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title: PowerPoint Slide Decks Explained date: 2024-01-01 cover: 1.jpg author: tutsplus.com tags:

• Presentation Tips

PowerPoint slide decks are crucial to adding support to your speaking points. Learn to use them and build them easily with templates in this tutorial (with slide deck examples).

And don’t forget to prepare those speaking aids or slides! Having a visual to go along with your slide deck presentation is usually expected by an audience. That’s why we use Microsoft PowerPoint to build out slide decks easily. You can use a PowerPoint slide deck template from Envato Elements to build one quickly. We’ll learn how to do just that in this tutorial.

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Now, let’s dive into learning how to build PowerPoint slide decks.

About PowerPoint Slide Decks (Video)

Are you looking for the definition of a PowerPoint slide deck? Well, you’ve come to the right place. The video below explains everything you need to know about slide decks and pitch decks—including handy tips to make your next slide deck presentation better.

Jump to content in this section:

• What Is a PowerPoint Slide Deck?
• What Is a PowerPoint PPT Slide?
• 5 Quick Tips for Making Better PowerPoint Slide Decks
• What Types of Presentation Can You Give?
• How to Build a Slide Deck Quickly
• Top 5 Design Trends For PowerPoint Slide Decks In 2024
• Common Microsoft PowerPoint Questions Answered (FAQ)

Keep reading to learn even more about PowerPoint slide decks.

What Is a PowerPoint Slide Deck?

A PowerPoint slide deck is a collection of slides that are in the same presentation. You’ll hear “slide deck” used somewhat interchangeably with “presentation.” Like a deck of cards, each slide is a key part of the overall package.

“Slide deck” and “presentation” are sometimes used interchangeably. For example, you’ll frequently see the term “deck” used when it comes to pitching your company or startup.

Presentations can be supported with a slide deck. You’ll approach building that PowerPoint deck differently based on the type of slide deck presentation. But the fact remains that slides are a helpful supporting tool when presenting.

Save lots of time and make a great visual slide deck presentation by using a professional PowerPoint slide deck design from Envato Elements.

PowerPoint has a bad reputation for being a tool that presenters lean on. While your slides should aid your presentation, they shouldn’t contain every word you say. It should be used as a tool to enhance your presentation.

What Is a PowerPoint PPT Slide?

If a slide deck is a collection of slides, then what is a PPT slide? Slide decks are made up of individual slides. Each slide brings something new to the table. A collection of slides comes together to build a successful PowerPoint presentation.

Think of a slide as an individual card in a deck. No matter what card game you’re playing, every card has a role. You can’t win a hand of poker or rummy without bringing many cards together. And you can’t build a successful slide deck presentation with an individual PPT slide.

5 Quick Tips for Making Better PowerPoint Slide Decks

To help you build an engaging slide deck presentation we have outlined five quick tips that you can put in place:

1. Reduce the Content on Each Slide

Less is more when it comes to presentations. Start by opening up the slide deck and then find ways to reduce the content by half. That could mean removing entire slides, reducing the number of text bullet points, or removing multimedia from each slide.

We’ve got the tendency to overcrowd slide decks with content. We often write a presentation while preparing the slide deck at the same time. In doing so, we run the risk of using the presentation file as an overcrowded note pad.

A PowerPoint slide deck should only be the most important points of the presentation. Why show the points that you’ll be speaking aloud in writing as well? There’s no need for redundancy.

2. Build Each Slide in Phased Introductions

When you cut to a new slide, it can be a mistake to show everything at once. The same idea as the prior tip applies: the less you show, the better chance that your audience has of actually digesting the information.

Cutting to a slide with everything already showing is the fastest way to lose the audience’s attention. As soon as you cut to a slide that has a wall of text, you’ll lose the audience’s attention.

To build your slides, introduce them in stages. You can use PowerPoint animations to bring parts of the slide in stages. Instead of showing the entire slide contents, try phasing in various parts of it using animations. Don’t show an entire text box. Instead, bring each bullet point on with a single mouse click. This will help to hold the audience’s attention.

3. Content First, Style Later

When you’re preparing a slide deck, the content of the presentation is your number one priority. Instead of starting off in PowerPoint, start off with pen and paper. Write the content and structure of the PowerPoint presentation deck first. Then you can add the supportive visuals and slides.

There’s plenty more to learn when it comes to building supportive PowerPoint presentation decks.

4. Use Illustrations & Graphics to Explain

You can explain everything in text boxes, but your audience is sure to zone out and lose focus quickly. Instead, it helps to use charts and graphs that can help you translate ideas into graphics.

5. Let the Conversation Continue

A slide deck presentation is a chance to grab an audience’s attention. The last thing you want to do is let the presentation be the last point of contact with your audience. That’s why I always recommend that your presentation include a contact or follow-up slide.

What Types of Presentation Can You Give?

Every presentation is different. There are many types of presentations that you can give to make an impact on an audience. Here are the categories that I tend to think of presentations as spanning:

• Persuasive. Presentations that are designed to change the mind of the audience.
• Decision-driven. The purpose of these presentations are to provide a recommendation or path forward in a situation or project.
• Introductory. An introductory presentation is designed to be the first point of contact. This showcases your business and work to potential clientele.
• Informative (educational). Informative presentations are really geared around showing knowledge or new ideas to an audience.

Before you even open PowerPoint, you should understand what type of presentation that you’re giving. This will help smooth out the writing process and give you a clear goal to aim for.

How to Build a Slide Deck Quickly

For any creative project, you can cut many hours out of your work if you avoid recreating the wheel. In other words, don’t build slides from scratch. Use a presentation deck template from Envato Elements to get a head start.

Best of all: you can customize these presentation deck templates in five quick steps. Let’s learn how.

1. Pick Out Slides to Edit

Think about how to make a slide deck support your message. Remember, slides are a visual aid, not a presentation by themselves. Choose only slides that support what you’re already discussing.

2. Add Custom Text

Custom text is a key part of how to create a slide deck fast. Templates like this have text placeholders already built-in. To edit, click and drag to highlight any block of text.

3. Add Images

One of the best ways to build an illustrated deck is to use image placeholders. Simply browse to an image stored on your computer. Drag it over the placeholder and drop it into place.

4. Change Object Colors

Changing object colors on your presentation deck has several advantages. It lets you add contrast or share your brand’s special colors. Click on any object to get started.

5. Delete Unwanted Objects

Pre-built presentation decks include all kinds of content. But keep in mind, you don’t have to use all of it! To build cleaner slides, you can click on images, text boxes, and other items to select them. Then, press Delete on your keyboard.

Top 5 Design Trends For PowerPoint Slide Decks In 2024

It’s important to present modern designs in your PowerPoint slide decks. This will give your presentation the best possible chance of succeeding. To help you stay on top of modern design trends, we’ve got a list of the top five design trends of 2024:

1. Add Space

Add space around the different elements on your slides is an excellent way to add a modern feel. To help create this modern look, try to reduce the number of elements on your slides.

2. Layer, Layer, & Layer

Layering your presentation deck designs will give your slides a more professional look. Layering the different elements on your slides will add a sense of depth.

3. Use Simple Fonts

Simple and easy-to-read fonts will instantly give your presentation deck a modern feel. Sans Serif type fonts are going to give your slides a clean look.

4. Include High Quality Images

Including high-quality images is a must if you want to feature a modern-looking design. Lean towards bigger image sizes on your slides.

5. Use a Simple Color Scheme

Simple color schemes work best for presentation decks. Picking two or three colors is plenty to deliver a trendy looking presentation.

Common Microsoft PowerPoint Questions Answered (FAQ)

Do you have questions about Microsoft PowerPoint? Below, we’ve collected five of the most frequently asked questions and provided answers to them:

1. Can You Print Your Presentations?

Yes, you can! PowerPoint supports the printing of all your presentations. This makes it easy to distribute your presentation if you need to.

2. How Can I Be Engaging and Effective With PowerPoint?

PowerPoint can be quite intimidating if you’re new to the software. But don’t worry! As long as you’ve got a professional template, all you need to do is add your content to the placeholders.

3. Does the Quality of My Template Really Matter?

Absolutely! When you use a low-quality template, your presentation will be much less impactful.

4. Where Should You Start?

Starting a presentation deck from scratch or even with a template can seem like a daunting task. The number one priority when starting a presentation deck is the content.

5. How Do You Change PowerPoint Templates?

Using PowerPoint templates are a must if you aren’t a professional designer. Thankfully, it’s very easy to switch in and out of PowerPoint templates.