Presentations Tutorials

Easy Keys to Great Graphics in PowerPoint

PowerPoint is all about making information interesting — and visuals have to do a lot of the heavy lifting.  So incorporating graphics is one of the most important aspects of presentation development. Creating a great graphic is the result of two obvious steps, plus one that people often forget . . . 1.  Make it or find it 2.  Insert it AND 3.  Polish it! Step 1 is outside the scope of this tutorial.  But choosing the right images is crucial to success, so here are a few reminders: learn... learn more

Get Motion-Vated! Animate PowerPoint Charts

So, you’ve worked hard to create an interesting, informative PowerPoint show. It looks good! Your presentation is well-organized, visually effective, and nicely paced. But on presentation day, some people in the audience are still looking at their watches, staring out the window, or sneaking in some email responses. What’s missing? Maybe it’s motion. Humans are actually programmed to pay attention when something moves, in case it might be something fierce. So take advantage of that fact... learn more

Three Ways to Spark PowerPoint Creativity

It’s really easy to get in a rut with PowerPoint, especially if you have to make presentations often. And if you don’t work with PowerPoint very much, it may be equally challenging to find a creative approach, instead of just getting some slides made as best you can. Either way, it helps to be prepared! Don’t wait until deadline pressure is on top of you — keep some inspirations stashed away for the moment of need. And practice some techniques that can produce quick breakthroughs when... learn more

Working with Background Graphics in PowerPoint

Why does one PowerPoint presentation grab attention while another one puts viewers to sleep? Content counts, of course—but really, the whole reason for developing a Powerpoint presentation rather than writing a plain Word document is (usually) to incorporate visual interest. If there’s nothing interesting to look at, the audience is likely to wonder why they should bother watching! Fortunately, there are several easy ways to create visual variety in PowerPoint. One way is to tweak the theme... learn more

Eight Great Ways to Share Slides Online

The slideshow has become an indispensable tool for sharing information in a compelling way—and fortunately, there are lots of ways to get your excellent work in front of viewers! Here are eight top choices, divided into two groups: one group of sites where you can upload and share existing PowerPoint presentations, and another group featuring sites that combine presentation development with sharing functionality.  All are free, except as noted. These apps vary widely in focus–some stressing... learn more

Dynamic Duo: SnagIt and PowerPoint

Amazing but true—once upon a time screenshots on the PC were made with the PrtScn key, which just takes a picture of whatever is on the monitor at that moment. Then along came several screen capture programs, and after a while, SnagIt became a standard tool for many of us. Now we can slice up the screen into segments or capture specific windows or snapshot menus, all with just a couple of clicks. And the latest versions of SnagIt for PC provide such good editing tools that you can usually finish... learn more

How to Use Hyperlinks in a PowerPoint Presentation

Hyperlinks are hard workers in the world of PowerPoint. They can be used for the obvious reason (i.e., to link to a web address), and that’s a great tool when using PowerPoint to create documentation, training materials, sales presentations, or other materials meant to be interactive. In a typical speaker presentation, jumping out to a live website is not done that frequently—it’s more likely that web content will be shown as screenshots if included. So the heavy-lifting for hyperlinks here... learn more

PowerPoint Distribution: How to Share a PowerPoint Presentation

PowerPoint is a fact of life for most folks trying to communicate ideas in a corporate environment. And it’s a pretty good tool for practical purposes. But there are a few areas where it fails miserably, and distribution is one of them. Sharing a PowerPoint presentation can be a real headache. In a corporate setting, PowerPoints are typically made to support a meeting or a speaker, and the slides are printed for handout. If the presentation is sent to attendees or others, it’s usually emailed... learn more

4 Tips for Great Presentations & Slide Composition

When it comes to creating awesome slideshows — whether you use PowerPoint, Keynote or other slideshow presentation software — there are some basic tips to keep in mind. Have a consistent overall template design. Animate with a purpose. Have excellent content and strong organization. Speak with bullet points and keep on message. All these tips are great. But in the end, it’s important to remember that a well-designed slideshow presentation is the sum of its parts. So to make an good-looking... learn more

How to Animate a PowerPoint Presentation

We all want to create more dynamic PowerPoint presentations. You know the kind, presentations that draw the audience in and hold their attention. One way to bring more life to your presentations is through the use of movement or animation. Yes, it is definitely possible to make a PowerPoint presentation look impressively animated. All you have to do is spend MANY hours skillfully applying custom animation to every element on every slide, timing every animation exactly, then weaving the slides together... learn more

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