How to make (and use) Visual Aids for Presentations

Besides, YOU should care!

• Any careers involving marketing, communications, social media, politics, business, science, or technology may ALL require you to present at some point, to:
• Customers, reporters, government officials, local leaders, clients, academics, professors, bosses, etc.

Are they necessary?
Image source

Not convinced? Watch this short video and see how he effectively uses his visuals.

Are they necessary?

How do you decide?

• It depends on:
• Your content
• Your audience
• The requirements of your boss/teacher
• Your genre
• The resources available
• How you want to be viewed/ judged

Types of Visual Aids

Guidelines for Visual Aids

• Prepare it in advance
• Keep them simple
• Make sure they are large enough
• Easy to read (no goofy fonts)
• Limit number of words
• Use color

Types of Visual Aids

Guidelines for Presenting Visual Aids

• Avoid using the chalkboard
• Display aids where audience can see them
• Avoid passing items around
• Display aids only when discussing them
• Talk to audience, not to visual aid
• Explain all visual aids
• PRACTICE with visual aids

Let’s focus on slideshows for a bit.

• Though most people agree that props and other kinds of visuals are great, slideshows still dominate much of the presenting in the Western World.
• This is especially true for students, who might not be able to afford or create more extravagant options.

*Note: I am going to use the term “slideshow”, but you can use any software you want – MS PowerPoint, Google Slides, Prezi, Apple Keynote, or something else completely! 

There are three main philosophies for how we should make/use slideshows: