- PRO Courses Guides New Tech Help Pro Expert Videos About wikiHow Pro Upgrade Sign In
- EDIT Edit this Article
- EXPLORE Tech Help Pro About Us Random Article Quizzes Request a New Article Community Dashboard This Or That Game Popular Categories Arts and Entertainment Artwork Books Movies Computers and Electronics Computers Phone Skills Technology Hacks Health Men's Health Mental Health Women's Health Relationships Dating Love Relationship Issues Hobbies and Crafts Crafts Drawing Games Education & Communication Communication Skills Personal Development Studying Personal Care and Style Fashion Hair Care Personal Hygiene Youth Personal Care School Stuff Dating All Categories Arts and Entertainment Finance and Business Home and Garden Relationship Quizzes Cars & Other Vehicles Food and Entertaining Personal Care and Style Sports and Fitness Computers and Electronics Health Pets and Animals Travel Education & Communication Hobbies and Crafts Philosophy and Religion Work World Family Life Holidays and Traditions Relationships Youth
- Browse Articles
- Learn Something New
- Quizzes Hot
- This Or That Game New
- Train Your Brain
- Explore More
- Support wikiHow
- About wikiHow
- Log in / Sign up
- Computers and Electronics
- Presentation Software
- PowerPoint Presentations
How to Prepare a Professional Presentation
Last Updated: October 4, 2023 References
This article was co-authored by Devin Jones and by wikiHow staff writer, Hunter Rising . Devin Jones is the creator of “The Soul Career," an online career incubator for women. She is certified in the CliftonStrengths assessment and works with women to clarify their purpose and create meaningful careers. Devin received her BA from Stanford University in 2013. There are 11 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 218,367 times.
When you need to clearly share important information, a PowerPoint presentation makes a great way to reach your audience. Even though it’s pretty easy to throw all of your information together, you’ll leave a bigger impact if you take time to organize and prepare beforehand. We’ll start with what to include in your presentation and move on to how to design and run through your slides. With a little bit of prep, you’ll nail any presentation you have to give!
Start with a title slide.
- You can always name the presentation after the work initiative you want to start or the problem that you’re trying to solve. For example, you could name it something like, “Customer Acquisition Strategies.”
Follow the title slide with an agenda slide.
- Project Overview
- Market Research
- Business Model
Organize the middle slides for logical flow.
- For example, if you’re giving a persuasive presentation, you might start with background information on an issue, move on to ways to solve the problem, and finish with steps a person in the audience can take to work toward the solution.
Include a call-to-action slide near the end of your presentation.
- For example, if you want to cut down costs at your business, you may ask your listeners to track all of the work resources they waste throughout a week so they can be more conscious of what they’re throwing away.
Conclude with the key takeaways.
- For example, if you’re pitching a brand or product, you could summarize the issues the product solves, its main selling points, and why you think it's a good fit in a company.
Aim to have about 10 slides.
- For example, if your presentation is about a new eco-friendly initiative, a few slides filled with statistics about climate change’s effects offers a lot of information, but a single slide with a couple of bullet points specifically about how your company is hurt by it is much more effective.
Use consistent backgrounds.
- For example, your slide background could simply be white with a dark blue stripe across the top and a yellow line running through it as an accent.
- Stick with colors that contrast, but complement each other. For example, you could incorporate white, dark brown, black, and tan as a presentation theme.
- Avoid putting full images as your background since it can be really hard to read text that’s written over them.
Choose easy-to-read fonts.
- Emphasize the most significant text by bolding, italicizing, or highlighting it. [10] X Research source
- Vary your text size throughout the slide. For example, the heading at the top of the slide should be larger than the body text.
List main ideas with short bullet points.
- For example, instead of the sentence, “We need to be more mindful about our budget for this project,” you could write the bullet point, “Be mindful of budget.”
- Have each bullet point appear only after you click the mouse so your audience doesn’t get ahead of what you’re talking about.
Add relevant graphics.
- Include captions for charts or images that are hard to understand.
- Try making a single image stand out on a slide by making it a contrasting color to the rest of the slide. For example, you could have pictures of old products in black-and-white with a large image of the newest product you’re introducing in color.
- In general, avoid using clip art or animated GIFs in your presentation since it won’t look like you’re taking it seriously. However, what’s acceptable may depend on your place of work and the specific presentation.
- If you get a chance, check your presentation on a screen similar to what you’ll be presenting on to check if your images look blurry from across the room.
Avoid flashy transitions.
Practice your presentation out loud.
- Try recording yourself giving the presentation so you can listen or watch your performance. That way, you can easily see what you need to change.
Rehearse in front of an audience.
- If you can, rehearse your slideshow in a space that’s similar to where you’ll actually be presenting it so you can get a feel for the room.
How Should You End a Presentation?
Expert Q&A
- If you have a fear of public speaking, try taking a few deep breaths to help you calm down. The more you practice, the less likely you’ll be afraid of presenting it as well. [18] X Trustworthy Source Mayo Clinic Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals Go to source Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
- If you don’t have PowerPoint, you can always use alternatives such as Keynote, Prezi, or Google Slides for your presentation. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
- Have a backup for your presentation in case there are technical difficulties. For example, you could give the presentation off of notecards or make handouts. [19] X Research source Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
You Might Also Like
- ↑ https://virtualspeech.com/blog/designing-presentation-slides
- ↑ https://www.business.com/articles/13-things-to-include-in-your-next-powerpoint-presentation/
- ↑ https://writingcenter.gmu.edu/guides/writing-a-powerpoint-presentation
- ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2016/09/22/10-smart-ways-to-make-any-powerpoint-presentation-way-more-interesting/?sh=567b2a1e2d24
- ↑ https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/presentations-guy-kawasaki-10-20-30-rule.html
- ↑ https://www.ncsl.org/legislators-staff/legislative-staff/legislative-staff-coordinating-committee/tips-for-making-effective-powerpoint-presentations.aspx
- ↑ https://alum.mit.edu/powerpoint-presentations
- ↑ https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/making-better-powerpoint-presentations/
- ↑ https://www.gvsu.edu/speechlab/practicing-presentations-33.htm
- ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesleadershipforum/2013/06/19/the-only-way-to-prepare-to-give-a-presentation/?sh=7d89d11b84ef
- ↑ https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/specific-phobias/expert-answers/fear-of-public-speaking/faq-20058416
About This Article
- Send fan mail to authors
Reader Success Stories
Geeta Bhardwaj
Aug 4, 2016
Is this article up to date?
Featured Articles
Trending Articles
Watch Articles
- Terms of Use
- Privacy Policy
- Do Not Sell or Share My Info
- Not Selling Info
wikiHow Tech Help:
Tech troubles got you down? We've got the tips you need
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
Taking the time to prepare for your presentation can help calm your nerves and allow your presentation to run more smoothly. Here are eight tips to help you prepare for your next presentation: 1. Outline your presentation. Having an outline can help you stay focused on the main points of your presentation. When creating your outline, make sure ...
1. Choose the Right Topic. One of the first presentation steps is picking the right presentation topic. One of the most important presentation preparation tips is to pick the right topic for your presentation. You've got a few choices that'll give you a head start on wowing your audience.