For those who are regular readers of these articles, it is no secret to you how I feel about your presentation slides.

Remember, your presentation slides support your message. They are not your message. You are your message.

I have seen plenty of excellent and not-so-excellent technical presentations where the speaker has relied too much on their slides. Speakers who do this read their slides. Speakers who read their slides are boring. Stay away from boring your audience.

These speakers leave their audience questioning why they came to this presentation if the speaker was just going to read their slides. Instead, the speaker should have just sent the slides the audience could read when they had time.

Too many speakers relinquish their presentation message responsibility to their slides. Don’t become one of these speakers.

Here is a suggestion. Buy the book Slide:ology – The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations, by Nancy Duarte, and implement the book’s slide creation advice. This book contains practical approaches to visual story development that anyone, including you, can apply.

Below are my tips on creating meaningful slides:

How to Balance Text and Images

The old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” applies here.

I find those speakers with very busy slides are not sure what they will say, so they try to put everything on a slide to answer any possible question. This is a mistake. This gives control of their presentation to the audience. This is something you should never allow to happen. The best speakers control the information presented, presentation flow and always tell their audience what to do with the information they convey.

You should control the journey you take your audience on in your presentation. The only way to do this is to plan the thoughts you want to express and where in your presentation you want to express them.

Notice I did not say plan-out words. If you do, you will wind up reading those words, whether they are on your slides or in your narrative notes. Speak ideas, not words, as Earl Nightingale used to say.

After planning your thoughts and where to express them in your presentation, step through them sequentially and decide on what points slides would be supportive. If a slide does not support a particular point, don’t use it.

There are other options open to you for support. You can also show a video, have a question and answer period, have small group/whole audience discussions, etc. There are many ways to get your message across. Various presentation methods are your “best shot” at keeping and increasing audience engagement.

Regarding what you put on a slide, my best advice is, “When in doubt, take it out.”

Everything on your slides has to “earn its keep” – literally. If something on your slide does not “earn its keep,” delete it.

Now, how much text should be on your slides?

Use the image if you can get away with an image instead of text. Slides with lots of text start to look like each other fast. You will lose your audience’s attention.

Use short phrases, not sentences, if you must use text on a slide. If you put sentences on your slides, you will read them. This is a “killer” for audience engagement.

I have written about the Power of Three. If you can get away with three bullets, great. Your audience can remember three bullets, and so can you. If you have to put more bullets on a slide, limit it to no more than five bullets. Again, see if you can get the text down to three bullets with phrases.

So, you now know it is a balancing act between text and images on a slide. However, if you have to err, err on the side of images rather than text. You and your audience will appreciate it.

We have talked about other presentation methods besides slides. However, knowing what slides can and cannot do to support your presentation is essential.

What Slides Can and Cannot Do

If you use Microsoft PowerPoint or Apple Keynote to create slides, you know both have animation capability – animation of text or images.

There are two schools of thought on animation: (1) animate the whole slide and (2) animate as much as you need to make your point but no more. I subscribe to the latter.

You can go crazy with animation and distract your audience, or you can use animation, as an example, to reveal your bullets one by one so your audience concentrates on what you are saying, which corresponds to the bullet you have revealed.

Don’t use wild animations. If you determine animation is warranted, use standard animation like “appear,” “dissolve in,” or “fly in.” I would get crazier than these. Also, I would make the animation timing one second. This timing looks professional.

So, what happens if your point does not have a supportive slide? In this case, put in a completely black slide. This way, the audience is concentrating on you and not being distracted by a slide that has nothing to do with your point.

The question always comes up in my consulting business as to whether people should use existing slides or not. You have put time into making your slides for past presentations. You would be lowering your return on your investment in time if you did not at least consider using or modifying slides you have already created.

However, remember you must modify your previously created slides to confirm your message. There will be no doubt slides you can change. However, there will also be previously created slides that would take excessive time to modify. In this case, just create a brand new slide.

You can embed videos from YouTube, Vimeo, Dropbox, and other web-based services. I have discussed in previous articles the need to change your presentation method at least every twenty minutes. If not, your audience will disengage from what you say and show in your slides. Using these other services is a way to change your presentation method right on your slides.

Presentation formats include speaking without slides, speaking with slides, videos, small group discussion and brief out, audience-wide discussion, exercises, and many others.

Slides can aid you in these; however, if you want to keep your audience engaged, don’t just rely on slides.

You now know choosing to put text or images on your slides is a balancing act. You also understand what slides can and cannot do.

But have you ever considered how your presentation venue affects whether you will use slides and what is on your slides?

Give Thought to the Presentation Venue

Below are some venue considerations.

• If you have embedded videos, you should perform a dry run of the venue audio system to determine if your audience can hear the audio. Also, will the videos have meaning for the back of the room, or are they just too small, too detailed, or both?

• Is there enough room on stage or in the front of the room so you don’t block the slide for any audience members? Is there any necessary electronic equipment blocking any audience member’s view of the screen?

• Is the width and height of the screen onto which your slides are projected large enough for everyone to see? I’ve once spoken to a hundred people where the screen was four feet tall with a 4:3 screen ratio. Unfortunately, the small screen size was insufficient for audience attendees in the back of the room to make out the screen. Also, make sure the venue screen or smart TV has the same ratio of height to width that your slides have.

It is easy to be sitting in your basement office creating slides without knowing whether they would suit your presentation venue. It pays to visit your presentation venue early. I recently facilitated training in an auditorium. I had never facilitated training in an auditorium.

The big difference? I had given all previous facilitations in a room where I was standing on the same level as the audience. In the auditorium, I was on a stage. Quite a bit different. I needed to move everything on stage so the audience could view the screen.

here are some electronic items to consider also. Below is a non-exhaustive list of considerations. You could imagine more.

• Do you need a flash drive with your presentation on it?

• Do you have an Internet connection at the venue?

• Is WIFI available?

• Will you be live streaming your slides from the Internet?

• Will you be using the venue’s computer to project your slides?

• Does the venue’s computer have the requisite software and connections to the Internet to run your presentation?

I usually use my computer because of variations in venue computers. This way, I control the way my slides are projected. I also have the following types of adapters, just in case: USB, USB-C, HDMI, Ethernet, and Thunderbolt 4. You never want to show up at a venue and not be able to connect a required cable to your computer.

So, now you know your choice of text or images on your slides is a balancing act. You also understand what slides can and cannot do. Finally, you know your presentation’s venue considerably affects your presentation’s slides.

Ensure you consider the type of visual aids to use and where to use them in your presentations. Remember, slides are only one type of visual aid.

You probably think there is much more to creating meaningful slides for your presentation than you had previously thought. You would be right.

Are you sliding into your speaking?

Call to Action

• Between text and images, err on the side of more images and less text on your slides

• Use slides for what they support best and other visual/audio aids for what they help best. Turn to a black slide if a slide does not support your current point.

• Never underestimate the effect of your presentation’s venue on your slides. Visit your presentation venue before you create your slides. You may choose very different slides

Frank DiBartolomeo is a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and award-winning speaker, presentation and interview skills coach, and Professional Member of the National Speakers Association. He was awarded Toastmasters International’s highest individual award, Distinguished Toastmaster because of his outstanding work in public speaking and leadership.

Frank formed DiBartolomeo Consulting International (DCI), LLC (www.speakleadandsucceed.com) in 2007. The mission of DCI is to help technical professionals to inspire, motivate, and influence their colleagues and other technical professionals by improving their presentation skills, communication, and personal presence. Reach Frank at frank@speakleadandsucceed.com and (703) 509-4424.

Don’t miss Frank DiBartolomeo’s latest book!

“Speak Well and Prosper: Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Better Presentations”

Available now at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com

Frank DiBartolomeo is a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and award-winning speaker, presentation and interview skills coach, and Professional Member of the National Speakers Association. He was awarded Toastmasters International’s highest individual award, Distinguished Toastmaster because of his outstanding work in public speaking and leadership.

Frank formed DiBartolomeo Consulting International (DCI), LLC (www.speakleadandsucceed.com) in 2007. The mission of DCI is to help technical professionals to inspire, motivate, and influence their colleagues and other technical professionals by improving their presentation skills, communication, and personal presence. Reach Frank at frank@speakleadandsucceed.com and (703) 509-4424.

Don’t miss Frank DiBartolomeo’s latest book!

“Speak Well and Prosper: Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Better Presentations”

Available now at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com