Most offices contain a productivity suite, and most productivity suites will come with some type of slideshow software that can be used to prepare presentations.
Microsoft PowerPoint is a great tool to make slideshows, but it can be used for other purposes that you might not immediately think of. We’ll go over some of the best features of PowerPoint, including when and how you might want to use PowerPoint to enhance your presentation skills.
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Creating Infographics
Infographics are a tried-and-true way to get across a lot of information in an easily consumable format, but it can be tricky to use certain solutions to create them. Right out of the box, Microsoft PowerPoint is easy enough to use.
You can create various graphs, images, and word art to build out infographics designed to convey information in an easy-to-follow format. Since PowerPoint also works on a slide-by-slide basis, this makes it easy to compare and contrast information within the same presentation.
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Making Quizzes
Let’s say that your employees need some security training. You’d rather not create another boring presentation that makes them zone out. You can create an engaging exercise by turning a PowerPoint presentation into a quiz.
For example, you can have one question be on one slide along with the answers to the question in a multiple-choice format. You can then display the answer on a separate slide afterward to create engaging presentations.
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Create Animated Shorts
Did you know that PowerPoint actually has quite a lot of built-in animation functionality? Using these, you can make simple animated shorts. They might not be terribly intuitive, but they are certainly better than nothing–and it’s a great way to get just a little bit more value out of your slideshow solution.
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Onboarding New Employees
All businesses have an onboarding process, but depending on the type of organization, that process will differ. If your organization has a lot of intensive tasks that need to be explained, a PowerPoint can be a great way to provide information about your company culture, any benefits the employee receives, and other important things that they should know.
This means that you can take a fairly long-winded process and have the employee review the information as they go.
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Creating Interactive Timelines
Interactive timelines can be a fantastic way to showcase project milestones, company history, or event schedules. PowerPoint allows you to create these timelines with ease using SmartArt graphics.
You can animate the different elements of the timeline to appear in sequence, making your presentation more dynamic and engaging.
This feature is particularly useful for educational presentations or when you need to highlight the progression of events. Simply add a new slide for each major milestone to keep the timeline clear and organized.
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Designing Custom Templates
If you find yourself frequently creating presentations with similar styles, designing custom templates in PowerPoint can save you a lot of time. You can set your preferred color schemes, fonts, and slide layouts.
Once created, these templates can be used repeatedly to ensure consistency across all your presentations. This is especially useful for businesses that need to maintain brand uniformity in their communications.
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Utilizing Slide Master for Consistent Design
The Slide Master feature in PowerPoint is essential for maintaining a consistent design across your entire presentation. By editing the Slide Master, you can apply uniform styles, fonts, and layouts to all slides, ensuring a cohesive look and feel to achieve visually appealing slides.
This tool is especially helpful when creating templates or standardizing presentations across a team or organization. To access the Slide Master, go to the “View” tab and select “Slide Master.”
Here, you can customize the primary slide and layout masters, which will then be applied to multiple slides in your deck. This not only saves time but also helps maintain a professional and polished appearance in your PowerPoint presentations.
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Adding Slide Transitions
Slide transitions are a simple yet effective way to add visual interest to your presentation. They can help to maintain your audience’s attention by adding movement between slides. To add slide transitions, go to the “Transitions” tab in PowerPoint.
Here, you can select from various transition effects and customize the duration and direction of each transition. Using slide transitions can make your presentation feel more dynamic and engaging, especially when used to highlight key changes in your content or to keep the flow of information smooth.
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Using PowerPoint Designer
PowerPoint Designer is a powerful feature that automatically generates design ideas to improve the visual appeal of your slides. As you add content to a slide show, the Designer suggests layout and styling options based on the text and images you use.
This tool helps you create professional-looking slides without needing advanced design skills, making it easier to maintain a cohesive and polished presentation. By leveraging PowerPoint Designer, you can significantly enhance your presentations and ensure they stand out visually, thus improving your overall presentation skills.
What are some ways your business uses PowerPoint? Let us know in the comments.
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