How to make a presentation: nuances, tips, subtleties

Today, only people from the last wild tribes of the Amazon have not heard of the presentations. But they are unlikely to be upset by this, as well as by the lack of a smartphone or McDonald’s in their lives. But you and I, in a civilized society, cannot do without presentations. We use them absolutely everywhere: from school to fateful meetings of TOP managers. Knowing how to create a presentation is a strong skill. And to help you master it, we have collected in this article all the most useful and relevant tips with examples and real stories from a practicing designer at Veonix. This material will be enough for you to create an excellent, stylish presentation and convey to the audience what you are planning. Don't forget to screenshot the most important things!

What is a presentation

A presentation is a tool in the form of a document designed to introduce a product, company or project. It is created with the goal of conveying the desired idea to the audience using a set of elements:

• text;
• animations;
• graphics;
• video;
• music.

These elements (not necessarily all) are brought together through a thoughtful script and structure.    

Types of presentations

The type of presentation cannot be chosen using a nursery rhyme or tossing a coin. It depends on many factors:

• goal;
• source material;
• media (where and in what format it will be shown).

The designer’s task is to tell the client which format is better to choose, web or printed, square or screen-sized. After all, we know for sure that:

• Wide pictures cannot be inserted into square slides;
• A4 (horizontal sheet) holds a certain amount of text;
• A3 (vertical sheet) - a large field, there is room to roam.

Decided order a presentation in printed format? Don't forget to decide on the paper: thickness, matte or gloss.

In general, it is most convenient when a studio develops turnkey presentations, as Veonix does (link to main page). We create, print and deliver to any address at a time convenient for you!

Presentation is not always advertising

Depending on the purpose, they are usually divided into three types:

1. advertising;
2. image (information);
3. internal. 

In fact, the essence of the first and second comes down to advertising. Although in the image one it is more veiled.

And only about 20% are internal presentations created for the company's personal use. Most often, they do not contain direct calls to action (call, come, write). 

But in all other cases (be it presentations for negotiations, or sending to clients), there should be 100% feedback, an offer and a clearly visible call to action.

By the way, it’s time to talk in more detail about the “ingredients”.

What does the presentation consist of?

Ideally, any presentation should become a short story, with all the characteristic elements:

• tie;
• main line (culmination);
• denouement.

In simple words, the slides should answer all the audience’s questions: what? Who? how much? Where? 

But this is not a fundamental requirement. 

Presentations are completely different. Some can easily consist solely of photos, without a single word. Only pictures and phone number for contact. And this is often enough to understand why and who to call.

Like here.

This nuance largely depends on the niche. For example, it is important for an interior designer, clothing designer or photographer to show their work. In this case, the text may be redundant. 

Also, in order to understand what elements are needed, you should carefully read the technical specifications (TOR). This is the only way you can understand what this presentation is about. Study the text, delve into the essence and details. 

Otherwise, you can make serious mistakes. Believe me!

Just imagine: you need to create a design about karate. You open the first images from a search engine and stumble upon taekwondo, unaware that these are completely different types of martial arts. For you there is no difference, but for those who are in the know - a red rag for the bull. 

The work is a breeze.

Unfortunately, many designers read technical specifications carelessly. Although everything is often written out there in great detail, just take it and do it.

But this story is definitely not about us! Marketers and designers Veonix  treat every order with 100% attention and professionalism.

Presentation design rules

In fact, no matter how many “expert” articles you see on the Internet on this topic, know: there are no rules. But what's stopping you from inventing your own? 

If you have to make presentations from time to time, you should develop your own step-by-step algorithm. When you know what to do, it’s easier to get ready to work. 

Alternatively:

Step #1. Study the brief. Get to the bottom of it, get the idea.

Step #2. Create a draft. Scatter information across slides. No fonts or photos. At this stage, it will become clear how much space the text will take up on each slide.

Step #3. Start designing. Choose fonts and colors. Look at the references, outline a couple of examples for inspiration (at the end of the article there is a bonus for the most persistent: we’ll tell you where and what to get inspired by).

Step #4. Select photos that are as close to the topic as possible.  

Step #5: Put your slides together. Make adjustments.

Let us repeat, there are no strict rules in design, there are only recommendations. Moreover, there is no framework at the legal level. Well, where have you seen a law that would limit the number of photos on one slide? 

There is no law. Another question is how beautiful and professional is it?

It is unlikely that anyone will like this kind of work.

But this is really nothing

Design challenges

It can be difficult to translate many ideas and disparate wishes of the customer into a single project. 

Let's imagine: a company producing clay pots decided order a presentation. From the source material there are only terrible photographs of the work process, in which dirty workers are working in the basement. 

And they ask that all this “beauty” be depicted in a luxury style, painted with gold monograms and other premium elements! 

This is where your brain starts to boil: how can all this be put together into one harmonious bunch?

An even more typical situation: a million data has already been stuck on the slide and at the same time they are asking to add graphics there. They just don’t say - how? 

It is in moments like these, when a designer is expected to perform a miracle, that he begins to experience a creative block.  

But this story is absolutely real. They ordered a business card from the designer with a painting by Salvador Dali. But the size of the painting did not fit into the format. They explain to the client that the business card will either have to be cut or stretched. To which he says, without any embarrassment: “You don’t need to trim anything. Just finish the picture. You’re a designer, aren’t you?” 

Misunderstandings with clients arise, most often, due to the fact that they cannot clearly explain what they want. But under such conditions it is not always possible to please. 

The task is made much easier when the content is well written and there is a clear technical specification and brief. Then the clients are full and the designers are safe! 

Watch out, music

Musical accompaniment is very important. But the choice must be approached carefully. Incorrectly selected music can take the audience's mood in a completely different direction than you intended. 

If you decide to insert music, remember - it should be the background, not the main character. And it should sound throughout the entire presentation, and not just at the junction of the slides. 

Sharp sounds, claps, militant drumming - all these are trends from the past. Sounds should not suddenly attract attention!

Choosing appropriate music enhances the perception. We recently illustrated the process of creating a banner. Without music, the video looked boring. And the music turned out very well! 

Just press the button: an advertising banner for the Beeline company from Veonix will appear right before your eyes.

Sticky video, isn't it? But without music it wouldn't be so bright!

How to strengthen a slide

Infographics are a visual display of text. This is a great option to present information more clearly. Give preference to infographics whenever possible. Now you will understand why.

Agree, the difference is cosmic!

And if you can insert a video, that’s just luck! It's much more interesting to watch the movement. The video works especially well when mixed with a monotonous story.  

And again examples, today you can’t live without them! 

A man watches a presentation about the dangers of smoking. The first slides are just a story. And from the second minute a powerful emotional video begins, in which, just as quickly (as with Beeline and me), healthy lungs turn into a coal cake. 

The crawlers will definitely quit smoking! 

The video definitely enhances the impression. It’s not for nothing that this technique is used for car presentations. Photos come first: top, bottom, side. Then the test drive video starts. And if the shooting is carried out from inside the car, and even with musical accompaniment! Mmm... Miracles of immersion happen to the audience! 

Tips for finding images 

It is better to download pictures from special services. There is a lot of free material available now. 

But, if you see that there is a Watermark on the picture, this is a paid photograph. 

Of course, if you want, you can bother and rub it so that a mosquito won’t erode your nose. But this is not entirely environmentally friendly. And frankly, such actions are equivalent to theft. In addition, these photos will still not be of the best quality, and it will take an unforgivably long time to cover your tracks.  

It's easier and faster to buy it. 

There is another way to use a photo you like with a watermark. Download a photo with watermarks. Next, go to Yandex or Google and search by image. A search engine can find this photo on someone’s website without a watermark.

It's possible, but it's not worth it! 

Don't forget about such an important thing as uniqueness. Google Metrics vigilantly monitors copyright compliance for any content posted on the site:

• text;
• pictures;
• music.

In fact, any work from the Internet can be “grabbed” and made unique for the metric:

• change some part;
• apply a mirror image;
• change the angle of inclination.  

Yes, she will be considered different. But any adequate author will immediately recognize his work. 

Alternatively, you can legally use pictures with a link to the author. But for adult projects this is unacceptable. But for schoolchildren - just right! 

Steal like an artist

It is generally accepted that if a designer does not have a single original work, they will not take him seriously. Everyone understands: he simply copied other people’s pictures into his portfolio. 

That's how it is. But in reality, everyone steals. Remember the book "Steal Like an Artist"? Hence the conclusion: even super-cool designers who shout into their bullhorns that everything they have is copyrighted are disingenuous. One way or another, any idea initially appeared from somewhere, even if only in the form of a reference. 

Even if you invent something new for a week and then put it on the Internet, you will see that everything has already been invented before you. 

Alas!

The horrors of plagiarism

Our company has experienced more than one situation when clients disappeared after negotiations, and after a while their new presentation, made according to our templates, appeared on the Internet. 

But not by us. 

Yes, on the one hand, it’s a little offensive, but, on the other hand, it’s even nice to think that there were no better templates than ours! 

Look, maybe you will pick something for yourself. 

And some customers sometimes act completely unethically on freelance sites. The performer is selected on a competitive basis and given the task to draw something. 50+ designers respond, each with their own version, one better than the other! As a result, the customer takes with him fifty free logo ideas, which he then draws, edits and sells to the client for good money.

But karma doesn’t like such tricks, remember this!

Hand-drawn illustrations are a trend

Do you want to make your work truly special, unique and original? Add that very zest? Then use hand-drawn illustrations. 

Need to create a presentation about the office? Coming up with something interesting on this topic is incredibly difficult. But it’s possible!

In this situation we use interesting illustrations:

• vector people passionate about work;
• books, folders, reports;
• office equipment.

This is much more attractive than banal photos of people in the office. Compared to a beautiful illustration, they are clearly inferior. 

How do you like it?

And these are ordinary photos of people on office chairs, boring!

And a little more about the visuals 

There is an opinion that pictures should be placed in the center. In fact, no one forbids putting them in a corner! The main thing is that it looks beautiful, harmonious and meets the requirements of the overall concept. 

There are plenty of such examples in our works.

Photo background: to be or not to be

Some customers ask to make a background from a photograph. It all depends on what it is: if it’s monotonous (sky or sea), then why not?

For example, the advertising sign “Trips to Greece” will look great against the backdrop of the sea. 

But if there are many elements in the photo, this is visual noise! In this case, it needs to be darkened or lightened. Because in a photo of a city with a thousand houses, a million trees and people, no one will be able to read the text! 

In any case: any text in a photograph is less readable than on a plain background. And the text must be readable! 

Online services for creating presentations

If previously such advice was worth its weight in gold, today you can easily cope with the task yourself. In a second you can Google an impressive list for every taste and preference. They are all more or less similar. Here are some examples to save you time:

1. MICROSOFT POWERPOINT
2. APPLE KEYNOTE
3. GOOGLE SLIDES
4. CANVA
5. PIKTOCHART
6. PREZI
7. SLIDES
8. HAIKU DECK
9. POWTOON

Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. Choose based on your goals: some are convenient for creating multi-page works, while others require high-quality infographics and cool animations. 

Where to get inspiration 

It is not always possible to find suitable references in a similar field. Search in the subject, in general and even in the opposite! Without reference to the field of activity, you can find a lot of interesting things. 

If you liked the style of a restaurant, and you need a design for a hardware store, feel free to take note of the idea! It may well suit you. A neat and strict style is not tied to niches! 

Most of the strict designs are generally universal and go with anything. Simple monochromatic styles, like those of Sberbank of Russia, MTS or Gazprom, will 100% suit everything!  

If you haven't checked Pinterest or SlideShare yet

 - the time has come. These are catalogers where authors from all over the world post their images. By the way, on Pinterest you can not only find pictures of interest using key queries, but also save them on your board. 

This information contains years of work and experience in communicating with hundreds of clients. Take the best ideas and implement them into your presentations. You will definitely end up with something masterpiece!

And if you still need professional help, don’t hesitate to call us at: (495) 109 77 65.