward an intended thought or action.

Parts of Presentation

• Introduction : It is meant to make the listeners ready to receive the message and draw their interest. For that, the speaker can narrate some story or a humorous piece of joke, an interesting fact, a question, stating a problem, and so forth. They can also use some surprising statistics.
• Body : It is the essence of the presentation. It requires the sequencing of facts in a logical order. This is the part where the speaker explains the topic and relevant information. It has to be critically arranged, as the audience must be able to grasp what the speaker presents.
• Conclusion : It needs to be short and precise. It should sum up or outline the key points that you have presented. It could also contain what the audience should have gained out of the presentation.

Purpose of Presentation

• To inform : Organizations can use presentations to inform the audience about new schemes, products or proposals. The aim is to inform the new entrant about the policies and procedures of the organization.
• To persuade : Presentations are also given to persuade the audience to take the intended action.
• To build goodwill : They can also help in building a good reputation

Factors Affecting Presentation

Audience Analysis

Communication environment, personal appearance, use of visuals, opening and closing presentation, organization of presentation, language and words, voice quality, body language, answering questions, a word from business jargons.

Presentation is a mode of conveying information to a selected group of people live. An ideal presentation is one that identifies and matches the needs, interests and understanding level of the audience. It also represents the facts, and figures in the form of tables, charts, and graphs and uses multiple colours.

Related terms:

• Verbal Communication
• Visual Communication
• Non-Verbal Communication
• Communication
• 7 C’s of Communication

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What is a Presentation? Objectives, Elements, Important skills, Four Ps

• Post last modified: 4 June 2023
• Reading time: 19 mins read
• Post category: Business Communication

What is a Presentation?

A presentation communicates a message, an idea or information to a group. It is similar to a report, but with a key difference–the human element. A presentation conveys the speaker’s personality and enables immediate interaction among all participants.

Table of Content

• 1 What is a Presentation?
• 2.1 To Inform
• 2.2 To Train
• 2.3 To Persuade
• 2.4 To Motivate
• 2.5 To Entertain
• 3 Main Elements of Presentation
• 4.1 Analytical ability
• 4.2 Effective communication ability
• 4.3 Creative ability
• 4.4 Good interpersonal skill
• 4.5 Sound time management
• 4.6 Problem-solving ability
• 4.7 A sense of humour
• 5 Evaluation Wheel
• 6.1 Prepare
• 6.2 Practice
• 6.3 Present
• 7.1 Know Yourself
• 7.2 Know Your Material
• 7.3 Know Your Purpose
• 7.4 Know Your Audience

Objectives of Presentation

The main objectives of a presentation are:

To Persuade

To motivate, to entertain.

A presentation is created to convey some information to a group of people. For example, a presentation may display an organisation’s quarterly performance.

Most training programmes in organisations are done through the presentation mode. Such instructional presentations convey a lot of information and are created with instructional design principles to keep the audience engaged for a long period.

Some presentations are used to convince a group of people to accept a particular idea and/or make a certain choice.

The growing popularity of TED Talks indicates how a presentation can be a powerful motivation tool. These presentations trigger emotions and inspire people to act.

Presentations can also be used to celebrate an event. For example, a farewell presentation of a colleague can be used to narrate the story of his/her overall tenure, experiences and achievement in the organisation.

Main Elements of Presentation

A presentation is said to be effective if it has three main elements, which are as follows:

• Specific content : This refers to the information that a presentation will comprise. The information must be conveyed effectively so that it is absorbed by the audience in one sitting. It should be relevant and meaningful to them.
• Audience : A presentation should be targeted for a specific group of audience who share the same purpose and have a similar level of pre-knowledge.
• Presenter: The presenter should act as the advocate of the information. If his/her conviction and passion in the message are clearly articulated, the audience will also pay attention to the subject.

Important Presentation Skills

In today’s business environment, presentation skills are requisite in almost every professional arena. Employees are often required to give presentations on the targets achieved by them. A presentation can be effective if it is carefully planned and prepared.

However, delivering presentations is not always easy for every individual. Some people take presenting as a probable opportunity to showcase skills, while others find it a challenging task. To provide an effective presentation, a presenter must possess some abilities.

Some of them are explained as follows:

Analytical ability

Effective communication ability, creative ability, good interpersonal skill, sound time management, problem-solving ability, a sense of humour.

It refers to a calibre which empowers an individual to collect, organise, visualise and comprehend data. Such skills enable a person to look at related patterns, draw conclusions and find solutions to problems. In addition, sound analytical skills also enable an individual to forecast future trends using various techniques such as brainstorming, forecasting, data mining and metrics interpretation.

Communication entails much more than mere talking to the audience. To communicate effectively during a presentation, one ought to showcase information lucidly. During a presentation, a person should not just have a good set of slides together; rather he needs to engage and strike a chord with the audience to transmit the intended message.

It refers to the ability to present things in a creative way that have not been explored earlier. Creative skills in presentation enable an individual to invent or develop something path-breaking, such as a new concept, unique way out from a problem, a method, a work of art or new machinery, etc.

It encompasses how an individual portrays or presents himself to the audience and builds a rapport with the audience. During a presentation, sound interpersonal skills empower a speaker to interact, communicate and collaborate with the audience effectively.

Interpersonal skills are prevalent across all personal and professional interactions between people. Interpersonal skills entail empathy, active listening and emotional intelligence.

While delivering a presentation, a person should manage time effectively, set a presentation schedule and end a presentation within a stipulated time. If a presentation is long, there are chances the audience may lose interest and the message may not be delivered.

A speaker cannot expect audience to actively listen to the presentation for hours. At the start of presentation, a speaker should aim to grab audience’s attention and allocate time for questions and answers at the end.

Problem-solving is a requisite skill for a presentation. During a presentation, the audience may ask the speaker any kind of questions. On the other hand, it is important for the speaker to provide an appropriate answer to the audience to make the presentation successful.

A sense of humour is crucial to deliver a quality presentation to make the environment light and engaging. Appropriate usage of light jokes relieves stress and holds the attention of an audience, which makes the presentation a memorable experience for both the speaker and the audience.

Evaluation Wheel

Evaluation wheel is a creative and effective tool that accumulates information on outcomes in a simple and accessible manner. A presenter can opt for the evaluation wheel tool to show the outcomes of the research or reports. This tool is used to provide various types of information and journeys of change within the organisation.

It offers a visual representation of progression and results in the form of a spider diagram. The evaluation wheel measures the exact outcomes for a programme at the start and end. It also helps educators, designers to comprehend information systematically. Figure shows an example of evaluation wheel:

Figure states the scale questionnaire in a circle form wherein respondents will analyse the instances from their discretion and experience and give rating on a scale of 1 to 5.

For instance, service users are appropriately involved. In this case, if the respondent strongly agrees, he/she will give 5 rating and if he/she does not agree, he/she will give 1 rating. The centre of the circle is for 1 and as the respondent agrees, they reach out to edge for 5 rating.

Ps of Presentation

Even the most powerful presentation may fail if the presenter comes unprepared. A presentation is both a mental and a physical effort. There are Ps of presentation that provide a checklist to the presenter for ensuring that the presentation is well-constructed and clear so that the audience gets the message. These four Ps are explained as follows:

A thoroughly prepared presentation captivates the interests of the audience. The topic or content of the presentation must be thoroughly researched. No one would develop interest in a vague or equivocal presentation. A speaker can make use of stories or relatable examples and quote references to give more depth to the presentation and make it intriguing.

Apart from that, it should be ensured that only important points are highlighted in bullets or using other graphical elements. Providing too much of theory or full sentences can create boredom for the audience.

While preparing for a presentation, the presenter should include the following sections:

• Introduction : This section includes the name of the topic and the purpose of the presentation.
• Body : This section contains the main content of the presentation; thus, it must be prepared in a well-organised manner.
• Summary : It provides a recap of the content of the presentation. It outlines the most important points of the presentation to ensure the key message is retained by the audience.

Practice will make a man perfect is an adage that is appropriate across all spheres of life. It helps a speaker become familiar with his/her own voice, words and phrases and adjust accordingly. By practising thoroughly, a speaker can explore how to fit different pieces of information together and practise transition.

Also, a speaker should make notes wherever required as a part of presentation support. Using an index card is a common form of note-taking that provides a quick glimpse of important points.

While delivering a presentation, the speaker needs to demonstrate confidence in front of the audience. The speaker must be polite, but not apologetic in situations, such as if the session is running overtime or the microphone has stopped working.

Instead he/she should expect and ask for discipline and attention. It is important for a speaker to engage with the audience during the presentation in order to assure them that he/she is genuinely interested in talking to them. 4. Pace, pitch and pause: A presenter should deliver the presentation in an easy-to-follow pace and try changing the pace to enliven the presentation.

For example, pauses can be taken intentionally between main points to reinforce them. Along with pace, pitch is equally important. Just as pace varies in normal conversations, it should be used effectively during presentations too. For example, when asking a question, the presenter can raise the pitch and can lower it down when explaining a point.

Four Cornerstones of Making Memorable Presentations

The most crucial aspect of delivering an effective presentation is that the speaker should appear confident and the speech should look effortless. Presentations are a source of anxiety for many individuals. However, getting well-prepared before delivering a presentation can reduce this feeling considerably and ease apprehension.

There are a number of ways to overcome feelings of anxiety, stress and stage fright before the presentation in order to appear confident in front of the audience. The four cornerstones of making a memorable presentation are provided in the upcoming sections.

Know Yourself

Know your material, know your purpose, know your audience.

A presenter should acknowledge his/her strengths and weaknesses. Accordingly, he/she should decide the style of delivering a presentation. For instance, if a presenter has a great sense of humour and can use it comfortably in the speech, he/she can make the presentation more engaging and interesting.

On the other hand, if the speaker who is an introvert and prefers to talk or engage less, he/she can add visuals in the presentation. Therefore, the trick is whosoever is delivering the presentation should feel comfortable.

Knowing the topic thoroughly is the most important step in preparing and delivering a presentation. A presenter with well-versed knowledge of the topic is bound to feel more confident. One should perform extensive research of the topic using credible websites and surveys.

A presenter with minimal information about the topic will not be able to deliver a memorable presentation; rather, it would create a negative image in front of the audience. A good presentation is one that is centred around the main theme, presents relevant information and stimulates thought.

It is crucial to know the purpose of the presentation. A presenter should be aware of whether the purpose is to create awareness or to build new skills or to change attitudes. For instance, professional firms or businesses use presentations for various purposes such as to create awareness, educate, motivate and persuade internal and external audiences.

Therefore, to prepare a presentation, identify its objective/purpose, determine the method of delivery, formulate a structure, include visual aids and rehearse.

One should know the type of audience and what is their purpose of attending the presentation. For instance, whether they are there for gaining knowledge or learning new skills, etc. The age, culture and knowledge base of the audience help a presenter in designing and delivering his/her presentation effectively and in a manner in which audience can easily understand and relate to.

A well-designed presentation uses visual aids effectively to reinforce the main points and enhance the audience’s level of understanding.

Business Communication Notes

( Click on Topic to Read )

• What is Business Communication?
• What is Communication?

Types of Communication

• 7 C of Communication
• Barriers To Business Communication
• Oral Communication

Types Of Non Verbal Communication

• What is Written Communication?
• What are Soft Skills?
• Interpersonal vs Intrapersonal communication
• Barriers to Communication

Importance of Communication Skills

• Listening in Communication
• Causes of Miscommunication
• What is Johari Window?
• What is Presentation?
• Communication Styles
• Channels of Communication
• Hofstede’s Dimensions of Cultural Differences and Benett’s Stages of Intercultural Sensitivity
• Organisational Communication
• Horizontal C ommunication
• Grapevine Communication
• Downward Communication
• Verbal Communication Skills
• Upward Communication
• Flow of Communication
• What is Emotional Intelligence?
• What is Public Speaking?
• Upward vs Downward Communication
• Internal vs External Communication
• What is Group Discussion?
• What is Interview?
• What is Negotiation?
• What is Digital Communication?
• What is Letter Writing?

Resume and Covering Letter

• What is Report Writing?
• What is Business Meeting?
• What is Public Relations?
• What Is Market Segmentation?
• What Is Marketing Mix?
• Marketing Concept
• Marketing Management Process
• What Is Marketing Environment?
• What Is Consumer Behaviour?
• Business Buyer Behaviour
• Demand Forecasting
• 7 Stages Of New Product Development
• Methods Of Pricing
• What Is Public Relations?
• What Is Marketing Management?
• What Is Sales Promotion?
• Types Of Sales Promotion
• Techniques Of Sales Promotion
• What Is Personal Selling?
• What Is Advertising?
• Market Entry Strategy
• What Is Marketing Planning?
• Segmentation Targeting And Positioning
• Brand Building Process
• Kotler Five Product Level Model
• Classification Of Products
• Types Of Logistics
• What Is Consumer Research?
• What Is DAGMAR?
• Consumer Behaviour Models
• What Is Green Marketing?
• What Is Electronic Commerce?
• Agricultural Cooperative Marketing
• What Is Marketing Control?
• What Is Marketing Communication?
• What Is Pricing?
• Models Of Communication
• What is Sales Management?
• Objectives of Sales Management
• Responsibilities and Skills of Sales Manager
• Theories of Personal Selling
• What is Sales Forecasting?
• Methods of Sales Forecasting
• Purpose of Sales Budgeting
• Methods of Sales Budgeting
• Types of Sales Budgeting
• Sales Budgeting Process
• What is Sales Quotas?
• What is Selling by Objectives (SBO) ?
• What is Sales Organisation?
• Types of Sales Force Structure
• Recruiting and Selecting Sales Personnel
• Training and Development of Salesforce
• Compensating the Sales Force
• Time and Territory Management
• What Is Logistics?
• What Is Logistics System?
• Technologies in Logistics
• What Is Distribution Management?
• What Is Marketing Intermediaries?
• Conventional Distribution System
• Functions of Distribution Channels
• What is Channel Design?
• Types of Wholesalers and Retailers
• What is Vertical Marketing Systems?
• What i s Marketing?
• What i s A BCG Matrix?
• 5 M’S Of Advertising
• What i s Direct Marketing?
• Marketing Mix For Services
• What Market Intelligence System?
• What i s Trade Union?
• What Is International Marketing?
• World Trade Organization (WTO)
• What i s International Marketing Research?
• What is Exporting?
• What is Licensing?
• What is Franchising?
• What is Joint Venture?
• What is Turnkey Projects?
• What is Management Contracts?
• What is Foreign Direct Investment?
• Factors That Influence Entry Mode Choice In Foreign Markets
• What is Price Escalations?
• What is Transfer Pricing?
• Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC)
• What is Promotion Mix?
• Factors Affecting Promotion Mix
• Functions & Role Of Advertising
• What is Database Marketing?
• What is Advertising Budget?
• What is Advertising Agency?
• What is Market Intelligence?
• What is Industrial Marketing?
• What is Customer Value
• What is Consumer Behaviour?
• What Is Personality?
• What Is Perception?
• What Is Learning?
• What Is Attitude?
• What Is Motivation?
• Consumer Imagery
• Consumer Attitude Formation
• What Is Culture?
• Consumer Decision Making Process
• Applications of Consumer Behaviour in Marketing
• Motivational Research
• Theoretical Approaches to Study of Consumer Behaviour
• Consumer Involvement
• Consumer Lifestyle
• Theories of Personality
• Outlet Selection
• Organizational Buying Behaviour
• Reference Groups
• Consumer Protection Act, 1986
• Diffusion of Innovation
• Opinion Leaders
• What is Business Law?
• Indian Contract Act 1872
• Essential Elements of a Valid Contract
• Types of Contract
• What is Discharge of Contract?
• Performance of Contract
• Sales of Goods Act 1930
• Goods & Price: Contract of Sale
• Conditions and Warranties
• Doctrine of Caveat Emptor
• Transfer of Property
• Rights of Unpaid Seller
• Negotiable Instruments Act 1881
• Types of Negotiable Instruments
• Types of Endorsement
• What is Promissory Note?
• What is Cheque?
• What is Crossing of Cheque?
• What is Bill of Exchange?
• What is Offer?
• Limited Liability Partnership Act 2008
• Memorandum of Association
• Articles of Association
• What is Director?
• Trade Unions Act, 1926
• Industrial Disputes Act 1947
• Employee State Insurance Act 1948
• Payment of Wages Act 1936
• Payment of Bonus Act 1965
• Labour Law in India
• What is Brand Management?
• 4 Steps of Strategic Brand Management Process
• Customer Based Brand Equity
• What is Brand Equity?

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WHAT IS GIS? Geographic Information System (GIS)

The mapping and data analysis technology that’s powering business decisions, supporting government operations, and quietly changing the world.

To make sense of the immense amount of data in today's world, we can map it.

When we visualize and analyze data on a map, hidden connections and insights emerge.

GIS gives us a deeper understanding of our world, guiding decisions and actions.

GIS is a unique problem-solving technology with remarkable impact. Play the video to learn from visionary leaders and technology professionals as they describe in their own words what GIS is, how it works, and why it matters.

FORMAL DEFINITION

Geographic information system(s), gis (noun).

GIS is a technology that is used to create, manage, analyze, and map all types of data.

GIS connects data to a map, integrating location data (where things are) with all types of descriptive information (what things are like there). This provides a foundation for mapping and analysis that is used in science and almost every industry. GIS helps users understand patterns, relationships, and geographic context. The benefits include improved communication, efficiency, management, and decision-making.

What does GIS do?

While mapping is fundamental, GIS does much more.

Data management

GIS is a foundational system of record. You can store and integrate information from business systems and authoritative sources, magnifying data’s usefulness.

Mapping and visualization

From digital maps and dashboards to satellite imagery, 3D, and real time—GIS brings data to life, helping us understand problems and solve them. 

Spatial analysis

Most data has a location component—everything happens somewhere. With spatial analysis tools, we find hidden relationships and generate new insights from data.

Communication

Maps and dashboards communicate complex ideas quickly. Science and data build common understanding, supporting collaboration and problem-solving. 

How is GIS used?

GIS is embedded in the daily operations of virtually every industry. The following are just a few of the thousands of applications.

Choosing the right location

Finding the best route, keeping track of things, planning for the future, responding to emergencies.

Make better decisions about business growth or service expansion. Know where your best customers are and discover where to find more of them. 

When selecting the ideal place for a new retail store, distribution hub, or fire station, GIS can bring together all the information important to your decision. Consider what’s nearby, travel times, population numbers, local demographics, site suitability, and competitor locations.

Make logistics operations more efficient and adaptable. Reduce costs and emissions. Keep drivers safe and customers happy. 

Sophisticated GIS technology can handle complex routing and logistics scenarios, such as coordinating daily routes for a large fleet of delivery vehicles or managing a global supply chain in real time.

Get a better understanding of everything you manage. Respond to issues quickly. Plan preventative maintenance so things don’t break down. 

Roads, water pipes, streetlights, company vehicles—these are all things GIS can help you take care of throughout their life cycles. GIS tells you where things are and what condition they’re in.

Make predictions and informed decisions that benefit both people and the planet. Model possible scenarios to address complex challenges like climate resilience and sustainability. 

GIS analysis can identify where adding green spaces would reduce extreme heat for the most vulnerable, or where expected population growth would support a business expansion. 

Protect people and save lives before, during, and after emergencies such as hurricanes, fires, and earthquakes. 

GIS helps responders understand what is happening right now, and where, so they can help where it’s needed most. Emergency management teams use GIS before and after emergencies for planning and recovery.

GIS is now more important than ever

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Tune in tomorrow for a PlayStation 5 Technical Presentation hosted by Mark Cerny

The 9-minute stream begins tomorrow, September 10 at 8:00am PT / 4:00pm BST.

Join us for a streamed presentation hosted by Mark Cerny, Lead Architect of the PS5 console. The 9-minute Technical Presentation will focus on PS5 and innovations in gaming technology.

How to watch

The stream will be broadcast in English on the PlayStation YouTube channel September 10 at 8:00am PT / 11:00am ET / 4:00pm BST.

Regarding co-streaming and video-on-demand (VOD)

Please note that this broadcast may include copyrighted content (e.g. licensed music) that PlayStation does not control. We welcome and celebrate our amazing co-streamers and creators, but licensing agreements outside our control could interfere with co-streams or VOD archives of this broadcast. If you’re planning to save this broadcast as a VOD to create recap videos, or to repost clips or segments from the show, we advise omitting any copyrighted music.

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When does the 2024 MTV VMAs start? Date, time, what channels to watch the awards

It's officially "Moon Person" time.

All of your favorite musical artists, celebrities and influencers are flying in for the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, which will air live from the UBS Arena in Long Island, New York on Wednesday night.

The stage is set for “supersized performances, epic tributes and unforgettable appearances" to celebrate the best music videos made over the last year, according to MTV.

Resident "Hot Girl" Megan Thee Stallion is set to host and perform the star-studded musical event, with Eminem joining her on stage to kick off the show with an epic performance.

MTV will also make donations to  9/11 Day  and  Tuesday’s Children  in observance of the 23rd anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 .

Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox

Roster of global superstars will hit stage at 2024 MTV VMA Awards

Many performers, including Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, LISA, Halsey, Camila Cabello, GloRilla, Rauw Alejandro, Benson Boone, Lenny Kravitz, Anitta, Karol G, LL Cool J and Shawn Mendes, were tapped to hit MTV's main stage.

This year's Video Vanguard Award  will be presented to Katy Perry during the show, who is set to perform some of her biggest hits on the MTV stage since 2017.

But that's not all, MTV has a couple of other surprises up their sleeve for viewers, offering additional musical performances by LE SSERAFIM, Jessie Murph and Teddy Swims before and during the show.

How to watch the 2024 MTV VMA Awards

The awards show will air live on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 8 p.m. ET/PT across MTV’s global footprint, including BET, BET Her, CMT, Comedy Central, Logo, MTV, MTV2, Nick at Nite, Paramount Network, Pop, TV Land, VH1, and Univision. 

MTV has also teamed up with TelevisaUnivision for the second year in a row to host a simultaneous broadcast on Univision.

An “encore presentation” of the awards show will air on UNIMÁS at 11:30 p.m. ET/PT, USA TODAY reported .

Sabrina Carpenter among 2024 MTV VMA Awards nominees

A number of star-studded musicians, including Sabrina Carpenter and Eminem, have been nominated for Moon People at this year's MTV VMA Awards.

Here's a list of the artists with the most nominations:

• Taylor Swift (12)
• Post Malone (11)
• Ariana Grande, Megan Thee Stallion, Sabrina Carpenter and SZA (7)
• Benson Boone, Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, GloRilla, LISA, Olivia Rodrigo and Teddy Swims (4)

There are an additional 29 first-time MTV VMA nominees who have multiple nods, including Sabrina Carpenter, Teddy Swims, Benson Boone, Tyla, Sexyy Red and Victoria Monét. 

Chappell Roan, Jelly Roll, Jessie Murph, Rauw Alejandro, Tyler Childers and The Warning, Alexander Stewart, Burna Boy, Coco Jones, Flyana Boss, Gracie Abrams, Gunna, Joyner Lucas, Laufey, LE SSERAFIM, Lojay, Morgan Wallen, Myke Towers, NCT Dream, Pheelz, Playboi Carti, RAYE, and Shaboozey are also among the first-time nominees.

What is Malware? Definition, Purpose & Common Protections

Zephin Livingston

eSecurity Planet content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More .

Anyone who has used a computer for any significant length of time has probably at least heard of malware. Short for “malicious software,” malware is any piece of computer software designed to disrupt the regular function of a network or device, to gain unauthorized access to certain hardware or systems, or to send user data to others without that user’s consent.

Malware has been present in the digital space since the 1980s, with early prank malware like the Morris Worm or the (c)Brain. However, malware is not quite as amusing in a modern context. From ransomware attacks locking businesses out of their data until they pay potentially millions of dollars to spyware tracking users’ every move through their infected device, the effects of malware can be devastating.

Today, malware is a common network threat to the devices and data of anyone who uses the Internet. Since 2008, antivirus and cybersecurity software testers AV-TEST have kept track of the number of newly-developed malware worldwide, totaling at nearly 1 billion as of September 2022. An August 2022 Statista report counted 2.8 billion malware attacks worldwide in the first half of 2022 alone.

With so many attacks and unique types of malware out there, it’s important to have some idea of how malware works, how it can infect your devices, and what to do if you find yourself infected with it.

If you’ve been hit by malware and are looking for help, see  How to Remove Malware: Removal Steps for Windows & Mac .

Table of Contents

How Does Malware Work?

Malware’s functions vary wildly depending on what type of malware you’re dealing with. Broadly, malware will somehow be injected into a device or network and, if it can gain access to the files or systems it needs to, it will begin its work.

For example, once it infects your device, a keylogger will start tracking every keystroke you make and sending a log of those keystrokes to the hacker, allowing them to reconstruct any sensitive information you might have entered after infection, such as your PIN, password, or social security number.

To better understand how malware works, however, let’s look at some common types of malware and see how they function and what parts of a device or network they usually affect. After that, we’ll offer some techniques and tips to help you prevent malware infection but also what to do if you end up infected.

Want to Learn More About Malware? Check Out The History of Computer Viruses & Malware

Common Types of Malware

Easily one of the most frustrating types of malware, adware is software designed to harass users with a torrent of unwanted or malicious ads. Adware is often smuggled onto a device, either by users who don’t know what they’re downloading or by hiding it in an otherwise innocuous piece of software like a search engine toolbar plugin for your browser.

This isn’t quite the same as a legitimate piece of software, such as a mobile game from a reputable developer, coming packed with online ads. Usually, those ads will be screened by the developer or whoever published the software online and don’t do anything unusual beyond wasting your time. Adware advertisements might appear in places where ads typically don’t show up; might be completely unrelated to the software or website you’re using, including the depiction of explicit material; and might even begin performing a number of unwanted tasks on your device.

These unwanted tasks can include:

• opening new tabs on your browser without you clicking on anything
• website links redirecting to completely different websites from what you expect
• fully crashing your browser.

Some signs of adware infection include:

• Your browser is noticeably slower than usual
• NSFW ads on otherwise SFW websites
• New toolbars, plugins, or extensions appearing on your web browser without you installing them
• Your browser’s homepage changing without your permission

One of the most dangerous kinds of malware for businesses, ransomware can slip into a network or device and encrypt sensitive files or lock down the entire device unless the victims pay the hacker a usually-sizable fee to unlock it – and even then, decryption fails most of the time . Modern ransomware hackers often double or triple up on the extortion by demanding additional fees to ensure that sensitive files are not leaked to the public.

Ransomware is one of the most virulent forms of malware on the modern Internet. A report from IBM claims that 21% of all cyber attacks the company remediated in 2021 were ransomware, making it the most common type of attack in the report. The method of infection can vary from attack to attack and can include social engineering strategies, such as phishing and email spoofing , or a fraudulent website masquerading as legitimate, among others.

Once a system is infected, ransomware attacks usually come in 3 stages:

• Surveillance: The hackers scan their target for more information on the system they are attacking. In particular, they’ll look for sensitive files which can be used for potential double-extortion attempts or additional access credentials with which to spread the ransomware across more devices.
• Activation: The ransomware begins encrypting sensitive files or locking down the system. In the former case, an attacker will utilize a process called asymmetric encryption to lock down these files, encrypting with a public key but keeping a private key for decryption. This means the files can’t be restored without the attacker’s help. To apply more pressure, the attacker might also encrypt backup files to render them inaccessible. In the latter case, the ransomware will freeze the device’s screen or apply so many pop-ups to the device that it’s rendered unusable.
• The Ransom Note: The ransomware notifies its victims of the infection via a .txt file on the infected device or a pop-up. This note will provide instructions on how to pay the ransom, usually through difficult-to-trace means like cryptocurrency.

If You Need to Learn More About How to Keep Your Data Safe, Take a Look at Ransomware Prevention: How to Protect Against Ransomware

Rootkits are essentially software toolboxes which allow hackers to infiltrate a device’s systems and gain remote control of it. This makes them incredibly difficult to detect and remove, though there are tools like rootkit scanners which can help.

Typically, attackers will use rootkits to spy on users and launch cyber assaults, such as a distributed denial of service ( DDoS ) attack, but the aforementioned software toolbox contains a variety of malicious implements. This can include programs with which the hacker can disable security software, install keyloggers, or steal sensitive information like passwords or credit card details.

There are a few viable ways to install a rootkit, but they will typically target some weakness in either an application installed on the target device or the target device’s operating system (OS). There are also several different types of rootkits to be aware of:

• Application Rootkits: Application rootkits replace a device’s files, altering common applications like Notepad. Whenever a user uses the infected file, it gives the attacker access to their computer.
• Bootkits: This type of rootkit targets a computer’s bootloader, the software responsible for loading the computer’s OS into RAM upon startup. Bootloaders are usually launched by a disc, USB drive, or hard drive, which tells the computer where its bootloader program is. Bootkits replace the legitimate bootloader with an infected version. This type of rootkit is especially difficult to detect and drive out, since it won’t typically show up in a user’s file system. Additionally, removal might further damage the computer if the bootkit has altered the device’s boot records.
• Firmware Rootkits: Firmware rootkits are usually used to infect a device’s hard drive or basic input/output system (BIOS), but they can be used to infect routers or intercept data written on hard discs as well. Firmware rootkits are also known as “hardware rootkits.”
• Kernel Mode Rootkits: One of the most complicated forms of rootkit, kernel mode rootkits target the core components of a device’s operating system, called a kernel. They often evade detection by operating at the same security level as the operating system itself, making them capable of especially devastating cyber attacks. However, kernel mode rootkits also require a high degree of technical competency, as any bugs or glitches within the rootkit can leave an easy trail for antivirus software to sniff out.
• Memory Rootkits: The final type of rootkit we’re covering will camouflage itself within a computer’s random-access memory (RAM). While there, they can inflict significant damage while also severely hampering a device’s performance by consuming massive amounts of RAM resources with whatever programs they have running. Memory rootkits are also often the shortest-lived type of rootkit, with most being erased when a computer reboots.

Need More Intel on Rootkits? Check Out Top 6 Rootkit Threats and How to Protect Yourself

As the name implies, spyware hides on your devices in order to monitor and transmit your data to the hacker or hackers who deployed it. This information can range from what websites you visit to your download history to your bank PIN. This software can function similarly to Facebook or Google’s targeted ad technology which can track which websites you visit and provide ads based on that history, such as getting ads for cribs after looking up baby names.

There are innumerable methods of infiltration for spyware, from social engineering tactics to malicious software concealed in software bundles to exploiting security vulnerabilities in your device’s hardware or software. It’s one of the most infectious forms of malware out there.

Types of spyware are often classified based on what information they’re gathering. Keyloggers track your device’s keystrokes, password stealers’ function is in the name, and infostealers attempt to snatch a variety of sensitive information from its victims.

Named for the Trojan Horse from Homer’s Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid, trojans function similarly to their mythological namesake by convincing users to install it on their device via social engineering schemes . This can come in the form of downloading free programs such as a game or a screensaver, visiting questionable video-hosting websites, or opening an attachment infected with the trojan.

Since its name more describes how it gets into a system than what it does there, trojans cover a broad range of malware:

• Spyware can often be injected into a device as a trojan.
• Once downloaded, a computer worm can automatically spread itself across connected devices, such as via the Internet or via local area network (LAN) to devastating effect.
• Remote access trojans (RATs) can provide hackers with backdoors into the infected device and allows hackers to control target computers via a remote network connection.
• Downloader Trojans can be used to download other forms of malware onto a device.

8 Common Signs of Malware Infection

While malware comes in a variety of different shapes and sizes, there are some factors which many of the various types can all share. The infographic below isn’t a comprehensive list, and even if your computer hasn’t shown any of these signs, there’s still a chance malware has infiltrated your machine.

Need to Know More About How Malware Can Infect Your Device? Take a Look at 8 Ways Malware Creeps Onto Your Device

Ways to Protect Your Network Against Malware

Thankfully, as scary as malware can be, individuals and businesses have ways to protect themselves against malware.

Both businesses and users alike can benefit from having good antivirus software onhand to detect and remove potential threats. Though, as digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation notes, “antivirus software is usually ineffective against targeted attacks.” While it’s still good to have antivirus software to deal with untargeted attacks (such as the links on a malicious website), ransomware and similarly-focused assaults will need additional protections.

An important piece of advice is to maintain a robust series of backups for all your important files and data, usually multiple backups using several different storage methods if possible. An offline storage solution, such as a hard drive or USB drive, is especially helpful, though not necessarily feasible if your business handles enough data to require, say, its own cloud storage solution. Still, maintaining and regularly updating your backups will help blunt a lot of the damage malware typically inflicts on its victims. And immutable backups are a particularly important ransomware protection.

Businesses can implement strategies like a zero-trust framework to help keep themselves safe, as well as adopt more sophisticated security solutions than individual users typically have access to. Examples include Intrusion Detection and Prevention (IDPS) tools to block potentially-malicious network traffic, network access control (NAC) to help maintain network safety with more and more employees working remote, and increasingly-vital next-generation firewalls (NGFW) for defending your data and applications from attack.

Finally, one of the simplest yet most effective tools for keeping yourself and your network safe against malware is personal vigilance. Avoid opening email attachments from accounts you don’t recognize, stay away from shady websites, make sure your passwords are secure and difficult to crack, and don’t download anything from sources you don’t absolutely trust. Indeed, malware can often be avoided by simply not clicking on infected links or files, making employee security awareness training one of the most critical defenses of all.

How to Identify and Remove Existing Malware

If you know your device or network is plagued with malware, there are a few steps you can take to get rid of it before it can do more damage.

• Disconnect from the Internet: Disconnecting can help prevent the malware from sending your data to the hacker who deployed it or from spreading to other devices on the network. If you must download a tool or software to begin removing the malware, disconnect as soon as it has finished downloading. Only reconnect once you’re sure the issue has been dealt with.
• Antivirus Scanning: A good antivirus or malware-scanning software will usually have programs in place to remove detected instances of malware, but that can’t always be relied upon to fix the problem.
• Reboot: If your software solution proves ineffective, the next step is usually restarting or rebooting your machine. It can be good to boot in Safe Mode. Some types of malware, such as memory rootkits, will disappear once your system reboots. How an OS enters safe mode differs between each system, but instructions can usually be found online, such as Microsoft’s instructions for Windows 10 .
• System Recovery: If a restart fails to solve the problem, a full system recovery or reinstallation might be necessary to fully rid yourself of malware’s grip on your device. However, this can usually result in significant data loss, which is why maintaining backups for important data is so critical.

Bottom Line

Ultimately, no foolproof solution has yet been found for preventing cyber attacks, beyond disconnecting from the Internet and living up in the mountains away from civilization, but knowing more about malware, how it works, and how to get rid of it can be a big help in keeping your device and data safe.

Want to Learn More About Keeping Your Network Safe from Malware? Check Out How to Prevent Different Types of Malware

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