PowerPoint presentation is a creative tool to discuss academic writings with the audience. The use of PowerPoint slides as visual aids enhance educational standards. Hence, no one is unaware of the role of PowerPoint presentations in the learning process.

An engaging PowerPoint presentation aims to attract the audience. But most of the time, undergraduate students fail to do this. The reason for this is that they don’t know how to make an engaging PowerPoint presentation on Microsoft PowerPoint. This article will sum up ten steps that can help a student in making his presentation engaging.

10 Steps to Make an Engaging PowerPoint presentation

Students often add keywords ‘tips for making impressive PPTs’ on google search engines. All students have to make engaging PowerPoint presentations during their coursework. To get appreciation from the teachers, they want to ensure engaging activities. In light of this curiosity, the following ten steps will help. They will make the PowerPoint presentation more engaging for the audience.

Step 1: Add pointers on the slide

Many students think that adding too many details on the slides can help them. This is in regards to their final presentation. Some students add full notes on the slides and complete their presentations by reading them.

On one hand, this is convenient for students. But this practice decreases audience engagement towards the findings as well. So a helpful tip to make the presentation engaging is to add pointers relevant to the topic. This can be done at the top of a slide. As an example, consider the following image;

Step 2: Chose easy read font

The second step in making a PowerPoint presentation engaging is the wise selection of the font. Again, an engaging PowerPoint Presentation aims to spread knowledge. Hence, to complete this aim, the selection of font is very important. In Microsoft PowerPoint, you have the option to select any font from the home ribbon.

Among the list of fonts, few are easy to read. Whereas others are not. Here, the presenter has to select a font that is easy to read. The following diagram presents some common writing fonts. These can give ideas for selecting the correct one;

Step 3: Avoid using too small a font size

After selecting the font style, the font size is also an important step. Because it helps in the engagement factor of a presentation. After making the whole presentation, try to read it from a one-mile distance. If it is reader-friendly, you should select it.

If not, you replace to change it with a bigger one. Take for example the following diagram, try to read all fonts. Then select the most convenient one.

Step 4: Use sharp contrasting colors

According to a dissertation help firm, if you want to add text to the pictures, the color scheme is very important. This is because it makes the slides attractive. You can use sharp contrasting colors schemes to increase visualization of the content within slides.

Take the example of writing with grey color on a white background. This will make it difficult to read. So using a light color on the dark background and vice versa can solve the problem. The following image shows how contrasting colors enhance the readability of PowerPoint content;

Step 5: Pay attention to the quality of the words

For the engaging PowerPoint presentations, you need to give only a pointer. This is so that the audience can concentrate on the speaking aspect.

You should never avoid quality assurance before finalizing the presentation. The spelling mistakes and quality of words make the content of the slide unprofessional. Try to use precise wordings because, during the presentation, you need to discuss each point in detail.

Step 6: Avoid adding screenshots of your work

Adding too many monotonous screenshots can make the PowerPoint presentation boring. Hence, adding screenshots is a bad practice. Instead of using screenshots, you can use SmartArt to make your slides eye-catching. Such Screenshots from research papers often contain lengthy details with no eye-catching colors. This can result in the distraction of the reader’s attention as well.

Step 7: Try to include visual aids within slides

Instead of using screenshots in the engaging PowerPoint presentation, you can add animations. The emoji are showcasing feelings regarding a specific point can attract the reader’s attention.

In addition, you can also use graphs, and tables to make the presentation engaging. Avoid adding pictures that contain watermarks, or other unnecessary details. These give off a bad impression in general.

Step 8: Add speaking notes

Adding speaking notes at the end of the slide does not only facilitate the presenter. It also helps the reader in understanding your point. Sometimes, someone from the audience requests you to send him/her the presentation. In such a case, speaking notes help the other reader understand the presentation even in your absence.

Another important thing that can help you in making the presentation engaging is adding footnotes. Footnotes also aim to give detailed information about pointers, or graphs within the slides.

Step 9: Avoid adding blurry images in your slides

Even at the international level, some students add blurry images to their slides. The clarity of the images, graphs, and tables in a PowerPoint Presentation is highly crucial. Good formatting details often help the presenter in getting better grades.

Step 10: Select designs that reflect the nature of the topic

The tenth step to make a presentation engaging is ensuring the design of the slides. The design of a presentation must reflect the central idea of the content. This practice helps in the enhancement of a reader’s engagement levels. The Colour, design, and background of the slides are tools to attract the readers. This attraction will bring them towards your point of discussion.

Extra tips for developing an engaging PowerPoint presentation

Apart from the different steps, you can these extra tips to make your presentation engaging;

• You can use animation.
• You can download themes for the engaging PowerPoint Presentation.
• You should avoid too many flashy transitions for the
• Try to sum up your topic into a few slides.
• Arrange a mock presentation This can be managed with friends before you give the final presentation.
• Do not read text directly from the slides.
• Try to explain every single point of your slides.