PowerPoint Presentations: Top 3 things that annoy audiences most
According to a survey conducted in 2015 by Dave Paradi of Think Outside The Slide, the top 3 things that annoy audiences most about PowerPoint presentations are:
1. Speaker reads the slides
2. Full sentences instead of bullet points
3. Text too small
If you look at these 3 reasons they all point to the same issue – lack of preparation by the speaker!
If the speaker knew their topic they would show a few key words on each slide, could therefore increase font size and would not need to read from the slides.
Remember that slides are not there to replace you!
Don’t let your PowerPoint take centre stage – your slides are used as a visual aid to enhance your message / presentation not actually be your presentation.
Garr Reynolds in his book Zen Presentations recommends using 7 words per slide, not per line, per slide! That might sound a bit extreme but it is definitely worth thinking about …..
Bonus Tip: 36.9% of people surveyed above also found that visuals were too complex.
“As presenters move to use visuals, they need to make sure that those visuals are clear and easy to understand, an issue many audiences members are highlighting in this survey.” ~ Dave Paradi, Think Outside The Slide
If you have to use charts or graphs in your presentation make sure they are easy to read / understand. Use straightforward charts – bar, line or pie tend to be the simplest – and try not to include too much data in them. Remember people at the back of the room need to see the slides too!
Be clear!
Clear on your message, clear on your slides, and clear on your delivery.
“Audiences don’t expect to have to figure out the message of the presentation. The presenter should be the one to consider the needs of the audience and tailor the presentation of the message just for that group.” ~ Dave Paradi, Think Outside The Slide
If you would like to improve your presentation skills whilst developing your own natural style, you might like to come along to our next full day Presentation Skills Masterclass – click here for full details.
