Microsoft PowerPoint Basics –

By Saif Khan

What is PowerPoint?
Slides and their Elements
PowerPoint Windows
Fonts and Styles
Design and Development
PowerPoint Tips and Tricks
Style, Size, and Design
Adding Video or Gifs to the Presentations
Charts, and Graphs
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Basic of Elements of a Slide

A slide contains various elements, such as title, subtitle, drawing objects, and clipart or
pictures.
1. Title: Refers to the heading of the slide. The title element provides a basic idea
about the topic and content of the presentation.
2. Subtitle: Refers to the description of the slide data. It also emphasizes the
central idea of the slide.
3. Drawing objects: Refer to the various built-in shapes. These include auto
shapes such as curves, lines, and WordArt.
4. Clipart or pictures: Refer to the graphical objects that help in enhancing the
appearance of a slide. The Open Office suite provides built-in pictures in its picture
gallery.

Elements of a PowerPoint Window

The PowerPoint window contains many elements that are similar to other Microsoft
Office programs. These elements include the Office button, Quick Access toolbar, Title
bar, Tabs, scroll bars and a Status bar.

Quick access toolbar contains buttons for commonly-used commands.

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Title bar indicates the software, the name of the presentation that is open, minimize,
maximize, and close buttons.

Tabs contain commands that are pided into related tasks called groups.

Ribbon is the area containing the tabs.

Outline/Slides tab displays the presentation text in the form of an outline. Outline tab is
used to organize and develop the content of your presentation. This tab enables you to
move slides and text by dragging selected material. Slide tab displays the slides of your
presentation as small images. This view allows easy navigation through slides.

Slide pane contains the current slide in your presentation. You can use the vertical
scroll bar to view other slides in the presentation.

Notes pane is located below the slide pane and is used to type reference notes. The
notes can be printed, then referenced when making the presentation.

View area is located at the right hand bottom of the screen. It contains buttons that
allow the ability to switch between PowerPoint views. The first view button allows you to
view slides in normal view, the second is called the slide sorter view, the third is called
the reader view and the fourth is called the slide show view. This area also contains the
zoom feature.

Status bar is located at the bottom of the PowerPoint window, it shows messages and
information about the view, such as the slide number and the current theme template
used.

PowerPoint tips and tricks

1. Know your audience
Before you begin preparing a PowerPoint presentation, consider your audience. You
should tailor your presentation format and message based on what your audience might
already know about the subject matter and how much it could engage them.
For example, if you’re presenting to a group of professionals in your field, you can
discuss or explain the topic in detail. However, if they have little to no knowledge of the
topic, you should keep your presentation simple and straightforward.
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2. Use more images and less text

Too much text on your PowerPoint slides could distract from your presentation. Instead,
utilize relevant images with minimal text to encourage your audience to listen. You can
use photos you have taken, PowerPoint’s visual database or images from open sources
online.
3. Keep it clear and concise
Your presentation should only include the necessary topics to keep interest and
engagement high. Your slides should contain simple, clear information and take only a
few minutes per slide to review.
Consider using bullet points for essential information and expand on these points only
while presenting rather than writing long paragraphs and reading word for word. Bullet
points not only provide your audience with key points but also give you speaking cues if
you need assistance.
Alternatively, you can display one sentence at a time and one slide per sentence, but
each should be kept concise. Simple and short messages are easier for presenters to
memorize and the audience to digest.
4. Use color carefully
Colors could have a huge impact on the appearance of your PowerPoint presentation.
Choose color combinations that can help you in delivering both the emotional impact
and contextual detail in each slide. Colors should support your message clearly,
succinctly and intuitively.
By using analogous colors (those adjacent on the color wheel, such as red and orange)
and complementary colors (those opposite on the color wheel, such as red and green
or yellow and purple), you can help convey the meaning behind your message. For
example, green can be associated with nature or wealth, while red calls for attention.
5. Choose the right font style and size
To make your slides look professional, use sans serif fonts like Verdana, Tahoma,
Helvetica and Arial for headers. Serif fonts, such as Palatino, Courier, New Century
Schoolbook and Times New Roman, are ideal body text fonts and can make slides
easier to read.
For presentations in which you’ll be in a larger room or working with a bigger audience,
make sure to use a larger font size that everyone can read. If possible, test your
PowerPoint presentation on the screen you’ll be using to present to determine what size
font is best.
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6. Be consistent with your design

You should have a consistent visual theme throughout your PowerPoint presentation.
Keeping the design and theme consistent allows your message and images to stand
out.
Instead of using the stock templates that come with PowerPoint, you can create your
own template designs that you can tailor to your needs. You can also find templates
online that may suit your needs.
7. Embed attention-grabbing video or audio
When appropriate, include video and audio on your slides. Using video clips to show
examples encourages cognitive learning, which is the natural way a person processes
information.
You can use video clips within your presentation without ever leaving the PowerPoint
application. Embedding a video clip not only will illustrate your message better, but also
serve as a change of pace to potentially increase your audience’s attention. You can
also use audio clips, such as interviews.
8. Use transitions and builds sparingly
Object builds, also known as animations, should only be used two to three times and
not on every slide. A simple “Wipe Left-to-Right” animation is suitable for a bullet point.
For transitions between slides, use a maximum of two to three different types of
transition effects.
9. Use appropriate charts and graphs to present data
If you’re presenting a lot of data and you want to display the information it’s related to,
use visual tools like graphs or charts to make it more appealing. These can be a
timesaving technique in addition to helping your audience interpret information quickly.
References:

Indeed Editorial Team. (2021, September 22). 9 PowerPoint Tips and Tricks for 2021.

Indeed Career Guide.

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/careerdevelopment/powerpoint-tips-and-

tricks
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What are the basic elements of a slide? (2020, June 8). Sarthaks EConnect | Largest

Online Education Community. https://www.sarthaks.com/798696/what-are-

thebasic-elements-of-a-slide

B. (2013b, July 24). Getting to Know PowerPoint – Presentation Software. Pressbooks.

https://opentextbc.ca/learningpowerpoint/chapter/getting-to-know-powerpoint/