are powerpoint presentations a waste of time

• Presentation creation
• PowerPoint templates
• Presentation training
• Print design
• Pitch deck example
• PPT Template example
• Investor deck example
• Product deck example
• Presentation services
• Infographic design
• Pitch decks
• Investor presentations
• Marketing presentations
• Conference presentations
• Finance presentations
• Product presentations
• CPD presentations
• Training overview
• Virtual presentation skills training
• PowerPoint template training
• Storytelling training
• Our showreel
• Charity presentation example
• Conference presentation example
• CPD presentation example
• Investor deck example – Seed stage
• Investor deck example – Series C
• Marketing presentation example
• PowerPoint template example
• Product presentation example

Blog / Strategic Insight / Why are you wasting time on PowerPoint presentations?

Why are you wasting time on PowerPoint presentations?

Do you feel like you’re wasting time on PowerPoint presentations? A busy person like you shouldn’t be wasting time on anything, but don’t worry, we know what you need.

Take a look at your to-do list. At a guess, you’ve got things on there like planning your campaign strategy, proofing and signing off copy and artwork, catching up with the team and checking your analytics.

But wait, there’s one more: “ making a presentation ”. Ugh. Did you feel that? That was your stomach lurching, your heart sinking, maybe even your soul dying. 

You’ve had that on your list for a while now, and it keeps getting bumped further and further from the top. It’s not exactly hard, but you know it will take a lot of time and effort. Frankly, you’ve got more important tasks to complete, right?

We’re not trying to make you feel guilty: we get it: you have better things to do than make a PowerPoint deck. With all the formatting and the templates and animations that never seem to work quite right. Maybe you’re thinking about delegating it. Shifting it off your to-do list, and onto someone else’s. Except… well, except you don’t really want anyone else on your team spending time on this either, because they also have important tasks to do.

And hang on a minute, shouldn’t this actually BE someone’s job? Because it sure as hell isn’t your job – or anyone on your team’s job – to fiddle with slides all day, wasting time on PowerPoint.

OK. Deep breath. Wow, that got triggering pretty fast.

The reassuring fact is, you’re far from alone.

We’re all living in a presentation world

When  Rokoko surveyed 8,500 professionals , the major takeaway was that far too many people were spending far too much time making presentations. And this was happening at every level of the corporate ladder.

Let’s start at the top: 28.7% of the average company’s leadership team spend five hours or more each week making PowerPoint slides. That’s nearly a full day. Every week. And, as you’d expect, the majority of these said they actively disliked doing it. Across employees in general, over 10% of their time is spent in PowerPoint. Has your team got 10% of its time to spare making slides?

Our own survey  found that just 18% of workers had received any training on making a presentation. When was the last time you had some training on PowerPoint ? All the latest updates and new features? You know, the stuff that could really make your presentations spectacular and easier to build?

We’d guess never. Are we right?

Not only do you have to do it, but you’re also going in blind, with no functional support on how to do a good job? That sounds extraordinarily unfair. No wonder you feel as though PowerPoint is a waste of time.

What’s the ROI?

Have you ever worked out how much your time is worth? How much your hourly rate is? Is making a presentation the smartest use of that time? All of a sudden, making that presentation seems like a pretty expensive piece of work. But, if you spent that time and money on a specialist agency instead, which would result in the best  return on investment?

Really makes you think…

Delegation’s what you need

When you don’t live and breathe presentations all day, PowerPoint slides are annoying and time consuming to make. You can’t be expected to know all the tips and tricks, as well as your own job. Of course, you’re wasting your time on PowerPoint, because your time is needed elsewhere.

So, if your time is better spent doing your actual job, then who should be responsible?

If you have a graphic designer in house, then they might be your first thought. They’re trained in data visualisation and eye-catching design, so surely they can do it for you, right? Probably not. Chances are, they will be skilled in software like Photoshop and XD, and not in PowerPoint. So, if anything, they’ll find the experience frustrating, unenjoyable, and maybe even belittling. As far as they’re concerned, it would be like asking Lewis Hamilton to drive a minibus. Plus, as we’ve mentioned, they have their own job to do already.

Maybe you don’t have access to a graphic designer or they’ve just flat-out refused. Who then? For most companies, this presentation requirement would fall firmly under Marketing’s remit. It doesn’t sound right, does it? As a marketer, are you expected to design and build the company website? Of course not, and while very few organisations would ask their Marketing team to make a new website, many expect them to build their presentations. Which lead us on to our next point. The importance of presentations.

Communication is everything

While you might be wasting your time on PowerPoint, PowerPoint is not a waste of time. A presentation can land you your dream deal. Persuasive slides can get the board to double your marketing budget. A presentation can persuade investors to back your new ideas. 

Of the employees we spoke to, 26% said that their company had lost a potential customer because they delivered a poor presentation, and 39% of those individuals admitted that it had happened more than once. It goes even more downhill from here. 25% had seen an existing customer cut ties with their organisation because of a problem with a presentation, and 44% of these respondents said that this had happened on multiple occasions.

Let’s get this straight: you don’t want to make a presentation, you don’t enjoy making a presentation, you haven’t been trained on making a presentation, you haven’t got the time to make a presentation, AND ON TOP OF ALL THIS, you could lose a client if you make a bad presentation? Wildly unfair, if you ask us.

Is this really the type of thing you want to leave at the bottom of your to-do list, leave until the last minute, then delegate to someone who doesn’t want the job? Sounds like a waste of time and opportunity to us.

Stop wasting your time on PowerPoint

Let’s cut to the chase: if you, or anyone in your team, want help making presentations, then we have a tonne of great tips and guides . But if you want to free up your time, focus on the things that matter most, and get the experts to take care of your presentations, then  get in touch .

LIKE WHAT YOU'VE READ? WHY NOT share

Work Can wait

Put off writing that email just a little longer. Send your incoming calls to voicemail. Put your feet up, grab a brew and explore more presentation insight in the Buffalo 7 Library

• Get started with computers
• Learn Microsoft Office
• Apply for a job
• Improve my work skills
• Design nice-looking docs
• Getting Started
• Smartphones & Tablets
• Typing Tutorial
• Online Learning
• Basic Internet Skills
• Online Safety
• Social Media
• Zoom Basics
• Google Docs
• Google Sheets
• Career Planning
• Resume Writing
• Cover Letters
• Job Search and Networking
• Business Communication
• Entrepreneurship 101
• Careers without College
• Job Hunt for Today
• 3D Printing
• Freelancing 101
• Personal Finance
• Sharing Economy
• Decision-Making
• Graphic Design
• Photography
• Image Editing
• Learning WordPress
• Language Learning
• Critical Thinking
• For Educators
• Translations
• Staff Picks
• English expand_more expand_less

PowerPoint Tips  - Simple Rules for Better PowerPoint Presentations

Powerpoint tips  -, simple rules for better powerpoint presentations, powerpoint tips simple rules for better powerpoint presentations.

PowerPoint Tips: Simple Rules for Better PowerPoint Presentations

Lesson 17: simple rules for better powerpoint presentations.

/en/powerpoint-tips/embed-excel-charts-in-a-slide/content/

Simple rules for better PowerPoint presentations

Have you ever given a PowerPoint presentation and noticed that something about it just seemed a little … off? If you’re unfamiliar with basic PowerPoint design principles, it can be difficult to create a slide show that presents your information in the best light.

Poorly designed presentations can leave an audience feeling confused, bored, and even irritated. Review these tips to make your next presentation more engaging.

Don't read your presentation straight from the slides

If your audience can both read and hear, it’s a waste of time for you to simply read your slides aloud. Your audience will zone out and stop listening to what you’re saying, which means they won’t hear any extra information you include.

Instead of typing out your entire presentation, include only main ideas, keywords, and talking points in your slide show text. Engage your audience by sharing the details out loud.

Follow the 5/5/5 rule

To keep your audience from feeling overwhelmed, you should keep the text on each slide short and to the point. Some experts suggest using the 5/5/5 rule : no more than five words per line of text, five lines of text per slide, or five text-heavy slides in a row.

Don't forget your audience

Who will be watching your presentation? The same goofy effects and funny clip art that would entertain a classroom full of middle-school students might make you look unprofessional in front of business colleagues and clients.

Humor can lighten up a presentation, but if you use it inappropriately your audience might think you don’t know what you’re doing. Know your audience, and tailor your presentation to their tastes and expectations.

Choose readable colors and fonts

Your text should be easy to read and pleasant to look at. Large, simple fonts and theme colors are always your best bet. The best fonts and colors can vary depending on your presentation setting. Presenting in a large room? Make your text larger than usual so people in the back can read it. Presenting with the lights on? Dark text on a light background is your best bet for visibility.

Don't overload your presentation with animations

As anyone who’s sat through a presentation while every letter of every paragraph zoomed across the screen can tell you, being inundated with complicated animations and exciting slide transitions can become irritating.

Before including effects like this in your presentation, ask yourself: Would this moment in the presentation be equally strong without an added effect? Does it unnecessarily delay information? If the answer to either question is yes—or even maybe—leave out the effect.

Use animations sparingly to enhance your presentation

Don’t take the last tip to mean you should avoid animations and other effects entirely. When used sparingly, subtle effects and animations can add to your presentation. For example, having bullet points appear as you address them rather than before can help keep your audience’s attention.

Keep these tips in mind the next time you create a presentation—your audience will thank you. For more detailed information on creating a PowerPoint presentation, visit our Office tutorials .

/en/powerpoint-tips/three-tips-for-beautiful-powerpoint-presentations/content/

Advisory boards aren’t only for executives. Join the LogRocket Content Advisory Board today →

• Product Management
• Solve User-Reported Issues
• Find Issues Faster
• Optimize Conversion and Adoption

How to avoid death by PowerPoint with engaging presentations

What’s the record for the maximum amount of coffee you’ve drank to avoid falling asleep at a meeting? Sometimes I think coffee just exists to keep people alive during a heavy PowerPoint.

Thousands of slides with tiny texts and confusing graphs can suck the life out of your entire team.

In my current company, we never use any presentation tools. No photos, no graphs, and no long texts are prepared to present in a meeting. We consider them a waste of time.

To present our ideas, we prepare simple data Excels (not exceeding one page) with only relevant numbers and cases. You don’t need fancy colors or flying images to express your ideas.

In this article, we will discuss how you can kill your audience with your presentation. You will also learn how to shift your presentation style according to audience and meeting types with real-time examples.

What is ‘death by PowerPoint?’

As you can probably guess, “death by PowerPoint” is a term used to describe bad presentations where the presenter ends up losing their audience. You cannot get through more than 50 slides without yawns.

Bored faces stress out the presenter and pressure only makes everything worse. The presenter will start to skip slides.

The problem isn’t PowerPoint itself, but unfortunately people who have a lack of presentation skills always use this tool. Despite the name, the term refers more generally to poorly prepared boring presentations.

How to detect death by PowerPoint

If you have too many slides to present it means your presentation will end in a wrong way. You can think of it as a meeting. You aren’t going to discuss every important point in the same meeting.

If you find yourself skipping over slides more than once without mentioning any point, you likely didn’t need those slides in the first place. Skipped slides decrease the importance of the whole presentation.

Over 200k developers and product managers use LogRocket to create better digital experiences

The slides you skipped took your hours to prepare, but milliseconds to skip. You will start to lose your focus.

As a product manager you should know that every presentation should be rehearsed before the meeting. You should go over every detail and take time to make sure it adheres to the timeline. Remember, the rehearsal will be quicker than the real one.

You need to know where to pause, where to take questions, and when to lead the room.

Complicated pictures, graphs and texts create confusion. Most audiences like to read slides first before the presenter explains.

4 common death by Powerpoint mistakes

There are several factors that contribute to death by PowerPoint:

Poor storytelling

Excessive text, lack of visual appeal, monotonous delivery.

It all starts with this. If your presentations lack a compelling narrative or fail to tell a coherent story you’d better get back to the drawing board. 

Without a clear structure or flow, your audience will struggle to follow the main points you are looking to convey and lose interest.

Another common culprit behind death by PowerPoint is the presence of dense, wordy slides that overwhelm the audience. 

When slides are overloaded with text, it becomes challenging for the audience to read, comprehend, and retain the information being presented.

Even more than ever before visual appeal is key when conveying a message. When your presentations lack visual appeal you’ll quickly lose the attention of your audience. 

Too many bullet points, generic stock images, and cluttered graphics make your slides appear uninteresting and visually unappealing.

Death by PowerPoint can also occur when you simply read the text from your slides verbatim, offering no additional insights or engaging delivery. 

This approach fails to capture your audience’s attention, making the presentation feel more like a lecture than an interactive experience.

Creating engaging presentations for product managers

As a product manager, you have to present things on a daily basis. You present tasks to the development team, developed features to the business team, and metrics to upper management.

I prefer selecting funny images while presenting something to the development team, simple and chic templates for my teammates, and Excel sheets to present management level. Engagement types differ according to who you are presenting to.

Developers do not like to attend meetings, so explaining something to them might bore them. That’s why I prefer images, less texts, and colorful templates to keep them inside the presentation. Most developers will be younger than you too, so adding gifs, funny images, and jokes will be better.

Internal meetings mostly involve sharing knowledge with each other. You don’t need flying images. Instead, rely on good content. The presentation must show them you care about the topic.

My management level meetings mostly use Excel sheets. We don’t have presentations if they’re not required. Our attention stays on numbers and dates.

Final thoughts

Try to be sincere and smile. There may be a big bug, or a system failure to present, but you’re the one who will shape the meeting. Your posture and gestures lead the way, so be self-confident.

Alongside this, remember the following:

• Keep it simple — There’s a rule called “KISS” that stands for, “keep it simple, stupid!”
• Avoid heavy texts — Each slide should have only one idea and less than six lines/bullet points with less than six words. The rule is called “1-6-6”
• Add visuals — Visuals make your audience focus more and understand the topic easily. You can use animations, images, graphics etc.
• Move to the next slide quickly — Staying too long on a slide distracts the audience. Explain the idea and move to the next slide before your audience gets bored
• Select proper template — Select the template according to your audience. Add diagrams, gifs, and fun facts, depending on who you’re presenting to
• Work on your story — Storytelling capability is the key to delivering a good presentation. Some skills come from your personality but a bigger part comes from practice
• Share examples that fit their problem — Use examples that your audience relates to. Jokes and examples will help people remember your idea
• Don’t lose your focus — Stay focused while presenting. Things may not go as planned, but you still need to keep your focus and stay calm

Featured image source: IconScout

LogRocket generates product insights that lead to meaningful action

Get your teams on the same page — try LogRocket today.

Share this:

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• #collaboration and communication
• #tools and resources

Stop guessing about your digital experience with LogRocket

Recent posts:.

Drive growth with these 7 customer feedback tools

A customer feedback tool is a software solution or platform designed to collect, analyze, and manage feedback from customers.

Leader Spotlight: Motivating teams to hit customer-centric outcomes, with Kristina Bailey

Kristina Bailey discusses the careful balance of knowing the business outcomes you want to achieve while balancing customer outcomes.

Exploring augmented products: Beyond the core offering

Augmented products leverage technology and additional services to provide enhanced functionality, convenience, and value to users.

A guide to acceptance test-driven development (ATDD)

ATDD is an agile methodology involving collaboration to define acceptance criteria before starting any development.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

• Speech Writing
• Delivery Techniques
• PowerPoint & Visuals
• Speaker Habits
• Speaker Resources

Speech Critiques

• Book Reviews
• Browse Articles
• ALL Articles
• Learn About Us
• About Six Minutes
• Meet Our Authors
• Write for Us
• Advertise With Us

Presentation Timing: 5 Tips to Stay On Time and Avoid Audience Wrath

Were you happy about it? Or were you mad that they now put you behind for your next appointment? Or did you leave before they wrapped up?

In this article, we examine the importance of finishing on time and give 5 tips for staying within your time constraints.

Is finishing your presentation on time important?

In most situations, yes!

Always assume that your audience is busy (because they are).

Always assume that could have chosen other places to be (because they could have).

Always assume that they have something planned immediately after you finish (because they usually do).

Audiences get uneasy if you are approaching your time limit and you aren’t wrapping up.

• They start to consider walking out .
• They start to get nervous thinking about their next appointment , and how they may be late.
• They start wishing you’d wrap it up already.
• Most importantly, they stop listening to you!

Not only do you lose credibility with your audience and risk offending them, but you also lose the opportunity to make a strong conclusion because they either aren’t listening or they aren’t in the room!

Is it better to end early, or right on time?

If it’s really bad to finish over time, then one might assume that you should always try to end well under your allowed time. However, that’s not always good either.

If you finish your presentation considerably under time (e.g. 20 minutes early in a presentation scheduled for one hour), your audience may feel cheated, particularly if they paid to listen to you speak. They may feel that you promised 60 minutes of value, but only delivered 40.

For this reason, one safe rule of thumb is to speak for between 90-100% of your allowed time . So, if your presentation is planned for 60 minutes, you should speak at least 54 (or 55 for a nice round number). This ensures that your audience doesn’t “feel cheated”, but also ensures that you don’t go over time.

There are all sorts of exceptions to the above rule of thumb, so use your judgement and do what makes sense in your situation.

5 Steps To Keep Your Presentation Within Time

It’s really not that hard to finish your presentation on time. Just follow these five simple steps:

#1 — Know Your Allowed Time

Have you ever heard a speaker walking away from a venue muttering: “I thought I had longer”?

This is the result of poor communication between the speaker and the event organizer. Both the speaker and the event organizer end up looking bad in this scenario.

Make sure you are always aware of how long you have to speak. Verify with the event organizer before the event.

#2 — Plan Your Content and Edit as Necessary

For many speakers, the problem is not knowing how much time the audience is giving them. The problem is being unreasonable with how much they can say within that allotted time.

Most people overestimate how much material they can adequately cover within a given time. They want to “share everything” and “leave nothing back”. On the other hand, the wise presenter develops strong self-awareness about how long it takes to effectively deliver their message.

When you are planning, also consider:

• Q&A : Allow time for audience questions, either within your presentation or at the end.
• Activities : Allow adequate time for any planning audience activities or exercises. One of my challenges is that I tend to underestimate how long it takes to explain an activity and “break into groups” before the exercise even starts.
• Breaks : For longer presentations, budget time for breaks for stretching, bathroom visits, coffee, or meals. This all comes out of your allotted time. In a typical full-day (8-hour) training course, for example, you might only have 6 hours of instruction once you subtract out all of the breaks.

Cut mercilessly to make sure the material you intend to deliver can be delivered within your time constraints. It’s better to present the appropriate amount at a pace which the audience can absorb rather than whizzing through too much material so the audience grasps nothing.

#3 — Rehearse Effectively

Until you gain experience as a speaker, you may not be able to accurately gauge how much content fits within a given time. For example, how many pages would you write if delivering a 30 minute commencement address? How many case studies can you cover in a lunch-time seminar?

“ If you go over time while rehearsing, you’ve got to cut material. ”

The best way to measure how long it will take is to time yourself while you rehearse effectively:

• Rehearse standing up and speaking out loud . Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you can just “whisper” your way through your slides while sitting in front of your computer. Your pace will be different while standing.
• Speak to a test audience , even if all you can arrange is one person. This eliminates the tendency to “practice within yourself” as some speakers do while rehearsing. Just one audience member forces you to make eye contact and look for audience feedback. It also simulates a bit of the pressure you may feel with a real audience. You can also get valuable feedback by asking “How was my pace? Did I go too fast?”
• Make it as close to the real thing as possible . If you’ll be using a presentation remote to advance your slides, then rehearse with one. If you’ll be moving around in the “real presentation”, then do so as you rehearse. If you can rehearse in the room where you’ll be presenting, do so. The more closely you can mimic the real thing, the better your time estimate will be.
• Make it a dress rehearsal . If I’m planning to wear a suit when presenting, I like to rehearse in one. For me, the act of dressing up creates the same nervous energy and tends to give me more accurate timing.

Rehearsing in this way allows you to accurately time your presentation under close-to-real circumstances. If you go over time while rehearsing, you’ve got to cut material.

#4 — Start on Time

How many times have you seen a presenter ask for “just 5 more minutes” at the end of a one-hour presentation, despite having started ten minutes late?

Do everything in your power to start on time. Arrive early, sort out your technology, and make sure everything is set to go when your time starts. Don’t waste a moment.

Your exact start time isn’t always within your control. For example, I know of one company where “lunch-time seminars” always start at 12:15. If you are invited to speak in this forum, you’ve got to know that. A thorough discussion with the event organizer should reveal this.

#5 — Measure Your Progress and Adjust

For short speeches (say, under 15 minutes), you can probably just launch into it and hit your end time target within reason (assuming you have rehearsed it).

For longer presentations, however, you can use a more strategic approach:

• As you rehearse your content, note how long it takes for each “block” of your presentation. (Get someone to time you if necessary.)
• 12:05 – Start presentation
• 12:15 – Introduction and case study introduced
• 12:30 – Case study and lessons learned complete
• 12:50 – Live demonstration complete
• 12:58 – Q&A complete. Applause.
• Write down these targets and have them with you as you present, perhaps on a small notepad by your water. (I do it with red pen and big letters.)
• As you reach the end of each “block”, check the clock . If you are running behind, you can adjust your pace. For example, if you are starting the live demonstration at 12:35, then you know you are 5 minutes behind, and you’ll have to cut planned material to “catch up.”
• If necessary, recruit an assistant with a watch to help you monitor your intermediate targets.

Speaking over your allowed time is disrespectful and will annoy at least some people in your audience. It’s a privilege to have their attention, whether it’s for 5 minutes or 5 hours. Don’t abuse it! End on time — every time.

Share Your Stories

Do you have presentation timing anecdotes to share? Either when you were speaking, or when you were in the audience?

Please share in the comments . We love to hear from readers.

Please share this...

This is one of many public speaking articles featured on Six Minutes . Subscribe to Six Minutes for free to receive future articles.

Image credit: Retro Clock by FreeImages.com/zbyszek80 ( license )

Add a Comment Cancel reply

E-Mail (hidden)

Subscribe - It's Free!

Similar articles you may like....

• The 7 Deadly Sins of Public Speaking
• How to Use Notes in a Speech: A Guide for Speakers
• How to be a Confident Speaker with a Speech Disorder
• What is an Ignite presentation, and why should you try it?
• 10 Presentation Bad Habits My College Students – And You – Must UN-Learn (Part 2)
• 10 Presentation Bad Habits My College Students – And You – Must UN-Learn

Find More Articles Tagged:

We’ve all been there. The speaker speaks for far longer than anyone expects and as an audience member you just sit there thinking “when will this end?” I’ve seen it time after time at public speaking clubs in particular.

It’s worth reinforcing that when you are speaking in front of an audience, it will always take longer to cover the same material adequately. That extra time is necessary to let the message sink in with a real, live audience. Rehearsal time can be misleading, so don’t get caught out!

I would love to share this with clients. Your 5 minutes is not the same as mine, just make sure you finish on time. Great read!

this is great advise ur really smart dude keep doing you

Recent Tweets

5 Tips to Stay On Time and Avoid Audience Wrath http://t.co/6es9Vmug — Presenting Away Dec 19th, 2012

Presentation timing: 5 tips to avoid audience wrath http://t.co/Dw4Je0rz — Diane Dec 21st, 2012

recommend reading for presenters at conferences http://t.co/LfnlikwXp6 — @tweetsimon Jul 7th, 2014

@VMart speaks the truth! 5 tips to keep yourself on time and your audience happy. http://t.co/SWeQFQEcDE #AFS145 https://t.co/bxbn7wDSjQ — @pseanmc Aug 19th, 2015

.@6minutes Andrew! I just read your article on speech timing, so great! Also giving it to my students to read ~ https://t.co/JzheERLxNz — @JacksonHoleRose Oct 25th, 2015

Presentation Timing: 5 Tips to Stay On Time and Avoid Audience Wrath https://t.co/qjXmwcjwZ4 by @6minutes — Sleiman Skaf (@SleimanSkaf) Apr 20th, 2016

#TuesdayTips Good tips by @6minutes about keeping your presentation within the allotted time. https://t.co/Rk2GtzReRv — PitchVantage (@pitchvantage) Jul 26th, 2016

There is nothing worse than when speakers go on and on and on . . . https://t.co/XZVnTmNvHO — @speakers4change Oct 5th, 2016

#DMCIT Might be of interest for the upcoming presentations. https://t.co/oeGhqqc5F8 — @Zeet66 Nov 1st, 2016

Of course, you don’t want to go way under time, but, in my opinion, it’s much better than going over time. I like… https://t.co/4FPFvPxB6R — @justineldees Oct 28th, 2018

Featured Articles

• Majora Carter (TED, 2006) Energy, Passion, Speaking Rate
• Hans Rosling (TED, 2006) 6 Techniques to Present Data
• J.A. Gamache (Toastmasters, 2007) Gestures, Prop, Writing
• Steve Jobs (Stanford, 2005) Figures of speech, rule of three
• Al Gore (TED, 2006) Humor, audience interaction
• Dick Hardt (OSCON, 2005) Lessig Method of Presentation

Books We Recommend

Six Minutes Copyright © 2007-2022 All Rights Reserved.

Read our permissions policy , privacy policy , or disclosure policy .

Comments? Questions? Contact us .

13 Time-Saving Tips for Microsoft PowerPoint

Looking for time-saving solutions for making presentations in Microsoft PowerPoint? Here are some simple tips for mastering PowerPoint.

We’ve all been there. Working for the last couple of days on a PowerPoint presentation that shouldn't take you more than a few hours. And every time you think you’re close to finishing it, you find other information or pictures that you have to add.

The truth is, that putting together a PowerPoint presentation doesn’t have to be that time-consuming. That’s why we’ve put together a list of tips to save you time when working on your next presentation.

1. Plan Your Presentation

You can start saving time when working on your presentation, even before you open PowerPoint. You can use anything from a text-to-voice app to a simple piece of paper to outline the content and design of your slides. Think about the general idea that you want to convey and who your audience is.

Even if you’ve done this before, planning ahead will help you figure out if you should add a timeline, create a pie chart, or add a video.

2. Turn Word Docs Into a PowerPoint Presentation

Instead of working on putting together the same information twice, you can turn a Microsoft Word document into a PowerPoint presentation . The tool isn’t perfect as you need to properly format the Word document, but it can save you some time while editing your presentation.

3. Use PowerPoint Templates

One of the most efficient ways to save time when working on a PowerPoint presentation is to use templates. This way, your presentation will have a cohesive design as templates contain fonts, effects, backgrounds, layouts, and even content. You can access PowerPoint templates by going to File > New .

The best part is that you can personalize the templates and store them for future use. You can even include a PowerPoint template in your personal or business brand. If you can’t find anything you like, and you want your presentation to stand out, you can find online free animated PowerPoint presentation templates .

4. Use Master Slides

Using the master slide is a great method to ensure that all slides will have a uniform design. And you can quickly change the overall design of your presentation by editing the master slide. Additionally, the slide master is a great tool for creating impressive presentations .

5. Personalize the Quick Access Toolbar

If you often have to use the same command, you can add it to the PowerPoint toolbar to access it faster. Here’s how you can do it:

• Open the File menu and go to Options .
• In the PowerPoint Options window, click Quick Access Toolbar .
• Set Choose command from to All commands if you’re not sure which category the tool that you need is included into.
• Select your preferred command.
• Click Add > OK to add it to the toolbar.

6. Duplicate Objects

The traditional way to duplicate an object in PowerPoint is to select it, press Ctrl + C and then paste it. The disadvantage of this method is that you have no real control over where PowerPoint places the duplicated object. So, here’s how you can better control duplicated objects.

Press and hold Ctrl (or CMD ) and select the object that you want to duplicate. Then, drag it where the copy should be. This method even works with multiple objects and slides.

7. Move Objects by One Pixel

How many times did you struggle to reposition an object, especially if it was a small one, and you had an oversensitive mouse? If you want to slightly move an object, select it and press one of the arrow keys. This will move the object by one pixel in the selected direction.

8. Learn to Quickly Find Objects

If you’ve added a lot of objects to your PowerPoint presentation, you may have a hard time when it comes to finding one of them. As you overlap, group, or send objects to the back, it only gets harder to move them around.

If you want to quickly find an object, use the Tab key to cycle through them. If the object you want to select is included in a group, select the group first, and press Tab . This way, you’ll cycle only through the objects included in that group.

9. Change the Default View

PowerPoint’s default view is set to Normal . But if you’re accustomed to using a different setting, you may have a hard time putting together your PowerPoint presentation. Here’s how you can change the PowerPoint default view:

• From the left-hand menu, click Advanced .
• In the Display section, open the Open all documents using this view and select your preferred option.

10. Use Keyboard Shortcuts

There’s no denying that using keyboard shortcuts will speed up the process, no matter what you’re doing. Even knowing a few shortcuts for the most common tools will save you time, as you don’t have to go through PowerPoint’s tabs every time. If you’re a Windows user, there are plenty of PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts worth knowing .

11. Use PowerPoint Add-Ins

Add-ins are supplemental programs designed to add new features or commands to your Office apps. There are plenty of free add-ins online that can help you quickly insert pictures, create QR codes, or to make the presentation more interactive overall .

12. Repeat the Last Command

There’s a quick way to use the last command over and over again, and the best part is that it works in all Office apps.

To use the last command, simply press F4 . However, don’t let your muscle memory override your intention, and accidentally press Alt + F4 as you may have to recover your unsaved file.

13. Recycle an Older Presentation

If you’re short on time, and you have to come up with a good-looking PowerPoint presentation, you can use previous work. Instead of starting from scratch, you can edit a copy of an older presentation.

However, this doesn’t mean your presentation will be identical to the old one. You can change the template, set a new color theme, and add a few more animations for a fresh look.

Don’t Waste Time in PowerPoint

PowerPoint comes with many tools and tricks that can help you save time while working on your slides. There are a few tools, such as master slides, add-ins, or templates, that you should use right from the start.

Now that you’ve finished your presentation with plenty of time left, you can use PowerPoint speaker coach to work on your presentation skills.

PowerPoint time saving tips (stop making these mistakes)

If we are not shown how to use a program properly, we often end up learning bad habits (this is not surprising as many of us are forced to just learn on the job).

These bad habits may be making you less productive.

This post outlines five time wasting mistakes that some people make when creating PowerPoint presentations.

Hopefully, by following these simple tips, you can save some valuable time when creating your next presentation.

Adding text to shapes

Do not place a text box over a shape.

This causes issues with styling, positioning and hyperlinking.

Text can be added by just immediately typing after you insert the shape.

Alternatively, right click an existing shape and choose edit text .

Identically formatting objects

Use the format painter tool to automatically copy the formatting from one object to another.

• Click the object you want to copy the formatting from
• Click the format painter tool (on the home ribbon)
• Click the object you wish to receive the formatting

Double clicking the tool allows you to easily copy the formatting to many objects in quick succession.

Pasting text from external sources

It is possible to paste text from an external source without bringing across all the unwanted existing formatting and hyperlinks.

When pasting , simply right click , then choose Keep Text Only from the paste options.

Aligning and distributing objects evenly

You don’t have to trust your own eyes.  Let PowerPoint automatically and perfectly align and distribute objects for you.

• Select the objects
• Choose the Shape Format menu from the ribbon
• Click the Align icon and choose the appropriate option for you

Page layouts

Do not waste time manually laying out text boxes on every PowerPoint slide.

Common popular layouts can be found under the Layout icon on the Home ribbon.

Using layouts properly will give you consistency between slides, as well as saving you time.

Don’t see a layout you like?  Consider making one in the master slide.

Related Posts

• How to create interactive maps and images in PowerPoint

Latest Posts

• How to use and create slide layouts in PowerPoint
• How to automatically update Excel table data into PowerPoint
• Top tips on how to calm nerves before a presentation
• Top tips for an effective PowerPoint presentation

Sign up for Slide News

• Best Practice
• Quick Skills
• Templates and Theming

Popular Tags

Popular downloads.

PowerPoint Christmas Multiple Choice Quiz Template

Interactive Christmas Tic-Tac-Toe PowerPoint

• Our YouTube Channel

Small Print

• Cookie Policy
• Privacy Policy
• Terms and Conditions

Downloads Shop

• Information & Terms

Copyright © SlideTutorials.com

• Tips & Tricks
• PowerPoint Templates
• Training Programs
• Free E-Courses

The #1 Factor That Wastes Time in Presentations

Home > Presentation Design > Time in Presentations

Many business presenters spend undue amount of time creating their presentations. Sometimes they even lose interest midway and give up. In this article, you will learn the single biggest factor that wastes your time in presentations and causes most frustration in the presentation creation process.

• Research stage
• Slide creation stage
• Polishing stage

The trap that most presenters fall into while creating their presentation is – they tend to work on two stages at the same time.

First, let me quickly explain the purpose of each of the three stages and then I will explain where most presenters get stuck.

1. Research stage:

The only purpose of this stage is to come up with a clear outline for your presentation.

You define the objective of your presentation. You outline your main arguments and supporting points. Once you have your points in place, you organize them to create a compelling story that flows smoothly.

2 Slide creation stage:

The only purpose of this stage is to come up with a slide deck that holds all the points outlined in the research stage.

Focus on the clarity of message in your slides. Remove irrelevant clutter. Make it easy for your audience to see your point on each slide.

3. Polishing stage:

The only purpose of this stage is to make your slides look professional.

In this stage, you make your design decisions like the theme colors, theme fonts etc. Organize slide layouts to ensure consistency in the look and feel of your slide deck across slides. Make your slides visually pleasing and easy to go through.

A summary of the 3 stages in creating presentations

Click on the image below for a larger view

3 Steps in Creating Presentations

Quick note: The templates showcased above are from our 750+ Flat Design Templates Pack for PowerPoint . Want to browse through the templates and download them? Click here.

The biggest mistake made by presenters:

Most presenters waste time by working on more than one stage at one time. For example, when they are in the research stage, they try to create the slides. When they need to create slides, they are busy polishing their slides. When they are in the polishing stage, they try to add more content that messes up the presentation flow.

The biggest secret to saving tons of time while creating your presentation is – Focus on one stage at a time.

You not only will excel in each of the stages, but also will spend much less time at each stage. Your presentations will be clear, elegant and remarkable.

Conclusion:

If you liked the article, kindly share it with your friends. Please explore the different sections in the site to hone your presentation skills and PowerPoint skills.

Related: Presentation Resources to Save Time

Return to Main Presentation Design Essentials Page

Return to Top of Time in Presentations Page

Share these tips & tutorials

Get 25 creative powerpoint ideas mini course &  members-only tips & offers. sign up for free below:.

A Speech on Are PowerPoint Presentations a Waste of Time?

Good morning and a very warm welcome to one and all present here. I consider it my privilege to have an opportunity to share my thoughts with this gathering here today. All of us must have had to prepare at least one powerpoint presentation in our academic career or in our professional career and that is exactly what we are going to discuss about today.

While preparing a presentation all of us must have had this question in mind; is this really necessary? The moment we start questioning the necessity of the presentation we are preparing, it is the exact same moment when we start to notice all the unnecessary details and information we are putting into the presentation to which nobody will pay attention to.

When one thinks of attending a meeting or a conference, the first thought that comes into their mind is the boring and long presentations they have to sit through and these presentations are bound to put some of the people in the room to sleep. The fact that some meetings consider having a powerpoint presentation running in the background as something very essential, is the very problem why we are not able to rise above these conventional methods in a meeting.

The time, the effort, and the resources used to make these presentations can be utilised for doing something productive instead of a presentation that nobody really cares about. The fact that even students are asked to make these presentation during project submissions and other events and yet they are not provided with a proper training on what to put on the presentation and what not to put on it is the underlying problem that make the adults put up a very questionable presentation as they have never received a proper guidance regarding how to make an effective and efficient presentation.

The repetitive designs that are found in most of the presentations is yet another cause of the boredom that one experiences throughout a presentation. The template provided by the corporates might not be as interesting and as unique as the corporate would want it to seem and most of the time it just contains a banner and the company logo which is the standard format used by most companies. This act of providing a template might seem innovative and unique but in all honesty it is an age old method of corporates to make their presentations seem unique.

Corporates are not only the place where powerpoint presentations come into play, teachers often use this method in their day to day career to engage students but the question is are they really able to hold the attention of the students with these presentations that they are provided with? It is time that we started thinking about something more than a powerpoint presentation to hold the interests of the people attending the meeting or the conference and it is also important to provide proper training in preparing a presentation. 

Similar Posts:

• 380+ Best Meeting Invitation Messages That You Can Share! (Images)
• 23+ Speech on School May Ignite a Learning Revolution!
• A welcome speech for a conference in English
• 621+ Thank You Messages For Attending Event! (Images)
• A Speech on How to Be a Persuasive Speaker!

“Business, marketing, and blogging – these three words describe me the best. I am the founder of Burban Branding and Media, and a self-taught marketer with 10 years of experience. My passion lies in helping startups enhance their business through marketing, HR, leadership, and finance. I am on a mission to assist businesses in achieving their goals.”

Leave a Comment

Your browser is out of date.

We highly encourage you to update your browser to the latest version of Internet Explorer, or use another browser such as Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.

PowerPoint presentations at school a waste of time?

• Last Updated:

Feb 7th, 2010 11:29 pm

• Search this thread

Poll: Do you think PowerPoint presentations are a waste of time?

• Total votes: 40 . You have voted on this poll.

Feb 5th, 2010 10:00 pm

• Reply with quote

Feb 5th, 2010 10:56 pm

Feb 5th, 2010 11:02 pm

Feb 6th, 2010 2:33 pm

nalababe wrote: ↑ 2) You should never utter a single word that is on any slide

Feb 6th, 2010 2:56 pm

Feb 6th, 2010 3:38 pm

Feb 6th, 2010 4:21 pm

Nyte wrote: ↑ The real problem is that they don't teach people how to make good presentations.

Feb 6th, 2010 11:39 pm

Feb 6th, 2010 11:44 pm

zyphere wrote: ↑ What do you mean by that?

Feb 6th, 2010 11:45 pm

Feb 7th, 2010 12:06 am

Feb 7th, 2010 12:35 am

Feb 7th, 2010 12:39 am

Yankees 1903 wrote: ↑ Anyone else think that classes that require PP presentations are just taking up valuable class time and are a waste? Every PP presentation that I have sat through in class has been bad, boring, or had good presenters but boring material. I have classes that dedicate the final 2-3 weeks before finals to group or individual PP presentations. I think that time could be better used and not wasted on presentations that are mostly bad and boring. I know prof's argue that they prepare you for public speaking and the real world where you will need some of those skills but I disagree. Most schools should make public speaking and speech classes mandatory for all students instead of bombarding us with PP presentations. I have three this semester and they will all be a waste while teaching me nothing. There is only so much you can do when your forced to stand in front of a class that is not interested to hear what you have to say and bore them for 20 minutes on a topic that you thought was boring to begin with. I sat through a 25 minute presentation on life insurance, the presenters were horrible and the material was dry. I'm sure none of them learned anything by doing that presentation. However if they had to take a public speaking/speech class I'm sure they would have been better prepared for the real world.

Display posts from previous: All posts Last day Last 7 days Last 2 weeks Last month Last 3 months 6 Months Last year

Sort by Author Post time Ascending Descending

Trending Hot Deals

• [Snaplii] [New Users] $30 in Amazon GCs for $15.80 via Snaplii +245 172 comments
• [Canada Computers] HP EliteBook 845 G8 Business Laptop with Docking station $499 +112 136 comments
• [Princess Auto] Blaster Garage Door Lubricant - $5.99 +14 12 comments
• [Amazon.ca] $99.98 - KitchenAid Digital Countertop Oven with Air Fry +12 4 comments
• [Tangerine] Tangerine World Mastercard & Money-Back Card + $170 Cashback + Extra 10% + No annual fee +32 194 comments