Tag: presentation content

Make Your Point: 5 Tips for Editing Presentation Content

presentation content

presentation tips

presentation writing

Nov 10, 2014

Here are five tips for effectively editing presentation content to ensure clarity, focus, and engagement:

1. Eliminate Redundancy

  • Why it works: Repeating the same points or information can dilute the impact of your message and disengage your audience. By removing redundant content, your presentation will be more concise and impactful.
  • How to apply: Review each slide and make sure every piece of information contributes to your core message. If a slide or section repeats something already discussed, consider merging or cutting it entirely. Aim for brevity without losing meaning.

2. Focus on the Core Message

  • Why it works: Audiences retain key messages more effectively when the content is focused and well-organized. A clear and singular focus helps reinforce the takeaways.
  • How to apply: Identify the primary objective of your presentation. Every piece of content should support this objective. If a slide or data point does not directly relate to or enhance the main message, remove it. Stick to 3-5 main points for better retention.

3. Simplify Complex Information

  • Why it works: Simplifying complex data or ideas improves understanding and keeps the audience engaged. Too much detail can overwhelm or confuse the audience.
  • How to apply: Break down complex ideas into simple bullet points or visuals. Use plain language instead of jargon, and present data in graphs or charts instead of tables. Use short sentences and focus on explaining why the data matters rather than simply presenting it.

4. Use Consistent Language and Tone

  • Why it works: Consistency in language and tone makes your presentation feel cohesive and professional. Disjointed or varying styles can confuse the audience and detract from the message.
  • How to apply: Check for inconsistent terminology or phrasing. Ensure that the tone of your presentation matches the subject matter and audience (e.g., formal for executives, conversational for peers). Edit any areas where the tone feels out of place or where the wording might cause confusion.

5. Cut Visual and Textual Clutter

  • Why it works: Cluttered slides with too much text, images, or design elements can overwhelm your audience and distract from the key message. Simplified slides enhance focus and readability.
  • How to apply: Remove unnecessary design elements and excessive text. If your slide has more than 6-7 lines of text, trim it down to only the essentials. Use white space strategically to give your slides a clean, organized look, and avoid overloading slides with too many images or animations.

By following these tips, you can streamline your content, ensuring your presentation is clear, focused, and engaging, while effectively delivering your message.

Why Your Presentations Need Better Slide Headlines

presentation content

presentation tips

presentation writing

slide headlines

Nov 04, 2014

Slide headlines play a crucial role in guiding your audience through your presentation. They not only introduce the content but also highlight key messages, helping your audience quickly grasp the main points. However, many presentations suffer from vague or ineffective slide headlines, which can confuse or disengage the audience. Improving your slide headlines can make your presentation more impactful and ensure that your key messages are clearly communicated.

Here’s why your presentations need better slide headlines and how to craft them:

1. Headlines Summarize the Key Point

The headline of a slide should act as a summary of the most important point on that slide. Instead of using a generic headline like “Introduction” or “Sales Figures,” use the headline to convey the key message directly.

Why It’s Important:

  • Clarifies the Main Idea: A clear, descriptive headline helps the audience understand the core message of the slide without having to read all the content.
  • Keeps Your Audience Engaged: Well-written headlines allow the audience to follow the narrative of your presentation easily, keeping them engaged and focused.

How to Do It:

  • Think of your slide headlines as “mini conclusions” that answer the “so what?” question.
  • Be specific and actionable—use headlines that tell the audience what they should take away from the slide.

Example: Instead of using a generic headline like “Company Growth,” use “Our Market Share Increased by 20% in Q3” to clearly communicate the key takeaway.

2. Headlines Provide a Visual Hierarchy

Effective slide headlines create a visual hierarchy that helps your audience navigate through your presentation. When used correctly, they guide the audience’s attention and emphasize the most important information.

Why It’s Important:

  • Improves Readability: A strong visual hierarchy ensures that your audience can easily identify the most important information on each slide.
  • Guides the Flow of the Presentation: Headlines act as markers that signal transitions between sections or ideas, helping the audience follow your train of thought.

How to Do It:

  • Use larger, bolder fonts for your headlines to make them stand out from the body text.
  • Keep your headlines concise, aiming for no more than one or two lines.

Example: Create a clear distinction between your slide headlines and body text by using a different font size or color for the headline.

3. Headlines Reinforce Your Message

Slide headlines can reinforce your overall message by repeatedly communicating your key points. Each headline should contribute to the overall narrative of your presentation, leading your audience toward the final conclusion or call to action.

Why It’s Important:

  • Strengthens Message Retention: Repeating key ideas through headlines helps reinforce your message, making it easier for the audience to remember important points.
  • Keeps the Narrative Cohesive: Well-crafted headlines create a seamless narrative flow that ties your slides together, ensuring that your presentation feels cohesive and logical.

How to Do It:

  • Ensure that each headline ties back to your core message or theme.
  • Use headlines to emphasize key points that align with your presentation’s goals, such as driving sales or persuading an audience.

Example: If your presentation is focused on driving customer engagement, each headline should reinforce how your product or strategy achieves that goal, such as “Our App Increased Customer Retention by 35%.”

4. Headlines Make the Content Easier to Scan

Audiences often skim through presentation slides, especially when there’s a lot of information to process. Effective headlines make it easier for your audience to scan and understand the key points, even if they’re not reading the entire slide.

Why It’s Important:

  • Enhances Comprehension: Clear and concise headlines help the audience grasp the main idea of each slide, even if they don’t read every detail.
  • Improves Audience Focus: Headlines draw the audience’s attention to the most important information, ensuring that your key messages are not missed.

How to Do It:

  • Use short, punchy headlines that communicate the essence of the slide in just a few words.
  • Avoid vague or overly complex language—keep your headlines simple and direct.

Example: Instead of “Marketing Performance Review,” a more effective headline might be “Q2 Marketing Campaign Delivered 50% ROI.”

5. Headlines Help You Stay Focused

Clear slide headlines also benefit you as the presenter by helping you stay focused on your key messages. If your headlines are clear and well-defined, it’s easier to maintain a logical flow throughout your presentation.

Why It’s Important:

  • Keeps Your Presentation Organized: Well-written headlines act as a roadmap for your presentation, ensuring that each slide supports your overall narrative.
  • Helps with Timing: Clear headlines keep you on track, preventing you from getting sidetracked or spending too much time on less important points.

How to Do It:

  • Review your slide deck to ensure that every headline aligns with your core message and moves the narrative forward.
  • Use your headlines as cues to remind yourself of the key points you need to cover on each slide.

Example: If you’re presenting a proposal, headlines like “Next Steps for Implementation” or “Expected Outcomes by Q4” can help you stay focused on actionable points.

Final Thoughts

Better slide headlines make your presentation clearer, more engaging, and easier for the audience to follow. By summarizing the main point, reinforcing your message, and providing a visual hierarchy, well-crafted headlines can transform your presentation from average to outstanding. Take the time to review and refine your slide headlines to ensure they convey the right message and guide your audience through your presentation with ease.

The 4 Fundamental Qualities of Presentation Content

presentation content

presentation tips

presentation writing

Presentations

Oct 07, 2014

Most people tend to focus all their energy on creating effective PowerPoint designs. It’s true that well-designed slides can help engage audiences even more. Visuals allow people to remember crucial details, given that vision trumps all other senses when it comes to processing information. Still, those who prefer to start by building slides on PowerPoint are missing a crucial detail. They forget that presentation content is the real focus.

Building a presentation is a lot like building a house. Before painting the walls and decorating with furniture, you will need a strong foundation. You will need to build thick walls and sturdy floors. You will need pillars to hold everything in shape. In presentations, that foundation is your content.

So what does it take to create the best content possible? How do you ensure that your foundation is solid and consistent? These are the four fundamental qualities found in effective presentation content:

1.) Has clear and specific message

Your presentation content needs to have a clear and specific message. This will be the core of your presentation, where all your other points revolve. Every argument you make throughout will be to prove the value of your statement. Determine the purpose of your presentation and define the goals you want to achieve. Are you talking to sales prospects? Are you pitching to potential investors? Do you want the audience to see the advantage of your product over competing brands? Craft a single message that encompasses your objectives. Keep it short, powerful, and descriptive.

2.) Streamlined and simplified

In presentations, less is always more. You can easily lose the attention of your audience if you stray too much from your main point. Even if you have plenty of ideas to share, the only thing that’s relevant to your audience will be those that help your message move forward. Streamline your presentation content with some brainstorming techniques. Once you’ve let your ideas run wild, you can choose the points that are most relevant and compelling. If you’re working with data or complex concepts, simplify your discussion by using analogies and metaphors.

3.) Supported by facts and data

To add credibility to your presentation content, you will need to support your points by citing appropriate sources. Make sure you have the necessary data to show that your arguments are valid and accurate. Look for research papers that can help authenticate your ideas. If you’ve done your own research, include the data from your results. You can also include testimonials or interviews.

4.) Compelling and memorable

Overall, your presentation content needs to attract the attention of your audience and keep them interested throughout. You can do that by crafting your content in the form of a story. According to research conducted by Dr. Paul Zak, the most effective content follows the structure of classical Greek dramas. Presentations with the pattern of exposition – rising action – climax – falling action – resolution are more likely to elicit emotional response from the audience.

All in all, your presentation content needs to have information that is specific, useful, accurate, and memorable. Take note of these key characteristics to find the best way to share the message you want to deliver.

 

Reference

“Dr. Paul Zak: Empathy, Neurochemistry, and the Dramatic Arc.” Future of Storytelling. 2014. Accessed October 07, 2014.

 

Featured Image: Grant Hollingworth via Flickr

Speech Writing Tips: Don’t Forget, It’s Not an Essay

presentation content

presentation tips

speech writing

speech writing tips

Sep 12, 2014

What makes the best public speakers so enigmatic and memorable? How are they able to capture and retain the attention of their audience for so long? Aside from practicing good delivery, their secret is also in the way they write speeches.

Speech Writing Tips
Death to the Stock Photo

We can call a presentation a success if the audience is able to connect and engage with the speaker.

To get there, they need to be able to follow the flow and logic of your arguments. While having a PowerPoint deck can certainly help in that front, the way you share information is just as crucial.

John Coleman of the Harvard Business Review reveals most speakers make the mistake of reciting an essay for their audience. Instead of working on a speech that’s concise and straight to the point, they tend to overwhelm audiences with a laundry list of information.

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For a successful presentation, don’t forget that a speech and an essay are two different things.

With that in mind, here are three speech writing tips to help you out:

Keep it short and simple

When writing a speech, be mindful of the difference between our ability to learn information orally and visually. As Coleman puts it,

The average adult reads 300 words per minute, but people can only follow speech closely at around 150-160 words per minute. Similarly, studies have shown auditory memory is typically inferior to visual memory, and while most of us can read for hours, our ability to focus on a speech is more constrained.

It will be easier for your audience to remember what you’re saying if you practice brevity and simplicity. Don’t complicate your speech by going into details. Stick to the points that is crucial to what you want people to takeaway. Start by outlining all your ideas and slowly trimming the list down as you begin writing your speech.

Constantly review previous points and use ‘signposts’

Remember when you would have to read an essay for class? If there were things you couldn’t understand, you can simply reread a certain passage as many times as you want. Unfortunately, that won’t be possible for the people listening to you speak. Apart from keeping it brief, your speech also needs a structure that the audience can easily identify and follow. Divide your key points into three main segments and introduce them right away as you begin your speech:

In your introduction, state your thesis and then lay out the structure of your speech ahead of time (e.g., “we’ll see this in three ways: x, y, and z”).

Coleman also suggests using what he calls “signposts.” Words like “first of all,” “next” and “finally” signal to the audience that you’re transitioning from one idea to the next.

Focus on telling a story

As we’ve discussed in the past, storytelling should always be an integral part of any presentation.Coleman suggests that it’s better to stick with a story, especially when you have to data to share. Instead of reciting a list of statistics, it would be better if you zeroed in on the narrative behind the numbers:

Neuroscience has shown that the human brain was wired for narrative… Lead or end an argument with statistics. But never fall into reciting strings of numbers or citations. Your audience will better follow, remember, and internalize stories.

It will also help if you stick with language that’s highly visual. Make use of metaphors and analogies to perfectly illustrate what your data or statistics mean.

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References:

Coleman, John. “A Speech Is Not an Essay.” Harvard Business Review. 2014. Accessed September 12, 2014.
Nelson, Brett. “Do You Read Fast Enough To Be Successful?” Forbes. Accessed September 12, 2014.
Widrich, Leo. “The Science of Storytelling: Why Telling a Story Is the Most Powerful Way to Activate Our Brains.” Lifehacker. Accessed December 5, 2014.

 

Featured Image: Marijn de Vries Hoogerwerff via Flickr

The Art of Words: Unveiling the Symbiosis between Poetry and Presentation

inspiration

presentation content

presentation ideas

Aug 13, 2014

You might think poetry and presentations are in completely opposite planes. Both are just different ways of communicating and expressing new ideas. While poetry focuses on artful interpretation, presentation content requires you to be concise and straight to the point. You’ll be surprised that despite this obvious conflict, there are ways that poetry and presentation content overlap with each other.

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Here are ways presentation content can mirror poetry in other ways.

Strong images

Like poetry, great presentation content contains strong images. It’s not enough that you have images in your slides. You also need to integrate powerful imagery in your choice of words. Consider how the poet Ezra Pound perfectly set up a familiar scenario in just a few words:

 In a Station of the Metro

The apparition of these faces in the crowd;
Petals on a wet, black bough.

Similarly, your presentation content should be able to ignite the imagination of your audience with more descriptive and active words.Pair these words with powerful pictures in your slides and you’ll surely keep your audience engaged for a long time.

Analogies and metaphors

Poets take abstract concepts and liken them to more concrete and relatable things.  For example, in William Shakespeare’s famous sonnet, he describes a beloved by comparing her to a “summer’s day.” While your presentation content doesn’t have to be as lengthy as a Shakespearean sonnet, you should also make sure that your ideas are as clear and digestible as possible.

You might as well talk of the abstract when you discuss complicated data without simplifying it. To help your audience fully grasp a complex topic, use common metaphors and analogies in your explanation. Use something you know they’ll be able to relate to, like a scene from a famous movie or rules of a popular sport.

Structure

Poems follow a specific structure that helps reader follow its internal rhythm. Even if a certain poem is written in free verse, it still has specific patterns that allow readers to see the natural flow of words.

The same thing should be present in your presentation content. Structuring your presentation content makes it easier for your audience to follow what you’re saying. Determine the logical flow of your ideas by starting with a storyboard.

—

Like presentations, poems can take on different forms. Sonnets typically tackle love and romance. Epics follow the adventure of a hero. Some poets prefer to write in free verse. Similarly, the type of presentation you’re going to prepare for will depend on the topic and context.

Your presentation can be a sales pitch, or it can be informative and educational. It can also be a report that’s driven heavily by data. In all these scenarios, your presentation won’t look and sound the same, just like a poem would.

Embrace your inner presentation poet with these tips and craft a winning pitch and deck to match!

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Featured Image: Martin Pettitt via Flickr

Occam’s Razor and Simplifying Presentation Content

presentation content

presentation lessons

presentation tips

resources

Jul 31, 2014

Occam’s Razor is a philosophical principle that states that the simplest solution is often the best one. This concept can be applied effectively to presentation content, where simplicity helps communicate ideas clearly and avoid unnecessary complexity. By stripping away the extraneous and focusing on the essentials, you can ensure that your presentation delivers a focused, concise message that resonates with your audience.

Here’s how you can apply Occam’s Razor to simplify your presentation content:

1. Focus on Core Messages

The first step in simplifying your presentation is identifying the core message you want to communicate. What is the main point or takeaway that you want your audience to remember? By honing in on this core message, you can remove any content that doesn’t directly support it.

Why It’s Important:

  • Avoids Overwhelm: Focusing on the essentials prevents information overload and ensures the audience can absorb the most important points.
  • Strengthens Clarity: A clear, concise message is more impactful and easier to understand.

How to Apply It:

  • Start by writing down your key message in one sentence. Then, build your presentation around supporting that single idea.
  • Eliminate any slides, data, or explanations that do not directly contribute to your core message.

Example: If your presentation is about improving workplace productivity, every slide should focus on specific strategies that enhance productivity, rather than delving into unrelated aspects of workplace culture.

2. Cut Unnecessary Details

It’s tempting to include every piece of data, every chart, and every example that supports your argument, but this can dilute your message. Occam’s Razor encourages you to simplify by cutting out unnecessary details and focusing only on the most compelling and relevant information.

Why It’s Important:

  • Keeps the Audience Engaged: Simplifying content by removing extraneous information keeps the presentation concise and ensures that the audience stays focused.
  • Increases Retention: Fewer, more impactful details are easier to remember than a barrage of information.

How to Apply It:

  • Review each slide and ask, “Is this essential to my core message?” If the answer is no, consider removing or simplifying it.
  • Focus on providing one or two powerful examples instead of a long list of supporting points.

Example: Instead of presenting five case studies to support a point, choose the one most relevant and impactful example that clearly illustrates your message.

3. Use Simple, Clear Language

Occam’s Razor applies to your language as well. Avoid using complex or technical terms when simpler alternatives will do. The goal is to communicate your message as clearly and concisely as possible.

Why It’s Important:

  • Increases Accessibility: Simple, straightforward language ensures that your message is accessible to all audience members, regardless of their background or expertise.
  • Reduces Confusion: Clear, concise language prevents misunderstandings and ensures that the audience grasps your points.

How to Apply It:

  • Use plain language and avoid jargon or overly technical terms unless absolutely necessary.
  • Break down complex ideas into simple explanations or analogies that everyone can understand.

Example: Instead of saying, “Our synergistic approach leverages cross-functional collaboration,” say, “We work together across teams to achieve better results.”

4. Use Minimalistic Visuals

Visuals are an important part of any presentation, but overcomplicated graphs, charts, and images can overwhelm the audience. Apply Occam’s Razor to your visuals by keeping them simple and focused on supporting your key points.

Why It’s Important:

  • Prevents Distraction: Overly complex visuals can distract the audience from the core message.
  • Enhances Focus: Simple, clean visuals reinforce the message and keep the audience focused on the key takeaways.

How to Apply It:

  • Use charts and graphs that are easy to read and interpret at a glance.
  • Avoid cluttered visuals with too many data points or unnecessary elements.
  • Opt for a minimalistic design with plenty of white space to keep the focus on the content.

Example: Instead of a busy graph with too many data points, simplify it to show only the most important trends, making the chart easier to read and understand.

5. Stick to a Simple Structure

A well-organized structure helps the audience follow along and stay engaged. Occam’s Razor suggests that you should remove unnecessary sections or slides and keep your presentation structure as simple and logical as possible.

Why It’s Important:

  • Improves Flow: A simple structure with clear transitions keeps the audience engaged and ensures your message is delivered logically.
  • Reduces Confusion: A straightforward structure prevents the audience from getting lost or overwhelmed by too many points.

How to Apply It:

  • Organize your presentation into a simple structure: introduction, main points, and conclusion.
  • Limit each section to a few slides and make sure each one clearly leads into the next.

Example: A presentation on launching a new product could follow a simple structure: 1) Identify the problem, 2) Introduce the product as the solution, 3) Show benefits and results, 4) Call to action.

Final Thoughts

Applying Occam’s Razor to your presentation content helps you focus on the essentials, cut out unnecessary complexity, and deliver a clear, impactful message. By simplifying both the content and the visuals, you make it easier for the audience to follow along, retain information, and engage with your presentation.

Presentation Storyboarding: How to Create Solid Content

presentation content

presentation storyboarding

storyboard

Jul 28, 2014

Walt Dinsey-inspiration for presentation storyboarding
Walt Disney refers to storyboards during a meeting. (Image from Keys to the Kingdom)

As we mentioned previously, the secret to great content is storytelling. Once you’ve identified the story behind your core message, you can move on to the next step: Presentation Storyboarding.

We’re taking a cue from one of the greatest storytellers in history. In his own article on storyboarding, presentation expert Garr Reynolds cites Walt Disney as someone who perfected the art of storyboarding to create and pitch some of our most beloved stories.

The quirky and funny adventures of Mickey Mouse all started as pieces of paper with rough drawings posted on a wall.

In filmmaking, storyboards are an essential step before movies go into production. Similarly, you can’t begin to build your presentation deck or practice your delivery if you haven’t properly organized your ideas into a comprehensive and structured narrative.

Through storyboards, you can easily visualize your presentation and draft how you want your PowerPoint slides to look. It also allows you to see your presentation as a whole, allowing you to see unnecessary details you can trim out.

Before you begin your presentation storyboard, you need to have a basic idea of where you want your presentation to go. The very first step is to create a working outline and try to identify your main points. Once you have it, you can begin with the storyboarding process.

Here’s the rest of what you need to know about presentation storyboarding:

1. Bring out your post-its

You don’t need fancy tools to create a presentation storyboard. All you need is a pen and a few sheets of paper. The idea is to draft each of your points into a piece of paper and tape them to a wall. In technical terms, each piece of paper is called a panel. If you remember your presentation design lessons, it’s important to limit yourself to one concept per slide.

While you don’t have to stick your storyboard on a wall, we still suggest you do it. It’s a great way to see how your presentation is progressing. And if you’re not happy with something, you can easily move some parts around. You’ll save a lot of time if you use post-its.

2. Don’t hold back

Create as much storyboard panels as you think you need. In this initial stage, you can easily cut out the things you’re not happy with. If you’re collaborating with someone else, presentation storyboarding is also a great way to help you work out each other’s ideas.

3. Keep your core message in mind

While you shouldn’t stop your ideas from flowing freely at this point, it’s also important to keep in mind the core message that you want to share. This is why creating an outline before you start storyboarding. It’s a guide to help you maintain focus on the story your presentation is trying to tell.

The important thing to remember during the presentation storyboarding process is to keep an open mind. Let your creativity flow naturally. Let your collaborates comment on your ideas, and bounce off from theirs. It’s all about swimming through different concepts to find the ones that tell your core message best.

If you need more information about creating custom storyboards for your big presentation, we’ll be happy to help. Contact us for a consultation and we can make solid content for your presentations.

Featured Image: Death to the Stock Photo 

Storytelling: The Secret to Great Presentation Content

presentation content

presentation writing

Jul 16, 2014

Everyone loves a good story. Everyday books are read, movies are watched, and events of the afternoon are shared over the dinner table. Stories are an intrinsic part of our experience as people. It’s a vital part of how we communicate with one another.

Remember this fundamental truth when you’re set to give your next presentation. Your presentation content has to be more than just a barrage of information and numerical data. Make your presentation interesting and relatable. There is nothing more compelling than a good story. It’s the secret recipe you’re missing in your presentation content.

Keep these things in mind when you’re working on your presentation content:

1.) Every story has a beginning, middle, and end

Your presentation content should follow a clear and organized structure.

Just as Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, had a great fall, and was unable to be put back together by the King’s men, your presentation content should be presented in a pattern that’s familiar to everyone.

Start with an introduction, delve into the issues after that, and then end with a summary and conclusion.

2.) Introduce your topic with an anecdote or two

Let your audience see that there’s a genuine and relatable story behind what you’re presenting. Don’t just settle for being informative.

Show your audience why the information you’re presenting is important to them. Tell them a few stories that will allow them to relate your topic to their own experiences.

3.) Create context for data

Cold, hard facts can seem impersonal at times, and thus a bit alienating. In order to pull your audience into the main part of your presentation content, you have to give them some context.

When presenting any kind of data, don’t focus too much on the figures. Instead, focus on explaining what they mean and where they fall into your storyline.

4.) Try for an emotional response

Don’t be afraid to show some heart. Try your best to evoke the emotions of your audience in a positive way. Illustrate your points with heart-warming examples, or tell a few jokes as you go along your presentation.

Go for what feels natural to you, your topic, and the people in the audience.

Conclusion

Delivering a pitch, no matter how formal, doesn’t need to be boring. Using storytelling as a creative means to leverage your pitch can attract you a wider range of audiences and introduce your brand to a bigger public.

It can also serve a double purpose as something to give structure to your presentation with a solid hook, line, and sinker. Organize your content with a story to deliver in mind, and you’ll be surprised how much easier everything else will follow.

Need help crafting your presentation story? Contact our SlideGenius experts today for a free quote!

 

Featured Image: matryosha via Flickr

Want Positive Response? End Your Presentation with a Call to Action Slide

call to action

presentation content

presentation design

Jul 15, 2014

“Successful persuasion leads to action” –Nancy Duarte, Resonate

The Call to Action is arguably the most crucial part of your presentation. It encapsulates the main purpose of your presentation through a bold statement that urges your audience to act on the ideas you shared with them. After having made your case, the Call to Action puts the ball into their court.

The Wall Street Journal‘s Brian Steinberg explains that CTAs can be extremely helpful in the context of marketing and advertising. But at the same time, a Call to Action is also useful for different kinds of presentations. Whether you’re giving a seminar, lecture, an investor pitch, or annual report, it’s important that you engage your audience with an objective they can act on.

Here are two things to remember when applying CTAs to your pitch:

1. Before you design a Call to Action slide, you need to work on its content.

Keep your message consistent

Think about the main goal of your presentation and refer back to your storyboard. Is this goal clear and present in the rest of your presentation deck?

Your Call to Action will feel out-of-place if you haven’t been subtly pushing your goal throughout your presentation. Highlight your presentation end-goal with key points throughout your deck.

Be brief and straight to the point

After reviewing your presentation, start writing your Call to Action by following the KISS rule: Keep it Simple, Silly. Short, simple sentences are easier to remember. Being brief will also encourage you to be as specific as possible. The message you leave with your audience should be straight to the point.

Tell them exactly what you want from them in a language that is direct, active and urgent. Make use of verbs that invoke a sense of command, and show how their action can lead to a positive effect. For example, if you’re giving a healthcare presentation on dehydration, you might say: “Drink eight glasses of water a day and your body will thank you for it.”

Provide tools for concrete action

Follow the statement with proper tools that the audience can refer to after the presentation. Offer up a website, Facebook page, contact information, and the like.

Aside from food for thought, give them something concrete to takeaway.

2. Work on a design that adds impact to your statement.

Be big and bold

Translate your Call to Action statement into visuals that are eye-catching and memorable. Draw the attention of your audience immediately by using large font sizes. Your statement should have the largest font size. We won’t give you hard-and-fast rules, but make sure it can be easily read until the very back of the room. You can follow up with your links and other tools below in a smaller font size, but still no less than 30 points.

You can then begin illustrating your Call to Action slide. Use images that are cohesive with your statement and the rest of the PowerPoint deck. Be mindful of the color scheme you’ve been using, and be wise about when to use accent colors.

Be mindful of white space

While aiming for impact, make sure your Call to Action slide isn’t too overwhelming. Maintain a balanced aesthetic by being mindful of white space.

Make sure there’s still enough room in your slide to give your content focus and impact. As you’re designing your Call to Action slide, step back every once in a while to check if there’s too much going on. You can also ask someone to check your work after you’re done.

The Final Word

Don’t say “thank you” without showing your audience a Call to Action slide. It’s important that you end your presentation with a strong statement that urges for direct and urgent action.

When done correctly, the Call to Action slide will lead your audience to reflect and decide on a positive response.

Reference

Steinberg, Brian. “‘Call to Action’ Ads Give Clients Results They Can Measure.” WSJ. Accessed July 15, 2014.
Featured Image: Horia Varlan via Flickr