Let me just start off this article by saying I love PowerPoint.  I also love technology. But just like any great component of technology, too much of anything can be bad. And in the case of PowerPoint, it can be really, really bad.

PowerPoint is used by sales professionals, marketers, and speakers all over the world. It’s easily the most common tool used in many presentations around the globe. And to be honest, this means there are many bad presentation going on around the world as you read the words on this page.

What Not to Do

Such was case at a conference I traveled to a few years ago. Once at the event, I attended a sales and marketing class for which I was quite excited about (I always am with such a subject ) and this particular class was focused on teaching the audience about social media and all of its wonderful tools for businesses.

But within 5 minutes of the class I realized we were all in for a long 90 minutes. You see, although the lady that was teaching the class was wonderfully kind and had really put a lot of effort into preparation, she was suffering from a serious case of what I refer to as:

PowerPointitis

To make a long story short, she had so many stinking subjects to go over, so many slides to get through, that she simply was overloading her listeners. Most of the business owners that were in this class were just starting to get a feel for Social Media. Not only was this lady determined to get them through kindergarten, but she was also dead-set on turning these people into MBAs on social media in an impossibly short time.

Too Much

With each new Twitter, Fickr, or Facebook Fan Page that was mentioned, I’d see 3 or 4 hands shoot up around the class. But instead of stopping and taking the time to answer everyone’s questions, she simply said she needed to get through a few more slides first. This poor teacher was just hell-bent on getting through her slides, hook or crook. This was absolutely painful for me to watch as almost every member of the audience slowly was lost in a morph of new phrases as the speaker attempted to shove 10 lbs of crap in a 5lb bag.

But the example of this class is little different than many classes and seminars I’ve witnessed over the past few years. More and more, seminars and presentations are becoming a PowerPoint marathon. Speakers and presenters simply tell the class exactly what everyone is seeing on the screen. Creativity suffers. Audience discussion is stifled. Inspiration is practically non-existent.

Anyone who is giving a PowerPoint presentation must remember the following:

PowerPoint is a guide, not a magazine. Anyone can read a magazine.

Why speakers and presenters feel like every word and thought of their presentation needs to be on a slide is absolutely beyond me. It really makes no sense at all as it is contradictory to every aspect of a great audience-speaker relationship.

So in an effort to prevent further abuse of this great technology, here are 5 suggestions for anyone considering PowerPoint in your next presentation. If you watch the video by the great Wayne Dyer above, you’ll see what I feel is a perfect example of using PowerPoint-like (I know, it’s not the same but you can get the idea) visual aids as a guide, and not as a magazine.

Timing: Never plan a presentation with the ‘hope’ that you’ll be able to get through all your slides. If this is a concern, I can promise you that you’ve gotten off track and attempted to do too much with your audience’s time. A great rule of thumb is that you should always leave the final 10% (at least) of your time for audience questions and comments.

Few Words: As mentioned, Powerpoint is a guide, not a magazine. Words on a slide are simply there to promote the fluidity of the presentation and encapsulate a thought. A header with a few bullet points is fine, but for the love of Pete please do not add long sentences and paragraphs to your presentation.

Photos are Great: A powerful photo, combined with excellent discourse from a speaker can lead to great audience participation and moving discussion. In fact, I’m a strong believe in the idea that more pictures/photos should be used than words in a PowerPoint presentation.

Fancy is by No Means Imperative: Some presenters spend incredible amounts of time addressing font, colors, graphics, etc with the PowerPoint presentations. Frankly, this is a waste of time. Audiences don’t remember, nor do they really care, that you are great at making words look pretty. What they remember are the feelings and inspirations received upon participating in a powerful speaking, listening, and sharing environment.

Less is More: I’ve seen many speakers average a new slide ever 15-60 seconds in a presentation. This is nuts. I have found that the best presenters utilize a new slide, at least as a general rule of thumb, every 1-5 minutes.

So there are 5 thoughts for your next PowerPoint presentation. I want to close by reemphasizing the need we have as speakers and presenters to have confidence in our skills and a belief in our abilities to form incredible relationships with our audience. The greatest orators of all time are not known for their PowerPoint slides, and nor should you be. So trust your abilities and allow your next presentation to be benefitted by the perfect integration of PowerPoint’s guidance along with your communication excellence.

Questions or comments about PowerPoint? What have been your experiences with such presentations? As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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