How To Create Engaging Presentations For Your Online Meetings

Winning over an audience is one of the chief qualities of a successful PowerPoint presentation. With the advent of technologies, online meetings have become a new normal. Moreover, the current COVID-19 has made more companies than ever work remotely. Today, you can pitch your idea or do a business presentation with a stakeholder sitting two time zones away. Be it virtual meetings, webinars, lectures or seminars, your PowerPoint really needs to stand out for several reasons. For instance, your audience is not present in front of you, the physical touch which binds the people together is not there. In other words, getting hold of your audience’s attention becomes difficult while you’re presenting online, there is a high chance of distraction. Taking the proper steps you can greatly elevate your presence in virtual meetings.

While giving an online presentation, the focus shifts dramatically to the slideshow. Since your audience can’t see you, the words you use, the content in slides and the presentation as a whole becomes much more imperative. Unlike in-person presentations, designing a presentation for your online endeavors require additional technical & visual supplements. Everything matters from colors, slide background, visuals to the number of words in a slide. It all has to be chosen carefully and according to your audience type or buyer persona, so that information overload can be prevented. There are many factors to consider while creating a PowerPoint presentation for a remote audience. Let’s move ahead and discuss ways through which you can ace your next virtual meeting.

Keep It Simple

Keeping your PowerPoint slides simple is one of the most effective strategies out there. By keeping your slides short, you can effectively develop a strong PowerPoint presentation for business communications. One should never forget that your customer is your audience and right now, he or she is remotely connected with you. This tangible connection can be improved if your presentation is visually appealing, relevant and engaging. Your slides should be clear, concise and understandable. Your product is your message, never forget that. Rather than stuffing slides with senseless clutter, you should keep concise & relevant information only. You will be there presenting the facts, your presentation just needs to back your points and not the other way around. It is the simplicity of your presentation which will help you get your point across the audience. Sticking to designs which match your company’s branding can be beneficial as well since it provides consistency in your slides.

Say Yes To Business Templates

While creating a presentation for your upcoming online meeting, using ready made slide deck templates can be a game-changer for you. A dedicated template will provide professional graphic design, branding, consistency and ease of formatting to your presentation. You can create a presentation in a matter of minutes. The templates are created by design experts and cater to professional design principles too. The right template will reduce the slide space since pointless design elements won’t be present. Ready to use PowerPoint templates offer a never seen before design. You can even edit the templates on the move. Add or remove visuals, graphs, charts for a better understanding of your viewers. The right template will help you bind the attention of your audience to the presentation until the end.

Use A Professional Background

If your slide has a background that doesn’t resonate with the information and main points present, the message you are trying to convey through your presentation can be lost. While creating a presentation for online meetings, people generally focus on the center of attention of a slide the most, that is the content. They completely forget about the background. If the background is cluttered or has a color which doesn’t go with the content, it can be devastating for your PowerPoint. However, this doesn’t mean that background is the main element of your slide. You should keep a background which supports the center of attention, that is the main presentation point. It should complement the content and will help your audience focus more on the content instead. Look for professional backgrounds utilizing advanced business graphics tools to keep a clean appeal for your presentation. When important points are highlighted directly or indirectly, the probability of distraction reduces.

Make Numbers Attractive

Nobody likes to read off random numbers from a slide. In case of an online presentation, these facts hold severity. Backing up your facts and figures with relevant tables, charts and graphs can do wonders for your presentation. You can transform your information into being more stronger and impactful. When you present numbers through charts and graphs, you attain an amazing visual appeal in your slides, thus business information can be presented to the target audience in a great manner. Graphs, diagrams and charts help you present information in a consistent and compact style as well. Always remember that at the end of your presentation, your audience is likely to draw some conclusion, if your data is readable and understandable, the outcome will be positive. You can only assess the subject matter when you can compare & contrast in the data.

Emphasize Key Points

While creating a presentation for your online meeting, you should not forget to emphasize the key points in your slides. Always stay connected to your message. Highlighting the slides where the main information, keywords and visuals are present is important for pin-pointing attention of your audience. Moreover, as you reach the end of the presentation, you should consider creating a slide which might feature the main findings, conclusions or repeat your message. This helps your audience retain most of your presentation and go home with key takeaways. This is very important if you’re trying to initiate a call to action with your stakeholders, investors or executives. Structuring of the presentation should be done in such a way that it feels like a story to the audience.

At the end of the day, your online meeting can only be successful if your audience is engaged. It is important to increase the interaction wherever possible, be it in-presentation polls, Q&A’s, feedback etc. The moment your presentation begins, connection, collaboration and conversation should pave their way in.

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