The better you come prepared the better results you get in slides design. The very act of putting the presentation together is and should be the last step. Unfortunately many people have bad habit of starting the work with opening Power Point or Keynote only to fail miserably as they have not thought of structure, visual codes and the audience first. Sometimes they even come up with a pretty decent presentation that fails to deliver and communicate the messages they intended to. Why? Because they design for themselves and that is the road to nowhere. I never design for myself. I always follow those 5 steps to design better slides and schedule my work.

1. by Espresso 1882
5 steps to design great slides and
stop wasting time in the process
5 best beans blog

2. do your research well1
Your communication is effective only when you know the people you communicate to. Surely it is not
possible to be friends with everyone in your audience but at least do some good research on who they
are, what they dream about, what they aspire to, what stories they resonate with. Do your research
well as this is the foundation of great communication.
MY TIP Use internet, Google Trends and Twitter to learn more about your audience. CLICK TO TWEET

3. think of story and structure2
Once you have researched your audience, it is best to think of the story and the structure. How to
start – questions, quote or statistics are great ways. What blocks does you story consists of? Try the
different options with clear structure our mid-brain and neo-cortex love so much. The more
emotional the story and the more twists of action it contains, the better.
MY TIP Best presentations are based on strong opposites – try dark scenario and good one. CLICK TO TWEETMY TIP

4. choose the style that fits best3
MY TIP
Your story is great – now think of the visual style that would fit best. Minimalistic and elegant or
maybe vibrant and colourful like the 50s press ads. Whatever your decision is, always bare in mind
that you are designing for your audience and not for yourself. You may hate the manga anime style,
but if your audience loves it, it’s wise to use it.
Look for inspiration in everyday life. Magazines and art are great source of inspiration. CLICK TO TWEETMY TIP

5. gather resources you will need4
You know your audience, you have story they surely will resonate with, now it is time to gather
resources you will need. I’m talking pictures, icons, fonts that suit your chosen design style best,
quotes and all statistics that support your idea. Gather all the resources handy to make it easy to
design slides in no time at all.
MY TIP Try creating folders for all the necessary resources you’ll need with your presentation. CLICK TO TWEETMY TIP

6. design the actual slides5
MY TIP
You have the story with the structure, all the resources kept handy, now it is time to start designing
the slides. Remember that the structure comes first and make sure to use one idea per one slide.
Be consistent with your chosen style and make sure to test if the story is clear.
Do the template slides first to make it easier and faster to follow the style guide. CLICK TO TWEETMY TIP

7. 5 steps to designing great slides and
stop wasting time in the process
Those were
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by Espresso 1882
5 best beans blog

8. PHOT0 CREDITS
Photo Credit: Thomas Leuthard via Compfight cc
Photo Credit: the bbp via Compfight cc
Photo Credit: By Ariana Prestes
Photo Credit: By Luke Chesser

9. 5 steps to designing great slides
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
do your research well
think of story and structure
choose the style that fits best
gather resources you will need
design the actual slides