Presentation QuestLevelling up your presentation skills

Start

Chapter One-

The Setting

Hello traveller, you seem restless. I sense that you are on a journey to find enlightenment. If prowess in presentation is what you seek, you came to the right place.

Would you like me to tell you about presentations?

Yes

No

Very well then. First you need to clear your mind. What is it that you seek? Each presentation is not alike.

Create a one-slide-fits-all solution

Create visual aids for oral presentation

Indeed. The medium that you intend to use dictates the design process. Rules that apply to one setting need not apply to the other.

If you understand this basic premise you are ready to move on to the next level of presentation design.

Chapter Two-

Structuring Information

Before you start thinking of slides, you need to know where you want to go. What information you want to convey to your audience.

So come up with a structure to guide your audience to that information. Make it a story, or a pattern that helps them „get it“.

BA Start

Chapter Three-

Putting Information on

Your Slides

Text is probably the first thing people think of to put on a slide. That does not make it the best choice nor is composing and designing text trivial. Writing and Typography are artforms in their own right. Best to keep it simple then.

When you are using text in a presentation you should choose a font that is easy to read. Make sure it contrasts well with the background. Remember that it needs to be big enough to be read from afar.

• Never ever this.

Text is probably the first thing people think of to put on a slide. That does not make it the best choice nor is composing and designing text trivial. Writing and Typography are artforms in their own right. Best to keep it simple then.

When you are using text in a presentation you should choose a font that is easy to read. Make sure it contrasts well with the background. Remember that it needs to be big enough to be read from afar.

• Never ever this.

Use text sparingly! Your audience can only process one type of language input at a time. Whenever they read they do not listen to you!

Mountains?

Photos! Make sure that you only use images that specifically add to the meaning of what you are saying. If they are only remotely related, your audience will marvel at them or ponder about them instead of your message.

If you do think that your image is worth a thousand words, let it shine. Pick the highest quality and have it take up the whole screen.

Make sure your data is easy to comprehend. Visualize it as plainly as you can. When time is of the essence, you cannot afford to have your audience struggle with irrelevant information.

Label Label

Wow, must be

important

Scale

Evil Adversary

Resistant to: shock

Weak spot: shoulder

Mercy Skill Hate

You know, just like with those random battles. Good thing you have learned how to react in a pinch.

Chapter Four-

Putting Meaning in Your Presentation

To have the meaning of your message carry over to your audience, you need to put everything together,your speech and your visual cues.

Use a content scheme like a story or a recognizeable pattern to create coherence in your message. Then start designing slides to match your delivery.

BA Start

Use a design scheme of fonts and colors to arrange the visual cues on your slides in a meaningful way.

CRAP

ontrast information that should stand out.

epeat design elements to establish coherence.

lign all visual content to add cohesiveness.

roximity of items that bundle information.

BA Start

Use a little bling to wow your audience. But never let the message that you took the effort to shine up your presentation outshine the message of your presentation.

CRAP

ontrast information that should stand out.

epeat design elements to establish coherence.

lign all visual content to add cohesiveness.

roximity of items that bundle information.

BA Start

If you use the skills you learned in your quest so far, you should be ready to continue on your own now. As long as you remember that there is still much to learn you will do fine. I have but one final word of advice for you to remember when you design your slides...

...There is no slide!

The End?

Mail: jakob@jochmann.meTwitter: @jochmannWeb: blog.jochmann.me

Jakob Jochmann is exploring meaning in communication. He develops frameworks to streamline the transfer of information. Apart from dabbling in semantics and the social facets of media he has a penchant for design and presentations.