7 Tips for presentation with and without PowerPoint slides

We show you how to present correctly

successful presentation of a project in factory planning with planning software

Stuffed PowerPoint, Prezi or Google slides, overwhelmed listeners and presentations where hardly anyone can tell what it was all about afterwards. Unfortunately, this is the daily routine in many meeting rooms. We provide you with presentation techniques that will help you present your work properly and inspire your audience. The seventh tip at the end of this article, may even be the alternative to slides in your presentation for you.

  • Bad presentations are not the exception, but the rule
  • If the audience is overwhelmed, the information falls by the wayside
  • Through targeted reduction you make it easy for your listeners

Again and again, we have to present interim results of our work, ideas or new knowledge. That’s reason enough to get to grips with modern presentation techniques. We will therefore show you tips for your presentation that will not only help you give better talks, but also inspire your listeners! The principle is very simple: make it as easy as possible for your audience. Because at its core, it’s always about not overwhelming your audience.

1. One statement per slide

A common mistake is overloaded PowerPoint slides. The result is too much text across too many topics. Yet the opposite is better. This is because your audience is only capable of dealing with one statement at a time. Focus on one keyword or question and your audience will focus on your slide. After all, a PowerPoint presentation is not a handout, even you can create one with it.

2. Do not overload the head

Every member of the audience must be able to absorb the information on your slides. He does that in his working memory. This is something like short-term memory, except that the content can also be processed at the same time. However, there is one limitation: you can either listen or read. So if there are whole paragraphs on your slide and you are narrating in the meantime, your listeners have to decide between listening and reading. You can’t do both at the same time. So limit your PowerPoint content to a little text, preferably only keywords, and create a good, understandable image. If you use a self-explanatory video, just keep quiet until the video stops. Tell your audience the rest but never both at the same time.

3. The more important, the bigger

Most PowerPoint slides have one thing in common: big headline, small text. However, since our attention is focused on the largest object first, everyone focuses on the headline first. But that doesn’t contain the message of the slide. Therefore, it makes sense to make important elements larger than the less important ones. Create consciously focus points with bigger text.

4. Contrast draws the focus

In addition to size, contrast also determines what the audience focuses on. Conversely, this also means that if the elements do not stand out from each other, the viewer’s eye will wander aimlessly across the slide. Therefore, provide the element you are talking about with the strongest contrast. For example, change the font color of the words in a bulleted list of your PowerPoint. The keyword you are talking about is clearly visible, all others are grayed out. Or create highlights for individual parts of a PowerPoint graphic one at a time. This way your audience can follow you step by step.

5. Black background for relaxed eyes

We are used to slides always having a bright white background, but this is not a law of nature. A black basic layout for slides is much more relaxing for the eyes. Plus, you don’t have to fight your presentation for the audience’s attention. After all, the slides are only a tool of your presentation and you as the presenter are the focus of attention.

6. Use objects sparingly

It’s not the number of slides that is one of the big problems with bad presentations, but the number of objects on each slide. From the headline to the page number, everything gradually grabs the attention of the audience. The more different objects a brain has to grasp, the busier it gets and the more it can’t listen to you. Therefore, limit yourself to a maximum of 6 objects and only fade in those elements that are important for the context of your presentation. Avoid cluttered slides and create a clean and professional-looking presentation. Be sure to avoid animations or videos that are constantly repeating in a loop, such as spinning logos. This equals a hypnotic distraction for your audience. 🙂

7. Can you do without PowerPoint slides?

Creating an interactive presentation is especially for factory planning a possibility to turn the audience into participants and to raise the common understanding of your work to a new level. Question yourself, does your next meeting even need PowerPoint slides? Or does your planning software already offer great ways to directly visualize metrics and the 3D layout of the factory similar to an easy-to-grasp video? There are always PowerPoint alternatives that might be a better fit for your content to be presented. If this topic interests you, take a look at the following blog articles:

5 ideas to make your project presentation more successful

3 ideas on how to convince with your planning concept!

What does an easy-to-use VR app for factory planning look like?

Your audience will thank you

Presenting properly is not a matter of impressive animations or stunning graphics. It’s about your audience being able to follow you as easily as possible. With our presentation techniques, you can make your message resonate with your audience and, most importantly, stick. This way you communicate better what you do and what you can do. Try it out right away.

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