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PowerPoint vs Other Presentation Tools: Which is Right for You?

When it comes to creating impactful presentations, there are numerous tools available in the market. However, one of the most popular and widely used applications is Microsoft PowerPoint. While PowerPoint has been the go-to choice for many professionals and educators, it’s important to consider other presentation tools as well. In this article, we will compare PowerPoint with other presentation tools to help you decide which one is right for you.

PowerPoint: The Classic Choice

Microsoft PowerPoint has been around since 1987 and continues to dominate the presentation software market. It offers a wide range of features and functionalities that make it ideal for creating visually appealing slideshows. With its user-friendly interface, anyone can quickly learn how to use it effectively.

One of the key advantages of PowerPoint is its compatibility with various operating systems, including Windows and Mac. This means you can easily create presentations on one device and present them on another without any compatibility issues.

PowerPoint also provides a vast library of templates, themes, and design elements that allow users to create professional-looking presentations in no time. It offers a plethora of customization options, allowing you to tailor your slides according to your specific needs.

Prezi: The Dynamic Alternative

Prezi is a cloud-based presentation software that takes a different approach than traditional slide-based tools like PowerPoint. Instead of using slides, Prezi allows users to create dynamic presentations on a virtual canvas where they can zoom in and out and navigate through content freely.

This unique feature makes Prezi an excellent choice for storytelling or when you want to present information in a nonlinear format. It enables presenters to create engaging visuals that captivate their audience’s attention from start to finish.

Additionally, Prezi offers seamless collaboration features that allow multiple users to work on the same presentation simultaneously. This makes it an excellent choice for teams or individuals who need real-time collaboration capabilities.

Google Slides: The Collaborative Solution

Google Slides is a web-based presentation tool that is part of the Google Workspace suite. Similar to PowerPoint, it offers a range of features to create visually appealing presentations. Its intuitive interface and easy-to-use tools make it accessible to users of all skill levels.

One of the standout features of Google Slides is its collaborative capabilities. Multiple users can work on a presentation simultaneously, making it ideal for team projects or remote collaboration. It also allows for real-time commenting and editing, ensuring seamless communication among team members.

Another advantage of Google Slides is its integration with other Google Workspace apps such as Google Docs and Sheets. This integration allows users to import data directly from these apps, saving time and effort when creating presentations.

Keynote: The Mac-Friendly Option

If you are an Apple user, Keynote is the presentation software designed specifically for you. Keynote offers a sleek and modern interface with powerful tools that allow users to create stunning presentations effortlessly.

One of the key advantages of Keynote is its seamless integration with other Apple devices and software. You can easily create presentations on your Mac and present them using your iPhone or iPad without any compatibility issues.

Keynote also provides a wide selection of pre-designed templates that cater to various presentation styles. Additionally, it offers advanced animation and transition effects that can enhance the visual appeal of your slideshows.

Choosing the right presentation tool depends on your specific needs and preferences. PowerPoint remains a solid choice for its versatility, while Prezi offers a dynamic alternative for nonlinear storytelling. Google Slides excels in collaborative capabilities, especially for remote teams, while Keynote provides an excellent option for Apple users seeking seamless integration across devices.

Consider the features, ease-of-use, collaboration options, and platform compatibility when deciding which presentation tool suits you best. Ultimately, selecting the right tool will empower you to create impactful presentations that engage and impress your audience.

This text was generated using a large language model, and select text has been reviewed and moderated for purposes such as readability.

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20 Great Examples of PowerPoint Presentation Design [+ Templates]

Published: August 03, 2023

When it comes to PowerPoint presentation design, there's no shortage of avenues you can take.

While all that choice — colors, formats, visuals, fonts — can feel liberating, it's important that you're careful in your selection as not all design combinations add up to success. We’re not saying there’s one right way to design your next PowerPoint presentation, but we are saying there are some designs that make more sense than others.

In this blog post, you'll learn how to create an awesome PowerPoint deck and then see real presentations that nail it in exactly their own way.

What makes a good PowerPoint presentation?

A great PowerPoint presentation gets the point across succinctly while using a design that builds upon the point, and doesn't detract from it. The following aspects make for a great PowerPoint presentation:

1. Minimal Animations and Transitions

Believe it or not, animations and transitions can take away from your PowerPoint presentation. Why? Well, they distract from the design you worked so hard on — and from your content, too.

A good PowerPoint presentation keeps the focus on your argument by keeping animations and transitions to a minimum. That said, you don’t have to eliminate them all. You can use them tastefully and sparingly to emphasize a point or bring attention to a certain part of an image.

2. Cohesive Color Palette

It’s worth reviewing color theory when creating your next PowerPoint presentation. A cohesive color palette uses complementary and analogous colors to draw the audience’s attention, emphasize certain aspects, and deemphasize bits of information that the audience might not need at a certain point in time.

3. Contextualized Visuals

An image does speak more than words. And it’s been proven that the human brain is wired to process visuals much faster than words. Take advantage of that by including graphs, photos, and illustrations that can help you build upon your point while keeping your audience’s interest.

Make sure you contextualize those visuals by explaining verbally why that image is there. Otherwise, it’ll be distracting to the audience and may potentially cause more questions than answers.

10 Free PowerPoint Templates

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Powerpoint design ideas.

It's impossible for us to tell you which design ideas you should go after in your next PowerPoint, because, well, we don't know what the goal of your presentation is. Luckily, new versions of PowerPoint actually suggest ideas for you based on the content you're presenting. This can help you keep up with the latest trends in presentation design .

In PowerPoint 2016 and later, PowerPoint is filled with interesting boilerplate designs you can start with. To find these suggestions, open PowerPoint and click the "Design" tab in your top navigation bar. Then, on the far right side, you'll see the following choices:

Click the "Design Ideas" option under this Design tab, as shown in the screenshot above. This icon will reveal a vertical list of interesting slide layouts based on what your slides already have on them.

Don't have any content on your slides yet? You can easily shuffle this vertical list of slide design ideas by clicking various themes inside the color carousel to the far left of the Design Ideas icon, as shown below:

As you browse and choose from the themes shown above, the Design Ideas pane to the right will interpret them and come up with layouts. Below, we’ve included some of our favorite ones.

Atlas (Theme)

Covering a more creative subject for a younger or more energetic audience? On behalf of PowerPoint, might we suggest the cover slide design below? Its vibrant red color blocks and fun lines will appeal to your audience.

PowerPoint Ideas for This Theme:

• Use this simple theme to focus on key elements of your presentation.
• Customize the colors to match your brand or try contrasting colors for text and background for readability and visual appeal.

Madison (Theme)

This design doesn't have the intensity of the first slide on this list. But it has a simple structure that can make any PowerPoint presentation a good slideshow.

• Add unique and on-brand fonts, textures, and borders to this theme for classic and cool presentations.
• Add an image collage or textured photograph to create distinct and consistent PowerPoints for your brand.

Parcel (Theme)

Parcel offers a variety of slide layouts with geometric shapes. Add these shapes to your slides to create interesting visual elements. Use them for backgrounds, content, or decoration, and experiment with different shapes, sizes, and layouts.

• Add a color-blocked background for a fun but relaxing tone for your audience, or use color blocks to highlight sections of text.
• Experiment with this PowerPoint theme's contemporary fonts for cool slides that feel professional.
• Add a chart or graph to visualize data in your presentation.

Crop (Theme)

This PowerPoint design idea uses graphic elements such as lines and bars to give structure, contrast, and modern flair to your slides.

• Make the most of this theme with high-quality images. Simple compositions with lots of negative space or bold focal points can help your slide's design pop.
• Use this theme's grid layout to create clean, organized layouts, even if design isn't your strength.

Badge (Theme)

We're particularly fond of this PowerPoint design style. By using lines and contrasting elements — like a burst, as shown below — you add depth to your slides. This can help your content capture and hold your audience's attention more easily.

• Add badges to highlight key points and sections, or to showcase achievements.
• Add original illustrations to your presentation's design. You might think you need to use professional illustrations for this. But adding quick doodles or sketches to this theme can help you create authentic and creative PowerPoint presentations.

If you're not fond of the built-in PowerPoint design themes, you can always download a free PowerPoint template and input your content onto pre-made slide styles.

Let’s take a look at the best ones you can download below.

Creative PowerPoint (Template)

This presentation template uses bright colors and plenty of white space to convey a modern but fun design. Organic shapes and geometric lines and patterns add an extra visual element to the slides, achieving depth and personality. Get it here .

Download These Templates for Free

Design Ideas for This Template:

• Create custom graphics or textures and layer them on top of this template's image layers to create beautiful slides for your brand. Be sure to use consistent styles and colors for a cohesive design.
• Get inspired by the clear visual hierarchy of this template as you customize it. Use font sizes, color, and graphics to highlight each section. This can help you make sure that important information stands out from supporting details.

Professional Style PowerPoint (Template)

These PowerPoint slides use more neutral colors and fonts to create a calm and elegant vibe. It also highlights quality images to communicate key points. Get it here .

• This template works best with subtle pastels and muted colors. Try non-traditional color combos, like peach and mint green, for a unique PowerPoint presentation.
• Images and data visualizations will stand out in this template, so make sure you have excellent photos and illustrations to showcase.

Data PowerPoint (Template)

This template uses a rounded font to draw sharp contrast with the lines and graphs that will populate the presentation. If you want to offer engaging visuals with number-crunching content, the slide design ideas in this template are a great choice. Get it here .

• Try an on-brand duotone color scheme or use a dark background with this template to give your slides a simple but trendy look.
• Use the built-in icon library or import custom icons into your slides. You can use icons to represent important topics or concepts for easier skimming. This visual feature can also make your slides more exciting.

Simple PowerPoint (Template)

By pairing vibrant colors with pale ones, this PowerPoint gives an understated feel, which can draw attention to the content while still being visually engaging. Get it here .

• Combine multiple images with vertical or horizontal formatting in this template for dynamic and beautiful slides.
• Play with contrasting typography styles. Try combining a bold heading font with a simple body font. This can help you draw attention to important information and make your PowerPoint design easy to read.

Best PowerPoint Presentation Slides

Business presentation slides, business plan template, company profile template, marketing plan template, project status report template, annual report template, product launch template, visual brand identity template, infographic template, financial report template, industry trends template.

Want some inspo as you create your next presentation? Look no further — whether you're projecting your slides in person or sharing them online, these slides will help you impress your audience.

And to make your search even easier, we've added gorgeous templates for the most popular business needs below. Keep reading to find the best Microsoft PowerPoint template for your next presentation.

Business presentations can be intense. This set of PowerPoint slides could include a wide range of important information such as:

• Company history
• Mission and vision
• Business goals
• Market analysis
• Competitive landscape
• Growth strategies

So, business presentations can be overwhelming for an audience to consume. This makes great presentation design essential.

The Modern PowerPoint Template featured here is sleek and modern. But it's also fun and appealing, with a streamlined design that leaves a lasting impression.

Pro tip : Use headers to communicate top priorities in your business presentation. Then, use body copy and images to add details that will support and enhance your PowerPoint.

A well-crafted business plan is vital to any business, whether it's a startup, scale-up, or established company. A business plan can be just as complex as a business presentation, but it also needs to entice investors and partners.

This Retro PowerPoint Template is fun, interesting, and unique. It also has easy-to-read text and plenty of space for useful images and charts. This makes it an ideal template for business presentations.

Like your business plan, your company profile is key to developing your business. But your company profile is more than a peek at your biz plan. It's a chance to highlight your team, culture and values, major clients, and your company history.

When done right, this presentation can show your competitive advantage and build trust for your brand. This means that your presentation slides need to be just right. Download the company profile template featured above and five more great company profile templates today.

The right marketing plan presentation can decide whether your team will have the budget and resources it needs to meet your goals. That's why marketing plans need great presentation design.

After using a marketing plan template to write out your completed plan, use an eye-catching presentation template to share your ideas.

This Typographic PowerPoint Template will make it easy to use custom graphics and typography that will make your brand presentation shine.

Pro tip : Use different charts and graphs to highlight the data you used while making marketing plan decisions. This will reinforce the logic of your ideas while adding more visual interest.

Project status reports keep stakeholders informed about project milestones, timelines, risks, and budget. Try this template to add transparency, manage expectations, and stay proactive with your project presentations.

Annual reports offer a company's performance summary, achievements, finances, and more. This means that an organized layout is essential to showcase growth and wins for the year. This presentation needs to be well-designed so that it inspires the trust and confidence of employees, shareholders, and members of the community.

Try this annual report template if you want to create a PDF or this template for PowerPoint .

Pro tip : Choose the right presentation software for your presentation. While most presentation design is created in PowerPoint or Keynote, sometimes it’s a good idea to try out new tools.

Product launch is an exciting time at any company. A great PowerPoint presentation for product release will include:

• Product features
• Target audience
• Marketing strategy
• Launch timeline

Besides generating excitement, this deck keeps stakeholders consistent and connected. It's central to driving customer interest, engagement, and sales.

The Doodle Template is a great choice for product launch presentations with its range of slide features. It has lots of space for product images, as well as icons to represent stakeholders, teams, or product features.

Pro tip : Use the bright and cheery graphics in this template as is or replace them with sketches from your product creation process for a customized touch.

Consistency and visual appeal are crucial elements of building a strong brand identity. Using a PowerPoint presentation template can help you clearly communicate the details that make your company's brand, logo, typography, colors, imagery, and design one of a kind.

Start with this brand building guide to make sure you've nailed down the most important elements of your brand identity. Then, use one of these templates from Canva to develop your brand identity presentation.

Infographics are a powerful way to present complex information or data in a visual way. Different types of information lend themselves to different presentation styles.

You can add these free PowerPoint templates for infographics to a larger slide presentation or use this format to create an infographic for other channels.

Pro tip : Add an infographic to a business or data presentation to add data insights and storytelling to your presentation slides. This will help make your PowerPoint presentation more memorable.

Concise financial reporting helps businesses review their financial performance for better decision-making. This presentation often includes confidential data such as revenue, profit, and cash flow.

The Abstract PowerPoint Template has slide designs for data comparison, quotes, and analysis. Its clean and simple design will make your financial report presentations look cool and professional.

To stay ahead of the competition, you need the latest industry insights. And to keep that data engaging, you need great presentation design for trends. Trends decks might include data on market research, competitive analysis, new technologies, or consumer behavior.

This 3D Gradient PowerPoint Template combines bold colors with fun shapes. It's the perfect vehicle to highlight bright images, icons, and data on the latest trends.

Pro tip : New information can be tough to consume, so it's best to keep your copy short and easy to understand. Use images that tell a story to make the most of every section of your presentation.

Good Examples of PowerPoint Presentation Design

To see some examples of the best PowerPoint presentation designs, check out the following decks.

1. "The Search for Meaning in B2B Marketing," Velocity Partners

We've said it once , and we'll say it again: We love this presentation from Velocity Partner's Co-Founder Doug Kessler. Not only is the content remarkable, but the design is also quite clever. While each slide employs the same background visual, the copy in the notebook unfolds brilliantly through a series of colorful doodles and bold text. This gives the presentation a personal feel, which aligns with the self-reflective nature of the concept.

2. "You Don't Suck at PowerPoint," Jesse Desjardins

If the contrast used throughout this PowerPoint presentation design were a human, we'd marry it. This skillful presentation from Jesse Desjardins employs the perfect color palette : balancing black and white photos with pops of fluorescent pink, yellow, and blue. The cheeky vintage photos work to reinforce the copy on each slide, making the presentation both interesting and visually appealing.

3. "Accelerating Innovation in Energy," Accenture

Balancing visual backgrounds with text isn't easy. More often than not, the text is formatted in a way that winds up getting lost in the image. This presentation from Accenture combated this issue by combining shapes and graphics to create contrast between the text and the background. Well done.

4. "Visual Design with Data," Seth Familian

When you're tasked with presenting a lot of information in a little bit of time, things can get sort of messy. To simplify this type of presentation, it's a good idea to use a visual agenda like the one shown above. This index clearly signifies the start and finish of each section to make it easier for the viewer to follow along and keep track of the information. The presenter takes it further by including an additional agenda for each exercise, so that the audience knows what they're supposed to do.

5. "How to Craft Your Company's Storytelling Voice," MarketingProfs

Do you love these hand-drawn illustrations or do you love these hand-drawn illustrations? I mean, c'mon, this is amazing. Certainly, it would have been easier to generate these designs online, but this approach highlights MarketingProf's commitment to investing the time and thought it takes to create an out-of-the-box piece of content. And as a result, this presentation stands out in the best way possible.

6. "Blitzscaling: Book Trailer," Reid Hoffman

If you're going to go the minimalistic route, take note of this PowerPoint presentation example from Reid Hoffman. This clean design adheres to a simple, consistent color scheme with clean graphics peppered throughout to make the slides more visually interesting. Overall there are no frills or unnecessary additions, which allows the informative content to take priority.

7. "Healthcare Napkins," Dan Roam

This presentation dates back to 2009, but the design is still as good as ever. The colorful, quirky doodles help tell the story while also serving as an interesting way to illustrate data (see slides 20 and 21). For visual learners, this approach is much more inviting than a series of slides riddled with text-heavy bullet points.

8. "One Can Be Diverse: An Essay on Diversity," With Company

This presentation employs both powerful images and modern typography to illustrate the point. While many of the slides contain long quotes, they are broken up in a way that makes them easily digestible. Not to mention all of the text is crisp, clean, and concise.

9. " 10 Things Your Audience Hates About Your Presentation ," Stinson

his simplistic presentation example employs several different colors and font weights, but instead of coming off as disconnected, the varied colors work with one another to create contrast and call out specific concepts. Also, the big, bold numbers help set the reader's expectations, as they clearly signify how far along the viewer is in the list of tips.

10. "Pixar's 22 Rules to Phenomenal Storytelling," Gavin McMahon

This presentation by Gavin McMahon features color in all the right places. While each of the background images boasts a bright, spotlight-like design, all the characters are intentionally blacked out. This helps keep the focus on the tips, while still incorporating visuals. Not to mention, it's still easy for the viewer to identify each character without the details. (I found you on slide eight, Nemo.)

11. "Facebook Engagement and Activity Report," We Are Social

Here's another great example of data visualization in the wild. Rather than displaying numbers and statistics straight up, this presentation calls upon interesting, colorful graphs, and charts to present the information in a way that just makes sense.

12. "The GaryVee Content Model," Gary Vaynerchuk

This wouldn't be a true Gary Vaynerchuk presentation if it wasn't a little loud, am I right? Aside from the fact that we love the eye-catching, bright yellow background, Vaynerchuk does a great job of incorporating screenshots on each slide to create a visual tutorial that coincides with the tips. He also does a great job including a visual table of contents that shows your progress as you go through the presentation (and aligns with the steps of content marketing, too).

13. "20 Tweetable Quotes to Inspire Marketing & Design Creative Genius," IMPACT Branding & Design

We've all seen our fair share of quote-chronicling presentations but that isn't to say they were all done well. Often the background images are poor quality, the text is too small, or there isn't enough contrast. Well, this professional presentation from IMPACT Branding & Design suffers from none of said challenges. The colorful filters over each background image create just enough contrast for the quotes to stand out.

14. "The Great State of Design," Stacy Kvernmo

This presentation offers up a lot of information in a way that doesn't feel overwhelming. The contrasting colors create visual interest and "pop," and the comic images (slides 6 through 12) are used to make the information seem less buttoned-up. Once the presentation gets to the CSS section, it takes users slowly through the information so that they’re not overwhelmed.

15. "Clickbait: A Guide To Writing Un-Ignorable Headlines," Ethos3

Not going to lie, it was the title that convinced me to click through to this presentation but the awesome design kept me there once I arrived. This simple design adheres to a consistent color pattern and leverages bullet points and varied fonts to break up the text nicely.

16. "Digital Transformation in 50 Soundbites," Julie Dodd

This design highlights a great alternative to the "text-over-image" display we've grown used to seeing. By leveraging a split-screen approach to each presentation slide, Julie Dodd was able to serve up a clean, legible quote without sacrificing the power of a strong visual.

17. "Fix Your Really Bad PowerPoint," Slide Comet

When you're creating a PowerPoint about how everyone's PowerPoints stink, yours had better be terrific. The one above, based on the ebook by Seth Godin, keeps it simple without boring its audience. Its clever combinations of fonts, together with consistent color across each slide, ensure you're neither overwhelmed nor unengaged.

18. "How Google Works," Eric Schmidt

Simple, clever doodles tell the story of Google in a fun and creative way. This presentation reads almost like a storybook, making it easy to move from one slide to the next. This uncluttered approach provides viewers with an easy-to-understand explanation of a complicated topic.

19. "What Really Differentiates the Best Content Marketers From The Rest," Ross Simmonds

Let's be honest: These graphics are hard not to love. Rather than employing the same old stock photos, this unique design serves as a refreshing way to present information that's both valuable and fun. We especially appreciate the author's cartoonified self-portrait that closes out the presentation. Well played, Ross Simmonds.

20. "Be A Great Product Leader," Adam Nash

This presentation by Adam Nash immediately draws attention by putting the company's logo first — a great move if your company is well known. He uses popular images, such as ones of Megatron and Pinocchio, to drive his points home. In the same way, you can take advantage of popular images and media to keep the audience's attention and deepen your arguments.

PowerPoint Presentation Examples for the Best Slide Presentation

Mastering a PowerPoint presentation begins with the design itself. Use the ideas above to create a presentation that engages your audience, builds upon your point, and helps you generate leads for your brand.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in March 2013 and has been updated for comprehensiveness. This article was written by a human, but our team uses AI in our editorial process. Check out our full disclosure to learn more about how we use AI.

Don't forget to share this post!

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120+ Presentation Ideas, Topics & Example

By Ryan McCready , May 08, 2023

Did you know that  46% of people can’t sit through a presentation without losing focus? 

That’s why I wanted to learn how to make a presentation that will captivate an audience. After looking at hundreds of different authors, topics, and designs, I’ve assembled over 100 presentation ideas and tips on how to design a compelling presentation for:

• Social media
• Online courses
• Pitch decks
• Lead generation

In this blog, you’ll find 120+ presentation ideas, design tips and examples to help you create an awesome slide deck for your next presentation.

To start off, here’s a video on the 10 essential presentation design tips to make sure that your presentations don’t fall under the YAWN category.

1. Use A Minimalist Presentation Theme

CREATE THIS PRESENTATION TEMPLATE

The best designs can also be some of the simplest you see. In the Airbnb pitch deck below, they use a minimalist color scheme and font selection.

A minimalist design is sleek, organized and places the most important thing in focus: your information. There are no distracting stock images, icons, or content. Everything on this unique presentation feels like it belongs and works together perfectly. 

Learn how to customize this template:

2. Use a Consistent Design Motif Throughout Your Presentation

Here’s a go-to tip to for a cohesive presentation design: use a design motif. The motif could be a recurring shape (like circles, lines or arrows) or symbol (like a leaf for “growth” or a mountain for “goals”). For more ideas, check out our guide to common symbols and meanings used in design .

For example, this  presentation template uses circles as a design motif. The same circle icon is used in three different colors to add a bubbly touch to the design. The team photos are also incorporated using circle frames:

3. Use an Eye-Catching Presentation Background Image

Like with any type of design work, you should want to catch the eye of your audience. In a presentation, this should be done from the beginning with a  compelling background image or a color gradient.

In this presentation template, the creators were able to do just that with a landscape photo. When a presentation like this is seen on social media, during a webinar or in person, your audience will definitely listen up.

4. Visualize Your Points With Icons

Icons are the perfect visuals to include in presentations. They’re compact and can convey a concept to your audience at a glance. You can even combine multiple icons to create custom illustrations for your slides. 

Use the Icon Search in Venngage to find illustrated and flat icons:

5. Use A Black & White Color Scheme For A Corporate Presentation Design

In the presentation below there are only two colors used: black and white. Now, you might be worried that only using two colors is boring, but it all comes down to balance.

Playing off the ideas of classic minimalism, the designer made this presentation look sleek and professional. And now your content can be the main attraction of your presentation as well!

6. Repurpose Your Slide Deck Into An Infographic 

Different types of presentations serve different purposes and sometimes it helps to work smarter, not harder when you are creating a unique presentation. In fact, the spacing, layout, and style used in this presentation makes it easy to repurpose the same images into an infographic.

This allows you to create two unique pieces of content from one idea!  Which is exactly what  Officevibe did .

Join Venngage’s CEO, Eugene Woo, to learn how you can design impactful infographics that will help maintain trust, increase productivity and inspire action in your team.

SIGN UP NOW

7. Break Your Genre Mold For A Fun Presentation Idea

When I first clicked on this creative presentation from SEMrush, I was not expecting to be transported into a comic book. I’m glad I clicked because it may be the most unique slide deck I have ever seen. Going this extreme with your presentation ideas may seem a bit risky, but to be able to break the mold in this age of cookie-cutter presentations is worth it.

To leave a lasting impression on your audience, consider transforming your slides into an interactive presentation. Here are 15  interactive presentation ideas  to enhance interactivity and engagement.

8. Make Your Presentation Cover Slide Count

As I was scrolling through all of the presentations, this one made me stop in my tracks. It could be that I have a life-long love of Star Wars, or it could be that their presentation cover slide was designed to do just that: grab your attention. That’s why you should not stick with a boring, text-only title slide. Don’t be afraid to use icons and illustrations to make a statement.

9.  Alternate Slide Layouts to Keep Your Presentation Engaging

Keeping your audience engaged throughout an entire presentation is hard, even if you have been working on your presentation skills . No one wants to look at slides that look exactly the same for an hour. But on the other hand, you can’t create a unique masterpiece for each slide.

That’s why I’m very impressed with what the designers did in the presentation example above. They use a consistent visual theme on each slide, but alternate between vertical and horizontal orientations.

The swapping of orientations will show people that the presentation is progressing nicely. It can help you make a strong, almost physical, distinction between ideas, sections or topics.  

10. Make Your Audience Laugh, Or At Least Chuckle

Sometimes you need to not take your business presentations too seriously. Not sure what I mean? Go check out slide number 10 on this slide deck below.

If you did not actually laugh out loud, then I don’t know what to tell you. Small illustrated embellishments can be very powerful because they evoke an emotional response and to gain your audience’s trust.

Did you know 70% of employees think that giving a good presentation is an essential workplace skill? Check out the top qualities of awesome presentations and learn all about how to make a good presentation to help you nail that captivating delivery.

11. Supplement Your Presentation with Printed Materials

Printed takeaways (such as brochures and business cards ) give audience members a chance to take home the most important elements of your presentation in a format they can easily access without using a computer. Make sure you brand these materials in a way that’s visually consistent with your slide deck, with the same color scheme, icons, and other iconic features; otherwise, your recipients will just end up scratching their heads.

If you’re giving people multiple materials, try packaging them all into one convenient presentation folder. There are over 100 styles with a wide range of custom options, so feel free to get creative and make your folder stand out. Sometimes a unique die cut or an unusual stock is all you need to make something truly memorable. Here are some brochure templates to get you started.

12. Only Use One Chart Or Graphic Per Slide 

Having too much information on a slide is the easiest way to lose the focus of your audience. This is especially common when people are using graphs, charts or tables .

In this creative slide deck, the author made sure to only include one focal point per slide, and I applaud them for it. I know this may sound like a simple presentation tip, but I have seen many people lose their audience because the slides are too complex.

13. Keep Your Employee Engagement Presentations Light   

Sometimes you need to get away from stuffy, professional presentation ideas to capture your audience’s attention. In this case, Officevibe used some very colorful and playful illustrations to stand out from the crowd.

I mean, who could not love the plant with a face on slide number 9? And if you want to see some more icons and illustrations like this, be sure to check out our article on how to tell a story with icons.

14.  Feature a Map When Talking About Locations

Including a map in your creative presentations is a fantastic idea! Not only do they make an interesting focal point for your slide layout, they also make location-based information easier to understand.

This cool presentation example by our pro designers at Venngage uses maps to visualize information. This map both dominates the screen, and also displays all the locations being covered.

15. Use a Font That Is Large and In Charge 

If you are presenting to a small group or a packed stadium, make sure your audience can see your text! Use a large and in charge font that can be read from even the nosebleed seats. 

Honestly, you really never know where your unique presentation will be seen. It could be seen in a conference room or conference hall, and everything in between. Be ready to present almost anywhere with a bold and easy to read font.

16. Use Pop Culture References To Build A Fun Presentation 

Using a meme or pop culture reference is another way that you can jive with your audience. It can be used to quickly get a point across without saying a word or create a moment that you can connect with the room. For example in this presentation, they used Napoleon Dynamite to give the audience feelings of nostalgia.

17. Use More Than One Font Weight On Your Presentation Cover Slide

Just like you would never use one font on an infographic, you should never use just one font on your presentation (for more tips, read our guide on how to choose fonts ). In this presentation example from HubSpot, they use a bunch of different font weights to add emphasis to key words and ideas.

As you can see, they use a bold font on the presentation cover to bring attention to Steve Jobs name. This makes it easy for the audience to know what your presentation is going to be about from the beginning as well. 

18. Use A Color Theme For Each Idea 

Color is another extremely powerful nonverbal tool that you can use to guide your audience. By using a different color for each section of your creative presentation, Dell is able to clearly indicate when they are switching points or ideas.  Going from green to orange, and even red almost effortlessly.

This is a great way to design a list, guide, or a  how-to presentation as well. And each color can be assigned to a different step or number with ease. 

Need help picking the perfect color palette? Start here !

19. use illustrations instead of pictures .

An easy way to keep your design consistent throughout your unique presentation is to use illustrations like in this slide deck by Domo.

They used illustrations instead of pictures to show off their subject on slide numbers 4-10 and it looks fantastic. This will ensure that the audience focuses on the content, instead of just the photo they could have used.

It also helps that illustrations are a top design trend for 2020 .

20. Use Contrasting Colors to Compare Two Perspectives or Sides of an Argument 

Contrasting colors can be used to quickly show each side of topic or an argument. For example in this presentation, they use this trick to show the difference between their company and the competition.

They use color very effectively in this example to show their company is better, in a nonverbal way. With a lighter color and illustrated icons, the company is able to position them as the better choice. All without saying a word.  

Now if they would have used similar colors, or a single color the effect wouldn’t have been as strong or noticeable.

21. Include Your Own Personal Interests

This example is one of the most interesting and cool presentations I have seen in awhile, so I suggest checking out the entire thing. The creator inserts a bunch of his personal interests into the slide to make his presentation about education fun and relatable. And they even use a Super Mario Bros inspired presentation cover, so you know it has to be fantastic! 

22. Try To Stick To Groups Of Three 

How many major ideas should be present on your presentation aid? Never break your  presentation layout down into anything more than thirds. This means there should be at most three columns, three icons, three ideas and so on.  A great example of this idea starts on slide number 9 in this slide deck and continues throughout the rest of the presentation.

 Here is a great three columned slide template to get started with.

23. add a timeline to help visualize ideas .

One of the best ways to visualize a complex process or historical event is to use a timeline presentation. A list of all the steps or events is just not going to cut it in a professional setting. You need to find an engaging way to visualize the information.

Take the presentation example above, where they outline the rise and fall of Athens in a visually stimulating way.

24. Label Your Graphs & Charts 

If the people at Pollen VC had not added those annotations to the graphs on slide number 5, I would have definitely not known what to make of that graph.

But when you combine the visuals on a graph with descriptive text, the graph is able to paint a picture for your audience. So make your graphs easy to understand by annotating them (this is a chart design best practice ).

Create a free graph right here, right now !

25. white font over pictures just works .

There is a reason that you see so many quotes or sayings in a white font that are then overlaid on an image. That it is because it just works in so many situations and the text is very easy to read on any image.

If you do not believe me, look at the slide deck example above where they use a white font with a few different fonts and about 100 images. Plus the presentation template is chocked full of other tips on how to create a winning slideshow.

26. Color Code Your Points Across The Whole Presentation 

Here is another example of a presentation that uses color to keep their points organized. In this case, they use 10 different pastel colors to match the 10 different tips for employee engagement.

Check out our guide for how to pick the best colors for your visuals .

27.  Use a Simple Flow Chart to Break Down a Process

If you’re a fan of the movie Step Brothers , you may have heard of Prestige Worldwide before. In this fun presentation example they are back to sell you on their business model and growth plans.

This time, the presentation will be effective because it actually talks about what the business does.

Instead of making a music video, they use a helpful flowchart template to explain their business model. I would recommend following their lead and creating a dynamic flow chart to visually break down any process.  Try making your own flowchart  with Venngage.

28. Make Your Slide Deck Mobile Friendly 

As more people move to mobile as their main device each year, making your presentations mobile-friendly is becoming increasingly important. This means that the text is large and there aren’t too many small details, so everything can scale down. Just like in this presentation example from the creators at Globoforce.

29. Don’t Be Afraid To Include Too Many Examples 

If you are presenting a complex idea to a group, especially a large audience, I would recommend having a ton of good examples. Now, I would try not to overdo it, but having too many it is better than having too few.

In this creative presentation, the people at With Company spend about 20 slides just giving great examples of prototyping. It doesn’t feel too repetitive because they all are useful and informative examples.

30.  Use Consistent Visual Styles For an Elegant Presentation Design

I have already written extensively about using icons in all of your design projects . I haven’t talked as much about matching icons to your presentation template.

But that’s just as important, especially if you want to create a professional presentation for your audience.

As you can see in the example above, the designer used minimalist icons that fit the slide designs. All of the other graphics, charts and visual elements fit together nicely as well.

Plus the icons don’t distract from the content, which could ruin a stellar presentation.

31. Use A Consistent Presentation Layout 

In this example from Bannersnack, they use a consistent layout on each of their slides to help with the flow by using the same margins and text layout.

It’s a solid presentation example because they help the user know where to look immediately. It may seem like they are playing it safe, but anything that can speed up the time it takes for a user to read the content of the slides, the better.

32. Use Loud Colors As Much As Possible 

This is one of my favorite presentations because of the highlighter yellow they chose to use as their main color. It is actually very similar to one that I saw presented live a few years ago and I have used this same approach in a few presentations ideas of my own.

33. Pull Your Design Motif From Your Content 

If you are talking about an interesting topic, why not use the topic as the main design motif in your creative slide deck? For example, in this presentation about sketchbooks, the creator uses a sketchy, handwritten motif. It is something simple that helps the audience connect with the topic. Plus, it allows you to include a ton of great examples.

34. Utilize A Call & Answer Cadence

In this SlideShare about how to create a presentation, Peter Zvirinsky uses a two-step process to present a point. First, he presents the header presentation tip in a speech bubble. Then he shows a supporting point in a responding speech bubble. This gives the presentation a conversational flow.

35. Repurpose Ebook Content Into A Creative Presentation

This slide deck was adapted perfectly from a Seth Godin ebook into the presentation example you see above. In the slide deck, they take a piece of content that would usually take a while to read and cut it down to a few minutes. Just remember to include only the most important ideas, and try to present them in a fresh way.

36. Add A Timed Outline To Your Presentation

We have already covered how important it is to have a table of contents in your slides but this takes it a bit further. On the second slide of the presentation below, the creator added how long each of the slides should take.

This is great because it helps your audience know the pace the presentation will take and will help keep them engaged. It also will help them identify the most important and in-depth parts of the presentation from the beginning.

37. Use A “Next Steps” Slide To Direct Your Audience

One of the worst things you can do as a presenter is to leave your audience without any idea of what to do next. A presentation should never just end because you ran out of slides.

Instead, use a conclusion or “next steps” slide like in the example above to finish your presentation. Sum up some of your main points, tell your audience where they can get more information, and push them to take action.

38. Go A Bit Crazy With The Design 

Sometimes you need to throw convention to the wind to create something unforgettable. This presentation from Velocity Partners does just that, and I think it is one of my favorite ones from this entire roundup.

They use unconventional typography, quirky icons, and unusual presentation layout to make each slide surprising.

39. Make Your Slide Deck Easy To Share  

If you are looking to get a lot of eyes on your presentation I would make sure people will want to share it on social media. How do you do that? By presenting new and interesting value. This means your content needs to answer a common question and your design needs to be clutter-free. For example, look at this very social media-friendly. The slides are simple and answer questions directly.

40.  Use Shapes to Integrate Your Photos Into the Slides

Want to include a bunch of images in your presentation? I say do it!

Now most of the time you would add a raw image directly to your slide. However, if you want to present images in a professional way I would recommend using an image frame .

Like in the example above, you can use these frame to create a collage of images almost instantly. Or provide a similar visual theme to all of your slides.  

Overall, I believe it’s a great way to add a new visual component to your presentation.

41. Hijack Someone’s Influence In Your Marketing Slides

If you are stuck in the brainstorming phase of your presentation, focusing on a brand or influencer is a great place to start. It could be a case study, a collection of ideas or just some quotes from the influencer. But what makes it effective is that the audience knows the influencer and trusts them. And you are able to hijack their awareness or influence.

42. Put Your Logo On Every Slide 

Whether you have a brand as powerful as Moz, or you are just getting started, you should always have your logo on each slide. You really never know where a presentation is going to end up–or what parts of it will! In this presentation template, Moz does a good job of including their branding and such to get others interested in Moz Local. Don’t have a logo yet? Our logo design tips will help you create a logo that’s iconic and will stand the test of time.

43. Lead Your Audience To It 

In this example, the creator uses something very similar to the call and answer approach I mentioned above, but with a little twist. Instead of just throwing all the info up at once, they use three slides to build to a particular point and include a subtle call to action in the third slide.

44. Make Visuals the Focal Point of Your Presentation Slides

If you haven’t noticed, illustrated icons are having a revival in 2020 and beyond. This is likely because minimalist icons dominated the design world for the past decade. And now people want something new.

Brands also like using illustrated icons because they are seen as genuine and fun.

And because they are so eye-catching you can use them as focal points in your presentation slides. Just like they did in the creative presentation example above.

Picking the perfect icon is tough, I would recommend starting here !

45. use a quirky presentation theme .

In this slide deck, the authors show you how to become an Animation Ninja…and they use ninja graphics and icons extensively. This caught my eye immediately because of the amount of work that I knew was behind this. It takes a lot of time and effort to line all of the content and graphic up to create a cohesive theme, but the payoff can be massively worth it.

46. Use A Consistent Background Image 

I am a big fan of the way that Aleyda Solís uses only a single presentation background image throughout her presentation.

By using this tactic the audience is able to focus on what is happening in the foreground. Plus it gives the whole presentation a different feel than all the other ones I have looked at.

47. Summarize Your Points At The End

It’s a good idea to summarize your points before you end your presentation , especially if you’ve covered a lot of information. In this presentation example, Deanta summarizes exactly what they do on slide numbers 16-18. They also provide their contact information in case their audience has any more questions. I think that every presentation should use this same approach, especially the ones you are presenting outside of your company.

48. Use A Minimalist Presentation Template

This slide deck from QuickBooks uses a minimalist theme to help the audience focus on what is important, the content.

There were only five colors used in the entire presentation and the graphics were simple line drawings. This made it easy to read and very pleasing to the eyes.

49. Split Your Slides Length-Wise 

Here is a simple template you can use to separate your headers, or main points, from your body text in a presentation.

Instead of using a solid presentation background, split the slide in half like Sequoia did in their slide deck. They used their brand color for the title portion and a neutral white for the supporting content.

Use this template to create a very similar slide right now !

50.  embrace a bold color scheme throughout your presentation.

My favorite part of the creative presentation example above is the use of complementary colors in each slide. As you can see, not one of the slides use the same color scheme but they all feel related connected.

This approach can be used to make your presentation visually unique, without abandoning a cohesive theme or idea.

51. Put Text In the Top Left Corner 

English speakers will instinctively try to read text from a top to bottom, left to right orientation. I would recommend using a left alignment for your text and adding additional things from top to bottom, just like Aaron Irizarry did in this presentation layout.

52. Break Up Your Tables 

A plain table with a white background with black or gray lines are difficult to read on a computer screen, so why would you create one for viewing on a large presentation screen? You shouldn’t!

Instead, follow Intuit’s lead and break up the rows with a bit of color. This applies to data visualization in general , but think it is even more important when it comes to presentations.

53.  Present Connected Information in a Visually Similar Way

In this startup pitch presentation example, they have a ton of information to get through. But they present their most important slides, the problem and solution, in a visually similar way.

By using a similar layout on each slide, the audience will be able to quickly make a connection. If you want to present two connected pieces of information, use this tactic.

From the font to the layout, it’s all basically the same. The main message they’re trying to impart is a lot more impactful to the reader.

If they would have used two wildly different presentation layouts, the message may have been lost.

54. Roundup Expert Tips Into One Presentation 

If you are looking for useful insights into the topic of your presentation, talk to some influencers in your niche. These are called “expert roundups” in the content marketing world and they are incredibly shareable.

Plus, they are pretty easy to create and have a great shelf life. In the example above, we talked to a gaggle of marketing experts about what makes a SlideShare great.

55. Use Bold & Brash Colors Throughout 

B old colors usually make your presentation template a lot easier to read and remember. Like at this slide deck made by our talented designers, which doesn’t shy away from bright, bold colors.

Want to pick a perfect color palette for your presentation? We can help!

56. make yo ur graphs easy to read & interpret .

It should not require a Master’s degree in statistics to understand the graphs that someone uses in a presentation. Instead, the axis should be easy to read, the colors should enforce the point, and the data should be clearly plotted.

For example, in this presentation on slide numbers 14 and 25, the graphs nail all of those tips perfectly.

57. Condense Your Presentation Into a Memorable Line 

If you can, try condensing your information into a simple one-liner to help the message stick with your audience. In slide number 36 of this presentation, Mika Aldaba does just that and shows that “Facts + Feelings = Data Storytelling.”

He does this again a few times throughout the presentation with other memorable one-liners.

58.  Bring attention to important figures with colorful icons

If you’re including a figure or number on your slides, I’m guessing you want the audience to actually see it.

That’s why I would recommend using an icon or graphic to highlight that figure. Maybe use a color or icon that isn’t used anywhere else in the presentation to make sure it really jumps off the screen.

In the presentation example above, all that’s used is a simple circle to make each figure a focal point. It’s really that easy, but many people leave it out of their presentations.

59. Anchor Your Text With Icons 

Having your text or content floating out in the white space of your presentation is not a good look.

Instead, you should use anchor icons to give the text something to hold onto and draw the audience’s eye. If you need some examples of good anchor icons, check out slide numbers 4, 7 and 9 in this presentation example.

60. Add Semi-Opaque Lettering As a Presentation Background 

A neat way to keep your slide deck organized is to number your slides or points using semi-opaque lettering in the background.

Then, place your slide content on top of the opaque lettering. This helps your audience know that you are on the same point or idea, plus it just looks really good when done right.

61. Use Simple Or Minimalist Borders

An easy way to class up your slides is to put a border around your text. Take this presentation from Venngage that uses a couple of different types of borders to make their slides look professional.

Plus it helps keep all of your content contained on the slide!

62. Feature One Idea Per Slide

Nothing is worse than a confusing, cluttered slide. Instead of trying to pack a bunch of ideas into one slide, focus on one core idea on each slide. If you need to flesh the idea out, just make another slide. 

Having trouble condensing your slides? Our presentation design guide can help you summarize your presentations and convey a singular idea with a clear focus.

63. Keep Your Style Consistent With Your Brand 

You might be tempted to switch up the style of your creative presentations each time, but think again. If your brand is known for fun and lighthearted content, like Officevibe, let that be your style throughout all of the presentations you publish under that brand. This will make your slide decks recognizable and will enforce your brand’s message .

64. Use Accent Fonts to Emphasize Important Numbers

Some people hate pie charts with a passion, but I think they are perfect for presentations. Especially if you want to bring attention to a figure or percentage point .

In this simple example, the pie charts are used to visualize each figure in an interesting way. Plus the pie charts fit the circular and fun theme of the rest of the presentation very well.

65. Use Patterned and Textured Presentation Backgrounds

Source  

Adding some subtle textures, icons or shapes to the presentation background can help make your slides more interesting. This is especially effective when you are only showing one point per slide, because it makes the slide design less sparse.

You can even switch up the colors on your shapes or textures to match the theme of the slide like DesignMantic did in this presentation.

66. Illustrate Complex Or Confusing Concepts With Icons 

Ideally, you don’t want every slide in your deck to just be text. Instead, switch things up every few slides by using just pictures.

This slide deck by Gluwa uses icons to create little diagrams to illustrate their presentation ideas. Their slides still communicate concepts to the audience, but in a new way.

67. Overlay Stock Photos With Color 

One problem many people encounter when creating a presentation or slide decks are finding photos with a consistent style. An easy way to edit photos to make them consistent is to add a transparent color overlay. In this example, Change Sciences uses a blue overlay on all of their photos. Plus, the color you choose can also help convey a particular mood.

68. Use Black and White Blocks 

An easy way to make your text pop, particularly on a photo background, is to use white font on a black blog background (and vise-versa). Check out this slide deck by Abhishek Shah, which uses this trick in an effective way.  

Now if you want to become a better leader this year, check out some of our favorite leadership infographics .

69. Use Photos With Similar Filters 

Using a bunch of photos with wildly different filters can be jarring in a business presentation. To maintain a consistent flow, use photos with a similar filter and color saturation.

Take a look at this example from HubSpot across slide numbers 1-6 and you can see what I mean.

70. Visualize Your Points With Diagrams 

Sometimes the best way to get your point across is to throw some diagrams into the presentation mix. But be sure to make is something that the audience can pick up on in three to five seconds tops.

For example, Jan Rezab uses a diagram to illustrate what takes up time in our lives on slide numbers 4, 5, 7 and 9!

71. Get Experts To Share Tips

If you want to provide even more value to your audience than you can offer yourself, why not call in some expert reinforcement? See what experts in your field have to say on the topic of your presentation and include their tips and insights. Plus you can hijack their influence and expand your audience fairly quickly. 

72. Mimic a Popular Presentation Style 

Uber’s pitch deck helped them raise millions of dollars in venture capital eventually leading to the glorious moment when they IPOed this year.

Aside from our sleek design upgrade (hey, we love good design!), this pitch deck template is the exact same one that Uber used to go from Idea to IPO.

And who knows? Maybe you might start the next Uber. But to raise money, you will need to create flawless business pitch decks to impress investors and raise those dollars.

73. Plan Your Presentation Idea Ahead of Time

I know that minimalist designs are all the rage this year, but there is a big difference between a well-thought-out minimalist design and a lazy design without the finish touches. The same goes for a cluttered design with too many things going on at once.

That’s why it’s worth it to take the time to really plan out your presentation ideas and design concepts. Take this slide deck about storytelling by HighSpark. A quick glance will tell you that they put a lot of thought into designing their slides.

74.  Use Tables to Compare Your Brand to the Competition in Sales Presentations/Pitch Decks

There are a lot of ways to visually compare similar things in this day and age. You could use a comparison infographic , or even a venn diagram!

However, when it comes to presentations I think that the simple table is best. Especially if you are comparing more than two things, like in this presentation example.

With a table, you can clearly lay out all the pros and cons of each idea, brand or topic without it being overwhelming to the audience. Plus, virtually everyone knows how to follow a table, so your information will be easy to consume.  

See more examples of the best pitch decks .

75. Blend Icons & Content Effortlessly

Usually, icons are used as eye-catching objects detectors or anchors for text in a slideshow. But they can be used for so much more than that!

Like in this marketing presentation from Constant Contact they are very large but do not distract from the content.

76. Make Your Audience Want More 

This tactic has been used by everyone since the idea of marketing was invented (or close to that). In this presentation example called “100 Growth Hacks, 100 Days” the creator only shows the audience the first 10 days of it and then uses a call to action at the end of the presentation to encourage them to seek out the rest.

The only risk with these kinds of presentation ideas is if your initial content is not great, you can’t expect your audience to seek out more information.

77. Use Memes (For Real, Though) 

Usually, memes do not have a place in a serious business setting, so maybe don’t use them for formal presentations. But if you’re covering a lighter topic, or if you’re going for a fun presentation that will connect with your audience, don’t be afraid to throw a meme or two into the mix.

The audience immediately knows what you are trying to say when you use a popular meme in your presentation. For example, on slide number 7, the creator uses a meme to show that it will be hard to create great content

78.  Include a Slide that Introduces Your Team in Pitch Decks

In this presentation example, the creators decided to include their team on a slide. I think it’s a great gesture.

Showing your team can help the audience put a face to your brand and make the whole company feel more genuine. So if there is a team that has helped you get where you are today, give them some recognition!

79. Feature A Complementary Color Palette

Even though I am not a formally trained designer, I still understand that proper color usage is the base of any good design. Although not all of the tenets of color theory work great for presentations, complementary colors are always a great pick.

Take a look at the color usage in this business presentation from Gary Vaynerchuk below . The purple and Snapchat yellow, which are complementary colors, look fantastic and the content jumps off the screen.

80. Use A Heavy Or Bold Font 

The very back of the room should be able to read your content if you are giving a group presentation. To ensure that your entire audience can read the slides I would not only use a large font, but also use a heavy font.  If you are confused by what I mean by a heavy font take a look at this unique presentation example by Slides That Rock.

81. Do The Math For Your Audience

If you are going to use a graph in your presentation to compare data you should do the match for your audience. Do not make them do the calculations in their head because you will quickly lose their attention. For example, on slide number 5 the people at Sickweather lay out exactly what figures they want the audience to take from the slide.  

82. Use Unique Colors For Different Sections

The example below has 145 slides but it does not feel overwhelming or confusing.

That’s because each section has a different corresponding color, which makes it easier to flip through the slide deck and find a particular part.

83.  Give Your Presentation a Catchy Title that Anyone Can Remember

What I really love about the presentation example above is that it features a catchy tagline on the second slide–“The 3S Framework.” It’s simple but it works!

This motto helps outline the structure of the presentation, and each slide referring back to it. Plus, the tagline will give the audience something to latch onto and remember from the presentation.

84. White Backgrounds Are Not Always Bad 

A lot of people think that plain white background is a boring presentation faux pas. So the first thing they do is add color or image, which is not a bad thing at all.

But I also think that when used correctly, like in this example, plain white backgrounds can lead to beautiful presentations.

85. Split The Header Text From The Body Text

This idea is very similar to the one-two punch tactic that I talked about above, but it spreads the content over two slides as opposed to a single slide.

Use this design choice when you have fairly easy to follow presentations, like the one below from Steve Young. I know that this is effective because it allows the audience to focus on the main point before he drives it home with the supporting details.

86. Feature Circle Image Frames  

I am a big fan of the design choices that Frank Delmelle uses in this slide deck about content strategy. He uses circles as his main design motif and frames his images in circles as well.

87. Talk Directly To Your Audience 

This slideshow tops out at 70 slides but it’s a breeze to flip through. That’s because the creator, Ian Lurie, decided to present it in the form of a conversation instead of a classic slide deck.

While each slide only has one or two sentences, it flows just like a friendly chat. He also includes the necessary pauses, breaks and other conversational tics that helps make it even more convincing.

88. Illustrated Icons Are Key This Year 

Icons add a fun and functional element to your designs. In this presentation by Iryna Nezhynska, they use illustrated icons to make a potentially intimidating topic seem manageable.

89. Highlight Key Numbers and Percentages 

Surprising percentages have the ability to excite and shock an audience. To make the percentages on your slides even more impactful, present them in a different color or font than the rest of the text.

In the presentation example above, Contently uses that exact tactic to bring more attention to key numbers.

90. Use a Gradient as Your Presentation Background 

Just like bold color schemes, gradients are a current social media graphic design trend . They may feel retro to some, but I believe they will be around well into the future.  

Gradients are perfect for presentation backgrounds because they are so versatile and eye-catching. I mean, you can literally create a gradient with any colors you can think of! And they look a lot more interesting than a simple flat background.

So embrace the future and use a gradient in your next presentation!

91. Track The Steps In a Process 

In this example, the creators from O.C. Tanner add a very interesting feature to their slides, starting on slide number 6. If you take a look at this business presentation template, you will see that they number the steps in a process and track which step they’re on at the bottom of the slides.

92. Use Mind Blowing Font Pairings 

The creator of this slide deck uses at least 10 different types of fonts. And it looks fantastic because they know that one font choice is boring. But this does not mean that you should use a bunch of random fonts–pick font pairs that play well together and keep your font choices for different types of information consistent throughout the presentation.

93. Make Your Ideas As Obvious As Possible 

Your audience shouldn’t be guessing at what you mean. That is why I think that this presentation example from In a Rocket is so powerful because they make the information easy to digest.

Learning to code can be challenging, but they break the information down with simple diagrams and clear examples. Heck, I have not touched CSS in a few years and I could still follow what they were instructing.

94. Use Images That Will Actually Scale 

A large mistake that you can make in your slide deck is using low-quality images. They may look great on your computer, but as soon as the slides are put up on a screen, the low quality will show. In this example by ThoughtWorks, all of their presentation background images look great and will scale well to a bigger screen. And that is even after the image compression that LinkedIn most likely does!

95. Take Risks With Your Presentation Layout

I honestly was blown away the first time I saw this presentation because it capitalized on such a risky design idea. The creators from Weekdone literally turned their presentation into an 8-Bit video game. A nd if you are looking for something that will stick with your audience, I would take a few creative cues from them!

96. Seriously, You Better Use Memes 

In this day and age memes are mainstream, so why wouldn’t you use them in a creative presentation? These do not have to be the coolest meme that all the hip kids are sharing, they can be some of the classics. Like the one that Dana DiTomaso uses on slide 16 to emphasize that it’s a trap!

97. Follow a Clear Design Rhythm

I really like how this presentation introduced each new point in three or four steps, using the same design. It gave the presentation a rhythm that flowed almost like a song!

I would recommend using this approach if you have to introduce multiple points per slide.

98. Use LOTS Of Icons

If you have made it this far in the list you have already probably seen how effective icons are in presentations. They are the perfect way to support your ideas and make your presentation more pleasing to the eyes.

For example, take a look at all the icons SlideShop uses in this presentation. Almost every slide has at least one icon and a few have more than ten!

99. Give Each Slide Its Own Spark

I know this goes against earlier points I had about creating a cohesive theme in your presentation layout, but everyone knows that rules are made to be broken (if you can do it better)!

In this slide deck, the team at Officevibe literally created different designs for all 27 of their slides. And to top it off, each of the designs fit the quotes they used extremely well.

100. Use LARGE Header Cards 

An easy way to stick to that “one piece of content on each slide rule” is to use header cards. They are basically the header that you would normally use in a blog post or article, but it gets is own slide before the content. Here is an example of that idea in the real world in this presentation from Brian Downard.

101. Ask Your Audience Questions 

I think one of the most common elements I saw in all the slide decks was that they asked the audience questions. You can use questions to engage with your audience and get them thinking a bit harder about the topic. The Site By Norex team did an exceptional job of this when they explored what the topic of what makes up a brand.

Need some more info about creating a memorable brand? Check out some of the best branding stats for 2020 and beyond!

102. Introduce Yourself and Your Brand 

I would say that a majority of presentations that I looked at in this list just jumped right into the content without an introduction to the author or brand in the actual slide deck.

This introduction is very important because it establishes your credentials from the beginning, especially if someone is just reading the slide deck. In this example from Losant, they do just that by spending the first few slides telling the audience who they are.

103. Mix Up Your Mediums 

Finally, this slide deck effectively marries two very distinct content forms together: digital images and hand-drawn illustrations. In this example, Freshdesk uses the timeless classic of a comic strip, Calvin & Hobbes, in something so modern to inform the audience in a fun way.

104. Show Off Your Credentials 

Just like with any piece of content, people are more likely to believe what you are saying if they know what your company does. That is why I really like when people insert their qualifications right into the presentation slides. Just like Andreas von der Heydt, from Amazon, did at the beginning of this presentation about thinking big.  

105. Highlight Key Data Points 

If you are presenting a chart or graph on a dry topic, I would recommend using a single color to highlight the most important data point. For example, the investment firm a16z uses orange to highlight the data points they want their audience to focus on in each of their charts.

Check out some examples of how to highlight your key information in bar charts .

106. Show Your Audience Where To Find More Information 

A lot of people end their presentations by literally just running out of slides, and that is the wrong way to do it. Instead, CBInsights consistently pushes their readers towards another piece of content at the end. This is also where you can insert a call to action!

107. Tell Your Origin Story

  Source

This idea is kinda similar to showing off your company qualifications at the beginning of your presentation. But with this approach, you are trying to make an emotional connection with your audience instead of just showing off accolades.

And Rand from Moz does this extremely well in the presentation example above.

108. Use One Focused Visual 

This presentation uses a central visual of a structure, with each slide moving down the levels of the structure. This is incredibly powerful because the entire presentation is about sinking your company, and the visual they designed mirrors that idea perfectly. Using one focus visual also makes your slide deck design cohesive.

109. Don’t Take Presentation Design Too Seriously

Sometimes we get caught up trying to make the perfect presentation and it ends up making us crazy!

But in this presentation example, Jesse Desjardins uses a mix of wit and hilarious retro images to create a memorable and light-hearted presentation.

110. Use Size To Your Advantage 

I am a big fan of using bubble charts and other charts that use size to compare two pieces of data. That is why I like this pitch deck from the ShearShare team that utilizes a size-based chart on slide number 9. The chart is used to illustrate the massive growth potential in their industry.

111. Split Section Headers From The Main Content With Different Background Colors 

In this presentation, Seth Familian uses alternating colors in a very interesting way. For each of the title slides, he uses a black color background, but for the content slides he uses a white background.

This helped the readers follow along and comprehend what was on the page even faster. And when you are presenting to hundreds of different types of people, this can make or break your presentation.  

112.  Have A Conversation With Your Audience 

Take a conversational tone in your presentation is a great way to encourage your audience to participate.

In this slide deck example, we presented a simple storyline and use questions to engage with the audience throughout. And it helped create a flow throughout the  presentation template  that is easy to follow.

113.  Include Your Branding Throughout Your Presentation Ideas

Another thing that people seem to forget when they are working on a presentation is to include their business’s branding. You honestly never know where your work is going to be shared, so it is important to make sure people know it’s yours. HubSpot does an outstanding job of this on all their presentations, as you can see in the bottom left corner of each slide.

Plus you have spent a ton of time creating your  brand guidelines , might as well use them.

114.  Include Multiple Slides To Build To Your Main Point

Try using multiple slides to build to your main point. This helps you walk through the components of one overarching point while also building suspense. In this slide deck, the creator uses 6 slides to build up to one main point, adding a new illustration to the diagram on each slide.

115.  Split The Difference 

Use either the left or right side of the slide to hold your text and the opposite to display an image. If you are using a photo or graphic as the main background in your slides, this is a great way to keep things organized. 

116. There Are Millions Of Fonts Out There…Use Them

Hey, I love simple fonts just as much as the next guy, but sometimes you need to step up your font game to stand out. For example, WebVisions uses a very gritty, probably custom font in their unique presentation that fits the topic extremely well. Take a look!

117.  Build Your Presentation Content Around Icons 

Try using icons as the focal points of your presentation layout. This example from Omer Hameed  uses icons to draw the audience’s eyes  right to the middle of the presentation, where the main points and headers are located.  

118.  Mix Up Font Style To Emphasize Important Points

If you would like to draw some extra attention to a certain word or idea,  switch up the font  to one that is bolder. For example, in this oldie but goodie presentation from HubSpot they use a heavy sans-serif font to highlight ideas, as opposed to the serif font for the other text.

119.  Add Personal Touches To Your Presentation

If you want to create a truly unique presentation, add personal touches. In the slide numbers 6-13 from this presentation, the creator adds something to their design that no one else could ever have: they use original drawings they did themselves.

120.  Harness the Power of Your Own Brand Colors

Sometimes people forget that they already have a battle-tested color palette that they can use in their  brand colors . I try to incorporate one of our brand colors in most of my designs and it makes so much easier to choose colors.

In this simple presentation example, Spitfire Creative used a palette that had both of their brand colors throughout the slideshow.

121.  Used Dark-Colored Blocks to Highlight Words

I have seen this trick used in a lot of presentations and it works well. Highlight certain words or phrases by laying them overtop a colored rectangle. Take slide number 7 in this presentation example as a great guide. Use it to bring attention to a saying or idea you really want your audience to remember.

122.  Show The Audience Your Mug 

This presentation example comes from the same presentation as a previous one, but it was too good not to share. Throughout the slides, you will see Rand from Moz pop up to add a human element to the design. Using an image of your team or yourself can put the audience at ease and make it easier to connect with the presenter.

123.  Include A Helpful Table Of Contents 

I only saw this presentation idea used a few times throughout my research, but I believe it should be used a lot more. A table of contents will help the audience know what to expect and keep their focus throughout. Especially if you are creating a presentation that is a bit longer than normal.

124.  Do Not Post Just Screenshots, Do More

Screenshots of a program or app are very common in any blog post, but I think you can do a little better when it comes to presentations.

So instead of just posting a boring screenshot, add a little more to the slide by using illustrations and product shots. If you are not sure what I am talking about, just check out how great the screenshots look at slide numbers 7 and 8 in this presentation.

125. Highlight Keywords Using BOLD Color 

Here’s another slide deck that uses different colors and blocks to highlight keywords. If you are going to use text-heavy slides, then make sure the key points are easy to pick out. Take this slide deck: starting in slide number 4, they highlight exactly what they want you to take away from the text on each slide!

Enough Presentation Ideas For You?

You made it! I applaud you for making it through all those presentations. Hopefully, now you have a few nifty presentation ideas ready for when you need them.

The next step is to create a presentation that will captivate a meeting room, an amphitheater, and even the world (hey, it doesn’t hurt to dream big).

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25 Powerpoint Presentation Ideas to Level-Up Your Next Talk

Ninety percent of the anxiety people feel before giving a presentation comes from not feeling prepared.  

Adding a PowerPoint presentation to your talk and spending the time to create and practice it can increase your confidence and help get your message across to your audience.

Well-designed PowerPoint presentations give life to your talk by adding a visual aspect that people can connect with. The printed word, photos, visuals, graphs, icons, and more reinforce what you are saying.

Both you and your audience want your PowerPoint presentation to be engaging, to the point, and effective. Here are 25 PowerPoint presentation tips to help you make your next presentation your best one.

1. Plan Ahead

Planning ahead gives you the time you need to look for quality photos, create infographics that simplify any data you are presenting, and decide on the best colors, fonts, and themes that will connect with your audience.

Begin planning your PowerPoint presentation ideas as you are planning your talk.

However, do not create your slides until after your talk is fine-tuned and ready.

Instead, jot down ideas of visuals, stories, videos, and demonstrations you may want to include in your presentation. 

Your presentation slides will come together as you formulate your talk. The ideas will come to you as you keep your slide presentation in the back of your mind.

Once your talk is written and revised and you are happy with it, create your slides to complement and help  reach the goal of your talk.

2. Choose a Consistent Theme

Using a consistent theme for each of your slides creates continuity throughout your entire presentation for the audience and makes your message more memorable.

That means using the same color scheme, fonts, formatting, icons, logos, and types of images and backgrounds throughout your presentation.

While it’s important to stay consistent, you do still, however, want to alternate slide layouts to prevent your audience from predicting exactly what’s next and possibly tuning out your presentation.

This creates a polished look to your creative presentation and makes it easier for your audience to focus on the content instead of being distracted by slides that don’t seem to relate to each other.

A quick and easy way to create a consistent theme for your presentation is to use Powerpoint templates.

PowerPoint has dozens of presentation templates you can choose from within the app. You can also access many more templates online for a fee.

PowerPoint presentation templates include colors, fonts, layouts, background styles, effects, and sometimes content that let you begin creating your slides immediately. Or, you can start with a blank slide and create your own theme.

3. Use Bullet Points

When you use bullet points on your slides, it lets your audience visualize key points from your verbal presentation. It also gives you speaking cues, in case you lose your train of thought. 

Bullet points should be short and easy to scan. As a general rule, keep your bullets to four per slide and eight words per bullet point.

This will keep your audience engaged with you and what you are saying instead of reading your slides and tuning you out.

Your talk is the main event, and your PowerPoint presentation is there to complement what you are saying. Your slides shouldn’t do the talking for you.  

Use bullet points to list the main points and highlight important information that you want your audience to remember.

4. Choose Easy to Read Text

Use text that is pleasant to look at and easy for your audience to read when you are giving your presentation. Font styles such as Arial, Times New Roman, or Helvetica are simple and easy to read. 

If you want to use fancier text, save it for larger headlines in your presentation. And remember to be consistent across your slides.

Make your font big enough to be read easily in a large room. A font size of 30-point or higher is optimal.

Avoid backgrounds and fonts that are complementary colors. For example, red and green are complementary colors, so red font on a green background would be very hard on the eyes. 

Dark text on a light background, or vice versa, has the best visibility.

Play around with bold, underline, italics, and colors for added emphasis on keywords or phrases. Use these features strategically — instead of overusing them — to help your audience focus on what you want them to gain from your presentation.

5. Keep It Simple

Avoid “busy” slides. There is no need to have fancy borders or too many images, gifs, or animations in your PowerPoint presentation. Too much to watch on one slide can be distracting.

Limit yourself to what is most essential for the audience to understand your message.

As a general rule of thumb, try to include just one idea per slide. This will likely mean you’ll have more slides, but it will help your audience follow along and increase their understanding.

One feature that PowerPoint presentations offer is transitioning, such as fading out of one slide and into the next or moving words across the slide. The rule of thumb here is simple transitions are the best. This keeps the focus on your talk and not on your PowerPoint presentation.

Consider making some slides just a photo with no text at all. One word or phrase on a slide can make it stand out so your audience knows it is important. 

When using infographics, keep words to a minimum and verbally explain the graphic. Use numbers, percentages, icons, or small phrases to label each part of your infographic instead of sentences.

6. Add Inspiring Quotes

Try to use a few  inspirational quotes  or other anecdotes to  help relate your message when you want the audience to remember a key point.

Quoting a phrase spoken by a respected or influential person can lend credibility and familiarity to your message.

Inspirational quotes also help set the mood and tone of your presentation. They can provide encouragement, calm nerves, add humor, and give your audience ideas they can use to make improvements.

Since quotes are usually short, they are easy to remember. Use them to help your audience take action or drive home the main message of your presentation.

7. Personalize Your Presentation Slides

One of the most important elements of writing a good talk is to know your audience. The same principle applies to crying your PowerPoint presentation.

To help you craft a creative presentation, choose images, colors, themes, and so on that would appeal to your audience and avoid anything that would trigger the opposite effect.

This requires researching your audience. Get to know what is important to them and what their background is. Knowing age, gender, educational status, career choice are helpful. What experiences have they had that are related to your presentation?

Personalize your PowerPoint presentation to the expectations and tastes of your audience.

In the same regard, add your personality to the presentation as appropriate. Sharing personal experiences helps the audience connect with you and build trust — and therefore connect with your message

8. Browse PowerPoint Templates and Themes

Some PowerPoint templates focus on a specific industry, topic, or theme. Search the web for some examples of PowerPoint ideas in your field and browse the choices and templates available to see if one will resonate best with your audience.

Within the PowerPoint app, you can search for keywords, such as education, business, sports, travel, healthcare, medical, history, and many other topics related to your talk. Use these presentation templates to your advantage to create crisp, clean, engaging slides.

Along with PowerPoint ideas and templates, you can also access ready-made themes. These consist of a background and complementary fonts and graphics.

As you are searching for a presentation template, browse PowerPoint’s charts, diagrams, and infographics available through the app. These are contained within certain presentation templates to give you customizable layouts for charts, tables, timelines, and more that you can use to make your data come alive.

9. Consider PowerPoint Alternatives

If you don’t have PowerPoint, you don’t have to worry. Unless you already have Microsoft Office, you will have to pay to get PowerPoint; but you have alternatives. You even have free options that can help you make great presentations. 

Canva is a photo editing tool that makes professional-looking presentations. Its free version includes plenty of fonts and filters to easily create powerful, engaging, custom presentations. Canva gives you access to hundreds of design templates and gives you the ability to customize your presentations to your exact specifications.

Google Slides is another free PowerPoint alternative. It offers many of the same features as PowerPoint, including templates, transitions, animations, and inserting images, videos, and documents. It is also compatible with PowerPoint if you want to create in Google Slides but present or share using PowerPoint.

Prezi is another powerful presentation option that has a free version. Try its templates or start from a blank slate. One of its unique features is the ability to record videos, create designs, and make infographics with the Prezi online editor.

10. Offer Quality Over Quantity

Don’t waste your audience’s time with fluff and nonsense. Use your slides for quality information and only use them to enhance your presentation. 

Less is more. The more words and fluff on a slide, the more chances your audience will have to tune out. You don’t want that.

Limit your slides to the most important points of your talk and slides that will help bring clarity to what you are saying.

11. Fade In and Out of Your Slides

When the content on your slide is not important to what you are saying, fade to black. This helps your audience focus their attention on you and not get lost in your slides.

It helps to remember that your talk is the point, not your slides.

One of the PowerPoint presentation ideas to consider is to use a slide to introduce a topic, then fade out while you are elaborating on it. 

It is best to choose a presentation remote that has a black screen button. Not all remotes do. This feature lets you fade to a black screen with the simple click of a button so the transition is smooth, clean, and not distracting.

12. Engage Instead of Read

Stay engaged with your audience by resisting the temptation to read from your slide. Practicing your PowerPoint presentation in advance will make this easy.

Your presentation should help to supplement what you have to say and provide emphasis on your key points. 

Elaborate on the information in your slides instead of reading them word for word. Keeping your bullet points short will help ensure you engage instead of read.

With each bullet point or main idea, you can elaborate by telling an interesting story, giving an example, telling a joke, or doing a demonstration.

Even if you have an inspirational quote, memorize the quote so that you are maintaining eye contact with your audience instead of gazing at your slide. This will help the audience connect with your and your message even more.

13. Show One Bullet Point at a Time

One of the most effective PowerPoint presentation ideas is to reveal one bullet point at a time to your audience. 

This helps your audience stay on track with your talk and not read ahead, get lost, or miss a point.

To be able to do this, learn how to use the software and your remote so you can smoothly advance from one bullet point to the next.

As you set up your PowerPoint slides, you will access the Custom Animation feature then chose an Entrance Effect. Then, when you are presenting, you will be able to show one bullet point at a time to match with what you are currently talking about.

14. Bring Your Own Hardware

It is best practice to bring your own laptop or device that you want to use to give your presentation. That way you are familiar with it and you will not run the risk of having compatible hardware at your venue.

Just make sure you have prepared how to connect your device to the AV equipment at the place you will be giving your talk. For example, do you need a USB or RBG cable, iPhone dongle, or other hardware to present your slides? If so, bring it along. 

Also, have a backup of your presentation just in case something goes wrong at the last minute with your hardware. Put your backup on a USB flash drive, send it to yourself by email, use Dropbox or Google Drive, or add it as a file on your phone. 

Ask ahead of time what equipment will be available at the venue. This helps you know what to expect while also bringing your device and backup of your presentation in case they are needed. Preparation helps calm your nerves and ensure your presentation goes on without a hitch.

15. Invest In a Remote Control

Chances are you will not have a tech crew, so you’ll need to advance your slides on your own.

Invest in a remote control so you can be away from your device to control your PowerPoint presentation. This helps the audience focus on you and engage with you instead of watching you from behind your device.

It is essential to learn your remote, by practicing with it often ahead of time. Memorize by touch where the buttons are so you are not constantly looking at it, which is distracting to the audience. 

Choose a remote that is compatible with Windows PCs if you are using PowerPoint instead of an alternative. Consider using a PowerPoint remote app that you can download onto your iPhone or Android phone if this is more convenient for you.

Wireless remotes are best since they allow you the freedom to move around the stage and engage with the audience.

Using a remote with a laser will allow you to point to specific parts of your slides. Red is a common laser color, while blue, and violet are also options. Green is the most powerful color and may be best for large presentation venues. Be sure not to inadvertently point the laser at a person as it may cause damage to the eyes.

16. Ask a Question

Asking a question during your talk engages your audience so they are actively thinking and involved in what you are presenting. 

Use questions at strategic points in your presentation to capture their attention and draw them into your talk.

Devote a slide to write out a question, and then pause to give the audience time to think about it. You may want them to keep the answer to themselves or ask for volunteers to share theirs out loud and promote discussion. 

A successful public speaking strategy is to make a bold statement and then ask a question. For example, you may state that “Most people are not aware of the five causes of climate change,” and then ask, “Are you one of these people?”

Instead of starting out with a list of causes, posing this question first gives the audience an opportunity to think about the topic. They will likely be more interested in what you have to say next and be able to personalize your message to themselves.

17. Choose the Best Images

The human brain can process images 60,000 times faster than it processes written text. Adding images to your slides is one of the most effective PowerPoint presentation ideas .

But make sure your images are high quality. They must be in focus, high resolution, and pleasant to look at. 

You can access many high-quality images online that are free to use. Many PowerPoint templates also include photos related to the theme of the presentation.

Choose photographs, illustrations, or graphics that are both pleasing to the eye and on topic. A random photo of a cute kitten has shock value, but if it is off-topic it will draw your audience away from your message. You want your audience to remember your message, not an unrelated slide.

One PowerPoint presentation idea you can try is to fill your slide with an image, and then add short bullet points over it. If you do, make sure your text font is easily visible on top of the image.

18. Engage With Video

Most people retain information better when they watch a video over reading text.

In fact, 94% of marketers say video helps people understand their product or service better. And 87% say it increases their return on investment.

PowerPoint and other slide presentation alternatives allow you to add video to make a more creative presentation.

Keep your video short to make it more engaging. It is best to communicate your idea in a video that ranges from less than a minute to no more than three minutes.

Add a video to your PowerPoint presentation from YouTube, by pasting in an embed code from another site, or uploading a video from your computer.

You can also add a screen recording when you want to demonstrate something to your audience. Add an animated gif as an alternative to a stationary photograph.

For best accessibility, an important PowerPoint presentation idea is to add captions to your video. You can do this directly in PowerPoint by using the Video Tools Playback feature.

19. Call On Your Leadership Skills

The purpose of your talk is to improve the lives of your audience in some way. You will either want to motivate, inspire, inform, persuade, or entertain them.

The same qualities that make you a good leader make you a dynamic public speaker.

Become familiar with these skills and develop them. Some of the top qualities of good leaders in my experience are vision, courage, integrity, humility, focus, and clear communication.

As you create, practice, and present your talk and your PowerPoint presentation, use these leadership skills to have a positive effect on your audience and reach the goal of your talk.

20. Make Your PowerPoint Presentation Actionable

Provide something at the end of your presentation that your audience can do immediately to take action. 

This is the exclamation point at the end of your talk. It is where you wrap everything up and bring everything together. 

Ending your presentation with a thank you slide may leave some audience members wondering what to do next.

Instead, tell them directly.

What can your audience do when they walk out of the room to put what they learned into action? In other words, what was the goal of your talk?

To help you craft your call to action, put yourself in the shoes of your audience and ask, “What’s in it for me?”

Make your call to action clear, specific, and easy to follow. Write it on a slide so the audience can both see and hear it.

21. Develop Excellent Virtual Presentation Skills

Virtual talks are increasingly popular and even necessary in many circumstances now.

The benefits of giving a virtual presentation include convenience, you can reach a wider audience, it is often more cost-effective than in-person presentations, and the audience readily has handouts, links, resources for taking action.

It is likely you will give a PowerPoint presentation virtually. Prepare yourself to give an effective presentation by preparing and practicing ahead of time.

Get used to talking into the camera instead of looking at your screen. That way, the viewers perceive that you are making eye contact with them, which is important.

Ask someone to assist you with the technical aspects of the presentation if you can. They can make you aware of questions and solve any issues that come up so you can concentrate on engaging with the audience.

22. Harness the Power of Infographics

Infographics simplify complex topics. A list of statistics may seem dry, but when put into an infographic, your audience is able to visualize the concept more easily.

Infographics also provide a visual representation of what you are explaining. They help you make a creative presentation that benefits your audience.

Create infographics by using those contained in PowerPoint templates or using Canva, Google Slides, Piktochart, easel.ly, and or other infographic tools.

23. Look at Your Audience

As I have mentioned, glance at your slide when needed, but never read your slide.

Communicate with your audience and build a relationship with them by maintaining eye contact.

Keep the focus on your message, not your slides.

This takes practice but is essential to keep your audience engaged and establish a rapport with them.

Before you start speaking, look at your audience and establish eye contact with several audience members. As you are speaking, maintain eye contact with one person for three to five seconds instead of letting your eyes dart around the room.

Be sure to look at all audience members as well. Focus your eyes on the left, right, middle, front, and back of the room. This will help all participants know they are important and included in your presentation.

Avoid rushing your talk or your PowerPoint presentation. No one wants to be lectured or talked to. They want to feel as though they are having a conversation as much as possible.

Using a deliberate pause between slides, bullet points in a slide, or your talk, in general, helps capture the attention of your audience. 

It also allows your message sink in and gives them more time to think about what you’ve said. A pause gives your audience time to read your slide and process it.

Taking time to pause calms your nerves and helps your audience relate to you.

Use a pause to provide emphasis to a point you are making, like a punctuation mark at the end of a sentence does.

It is especially important to pause when you are transitioning from one topic or slide to another. It helps the audience transition in their minds as well.

25. Practice, Practice, Practice

Preparation is the key to giving an effective presentation. About 35% of people giving a presentation practice it for at least an hour.  Another 44% spend anywhere from three to eight hours practicing their presentation to make sure it is polished and they are prepared .

To effectively practice your PowerPoint presentation, write a complete outline of your talk in bullet point detail. Don’t write it word for word, but write it out as bullet points. 

Next, dictate your talk into a voice recorder or cell phone, and then listen to it. It’s amazing how much different it sounds when you hear your own voice. 

You’ll see ways that you could have presented it differently. Sometimes just changing the order of points increases their impact.

Practicing your presentation helps you increase confidence and lower anxiety, minimize nervousness, or overcome your fear of public speaking .

Engage Your Audience With These PowerPoint Presentation Ideas

With these 25 PowerPoint presentation ideas, you can make creative presentations that are engaging, help you meet the goal of your presentation, and benefit the lives of your audience members.

For more virtual public speaking tips , download my free guide that will help you build a strong online presence as well as motivate and inspire others.

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About Brian Tracy — Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Twitter , Facebook , Pinterest , Linkedin and Youtube .

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Try These 160 Insanely Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Your Next Presentation

Ausbert Generoso

In the modern-day PowerPoint presenting, slide decks don’t just inform, but also entertain and spark joy. PowerPoint shouldn’t just be confined to the monotony of bullet points and charts, but rather offers a unique canvas where imagination can run wild!

We get it. The thought of sitting through another mundane PowerPoint presentation might make you want to run for the hills. But fear not, because we’re here to spark some fun PowerPoint ideas for your your next presentation. Whether you’re aiming to captivate colleagues during a virtual meeting, add a splash of excitement to your classroom, or simply stun your friends at your next PowerPoint game night , we’ve got you covered with ideas that blend education and entertainment seamlessly.

So, fasten your seatbelt (or loosen your tie 😉), as we embark on a complete list through categories that will transform your next PowerPoint presentation into a rollercoaster of excitement. Whatever theme you’re thinking of for your next presentation, these fun PowerPoint ideas are poised to leave your audience not just informed, but exhilarated.

Why Settle for the Ordinary? Elevate Your Presentations with Fun PowerPoint Ideas!

You might be wondering, why bother with all the extra effort to infuse fun into your PowerPoint presentations? After all, the usual routine of bullet points and graphs seems to get the job done, right? Well, allow us to unveil why taking the road less traveled and incorporating fun PowerPoint ideas can be the game-changer you never knew you needed.

🤸🏻‍♀️  Unforgettable Engagement

Let’s face it – the human attention span isn’t exactly legendary. But when you introduce a touch of fun into your presentation, you’re not just holding attention, you’re capturing it in a delightful grip. Unconventional ideas, witty humor, and interactive elements transform passive listeners into active participants , making your message resonate and stick.

🧠  Enhanced Memorability

Ever noticed how the most memorable experiences are the ones that evoke emotion? The same principle applies to presentations. When you inject an element of fun, whether it’s a surprising twist, a clever visual, or an unexpected game , you create a mental anchor for your audience. Those who chuckle and engage are more likely to remember and recall the essence of your presentation long after it’s over.

🎨  Sparking Creativity

The world thrives on innovation, and that extends to the world of presentations too. Opting for fun PowerPoint ideas challenges you to think beyond the norm and come up with creative solutions . It encourages you to see your content from new angles, fostering a culture of innovation and resourcefulness that extends beyond the presentation room.

💬  Connection and Communication

Human beings connect through shared experiences and emotions. By introducing an element of fun, you’re forging a connection with your audience that goes beyond the screen. Laughter and engagement create a bond, facilitating better understanding and communication. In a professional setting, this can translate into improved team dynamics and a more open dialogue.

So, while the tried-and-true method might get you from point A to point B, why not embark on a journey that’s not only efficient but also exhilarating? Why settle for the ordinary when you can captivate, connect, and leave a mark with your fun PowerPoint ideas? The possibilities are limited only by your imagination. It’s time to break free from the mold and transform your presentations into extraordinary experiences that linger long after the last slide.

150+ Fun PowerPoint Ideas for All Presentation Types

Fun powerpoint ideas for social gatherings and events.

• Emoji Charades:  Use emojis as clues for a game of charades with friends.
• Virtual Costume Party:  Have participants dress up and share their costumes on slides.
• Name That Tune:  Play a few seconds of a song and challenge attendees to guess the title.
• Create Your Meme:  Provide images and have guests come up with humorous captions.
• Bucket List Share:  Have everyone share one item from their bucket list with images and explanations.
• Interactive Map Quest:  Share travel stories and ask attendees to guess the locations on a map.
• Party Playlist Collaboration:  Let participants add their favorite songs to a shared playlist slide.
• Personal Trivia:  Create a slide about yourself with facts for others to guess.
• Two Truths and a Lie:  Participants share statements; others guess which one is false.
• Virtual Escape Room:  Turn your slides into a virtual escape room with puzzles and clues.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for the Workplace

• Emoji Icebreaker:  Start meetings with a slide displaying emojis representing moods.
• Reverse Role Presentation:  Present as if you’re the audience and vice versa.
• Meme Monday Updates:  Share weekly updates in meme format to keep things light.
• Interactive Polls:  Add clickable options for participants to vote on decisions.
• Choose Your Adventure:  Present a scenario with choices, letting the audience decide the outcome.
• Team Trivia Challenge:  Test knowledge with team-based trivia using PowerPoint animations.
• Inspirational Quote Showcase:  Share powerful quotes with visual design to motivate the team.
• Visualize Goals:  Use animations to show progress towards team goals over time.
• Role Play Skits:  Act out scenarios using images and text in a comic book-style layout.
• Name the Colleague:  Share humorous hints to have attendees guess the colleague.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for the Classroom

• Science Experiment Journey:  Present the process and results of a science experiment.
• Historical Time Travel:  Create immersive history lessons with visuals and sound effects.
• Math Riddle Challenge:  Share math riddles and reveal solutions with animations.
• Language Learning Adventure:  Teach vocabulary and phrases in a foreign language interactively.
• Literary Parodies:  Analyze literature through humorous parodies of famous stories.
• Math Olympics:  Turn math problems into interactive challenges with medals for winners.
• Interactive Periodic Table:  Explore chemical elements with interactive info and animations.
• Geography Quiz:  Engage students with interactive maps and questions.
• Scientific Pictionary:  Play a Pictionary-style game with scientific terms and concepts.
• Art Appreciation Gallery:  Analyze famous artworks through an interactive virtual gallery.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Personal Projects & Hobbies

• Hobby Exhibition:  Display your hobbies, from painting to photography, using slides.
• Fitness Journey Timeline:  Document your fitness progress with images and data charts.
• Digital Portfolio:  Showcase your work and skills through an interactive digital portfolio.
• Travelogue:  Share your travel experiences with photos, anecdotes, and travel tips.
• DIY Tutorial:  Teach a craft or DIY project through a series of animated slides.
• Music Playlist Presentation:  Curate themed playlists and explain your song choices.
• Language Learning Journey:  Document your progress in learning a new language.
• Culinary Adventure:  Showcase international cuisines you’ve explored and cooked.
• Writing Journey:  Share your writing process and excerpts from your creative pieces.
• Art Evolution:  Display your artistic journey from early works to current creations.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Storytelling

• Virtual World Tour:  Craft a global adventure through storytelling and images.
• Mystery Detective Story:  Unravel a mystery using clues and interactive elements.
• Personal Evolution:  Share your life journey through milestones and anecdotes.
• Time-Traveling Adventure:  Create an interactive story that spans different eras.
• Fairy Tale Remix:  Reimagine classic fairy tales with a modern twist.
• Unsolved Mysteries:  Present historical or fictional mysteries and let the audience speculate.
• Myth vs. Fact:  Compare myths and facts through interactive scenarios.
• Character Development Showcase:  Create profiles of fictional characters with images and backstories.
• Epic Quest Narrative:  Craft an epic journey with challenges, choices, and consequences.
• Alternate Endings:  Rewrite the endings of famous stories with your creative twist.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Challenges and Quizzes

• Trivia Extravaganza:  Host a fun-filled trivia night with interactive questions and answers.
• Visual Riddles:  Present visual riddles and reveal the solutions with animations.
• Guess the Sound:  Play audio clips for attendees to guess the corresponding sounds.
• Brain Teaser Quiz:  Challenge participants with puzzles that test logical thinking.
• Quote Identification:  Display famous quotes and ask participants to identify the source.
• Word Association Challenge:  Present words and have participants quickly associate related words.
• Pop Culture Trivia:  Test knowledge of movies, music, and current events through a quiz.
• Speed Typing Challenge:  Display words, and participants type them as fast as they can.
• Guess the Logo:  Share partial images of logos for attendees to guess the brands.
• Memory Game:  Reveal a series of images, then ask attendees to recall the order.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Data and Infographics

• Data Storytelling:  Transform statistics and data into compelling visual narratives.
• Illustrated Concepts:  Use custom illustrations to explain complex ideas and concepts.
• Interactive Infographics:  Create clickable infographics with hidden details and insights.
• Process Flow Comics:  Present processes as comic strips with characters navigating each step.
• Comparative Timelines:  Compare historical events, progress, or trends side by side.
• Interactive Charts and Graphs:  Make charts interactive for deeper exploration of data.
• Explorable Maps:  Present geographical data with interactive maps and annotations.
• Evolution of Technology:  Visualize the evolution of technology and its impact.
• Visual Decision Trees:  Present decision-making processes as interactive branching scenarios.
• Illustrated Quotes:  Combine famous quotes with custom illustrations that capture their essence.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Motivational Talks

• Personal Growth Journey:  Share your personal growth journey with motivational lessons.
• Success Stories:  Present inspiring stories of individuals who overcame challenges.
• Motivational Quotes Compilation:  Curate a collection of powerful quotes for inspiration.
• Life Lessons Through Stories:  Convey life lessons using engaging narrative examples.
• Overcoming Adversity:  Share stories of resilience and strategies to overcome challenges.
• The Power of Positivity:  Explore the impact of positive thinking on personal and professional life.
• Leadership Insights:  Present leadership principles with examples from renowned leaders.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Futuristic and Imaginative Presentations

• Time Capsule:  Present predictions and visions of the future with a time capsule theme.
• Virtual Reality Showcase:  Use VR-inspired visuals to immerse the audience in your content.
• Space Exploration:  Explore the cosmos with interactive space-themed slides.
• Inventions of Tomorrow:  Present imaginative ideas for future inventions and innovations.
• Post-Apocalyptic Scenarios:  Craft a presentation depicting post-apocalyptic worlds and possibilities.
• AI and Robotics:  Discuss the future of AI and robotics through speculative presentations.
• Dystopian vs. Utopian:  Compare and contrast dystopian and utopian visions of the future.
• Future of Education:  Visualize how education might evolve with technology and trends.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Entertainment and Pop Culture

• Guess the Movie Scene:  Display screenshots and challenge your audience to guess the movie.
• Pop Culture Charades:  Act out pop culture references, from movies to memes.
• Fan Theories Discussion:  Present and analyze intriguing fan theories about popular shows or movies.
• Celebrity Look-Alike Game:  Share images of ordinary people who resemble celebrities.
• Music Lyrics Challenge:  Display song lyrics with missing words for attendees to complete.
• TV Show Mashup:  Combine characters and scenes from different TV shows for humorous outcomes.
• Pop Culture Trivia Tournament:  Host a tournament-style trivia challenge with various rounds.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Self-Care and Wellness

• Mindful Moments:  Guide attendees through a short mindfulness exercise during your presentation.
• Self-Care Bingo:  Create bingo cards with self-care activities for a wellness-themed meeting.
• Healthy Habits Showcase:  Present effective wellness tips and habits for a balanced lifestyle.
• Stress Relief Techniques:  Share interactive slides with stress-relief exercises and techniques.
• Gratitude Journal:  Encourage participants to share moments of gratitude during the presentation.
• Daily Affirmations:  Present daily affirmations to boost positivity and confidence.
• Wellness Goal Tracker:  Create interactive slides to track personal wellness goals.
• Mental Health Awareness:  Present insights and resources for maintaining mental well-being.

Fun PowerPoint Ideas for Cultural Exploration and Diversity

• Global Cuisine Showcase:  Present unique dishes from various cultures with images and descriptions.
• Folklore and Legends:  Share fascinating folktales and legends from different countries.
• Cultural Attire Exhibition:  Display traditional clothing and explain their significance.
• Language Showcase:  Teach fun phrases and greetings from different languages.
• World Festivals Journey:  Explore diverse festivals and celebrations from different cultures.
• Cultural Traditions Quiz:  Create interactive slides to test knowledge of cultural customs.

Want More? Download This Exclusive PowerPoint Ideas Book with 160 Fun PowerPoint Ideas! 👇

Best practices to maximize your fun powerpoint ideas.

Congratulations, you’re now armed with a treasure trove of fun PowerPoint ideas that are bound to leave your audience both entertained and enlightened. But before you dive headfirst into crafting your next presentation masterpiece, consider these tips to ensure your creative efforts shine:

• Tailor your chosen fun PowerPoint idea to your audience’s preferences and expectations. What might resonate with friends at a game night could differ from what engages colleagues in a meeting.
• While fun is essential, remember the purpose of your presentation. Make sure the chosen idea aligns with your message and doesn’t overshadow the content.
• Familiarize yourself with the technical aspects of executing your chosen idea. Smooth transitions, animations, and interactions contribute to a polished presentation.
• While creativity is key, don’t sacrifice clarity for novelty. Ensure your audience can follow your narrative and main points throughout.
• Manage your time effectively. Ensure your fun elements don’t consume too much of the presentation, leaving room for your core content.
• Maintain a consistent visual theme to tie together the fun elements and the main content. Harmonious design enhances the overall experience.
• Before the big day, gather feedback from colleagues or friends. Their insights can help you refine your presentation and identify areas for improvement.
• Embrace the fun you’ve planned. Confidence in your delivery will make your audience more receptive to the engaging elements you’ve integrated.
• Sometimes, unexpected technical glitches or participant reactions can arise. Be prepared to adapt on the spot to keep the fun flowing.
• If your fun idea involves interactive elements, make sure they work flawlessly. Test the technology and ensure everyone can participate seamlessly.

Remember, these tips aren’t meant to limit your creativity, rather, they’re tools to ensure your creative ideas are presented in the best possible light. By blending innovation, enthusiasm, and strategic planning, you’re set to deliver a presentation that’s both fun and impactful.

And there you have it – a whole bunch of exciting, innovative fun PowerPoint ideas ready to turn your next presentation into a showstopper! From parties to classrooms, meetings to personal projects, we’ve covered it all. Now, it’s your turn to run with these creative gems and make your slides come alive with laughter, engagement, and sheer enjoyment.

With over 150 ideas to choose from, you’re set to rock any occasion. So, don’t just settle for the usual slides – inject your unique style, tell stories, and keep everyone on their toes. Remember, it’s all about sparking connections, sparking ideas, and having a blast while you’re at it. Here’s to unleashing your inner presentation superstar – one fun idea at a time!

More Fun PowerPoint Ideas

Free PowerPoint Trivia Template for Different Difficulty Levels

How to Make a Jeopardy Game on PowerPoint (Playable Template)

Level Up Your Game: Free Family Feud PowerPoint Template and Step-by-Step Tutorial

Free Interactive PowerPoint Puzzle Template and Tutorial in 5 Simple Steps

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