PowerPoint Tips Blog

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Use contrast to make your text and colors pop!

I’ve been working on some training about presentations that are accessible to people with sight and hearing challenges and have learned some techniques that I believe everyone can use. One has to do with increasing contrast between the background (of the slide or a shape) and the text. When you do this, your colors become […]

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Practice your speaking skills with PowerPoint’s Presenter Coach

By Ellen Finkelstein

I talk about presentations having 3 components: content, design, and delivery. I probably spend the least time talking about delivery, but it’s important! You can be engaging, lively, and informal. You can also appear wooden, dull, and formal. One of the best techniques to improve your delivery is to practice, but how do you get […]

Why you need a story for your presentations

By Ellen Finkelstein

How do you persuade people to implement your training, buy from you, or approve your proposal? Yes, you need a good “offer,” whether that offer is to help trainees perform better, improve client’s results, or get more done with less money. But a good offer isn’t enough. Lots of research has shown that emotion is […]

Using PowerPoint’s new illustrations

By Ellen Finkelstein

PowerPoint is adding new types of graphics and expanding existing ones. These are all available in Office 365, because they are constantly being updated. One of the most recent additions is called Illustrations. Here are two examples on a slide… They are in grayscale with a pop of yellow but you can: Easily change the […]

Communication skills for online success

By Ellen Finkelstein

This is a guest post by Steve Kosch, a former ABC and CNN anchor (that’s him on the left), and a globally recognized expert communication skills trainer. For 10 more awesome tips to help you “Nail It” in your next presentation, go to mediatrainingnetwork.com If you’re looking to lead a cause or movement, spread your […]

PowerPoint has photos again! And a lot more…

By Ellen Finkelstein

If you have Office 365 — now called Microsoft 365, confusingly — you might have noticed that after several years without photos, they’ve come back! Actually, they aren’t the same photos, but better quality ones. It’s a relief to be able to find photos right within PowerPoint without an add-in. (More about add-ins at the […]

Equipment for Speakers

By Ellen Finkelstein

I’m writing this during the Coronavirus pandemic and I just heard that webcams are on backorder. That’s because so many more people are presenting and attending meetings from home. So I thought I’d list my recommendations for equipment for speakers, including webcam, lighting, screening, mics, and much more. The links are on Amazon. (Note: They […]

Collaborate with others in real time using PowerPoint on the Web

By Ellen Finkelstein

Did you know that you can collaborate with others on a PowerPoint file in real-time using PowerPoint on the Web? (That’s the same thing as PowerPoint Online.) You can do the same in Microsoft Word and Excel, but I’ll focus on PowerPoint, of course. Moreover, because you do this with PowerPoint on the Web, your […]

Presenting remotely: Avoid the 8 deadly sins of webinars

By Ellen Finkelstein

Note: I originally wrote this in 2013 but I’m updating this during the Coronavirus pandemic because more people are presenting online now. Webinars are a powerful way to communicate from afar. They have opened up many possibilities for marketing, meetings, and training. But only if you do webinars right. If you simply show slides with the […]