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Simple Presentation templates

A clean, simple slide design can help you deliver your message straight to your audience without distractions. make good use of these google slides themes and powerpoint templates and create engaging presentations..

Internship Report presentation template

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Internship Report

Download the "Internship Report" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides. The world of business encompasses a lot of things! From reports to customer profiles, from brainstorming sessions to sales—there's always something to do or something to analyze. This customizable design, available for Google Slides and PowerPoint, is what you were...

Qualitative Research Methods - Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Health Behavior and Health Education presentation template

Qualitative Research Methods - Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Health Behavior and Health Education

Download the "Qualitative Research Methods - Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Health Behavior and Health Education" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides. As university curricula increasingly incorporate digital tools and platforms, this template has been designed to integrate with presentation software, online learning management systems, or referencing software, enhancing the...

Tonsillitis Treatment Breakthrough presentation template

Tonsillitis Treatment Breakthrough

Download the "Tonsillitis Treatment Breakthrough" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides.Treating diseases involves a lot of prior research and clinical trials. But whenever there’s a new discovery, a revolutionary finding that opens the door to new treatments, vaccines or ways to prevent illnesses, it’s great news. Should there be a...

Costs and Budgets for Business Growth presentation template

Costs and Budgets for Business Growth

Download the "Costs and Budgets for Business Growth" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides. The world of business encompasses a lot of things! From reports to customer profiles, from brainstorming sessions to sales—there's always something to do or something to analyze. This customizable design, available for Google Slides and PowerPoint,...

Elegant Education Pack for Students presentation template

Elegant Education Pack for Students

The way in which we study has changed drastically in the last year, that's why we need to be more organized than ever. In Slidesgo we want to help your students and have designed this elegant template full of resources for your classes. We added everything you could possibly ask...

How to Find the Antiderivative of Simple Polynomials presentation template

How to Find the Antiderivative of Simple Polynomials

Download the "How to find the antiderivative of simple polynomials" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides and teach with confidence. Sometimes, teachers need a little bit of help, and there's nothing wrong with that. We're glad to lend you a hand! Since Slidesgo is committed to making education better for...

CSR Report presentation template

Download the "CSR Report" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides. The world of business encompasses a lot of things! From reports to customer profiles, from brainstorming sessions to sales—there's always something to do or something to analyze. This customizable design, available for Google Slides and PowerPoint, is what you were...

Retinal Migraine presentation template

Retinal Migraine

Download the "Retinal Migraine" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides. Taking care of yourself and of those around you is key! By learning about various illnesses and how they are spread, people can get a better understanding of them and make informed decisions about eating, exercise, and seeking medical attention....

Architect Infographics presentation template

Architect Infographics

Download the "Architect Infographics" template for PowerPoint or Google Slides to get the most out of infographics. Whether you want to organize your business budget in a table or schematically analyze your sales over the past year, this set of infographic resources will be of great help. Start using infographics...

Minimal Hepatitis Clinical Case presentation template

Minimal Hepatitis Clinical Case

Give your clinical case presentations a modern and elegant touch with this minimalist design with watercolor strokes. We have prepared lots of medical resources so that explaining complicated concepts is very easy for you, and even more easy for your audience to understand. In addition, this template is completely editable,...

Legal Rights and Criminal Records presentation template

Legal Rights and Criminal Records

Download the "Legal Rights and Criminal Records" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides and start impressing your audience with a creative and original design. Slidesgo templates like this one here offer the possibility to convey a concept, idea or topic in a clear, concise and visual way, by using different...

Minimalist Business Slides presentation template

Minimalist Business Slides

Minimalism is an art style that frees the canvas and that lets the content stand out for itself. It’s a way of conveying modernism, simplicity and elegance and can be your best ally in your next presentation. With this new design from Slidesgo, your business presentations will be as professional...

Wind Energy Supplier Pitch Deck presentation template

Wind Energy Supplier Pitch Deck

There are so many reasons to shift to renewable energy: it’s better for the environment, it can also be cheaper to produce, it contributes to making your company carbon neutral… take all of those ideas and present them with a pitch deck like this one. After you’ve added all the...

Elegant Lines Pitch Deck presentation template

Elegant Lines Pitch Deck

Trying to convince some investors or partners to believe in your new project? With the elegance and sobriety of this new template, you won't have problems achieving that. The name says it all: the template contains lines, elegance and the ideal layouts for a presentation. The backgrounds are gray, a...

US Presidents Presentation presentation template

US Presidents Presentation

Download the "US Presidents Presentation" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides and start impressing your audience with a creative and original design. Slidesgo templates like this one here offer the possibility to convey a concept, idea or topic in a clear, concise and visual way, by using different graphic resources....

The Pygmalion Effect in the Classroom presentation template

The Pygmalion Effect in the Classroom

Download the "The Pygmalion Effect in the Classroom" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides and teach with confidence. Sometimes, teachers need a little bit of help, and there's nothing wrong with that. We're glad to lend you a hand! Since Slidesgo is committed to making education better for everyone, we've...

Simple Blackboard Background presentation template

Simple Blackboard Background

Wipe off the chalkboard and get ready to prepare your classes! Write your ideas, draw some doodles and put your thinking cap on with this cool template for Google Slides and PowerPoint.

Elegant Bachelor Thesis presentation template

Elegant Bachelor Thesis

Present your Bachelor Thesis in style with this elegant presentation template. It's simple, minimalist design makes it perfect for any kind of academic presentation. With an array of features such as section dividers, images, infographics and more, you can easily create a professional and creative presentation that stands out from...

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Simple Presentation Template

Download the free Simple Presentation Template to create a clean, highly engaging, and persuasive presentation that your audience will remember.

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About the Simple Presentation Template

There’s power in simplicity. Our Simple Presentation Template gives you the perfect framework to communicate powerful messages by shedding excess and unnecessary design elements that take away from the core components of your speech. Instead, it focuses on a clean and simple design that’ll keep your audience engaged throughout.  

What is a simple presentation?

A simple or minimal presentation is a presentation that focuses on the art of communicating a complex idea or process in a simple and memorable way. It embraces the “less is more” movement and uses as few components as possible to deliver a compelling, noteworthy speech. 

Thus, instead of using multiple elements to grab and hold the audience’s attention, it focuses on only including the most important elements that all have a purpose in getting the message across effectively. 

While minimal presentations have fewer elements than other presentations, the minimalist design still needs to be visually appealing and make sense to keep the audience engaged for the duration of your presentation. 

What should be included in a simple presentation?

A simple presentation should include: 

Limited color schemes: The best simple presentations only include one or two colors from a monochromatic color palette. This means that a single-color family or tint is used, and only the saturation or hue is adjusted to create other variants of the same color. 

Use of negative space: These presentations make use of a lot of white space between text, images, and blocks to create high levels of contrast. The amount of text is also very limited to make sure that viewers don’t spend too much time reading the slides.  

Strategic content placement: Images and text are placed strategically throughout the slides and are only used when they add to the message in some way. Often, images in these speeches include graphs, tables, bubble charts, or other data-driven images.  

Powerful typography: Bold and dramatic typography is incorporated into minimal presentations to draw the viewer’s eyes and make a statement. The typography needs to tell a story or convey a certain emotion.  

A call to action: End the presentation with a clear CTA that leaves the viewers (and potential clients) with actionable steps that they can take to implement the tips, messages, or instructions that you’ve given them throughout the speech. 

What are the benefits of having a simple presentation?

Due to its minimal use of elements, simple presentations make it far easier for viewers to stay focused and enticed. 

Audience members are forced to listen because there’s minimal text on the screen. The only way they can truly walk away with food for thought is if they pay attention to what you’re saying. 

These presentations also allow for a more dynamic design since there’s a faster transition between slides, creating a more interesting narrative arc. 

How to use the Simple Presentation Template

Here are the steps you can follow to get the most out of the Simple Presentation Template. 

Step 1: Decide on your colors

Don’t choose more than two colors. You can either use your business colors or choose theme colors that portray your message best. For example, when you look at color psychology, the color “yellow” portrays creativity and warmth, whereas the color “purple” portrays luxury and ambition. Have a look at other colors to find one that suits your speech best. 

Step 2: Decide on your font

Different fonts convey different messages. Make sure to choose a font that suits your presentation. Dramatic fonts that are bold and big make a great impact. To make it easier for the audience to read, try choosing a basic font that’s part of the Serif, Display, Monospace, Handwriting, or Sans Serif font families. 

Step 3: Choose a few key images

Only include images that support your message or add to the speech’s credibility. Try to include different types of charts or data-driven images that support your claims. You can also use original, bright, high-quality photos that were either taken or designed by you or one of your team members. Avoid using boring and barely related stock photos. 

Step 4: Create your slides

Combine all of your components — text, images, colors — in different slides. Minimalist presentations are all about strategic placement. When you want to place focus on a specific element, place it in the center of the slide. This way, your audience’s eyes will be drawn directly to it.  

Step 5: Deliver the presentation

When you’re done adding your elements to the slides, you can use the presentation mode to adjust the slide layout and remove or add more slides. You can simply click the “present” button and move between slides with your arrows during the presentation. 

Why is minimalism important in creating an effective presentation?

The more you remove distracting elements, the easier it’ll be for your audience to access the information you’re giving them. They won’t be distracted by unnecessary clutter — and will be far more likely to take in your core message.

Why should there be minimal text on a presentation slide?

The reduced amount of text on your slides means that your audience will be forced to listen to you as opposed to simply reading the slides (which will likely result in them not understanding a single word of it). Thus, your audience won’t only understand your message better, but they’ll also be more engaged since you’ll be able to transition between your slides a lot faster.

What is the minimum text-point size for a presentation slide?

The minimum text-point size for a presentation slide is 24 points. Text smaller than this is too small for your audience to read. Keep in mind that different font types are smaller or bigger at the same font size. For example, Arial’s 24-point text might be bigger or smaller than Georgia’s 24-point text. To ensure that your text is, in fact, comparable to common fonts in 24-points, measure it against a common font (such as Arial) to guarantee that it’s still readable.

Get started with this template right now.

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Strategy Presentation Template

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How to Structure your Presentation, with Examples

August 3, 2018 - Dom Barnard

For many people the thought of delivering a presentation is a daunting task and brings about a  great deal of nerves . However, if you take some time to understand how effective presentations are structured and then apply this structure to your own presentation, you’ll appear much more confident and relaxed.

Here is our complete guide for structuring your presentation, with examples at the end of the article to demonstrate these points.

Why is structuring a presentation so important?

If you’ve ever sat through a great presentation, you’ll have left feeling either inspired or informed on a given topic. This isn’t because the speaker was the most knowledgeable or motivating person in the world. Instead, it’s because they know how to structure presentations – they have crafted their message in a logical and simple way that has allowed the audience can keep up with them and take away key messages.

Research has supported this, with studies showing that audiences retain structured information  40% more accurately  than unstructured information.

In fact, not only is structuring a presentation important for the benefit of the audience’s understanding, it’s also important for you as the speaker. A good structure helps you remain calm, stay on topic, and avoid any awkward silences.

What will affect your presentation structure?

Generally speaking, there is a natural flow that any decent presentation will follow which we will go into shortly. However, you should be aware that all presentation structures will be different in their own unique way and this will be due to a number of factors, including:

  • Whether you need to deliver any demonstrations
  • How  knowledgeable the audience  already is on the given subject
  • How much interaction you want from the audience
  • Any time constraints there are for your talk
  • What setting you are in
  • Your ability to use any kinds of visual assistance

Before choosing the presentation’s structure answer these questions first:

  • What is your presentation’s aim?
  • Who are the audience?
  • What are the main points your audience should remember afterwards?

When reading the points below, think critically about what things may cause your presentation structure to be slightly different. You can add in certain elements and add more focus to certain moments if that works better for your speech.

Good presentation structure is important for a presentation

What is the typical presentation structure?

This is the usual flow of a presentation, which covers all the vital sections and is a good starting point for yours. It allows your audience to easily follow along and sets out a solid structure you can add your content to.

1. Greet the audience and introduce yourself

Before you start delivering your talk, introduce yourself to the audience and clarify who you are and your relevant expertise. This does not need to be long or incredibly detailed, but will help build an immediate relationship between you and the audience. It gives you the chance to briefly clarify your expertise and why you are worth listening to. This will help establish your ethos so the audience will trust you more and think you’re credible.

Read our tips on  How to Start a Presentation Effectively

2. Introduction

In the introduction you need to explain the subject and purpose of your presentation whilst gaining the audience’s interest and confidence. It’s sometimes helpful to think of your introduction as funnel-shaped to help filter down your topic:

  • Introduce your general topic
  • Explain your topic area
  • State the issues/challenges in this area you will be exploring
  • State your presentation’s purpose – this is the basis of your presentation so ensure that you provide a statement explaining how the topic will be treated, for example, “I will argue that…” or maybe you will “compare”, “analyse”, “evaluate”, “describe” etc.
  • Provide a statement of what you’re hoping the outcome of the presentation will be, for example, “I’m hoping this will be provide you with…”
  • Show a preview of the organisation of your presentation

In this section also explain:

  • The length of the talk.
  • Signal whether you want audience interaction – some presenters prefer the audience to ask questions throughout whereas others allocate a specific section for this.
  • If it applies, inform the audience whether to take notes or whether you will be providing handouts.

The way you structure your introduction can depend on the amount of time you have been given to present: a  sales pitch  may consist of a quick presentation so you may begin with your conclusion and then provide the evidence. Conversely, a speaker presenting their idea for change in the world would be better suited to start with the evidence and then conclude what this means for the audience.

Keep in mind that the main aim of the introduction is to grab the audience’s attention and connect with them.

3. The main body of your talk

The main body of your talk needs to meet the promises you made in the introduction. Depending on the nature of your presentation, clearly segment the different topics you will be discussing, and then work your way through them one at a time – it’s important for everything to be organised logically for the audience to fully understand. There are many different ways to organise your main points, such as, by priority, theme, chronologically etc.

  • Main points should be addressed one by one with supporting evidence and examples.
  • Before moving on to the next point you should provide a mini-summary.
  • Links should be clearly stated between ideas and you must make it clear when you’re moving onto the next point.
  • Allow time for people to take relevant notes and stick to the topics you have prepared beforehand rather than straying too far off topic.

When planning your presentation write a list of main points you want to make and ask yourself “What I am telling the audience? What should they understand from this?” refining your answers this way will help you produce clear messages.

4. Conclusion

In presentations the conclusion is frequently underdeveloped and lacks purpose which is a shame as it’s the best place to reinforce your messages. Typically, your presentation has a specific goal – that could be to convert a number of the audience members into customers, lead to a certain number of enquiries to make people knowledgeable on specific key points, or to motivate them towards a shared goal.

Regardless of what that goal is, be sure to summarise your main points and their implications. This clarifies the overall purpose of your talk and reinforces your reason for being there.

Follow these steps:

  • Signal that it’s nearly the end of your presentation, for example, “As we wrap up/as we wind down the talk…”
  • Restate the topic and purpose of your presentation – “In this speech I wanted to compare…”
  • Summarise the main points, including their implications and conclusions
  • Indicate what is next/a call to action/a thought-provoking takeaway
  • Move on to the last section

5. Thank the audience and invite questions

Conclude your talk by thanking the audience for their time and invite them to  ask any questions  they may have. As mentioned earlier, personal circumstances will affect the structure of your presentation.

Many presenters prefer to make the Q&A session the key part of their talk and try to speed through the main body of the presentation. This is totally fine, but it is still best to focus on delivering some sort of initial presentation to set the tone and topics for discussion in the Q&A.

Questions being asked after a presentation

Other common presentation structures

The above was a description of a basic presentation, here are some more specific presentation layouts:

Demonstration

Use the demonstration structure when you have something useful to show. This is usually used when you want to show how a product works. Steve Jobs frequently used this technique in his presentations.

  • Explain why the product is valuable.
  • Describe why the product is necessary.
  • Explain what problems it can solve for the audience.
  • Demonstrate the product  to support what you’ve been saying.
  • Make suggestions of other things it can do to make the audience curious.

Problem-solution

This structure is particularly useful in persuading the audience.

  • Briefly frame the issue.
  • Go into the issue in detail showing why it ‘s such a problem. Use logos and pathos for this – the logical and emotional appeals.
  • Provide the solution and explain why this would also help the audience.
  • Call to action – something you want the audience to do which is straightforward and pertinent to the solution.

Storytelling

As well as incorporating  stories in your presentation , you can organise your whole presentation as a story. There are lots of different type of story structures you can use – a popular choice is the monomyth – the hero’s journey. In a monomyth, a hero goes on a difficult journey or takes on a challenge – they move from the familiar into the unknown. After facing obstacles and ultimately succeeding the hero returns home, transformed and with newfound wisdom.

Storytelling for Business Success  webinar , where well-know storyteller Javier Bernad shares strategies for crafting compelling narratives.

Another popular choice for using a story to structure your presentation is in media ras (in the middle of thing). In this type of story you launch right into the action by providing a snippet/teaser of what’s happening and then you start explaining the events that led to that event. This is engaging because you’re starting your story at the most exciting part which will make the audience curious – they’ll want to know how you got there.

  • Great storytelling: Examples from Alibaba Founder, Jack Ma

Remaining method

The remaining method structure is good for situations where you’re presenting your perspective on a controversial topic which has split people’s opinions.

  • Go into the issue in detail showing why it’s such a problem – use logos and pathos.
  • Rebut your opponents’ solutions  – explain why their solutions could be useful because the audience will see this as fair and will therefore think you’re trustworthy, and then explain why you think these solutions are not valid.
  • After you’ve presented all the alternatives provide your solution, the remaining solution. This is very persuasive because it looks like the winning idea, especially with the audience believing that you’re fair and trustworthy.

Transitions

When delivering presentations it’s important for your words and ideas to flow so your audience can understand how everything links together and why it’s all relevant. This can be done  using speech transitions  which are words and phrases that allow you to smoothly move from one point to another so that your speech flows and your presentation is unified.

Transitions can be one word, a phrase or a full sentence – there are many different forms, here are some examples:

Moving from the introduction to the first point

Signify to the audience that you will now begin discussing the first main point:

  • Now that you’re aware of the overview, let’s begin with…
  • First, let’s begin with…
  • I will first cover…
  • My first point covers…
  • To get started, let’s look at…

Shifting between similar points

Move from one point to a similar one:

  • In the same way…
  • Likewise…
  • Equally…
  • This is similar to…
  • Similarly…

Internal summaries

Internal summarising consists of summarising before moving on to the next point. You must inform the audience:

  • What part of the presentation you covered – “In the first part of this speech we’ve covered…”
  • What the key points were – “Precisely how…”
  • How this links in with the overall presentation – “So that’s the context…”
  • What you’re moving on to – “Now I’d like to move on to the second part of presentation which looks at…”

Physical movement

You can move your body and your standing location when you transition to another point. The audience find it easier to follow your presentation and movement will increase their interest.

A common technique for incorporating movement into your presentation is to:

  • Start your introduction by standing in the centre of the stage.
  • For your first point you stand on the left side of the stage.
  • You discuss your second point from the centre again.
  • You stand on the right side of the stage for your third point.
  • The conclusion occurs in the centre.

Key slides for your presentation

Slides are a useful tool for most presentations: they can greatly assist in the delivery of your message and help the audience follow along with what you are saying. Key slides include:

  • An intro slide outlining your ideas
  • A  summary slide  with core points to remember
  • High quality image slides to supplement what you are saying

There are some presenters who choose not to use slides at all, though this is more of a rarity. Slides can be a powerful tool if used properly, but the problem is that many fail to do just that. Here are some golden rules to follow when using slides in a presentation:

  • Don’t over fill them  – your slides are there to assist your speech, rather than be the focal point. They should have as little information as possible, to avoid distracting people from your talk.
  • A picture says a thousand words  – instead of filling a slide with text, instead, focus on one or two images or diagrams to help support and explain the point you are discussing at that time.
  • Make them readable  – depending on the size of your audience, some may not be able to see small text or images, so make everything large enough to fill the space.
  • Don’t rush through slides  – give the audience enough time to digest each slide.

Guy Kawasaki, an entrepreneur and author, suggests that slideshows should follow a  10-20-30 rule :

  • There should be a maximum of 10 slides – people rarely remember more than one concept afterwards so there’s no point overwhelming them with unnecessary information.
  • The presentation should last no longer than 20 minutes as this will leave time for questions and discussion.
  • The font size should be a minimum of 30pt because the audience reads faster than you talk so less information on the slides means that there is less chance of the audience being distracted.

Here are some additional resources for slide design:

  • 7 design tips for effective, beautiful PowerPoint presentations
  • 11 design tips for beautiful presentations
  • 10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea

Group Presentations

Group presentations are structured in the same way as presentations with one speaker but usually require more rehearsal and practices.  Clean transitioning between speakers  is very important in producing a presentation that flows well. One way of doing this consists of:

  • Briefly recap on what you covered in your section: “So that was a brief introduction on what health anxiety is and how it can affect somebody”
  • Introduce the next speaker in the team and explain what they will discuss: “Now Elnaz will talk about the prevalence of health anxiety.”
  • Then end by looking at the next speaker, gesturing towards them and saying their name: “Elnaz”.
  • The next speaker should acknowledge this with a quick: “Thank you Joe.”

From this example you can see how the different sections of the presentations link which makes it easier for the audience to follow and remain engaged.

Example of great presentation structure and delivery

Having examples of great presentations will help inspire your own structures, here are a few such examples, each unique and inspiring in their own way.

How Google Works – by Eric Schmidt

This presentation by ex-Google CEO  Eric Schmidt  demonstrates some of the most important lessons he and his team have learnt with regards to working with some of the most talented individuals they hired. The simplistic yet cohesive style of all of the slides is something to be appreciated. They are relatively straightforward, yet add power and clarity to the narrative of the presentation.

Start with why – by Simon Sinek

Since being released in 2009, this presentation has been viewed almost four million times all around the world. The message itself is very powerful, however, it’s not an idea that hasn’t been heard before. What makes this presentation so powerful is the simple message he is getting across, and the straightforward and understandable manner in which he delivers it. Also note that he doesn’t use any slides, just a whiteboard where he creates a simple diagram of his opinion.

The Wisdom of a Third Grade Dropout – by Rick Rigsby

Here’s an example of a presentation given by a relatively unknown individual looking to inspire the next generation of graduates. Rick’s presentation is unique in many ways compared to the two above. Notably, he uses no visual prompts and includes a great deal of humour.

However, what is similar is the structure he uses. He first introduces his message that the wisest man he knew was a third-grade dropout. He then proceeds to deliver his main body of argument, and in the end, concludes with his message. This powerful speech keeps the viewer engaged throughout, through a mixture of heart-warming sentiment, powerful life advice and engaging humour.

As you can see from the examples above, and as it has been expressed throughout, a great presentation structure means analysing the core message of your presentation. Decide on a key message you want to impart the audience with, and then craft an engaging way of delivering it.

By preparing a solid structure, and  practising your talk  beforehand, you can walk into the presentation with confidence and deliver a meaningful message to an interested audience.

It’s important for a presentation to be well-structured so it can have the most impact on your audience. An unstructured presentation can be difficult to follow and even frustrating to listen to. The heart of your speech are your main points supported by evidence and your transitions should assist the movement between points and clarify how everything is linked.

Research suggests that the audience remember the first and last things you say so your introduction and conclusion are vital for reinforcing your points. Essentially, ensure you spend the time structuring your presentation and addressing all of the sections.

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FAQs About Simple Presentation Templates

What is a simple presentation template.

A simple presentation template is a pre-designed format that aids in the creation of a presentation. These templates often include layouts, visual aids, typography, color schemes and other necessary elements to create a cohesive and professional-looking presentation. They're usually straightforward in design, allowing the content to take center stage.

Such templates are designed with simplicity in mind to ensure that the audience can easily follow and understand the message you're trying to convey. They can be beneficial for presentations across different environments like corporate, academic, or personal settings, providing a consistent and streamlined design throughout your slides.

How can I use a Simple Presentation Template?

You can use a simple presentation template by selecting the template within your preferred presentation software, such as Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides or Keynote. Once selected, you add your content to the pre-determined text boxes and themed graphics.

Personalizing the template is straightforward as well, so you can adjust colors or font styles to suit your brand or personal style, add or delete slides as you see fit, and incorporate additional features like videos, pictures, or graphs as per your requirement and presentation content.

Why should I use a Simple Presentation Template?

Using simple presentation templates can save time and effort as they provide a ready-made framework for your presentation. They also ensure a unified and coherent look for all your slides, making your presentation professional and engaging to the viewer.

Moreover, simple templates help in focusing the audience's attention more on the content rather than the design. In this way, you are able to communicate your ideas more succinctly.

Are Simple Presentation Templates customizable?

Yes, simple presentation templates are completely customizable. Even though they come with a specific design, color scheme, and layout, you have the freedom to change these elements according to your needs and preferences. You can modify text sizes, colors, add your own images or logos, and rearrange elements to fit your unique content.

Most presentation software comes with tools to edit and customize templates. However, the extent to which you can change a template varies depending on the software you are using.

Where can I find Simple Presentation Templates?

Simple presentation templates can be found in many places. Most presentation software, like PowerPoint, Google Slides and Keynote, offers an assortment of templates within the program. These are usually free to use and are automatically included in the software package.

There are also independent websites that provide a wide variety of presentation templates. Paid options on these sites often include extra features, more complex designs, or niche templates. Always make sure to verify the compatibility of these templates with your presentation software before purchasing.

Speaking about Presenting

How to craft a memorable key message in 10 minutes

by Olivia Mitchell | 11 comments

simple message presentation

Start planning your presentation by deciding on your key message. It will make the rest of your planning easy and straightforward. Steve Bent, one of my readers, said in a comment on a previous post :

“…[T]hat’s when I had the Eureka moment of the key message for that particular presentation. Then all previous thoughts, notes and parts of the presentation were easy to classify in terms of how relevant they were, and which step they fell into (if any).”

If you’re preparing a presentation on a topic you know well, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to decide on your key message quickly. I’ve trained hundreds of people and there’s not one that’s been unable to come up with a key message within 5-10 minutes!

But in Steve’s words you may have “message commitment issues”. You may be thinking that once you’ve got a key message, you can’t change it as you carry on with your planning. Rubbish! Think of it as an engagement, not a marriage. You can always change your message if you find that it’s not quite working for you.

Or maybe you’re expecting the perfect, clever and catchy key message to come to you fully-formed. If that does happen to you – you’re lucky. But more often a memorable key message is a result of crafting.

There are three steps to crafting your key message:

1. Answer this question

What do you want your audience to remember or do as a result of your presentation? Say your answer out loud. Don’t try and be clever or quirky or catchy – you’ll freeze up. Just say what first comes into your mind – now write that down. It may not be “the perfect” key message. It may need a bit of work. But it’s a start.

2. Craft it

Now that you’ve got your basic key message, craft it so that it becomes easy to say, easy to grasp and easy to remember. Here’s the checklist to go through to craft your key message:

1. Is it as short as possible, but no shorter?

The shorter your key message the easier it will be for you to say, and for your audience to grasp and remember. But there is such a thing as too short. Brevity should not come at the expense of meaning. The length of a Twitter message – 140 characters – is a good guide.

2. Does it convey a message?

The topic of your presentation is not your key message. Check that you’re not confusing the two by ensuring there’s a verb in your key message.

For example, your topic might be “Recording health and safety incidents”. Rewrite that into a key message by turning “recording” into a verb: “We must record every health and safety incident.”

A more subtle example of a topic masquerading as a key message is this “How you can make our workplace safer”. It’s got a verb, but it’s not telling your audience anything. Ask yourself – what’s the main thing I want to tell the audience about making the workplace safer? The answer is your key message, for example: “You can make the workplace safer by looking out for hazards.”

3. Is it in spoken language?

There’s difference between the language we use when we’re speaking compared to when we’re writing. Your key message should be in spoken language. Here’s an example of written language: “Educators should maximize the potential of technology in education”. In spoken language it would be:“Teachers can make better use of technology”.

4. Is it specific and concrete?

Your audience should be able to “see” your key message. If it’s full of jargon or abstract, conceptual words they won’t. For example this message “Implementing urban design principles will ensure that this roading project is sustainable” could be transformed to “Adding cycleways and walkways will reduce pollution.”

5. Is the relevance to your audience clear?

One effective way of ensuring this is to include the word “you” in the key message. For example “The forestry sector entered the Emissions Trading Scheme in the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.” will probably be gobbledegook for an audience of foresters. It could be transformed to: “You can now earn carbon credits from your forests.”

6. Does it say something your audience doesn’t know

Your audience is there for something new. Don’t give them clichés and platitudes. A course participant came up with this key message “People are our greatest asset”. Yawn! I asked her specifically what she meant. She came up with this key message “As we’ve grown, we’ve needed different types of people.” Much more interesting.

This doesn’t mean that you have to come up with something clever. There’s a risk that if you come up with something clever, your audience won’t get it. Or they’ll spend the next few seconds working out what you meant and so miss what you said next. In a spoken presentation, clarity trumps clever.

3. Test your key message

There are a number of tests to check that you’ve got a memorable key message.

First, can you remember it! You need to be able to say it without looking at your notes. Test yourself.

Then say it to a friend – see if they can say it back to you. You may find that they say it back to you in a way which is easier to grasp. In which case change it.

An hour later, ask your friend if they can still remember.

Then find another friend and see if they can still remember it a day later. If they can, well done – you’ve got yourself a memorable key message.

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11 Comments

Martin Shovel

I really enjoyed your blogpost – and I’m sure that anyone preparing a presentation will find it invaluable too.

Your post is packed with great practical advice, but I think Steve Bent’s point is a really useful one to home in on because it’s easy to scupper your presentation by overlooking it – and sticking rigidly to a key message that ends up being not as good as it could be.

Steve’s metaphor of the engagement – rather than the marriage – between your key message and your content is very apt, because it highlights the dynamic relationship between them. Articulating your key message helps you arrange, and edit, your content. But during this process, the resulting content often suggests improvements – even subtle ones – to the formulation of your key message, and so on. You can think of it as a competitive tennis match in which both players end up as winners!

Great stuff!

Cheers, Martin

Olivia Mitchell

Thanks Martin

I totally agree with your description between the key message and the rest of your presentation during your planning. Love your metaphor – very visual ;-).

Steve Bent

Great post Olivia,

I think that that info (combined with your great guide & that excellent article on what makes a good slide) is the best way for ANYONE to design a presentation. I think that really covers all bases! (let me know if anything else is missing from your pov)

I like Martin’s input to, as it means I don’t need to worry about my commitment issues as later refinement can and probably will (at least in my case) happen…and that’s okay to!

Great stuff, not due to do another presentation for a while, but I’m sure it won’t be long, and I’ll be right back here!

Thanks Steve – glad you like it.

After the key message, the next most important element of your presentation is evidence. Maybe I should write a post on that next!

Jeff Hurt

Olivia: Excellent, wise and sage advice for anyone getting ready to deliver a presentation. If all presenters would follow this simple step, so many more presentations would be enjoyable to attend, as well as memorable.

I take it one step further. Once you have the memorable key message, what two-three points do you want them to remember about that key message. (That probably comes under your heading of crafting the evidence.) From there I build the learner objectives and flesh out the rest of the presentation.

Thank you Jeff – yes, I agree – I call these supporting points “assertions”. I’ll write a post soon covering both assertions and evidence. Olivia

Tripp Frohlichstein

Your points are good, Olivia. However, a key message isn’t about the what but rather the why. The why is where the emotion is to reach your audience. Take your example above. “We must record every health and safety incident.” That isn’t a message, it is a directive. Why is this important? That is what really matters to your audience. So it might be to make the workplace safer. And that is the TRUE message. “We want to make our workplace safer so everyone goes home to their families at night. Therefore, we must record every health and safety incident. This will help us understand where deficiencies are and how to correct them. That will mean a safer workplace.” Or take another example. “You can now earn carbon credits from your forests.” So? What’s in it for me? The message must answer that or you lose the audience. SO the real message here is one of a better environment for all us and tie the carbon credits in to that. In essence, all that you say is correct. But it doesn’t go far enough for truly analyzing what makes a “more” effective message. Final example. I worked with a worldwide fast food company on their message. Execs came up with healthy, good service, tasty, clean and so on. But those are really “proof points” to the overall message we developed several years ago (and is still being used today) – and the message is that we want to provide a great customer experience. All of those other “messages” really support our main message (I call it home base because home is a comfortable place to be – your message should be comfortable to you as well). It makes it easy to discuss each element and them bring it back home. “We have healthy food which is an important part of our customers’ experience at our restaurants.”

You raise an excellent point Tripp! Should you include the benefit to the audience within the key message?

I definitely agree that the benefits to the audience should be in the presentation – preferably near the beginning of the presentation.

However, whether it’s a part of the key message is a matter of judgement in each case – and there’s no perfect answer.

There’s a risk that when you try and include the benefit within the message, then it gets too cluttered and no longer has one focal point.

Jody Urquhart

i remember on one of my first paid speeches years ago- i bombed. Luckily the program was video taped. I hired a coach and we painfully went through all the footage. She pointed out how although some of the points were entertaining they had no relevance to the message or the audience. She recommended the mind map method, where every point has to link back to the main message. This was a great learning experience for me. A lot of what you are suggesting in this post we unravelled were the mistakes i was making in my presentations. Wish I read this 12 years ago would have saved me alot of time and resources.

Thanks Jody – I can only write about this because I’ve made all the mistakes too!

Erry

Hi Ollivia,

If I buy an online program (nail that presentation), how many pdf, audio and video I can get ?

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  • Brinker Toastmasters - [...] can spend more time than you want to working out what that key point is. Olivia Mitchell offers a…
  • Pivotal Public Speaking » Create your key message in a snap - [...] Mitchell has written a great post on “How to craft a memorable key message in 10 minutes”.  Her post…
  • Best Presentation Tips | Speaking about Presenting: Presentation Tips from Olivia Mitchell - [...] The first thinking step is to decide and develop your key message. For more tips on this see my…
  • The Key to the Code… » Key to Success - 195th Edition - [...] opportunities. To bolster team readiness, it’s worth it to craft a mini, ongoing archive of key messages that reflect…
  • The Key to the Code… » Key to Success - 196th Edition - [...] opportunities. To bolster team readiness, it’s worth it to craft a mini, ongoing archive of key messages that reflect…
  • live your talk » Blog Archive » 3 Tips to Ensure Your Team Is Ready to Represent Offline - [...] opportunities. To bolster team readiness, it’s worth it to craft a mini, ongoing archive of key messages that reflect…
  • PowerPoint Slide Design: 9 reasons to put words on slides - [...] A clear and succinct sentence expressing your key message gives your message longevity. If you say it, and an…
  • 10 tips for overcoming the fear of speaking boldly - [...] you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know that I call this your Key Message. The work…
  • The Fastest Way to Create an Ignite Presentation - [...] a picture of my planner – as you can see neatness was not important. I just wanted to get…
  • live your talk » Blog Archive » Why the key message in your speech…is key - [...] What is a key message? [...]
  • The two types of presenter: which are you? - [...] plan their presentation. They think about their audience and their needs. They work out what their key message will…
  • Business Presentation Tip – Bookending for Power and Impact - [...] you have finished your presentation message and are ready to set your second bookend that concludes your presentation, call…
  • Quick! Make your talk’s key message sticky | Remote Possibilities - […] How to craft a memorable key message in 10 minutes […]

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23 presentation examples that really work (plus templates!)

Three professionals engaged in a collaborative meeting with a Biteable video maker, a laptop, and documents on the table.

  • 30 Mar 2023

To help you in your quest for presentation greatness, we’ve gathered 23 of the best business presentation examples out there. These hand-picked ideas range from business PowerPoint presentations, to recruitment presentations, and everything in between.

As a bonus, several of our examples include editable video presentation templates from  Biteable .

Biteable allows anyone to create great video presentations — no previous video-making skills required. The easy-to-use platform has hundreds of brandable templates and video scenes designed with a business audience in mind. A video made with Biteable is just what you need to add that wow factor and make an impact on your audience.

Create videos that drive action

Activate your audience with impactful, on-brand videos. Create them simply and collaboratively with Biteable.

Video presentation examples

Video presentations are our specialty at Biteable. We love them because they’re the most visually appealing and memorable way to communicate.

1. Animated characters

Our first presentation example is a business explainer from Biteable that uses animated characters. The friendly and modern style makes this the perfect presentation for engaging your audience.

Bonus template:  Need a business video presentation that reflects the beautiful diversity of your customers or team? Use  Biteable’s workplace scenes . You can change the skin tone and hair color for any of the animated characters.

2. Conference video

Videos are also ideal solutions for events (e.g. trade shows) where they can be looped to play constantly while you attend to more important things like talking to people and handing out free cheese samples.

For this event presentation sample below, we used bright colours, stock footage, and messaging that reflects the brand and values of the company. All these elements work together to draw the attention of passers-by.

For a huge selection of video presentation templates, take a look at our  template gallery .

Business PowerPoint presentation examples

Striking fear into the hearts of the workplace since 1987, PowerPoint is synonymous with bland, boring presentations that feel more like an endurance test than a learning opportunity. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Check out these anything-but-boring business PowerPoint presentation examples.

3. Design pointers

This PowerPoint presentation takes a tongue-in-cheek look at how the speakers and users of PowerPoint are the problem, not the software itself.

Even at a hefty 61 slides, the vintage theme, appealing colors, and engaging content keep the viewer interested. It delivers useful and actionable tips on creating a better experience for your audience.

Pixar, as you’d expect, redefines the meaning of PowerPoint in their “22 Rules for Phenomenal Storytelling”. The character silhouettes are instantly recognizable and tie firmly to the Pixar brand. The bright colour palettes are carefully chosen to highlight the content of each slide.

This presentation is a good length, delivering one message per slide, making it easy for an audience to take notes and retain the information.

Google slides examples

If you’re in business, chances are you’ll have come across  slide decks . Much like a deck of cards, each slide plays a key part in the overall ‘deck’, creating a well-rounded presentation.

If you need to inform your team, present findings, or outline a new strategy, slides are one of the most effective ways to do this.

Google Slides is one of the best ways to create a slide deck right now. It’s easy to use and has built-in design tools that integrate with Adobe, Lucidchart, and more. The best part — it’s free!

5. Teacher education

Here’s a slide deck that was created to educate teachers on how to use Google Slides effectively in a classroom. At first glance it seems stuffy and businessy, but if you look closer it’s apparent the creator knows his audience well, throwing in some teacher-friendly content that’s bound to get a smile.

The slides give walkthrough screenshots and practical advice on the different ways teachers can use the software to make their lives that little bit easier and educate their students at the same time.

6. Charity awareness raiser

This next Google slide deck is designed to raise awareness for an animal shelter. It has simple, clear messaging, and makes use of the furry friends it rescues to tug on heartstrings and encourage donations and adoptions from its audience.

Pro tip: Creating a presentation is exciting but also a little daunting. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed — especially if the success of your business or nonprofit depends on it.

Prezi presentation examples

If you haven’t come across  Prezi , it’s a great alternative to using static slides. Sitting somewhere between slides and a video presentation, it allows you to import other content and add motion to create a more engaging viewer experience.

7. Red Bull event recap

This Prezi was created to document the Red Bull stratosphere freefall stunt a few years ago. It neatly captures all the things that Prezi is capable of, including video inserts and the zoom effect, which gives an animated, almost 3D effect to what would otherwise be still images.  

Prezi has annual awards for the best examples of presentations over the year. This next example is one of the 2018 winners. It was made to highlight a new Logitech tool.

8. Logitech Spotlight launch

What stands out here are the juicy colors, bold imagery, and the way the designer has used Prezi to its full extent, including rotations, panning, fades, and a full zoom out to finish the presentation.

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Sales presentation examples

If you’re stuck for ideas for your sales presentation, step right this way and check out this video template we made for you.

9. Sales enablement video presentation

In today’s fast-paced sales environment, you need a way to make your sales enablement presentations memorable and engaging for busy reps.  Sales enablement videos  are just the ticket. Use this video presentation template the next time you need to present on your metrics.

10. Zuroa sales deck

If you’re after a sales deck, you can’t go past this example from Zuora. What makes it great? It begins by introducing the worldwide shift in the way consumers are shopping. It’s a global phenomenon, and something we can all relate to.

It then weaves a compelling story about how the subscription model is changing the face of daily life for everyone. Metrics and testimonials from well-known CEOs and executives are included for some slamming social proof to boost the sales message.

Pitch presentation examples

Pitch decks are used to give an overview of business plans, and are usually presented during meetings with customers, investors, or potential partners.

11. Uber pitch deck

This is Uber’s original pitch deck, which (apart from looking a teensy bit dated) gives an excellent overview of their business model and clearly shows how they intended to disrupt a traditional industry and provide a better service to people. Right now, you’re probably very grateful that this pitch presentation was a winner.

You can make your own pitch deck with Biteable, or start with one of our  video templates  to make something a little more memorable.

12. Video pitch template

This video pitch presentation clearly speaks to the pains of everyone who needs to commute and find parking. It then provides the solution with its app that makes parking a breeze.

The video also introduces the key team members, their business strategy, and what they’re hoping to raise in funding. It’s a simple, clear pitch that positions the company as a key solution to a growing, worldwide problem. It’s compelling and convincing, as a good presentation should be.

13. Fyre Festival pitch deck

The most epic example of a recent pitch deck is this one for Fyre Festival – the greatest event that never happened. Marvel at its persuasion, gasp at the opportunity of being part of the cultural experience of the decade, cringe as everything goes from bad to worse.

Despite the very public outcome, this is a masterclass in how to create hype and get funding with your pitch deck using beautiful imagery, beautiful people, and beautiful promises of riches and fame.

Business presentation examples

Need to get the right message out to the right people? Business presentations can do a lot of the heavy lifting for you.

Simply press play and let your video do the talking. No fumbling your words and sweating buckets in front of those potential clients, just you being cool as a cucumber while your presentation does the talking.

Check out two of our popular templates that you can use as a starting point for your own presentations. While they’re business-minded, they’re definitely not boring.

14. Business intro template

Modern graphics, animations, and upbeat soundtracks keep your prospects engaged as they learn about your business, your team, your values, and how you can help them.

15. Business explainer template

Research presentation examples.

When you’re giving a more technical presentation such as research findings, you need to strike the perfect balance between informing your audience and making sure they stay awake.

As a rule, slides are more effective for research presentations, as they are used to support the speaker’s knowledge rather can capture every small detail on screen.

With often dry, complex, and technical subject matter, there can be a temptation for presentations to follow suit. Use images instead of walls of text, and keep things as easy to follow as possible.

16. TrackMaven research deck

TrackMaven uses their endearing mascot to lighten up this data-heavy slide deck. The graphs help to bring life to their findings, and they ensure to only have one bite-size takeaway per slide so that viewers can easily take notes.

17. Wearable tech research report

Obviously, research can get very researchy and there’s not a lot to be done about it. This slide deck below lays out a ton of in-depth information but breaks it up well with quotes, diagrams, and interesting facts to keep viewers engaged while it delivers its findings on wearable technology.

Team presentation examples

Motivating your team can be a challenge at the best of times, especially when you need to gather them together for….another presentation!

18. Team update template

We created this presentation template as an example of how to engage your team. In this case, it’s for an internal product launch. Using colorful animation and engaging pacing, this video presentation is much better than a static PowerPoint, right?

19. Officevibe collaboration explainer

This short slide deck is a presentation designed to increase awareness of the problems of a disengaged team. Bright colors and relevant images combine with facts and figures that compel viewers to click through to a download to learn more about helping their teams succeed.

Recruitment presentation examples

Recruiting the right people can be a challenge. Presentations can help display your team and your business by painting a dynamic picture of what it’s like to work with you.

Videos and animated slides let you capture the essence of your brand and workplace so the right employees can find you.

20. Company culture explainer

If you’re a recruitment agency, your challenge is to stand out from the hundreds of other agencies in the marketplace.

21. Kaizen culture

Showcasing your agency using a slide deck can give employers and employees a feel for doing business with you. Kaizen clearly displays its credentials and highlights its brand values and personality here (and also its appreciation of the coffee bean).

Explainer presentation examples

Got some explaining to do? Using an explainer video is the ideal way to showcase products that are technical, digital, or otherwise too difficult to explain with still images and text.

Explainer videos help you present the features and values of your product in an engaging way that speaks to your ideal audience and promotes your brand at the same time.

22. Product explainer template

23. lucidchart explainer.

Lucidchart does a stellar job of using explainer videos for their software. Their series of explainers-within-explainers entertains the viewer with cute imagery and an endearing brand voice. At the same time, the video is educating its audience on how to use the actual product. We (almost) guarantee you’ll have more love for spiders after watching this one.

Make a winning video presentation with Biteable

Creating a winning presentation doesn’t need to be difficult or expensive. Modern slide decks and video software make it easy for you to give compelling presentations that sell, explain, and educate without sending your audience to snooze town.

For the best online video presentation software around, check out Biteable. The intuitive platform does all the heavy lifting for you, so making a video presentation is as easy as making a PowerPoint.

Use Biteable’s brand builder to automatically fetch your company colors and logo from your website and apply them to your entire video with the click of a button. Even add a  clickable call-to-action  button to your video.

Share your business presentation anywhere with a single, trackable URL and watch your message turn into gold.

Make stunning videos with ease.

Take the struggle out of team communication.

Try Biteable now.

  • No credit card required
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SkillPacks

A simple, engaging presentation structure that works every time

presentation structure

A simple, engaging presentation structure is like the air that your audience breaths: invisible, unnoticed and essential.

It will draw them into the content, and they will stay fully focused on what you have to say.

And if you don’t have a simple, engaging presentation structure your audience will suffer!

The benefits of this presentation structure

There are three key benefits, this presentation structure ensures that:

  • The audience connects with your central message and key points
  • You feel confident and in control
  • You can flex the duration of the presentation to different circumstances

More on this last point a little later. Use my presentation structure and you’ll see how you can adapt it to a 1-minute elevator pitch or a 1-hour deep dive into the topic.

The ideal presentation structure

This presentation structure is deliberately simple (structure is not something that you should complicate!). At its highest level, it consists of the opening, content and closing.

Each of these three sections has a very specific purpose.

  • The opening : deliver your central message and 3 key points
  • The content : Dive into the detail of your 3 key points
  • The closing : Recap your central message, Q&A, call to action

simple message presentation

There’s more here on the benefits of this presentation structure from Inc’s 3 Tips from Aristotle article.

The opening

Let’s imagine for a moment that you’re proposing a 4-day working week for the whole company (with 5 days’ pay!), and your audience is the CEO and other C-level executives.

Open with your central message:

Good afternoon, I’m here to share with you how a 4-day working week can boost the profitability of the company. I realize that’s a big claim, let me tell you a little more about what I’ll be covering today.

Notice, you didn’t just mention the topic (4-day working week), you delivered your central message from the opening slide: that you can boost the productivity of the company. Motivate them to engage, ensure your central message is compelling to them , and deliver it right from the start.

Move to your agenda slide. This should be structured around 3 key points.

In this presentation I’ll be covering 3 points. How my proposal can: boost our productivity, reduce operating costs and increase revenues.

You’ve already hit your central message and key points. Then transition into the content.

Now, let me jump into the content, looking at our productivity first.

For added impact to your opening, explore how to use a presentation hook (to grab your audience!). 

The content

Structure your content around the three key points to your central message.

Take a look at this ethos3.com article on the rule of three , here’s an extract:

Steve Jobs was famous for using the Rule of Three in his presentations. In 2011, he described the iPad 2 as “ thinner, lighter, and faster ” than the first. These three adjectives were massively effective; they said everything the audience needed to know.

Three points is complete and perfectly formed. If you use two points, it looks like you’re missing something, four key points and your audience will start to forget. Five, six or seven key points, and your audience will be lost!

Avoid a laundry list of topics (it’s lazy and it doesn’t help your audience!), distill your message into three key points.

The elevator pitch

Earlier I mentioned how this structure will help you flex the presentation to any duration. If you’re in the elevator, and someone asks you about this presentation, just use your ‘opening’ it’s a summary of your complete presentation.

A 4-day working week is a great opportunity to increase profitability. Let me tell you how, there are just 3 key things to know: it will boost our productivity, reduce operating costs and increase revenues. Is this your floor? OK, see you later!

The deep dive

Or, if you have an hour, use this structure to give yourself the confidence to expound on the topic. Talk about each key point in some detail, tell stories, share data, ask for input.

And if you’re doing this deep dive, add in some additional structure, to help the audience navigate. Summarize at the end of each key point, and transition to the next key point.

Use this kind of language to summarize:

That has been a great discussion about the first point I wanted to cover, how my proposal will boost productivity. Let me just summarize…

And this kind of language to transition to the next key point.

Now, as I mentioned, the next big benefit is increased productivity. There are several perspectives on this, let me take the next 20 mins to walk you through and share my experience, feel free to jump in any time…

That’s the beauty of this structure, it gives you control.

The closing

Finally, the closing. Use it to reinforce your central message and key support points, open the presentation for more questions, and your call to action.

Before you open the presentation for more questions, make sure you take a look at these simple and powerful techniques for confident Q&As .

Finally, your call to action. You do have a call to action, right? What is it that you want your audience to do, as a result of your presentation?

There should always be an action. Never present as a ‘briefing’ or ‘for information’. If that’s the case, then send an email. Presentations are expensive. (Take a look at the cost of meetings .)

Presentations can only be justified if there is clear business value, and business value comes from taking action.

Presentation structure, in summary

A great presentation structure is like air. Your audience won’t notice it, because they’ll be fully engaged with your central message and key points.

Keep your presentation structure simple:

  • Open with a central message
  • Structure your content around 3 key points
  • Close with a call to action

Always have a call to action, that’s the business value.

Keep it simple, let your content shine!

Take the next step

Learn to become a great presenter with these effective presentation skills .

simple message presentation

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How can you make a good presentation even more effective?

This page draws on published advice from expert presenters around the world, which will help to take your presentations from merely ‘good’ to ‘great’.

By bringing together advice from a wide range of people, the aim is to cover a whole range of areas.

Whether you are an experienced presenter, or just starting out, there should be ideas here to help you to improve.

1. Show your Passion and Connect with your Audience

It’s hard to be relaxed and be yourself when you’re nervous.

But time and again, the great presenters say that the most important thing is to connect with your audience, and the best way to do that is to let your passion for the subject shine through.

Be honest with the audience about what is important to you and why it matters.

Be enthusiastic and honest, and the audience will respond.

2. Focus on your Audience’s Needs

Your presentation needs to be built around what your audience is going to get out of the presentation.

As you prepare the presentation, you always need to bear in mind what the audience needs and wants to know, not what you can tell them.

While you’re giving the presentation, you also need to remain focused on your audience’s response, and react to that.

You need to make it easy for your audience to understand and respond.

3. Keep it Simple: Concentrate on your Core Message

When planning your presentation, you should always keep in mind the question:

What is the key message (or three key points) for my audience to take away?

You should be able to communicate that key message very briefly.

Some experts recommend a 30-second ‘elevator summary’, others that you can write it on the back of a business card, or say it in no more than 15 words.

Whichever rule you choose, the important thing is to keep your core message focused and brief.

And if what you are planning to say doesn’t contribute to that core message, don’t say it.

4. Smile and Make Eye Contact with your Audience

This sounds very easy, but a surprisingly large number of presenters fail to do it.

If you smile and make eye contact, you are building rapport , which helps the audience to connect with you and your subject. It also helps you to feel less nervous, because you are talking to individuals, not to a great mass of unknown people.

To help you with this, make sure that you don’t turn down all the lights so that only the slide screen is visible. Your audience needs to see you as well as your slides.

5. Start Strongly

The beginning of your presentation is crucial. You need to grab your audience’s attention and hold it.

They will give you a few minutes’ grace in which to entertain them, before they start to switch off if you’re dull. So don’t waste that on explaining who you are. Start by entertaining them.

Try a story (see tip 7 below), or an attention-grabbing (but useful) image on a slide.

6. Remember the 10-20-30 Rule for Slideshows

This is a tip from Guy Kawasaki of Apple. He suggests that slideshows should:

  • Contain no more than 10 slides;
  • Last no more than 20 minutes; and
  • Use a font size of no less than 30 point.

This last is particularly important as it stops you trying to put too much information on any one slide. This whole approach avoids the dreaded ‘Death by PowerPoint’.

As a general rule, slides should be the sideshow to you, the presenter. A good set of slides should be no use without the presenter, and they should definitely contain less, rather than more, information, expressed simply.

If you need to provide more information, create a bespoke handout and give it out after your presentation.

7. Tell Stories

Human beings are programmed to respond to stories.

Stories help us to pay attention, and also to remember things. If you can use stories in your presentation, your audience is more likely to engage and to remember your points afterwards. It is a good idea to start with a story, but there is a wider point too: you need your presentation to act like a story.

Think about what story you are trying to tell your audience, and create your presentation to tell it.

Finding The Story Behind Your Presentation

To effectively tell a story, focus on using at least one of the two most basic storytelling mechanics in your presentation:

Focusing On Characters – People have stories; things, data, and objects do not. So ask yourself “who” is directly involved in your topic that you can use as the focal point of your story.

For example, instead of talking about cars (your company’s products), you could focus on specific characters like:

  • The drivers the car is intended for – people looking for speed and adventure
  • The engineers who went out of their way to design the most cost-effective car imaginable

A Changing Dynamic – A story needs something to change along the way. So ask yourself “What is not as it should be?” and answer with what you are going to do about it (or what you did about it).

For example…

  • Did hazardous road conditions inspire you to build a rugged, all-terrain jeep that any family could afford?
  • Did a complicated and confusing food labelling system lead you to establish a colour-coded nutritional index so that anybody could easily understand it?

To see 15 more actionable storytelling tips, see Nuts & Bolts Speed Training’s post on Storytelling Tips .

8. Use your Voice Effectively

The spoken word is actually a pretty inefficient means of communication, because it uses only one of your audience’s five senses. That’s why presenters tend to use visual aids, too. But you can help to make the spoken word better by using your voice effectively.

Varying the speed at which you talk, and emphasising changes in pitch and tone all help to make your voice more interesting and hold your audience’s attention.

For more about this, see our page on Effective Speaking .

9. Use your Body Too

It has been estimated that more than three quarters of communication is non-verbal.

That means that as well as your tone of voice, your body language is crucial to getting your message across. Make sure that you are giving the right messages: body language to avoid includes crossed arms, hands held behind your back or in your pockets, and pacing the stage.

Make your gestures open and confident, and move naturally around the stage, and among the audience too, if possible.

10. Relax, Breathe and Enjoy

If you find presenting difficult, it can be hard to be calm and relaxed about doing it.

One option is to start by concentrating on your breathing. Slow it down, and make sure that you’re breathing fully. Make sure that you continue to pause for breath occasionally during your presentation too.

For more ideas, see our page on Coping with Presentation Nerves .

If you can bring yourself to relax, you will almost certainly present better. If you can actually start to enjoy yourself, your audience will respond to that, and engage better. Your presentations will improve exponentially, and so will your confidence. It’s well worth a try.

Improve your Presentation Skills

Follow our guide to boost your presentation skills learning about preparation, delivery, questions and all other aspects of giving effective presentations.

Start with: What is a Presentation?

Continue to: How to Give a Speech Self Presentation

See also: Five Ways You Can Do Visual Marketing on a Budget Can Presentation Science Improve Your Presentation? Typography – It’s All About the Message in Your Slides

PresentationLoad

Key Message In PowerPoint Presentations: How to Develop and Convey your Core Message correctly!

Our brain is a highly efficient filter for information, which is incredibly useful. If our brain were to store all the information that bombards us every day, there would be little space left for the important things. However, our brain decides for itself what it deems important.

While this filtering mechanism is helpful, it can also pose a challenge. When we want to consciously store something, we need to convince our brain to do so. Fortunately, with the right techniques and tricks, it is possible – and you can leverage this when conveying the key messages of your presentation!

Presenting the Key Message: Heard Today, Forgotten Tomorrow?

Develop the right key message for presentations

When delivering a presentation, you typically have an intention behind it. This can range from marketing products or services to imparting knowledge or persuading your audience about a certain matter.

The main goal is to convey that your method works or your product provides a solution for a specific problem. In essence, you are imparting knowledge to your viewers on a particular topic.

While a concise and well-crafted presentation can effectively convey information , it may not have a lasting impact if the information only superficially resonates with the audience and is not linked to a memorable message . Even a great presentation can quickly be forgotten, and the audience may not retain the crucial facts.

Therefore, it is advisable to strategically place the information in your PowerPoint presentation from the outset. This ensures that your key message remains in your audience’s memory for a long time.

In the following 5 steps , we will show you how to structure your presentation around the key message to guarantee that it remains memorable for your viewers.

Create a memorable presentation in 5 steps

Step #1: formulate the key message of your presentation.

At the beginning of your preparation, you need to identify the core message . Before you think about how to deliver your content, you must determine what the essence of your topic should be. What should your presentation revolve around? What do you want to convey to your audience, and what do you aim to achieve with your presentation?

Consider the context of your presentation as well. What type of presentation are you giving and who are your audience? How should you develop the key message and where should you focus?

In business presentations, the focus is often on communicating value and benefits to customers or investors. Educational presentations, on the other hand, may emphasize knowledge and understanding. Political speeches may aim for persuasion and mobilization. It is important to consider the context and adjust the key message accordingly to achieve the desired impact. Each context requires an individual approach to effectively convey the key message.

The core message of your presentation doesn’t necessarily have to be fully developed when you start creating your slides. However, it is important to note that solidifying the key message early in the preparation process can make your work easier and potentially save you from later changes and adjustments.

In any case, a well-crafted message should form the core of your work . Your key message can serve as a filter for all your content and should be structured in a way that the arguments, content, and materials of your presentation support and build upon it .

Step #2: Ensure Clarity in Your Key Message

While the significance of your key message may be well-developed, it means little if the wording is not right . The more understandable and memorable your core message is formulated, the easier it is for your audience to understand and remember it.

The best slogans are short and concise , making them easily memorable. For example, “Quadratisch. Praktisch. Gut.” or “Morgens, halb zehn in Deutschland.” Without mentioning the brand names, you likely know which products these slogans describe.

To achieve this, it is advisable to structure your key messages in a simple and concise manner . Avoid overly complex or vague statements that may confuse or fail to convince your audience.

For the clarity of your key message, it is also important to provide sufficient justification or support it with relevant information. The key message should be built on a solid foundation of arguments and facts.

To achieve this, it is advisable to keep your key statements simple and concise.

Step #3: Making Your Key Message Stick!

Once you have developed a key message, the next step is to ensure that your message not only resonates but also remains impactful . The message should stay in the minds of your audience and continue to h ave an effect beyond the moment of the presentation .

How can you ensure that the message finds its way into the long-term memory of your audience? How can you effectively market your key message in PowerPoint?

In this case, less is more for the entire presentation. The more information bombards us, the more our brains filter it out. If you convey too much information in your presentation, there is a high probability that much of it will be forgotten, including the truly important points, such as your key message.

For this reason, it is essential to make your presentation as concise as possible . Make sure to eliminate irrelevant details and unimportant information. For more information on avoiding information overload on your slides, we recommend reading our article “ Avoid Information Overload .” Don’t hide the needle, in this case, your key message, in a haystack, but serve it to your audience on a silver platter.

However, when it comes to your key message specifically, the opposite applies: more is more . The more we hear something, the easier it sticks in our memory. Therefore, it is important to clearly highlight the core thesis multiple times during the presentation.

Step #4: Placement of the Key Message

Placing the key message right in your presentations

Unlike in advertising, where slogans can be repeated multiple times on TV or the internet, you don’t have the same opportunity to repeat your key message endlessly in a presentation. Therefore, the placement of the key message in your presentation becomes even more important . Once your core message is clearly formulated, you have already laid the foundation to strategically position and emphasize it effectively .

It is crucial that your entire presentation is structured in a way that showcases your PowerPoint key message. Often, PowerPoint structures in many presentations follow a classic funnel-shaped approach. Such a presentation starts with a broad level of gathered facts, from which a specific argumentation is derived.

This argumentation is then supported by examples, with the key message being presented at the very end of the presentation. In the business world, where efficiency and persuasiveness are crucial, the so-called funnel principle may not necessarily be the best choice.

To ensure that your key message is effectively conveyed and remembered, consider alternative presentation structures that place the key message upfront or intersperse it strategically throughout the presentation .

For example, you could begin with a provocative statement or a powerful visual that immediately captures the audience’s attention and conveys the essence of your message. This approach helps to engage your audience from the beginning and keeps them focused on the core message throughout the presentation.

Additionally, reinforce your key message by repeating it at crucial points during the presentation . This repetition helps to reinforce the message in the minds of your audience and increases the chances of them remembering it.

By strategically placing and reinforcing your key message throughout your presentation, you can ensure that it is effectively communicated and leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

Presentation structure according to the pyramid principle

Contrary to the funnel-shaped approach, the pyramid principle can serve as a template to make a presentation more engaging.

With the pyramid principle, the approach is exactly the opposite, placing the key message at the forefront as the starting point of the presentation, strategically supported by examples and facts. Once you have formulated your key message clearly and memorably, it will immediately capture the interest of your audience. The objective of the presentation is already established, making it much easier for your audience to follow your argumentation.

To learn more about PowerPoint structure, feel free to check out our article on “ Presentation Structure .”

Step #5: Active Learning Instead of Passive Learning

It is widely known that learning can be categorized into active and passive. Passive learning includes reading, watching, or listening without actively engaging in the process. However, we learn much more efficiently when we are actively involved . You can take advantage of this when conveying your key message.

Invite your audience to actively think and participate . This can be done by asking questions such as, “What experiences have you had with this?” or encouraging them to speculate, “What do you think the conclusion will be?”.

If suitable for your topic, you can also incorporate small activities like a memory exercise. Such exercises activate the attention of your listeners and ensure that your presentation stays in their memory for longer. For more tips on “ interactive presentations ,” feel free to visit our blog.

By using the pyramid principle and incorporating active learning techniques, you can e ffectively develop and communicate your key message , ensuring that it resonates with your audience and leaves a lasting impact.

Bonus Tips for Better Memorability:

More memorability for your key messages in powerpoint

1. Work with Emotions

Emotions give events personal meaning to us. When events are associated with emotions, we find it easier to remember them. Harness this power in your presentation to convey your PowerPoint key message!

There are various proven techniques to enhance the key message of a presentation and make it more convincing for the audience. One approach is to use storytelling , where a captivating narrative is employed to convey the message.Find out more about how to evoke emotions in your audience in our article on “ Storytelling “.

Furthermore, rhetorical devices such as repetitions, metaphors, or questions can be used to capture the audience’s attention and emphasize the key message effectively.

2. Multidimensionality over Words

The more connections the human brain can make, the easier and more lasting the memory. Therefore, make sure to convey your key message in a diverse manner . Utilize images, graphics, devices, and wordplay such as rhymes or alliteration s to enhance memory retention. References to well-known movies or TV shows can also help trigger the memory of your key message long after your presentation.

A well-designed visual representation can aid in simplifying complex information and enhance understanding and retention of the key message. Additionally, the visual design of the presentation should align with the key message and maintain a cohesive and visually appealing aesthetic.

3. Practical Relevance

Effective Learning Method: Depending on how long it has been since your school days, you may remember how tedious rote memorization of rules and formulas can be. Learning through examples and deriving corresponding rules independently is a much more effective learning method.

To be able to work with learned information in the long run, our brain needs to understand what it absorbs . Keep this in mind during your presentation and provide concrete and practical connections to your audience. This doesn’t mean that presenting data and facts is inherently meaningless, but rather that your key message should always have a relevant practical context.

4. Handout as a Reminder

Prepare a handout. Distribute it after the presentation and give the audience the opportunity to review the presentation on their own. Ensure that your key message is prominently featured in the handout . Learn more about creating effective handouts in our article on “ Handouts “.

One last trick that offers dual benefits: Ask the audience for feedback via email or online survey . This encourages your participants to engage with the presentation again, and you also receive valuable feedback. Discover how to cleverly incorporate a request for feedback into your presentation in our article on “ Feedback” .

Develop Crystal Clear Core Messages with the SUCCESS Method

The SUCCESS method is an acronym that provides a framework for creating and assessing core messages in presentations to ensure they resonate and stick in the minds of the audience . Here’s what each letter stands for:

  • S – Simple

The core message should be clear and easy to understand. The audience should be able to grasp it quickly.

  • U – Unexpected

The message should be surprising or unexpected to capture attention and spark interest. Surprise is the spice of any presentation. Incorporate unexpected elements to maintain attention and spark interest.

  • C – Clear

Your key statement should be concrete and quickly comprehensible. Statements should make immediate sense to avoid any abstraction and ensure the message stays grounded.

  • C – Credible

The message must be believable and realistic. Credibility can be enhanced by supporting your message with facts, expert opinions, or case studies.

  • E – Emotional

The core message should evoke emotions. People often make decisions based on how they feel, so tying emotions to your message can strengthen its impact.

  • S – Story

Your message should offer material for good storytelling. Incorporating a storyline can help present the information in a memorable way.

You can find helpful tips about this topic in our blog “ Storytelling in Presentations “.

  • S – Style

The style and design make the presentation unique. Everything from the slide design to the choice of images, icons, and infographics should be as powerful as your message.

By following these guidelines, you can assess how well your core message meets each point. The more boxes you can tick, the more effective your presentation will be.

Conclusion: Stay in the memory with your key message!

Define the right Key message for presentations

As described in this article, it is indeed possible to create a presentation that leaves a lasting impression and ensures that you and your message are not forgotten. Follow our 5 steps for creating a memorable key message and see the results for yourself!

If you have any questions about PowerPoint key messages or PowerPoint in general, feel free to reach out to us at [email protected] . We’re here to assist you.

Are you looking for professionally designed slide templates to support your key message ? Visit our shop for a wide range of slides on various (business) topics available for download. Explore our shop today! ► Go to Shop

You may also be interested in other articles:

  • Creating Handouts
  • Storytelling in Presentations
  • Interactive Presentations
  • The right Structure for Presentations

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How to Share the Gospel: Simple Presentation Tools

I can count at least ten different gospel presentation tools that I’ve used throughout my lifetime. I could still use any one of them to share the gospel with a spiritually lost person today. What gospel presentation tool do you use?

Ways to Present the Gospel

As a child, my mom led a Good News Club in our home for neighborhood children and taught us the Wordless Book . This was my first exposure to the gospel.

The Wordless Book by Child Evangelism Fellowship uses these five colors to explain the message of the gospel.

Wordless book

GOLD ~ God wants us to be in heaven with Him. BLACK ~ Our sin separates us from God. RED ~ Christ died on the cross as the only payment for our sin. WHITE ~ Accept God’s forgiveness and the free gift of eternal life. GREEN ~ Grow closer to God every day.

Later, as a jr. high student, our youth ministry taught us the Romans Road and I memorized verses from the book of Romans to present the gospel message.

Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:10 “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” Romans 10:13 “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

In high school, I went through a 17 week course on Evangelism Explosion , the training developed by D. James Kennedy. In those 17 weeks, we learned a simple gospel message outline, memorized verses, crafted illustrations, and practiced sharing our faith by visiting people who had visited the church. Maybe you’re most familiar with Evangelism Explosion’s 2 Diagnostic Questions:

ONE: Do you know for sure that you are going to be with God in heaven? TWO: If God were to ask you, “Why should I let you into My heaven?” What would you say?

While in college, I toured with Athlete’s In Action’s track team through Central and Eastern Europe, sharing the gospel with other athletes. As a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ (now CRU) we had to memorize The Four Spiritual Laws,  a popular gospel tract.

Law One: God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Law Two: Man is sinful and separated from God. As a result, we cannot know God’s wonderful plan for our lives. Law Three: Jesus Christ is God’s only provision for our sin. Through Jesus Christ, we can have our sins forgiven and be restored to a right relationship with God. Law Four: We must place our faith in Jesus Christ as Savior in order to receive the gift of salvation and know God’s wonderful plan for our lives.

After graduating college, I began to use Billy Graham’s outline found in the gospel tract  Steps to Peace with God:

Step ONE: God loves you and wants you to experience peace and life – abundant and eternal. Step TWO: We choose to disobey God and go our own willful way. This results in separation from God. Step THREE: Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose from the grave. He paid the penalty for our sin and bridged the gap between God and people. Step FOUR: We must trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.

One Verse Evangelism

Then, in 2003, I developed my own evangelism training based on the acronym YMCA . This fun training incorporated John 3:16 as the one verse to build the gospel message around:

YOU are loved by God. “ For God so loved the world… ” MAN is sinful and separated from God. “ …shall not perish… ” CHRIST died on the cross as the only payment for our sin. “ …that He gave His one and only Son…” ACCEPT God’s gift of eternal life by faith. “ …whoever believes in Him shall… have eternal life.”

Our children began to be taught a simple gospel message presentation through LifeWay’s VBS curriculum, the ABC’s of Salvation .

ADMIT to God that you are a sinner. BELIEVE in Jesus Christ as God’s Son. CONFESS your faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

In 2013, Sonlife partnered together with Dare 2 Share to train students to share their faith using Dare 2 Share’s G.O.S.P.E.L. presentation, Life in Six Words . The tool is simple, but strengthened by incredible videos and apps for students to use in sharing their faith.

GOD created us to be with Him. OUR sins separate us from God. SINS cannot be removed by good deeds. PAYING the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. EVERYONE who trusts in Him alone has eternal life. LIFE with Jesus starts now and lasts forever.

Through the years, I’ve also been introduced to many other great evangelism tools: Three Story Evangelism by Youth For Christ, Three Circles Evangelism by NAMB, EvangeCube, and the Gospel Bead Bracelet being just a few.

Tips for Sharing the Gospel

Here are a few things I think are critically important when it comes to sharing the gospel.

1. Keep it simple.  What each of these evangelism tools help to do is keep the message of the gospel simple. If the message is simple, it will be clear. If the message is simple, it will be understandable. If the message is simple, it will be reproducible. I believe this is why Paul wrote to the church in Colossae, “Pray that I may proclaim it (the gospel) clearly, as I should.” You want the gospel message to be simple enough that when you share it with someone, if they put their faith in Christ for salvation, they can turn around and share that same message with someone else. You’ll notice that in pretty much every one of the above gospel presentation tools, you will find these four basic elements. God’s Love, Man’s Sin, Christ’s Death, Our Response. If the presentation you use is missing any one of these elements, or adds much more than these, you might want to reevaluate for both simplicity and clarity.

2. Bring it up.  Often we don’t share the gospel with someone because we think they are not ready to hear it. If we use a Stop Light as an analogy for someone’s readiness to hear the Gospel—with Red being closed to the gospel, Yellow being interested in spiritual things, and Green being ready to put their faith in Christ—most of us think our friends or neighbors are at the Red light.

When to share the gospel: stoplight analogy

A better perspective would be for us to assume our friend is at the Green light, initiate a spiritual conversation, see how they respond, and then evaluate their spiritual readiness. In other words, don’t write them off before we’ve even given them a chance. Their readiness might just surprise us.

3. Land the Plane.  One of the hardest things for us to do when we’ve shared the gospel with someone is to close the deal, to land the plane. We stammer and struggle and just leave the conversation unfinished. Either we’re afraid to be viewed as being too pushy, or we’re afraid of being rejected. When we share the gospel, it should always come with an invitation for the person to respond. Two simple questions help in this regard. 1. So, what do you think? Does this make sense? 2. Would you like to put your trust in Christ alone for forgiveness and eternal life?

4. Pray, Pray, Pray!

  • Pray for your lost friends. Jesus prayed, seeing that “the harvest is great, but the workers are few.” Matthew 9:37
  • Pray for opportunities to share the Gospel message. “And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message…” Colossians 4:3
  • Pray for boldness and clarity as you share the gospel. “Pray also for me, that whenever I may speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel.” Ephesians 6:19

For Further Consideration

1. Who are the spiritually lost friends you are currently praying for and investing in relationally? Which light do you think they are at—Red, Yellow or Green? Consider viewing them as a Green light, sharing the gospel, and evaluating their true spiritual readiness.

2. What gospel presentation tool are you personally using? Maybe you feel like you’ve known Christ long enough, or been in ministry long enough, that you don’t need a tool. You can just go freestyle. If so, ask yourself: Is the way I share the gospel message reproducible? Can I train others to share the same way I do?

3. Explore. See what great evangelism tools are out there. New ones are being developed every year. I’ve outlined several great tools above. Sonlife has several more in the Evangelism Toolbox in our 4 Chair Discipling seminar guide. Check out a few new tools, especially those that are using technology, whether they be in the form of a website that can be shared through social media or apps ( Life in 6 Words by Dare 2 Share, The Big Story by InterVarsity, GodTools by Cru) that can be installed on smart phones or tablets. One great thing about tools like these is, because they are digital, they are easily shareable and therefore reproducible.

simple message presentation

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How to Make a “Good” Presentation “Great”

  • Guy Kawasaki

simple message presentation

Remember: Less is more.

A strong presentation is so much more than information pasted onto a series of slides with fancy backgrounds. Whether you’re pitching an idea, reporting market research, or sharing something else, a great presentation can give you a competitive advantage, and be a powerful tool when aiming to persuade, educate, or inspire others. Here are some unique elements that make a presentation stand out.

  • Fonts: Sans Serif fonts such as Helvetica or Arial are preferred for their clean lines, which make them easy to digest at various sizes and distances. Limit the number of font styles to two: one for headings and another for body text, to avoid visual confusion or distractions.
  • Colors: Colors can evoke emotions and highlight critical points, but their overuse can lead to a cluttered and confusing presentation. A limited palette of two to three main colors, complemented by a simple background, can help you draw attention to key elements without overwhelming the audience.
  • Pictures: Pictures can communicate complex ideas quickly and memorably but choosing the right images is key. Images or pictures should be big (perhaps 20-25% of the page), bold, and have a clear purpose that complements the slide’s text.
  • Layout: Don’t overcrowd your slides with too much information. When in doubt, adhere to the principle of simplicity, and aim for a clean and uncluttered layout with plenty of white space around text and images. Think phrases and bullets, not sentences.

As an intern or early career professional, chances are that you’ll be tasked with making or giving a presentation in the near future. Whether you’re pitching an idea, reporting market research, or sharing something else, a great presentation can give you a competitive advantage, and be a powerful tool when aiming to persuade, educate, or inspire others.

simple message presentation

  • Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist at Canva and was the former chief evangelist at Apple. Guy is the author of 16 books including Think Remarkable : 9 Paths to Transform Your Life and Make a Difference.

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One-Verse Evangelism: How to Share Christ’s Love Conversationally & Visually

One-Verse Evangelism ® is a simple, interactive way to share Christ’s love conversationally and visually. Using just one verse, it’s easy to learn, and you can write it anywhere. One-Verse Evangelism shares the powerful message of the gospel in a 10 to 15 minute conversation.

Many times we feel that to be effective in evangelism we have to create complex illustrations and memorize a seminary-worthy number of verses. But the gospel is most powerful when shared with love, clarity, and (sometimes most importantly) simplicity.

One-Verse Evangelism is a simple, interactive way to share Christ’s love conversationally and visually. It is based on asking questions and sharing truth simply. It’s easy to learn because it uses just one verse. One-Verse Evangelism can be shared in just 10 or 15 minutes, but can have impact for a lifetime.

Here’s a brief look at how it works. Let’s say God is leading you to share the gospel with your neighbor, Jeff. Write out Romans 6:23 on a piece of paper or a napkin: “ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord ” (NIV). All you need is contained in this single passage. Ask Jeff if he would like to see a simple diagram based on this verse that will explain God’s relationship with mankind (us).

Circle the word “wages” and ask, “How would you feel if your boss refused to pay you the wages that were due to you?” The answer, of course, is that he would want justice—in this case, the wages he had worked for. Deep down, we all know that it is only right that we get what we deserve. Similarly, we earn “wages” from God for how we have lived our lives.

Draw a circle around “sin,” asking your neighbor Jeff what he thinks when he hears this word. You might explain that sin is more an attitude than an action. It can be either actively fighting God or as simple as excluding Him from our lives. You can ask, “Has God ever seemed far away?” If he says “Yes,” you can explain that that’s one of the things sin does—it makes God seem far away. Now draw two opposing cliffs with a gap in between.

Circle this word and ask what thoughts come to mind. Explain that death in the Bible always means some kind of separation—in its most basic sense, separation from life. Because God is the author of life, a spiritual death simply means separation from Him.

While circling this word, mention that it is important because it means that a sharp contrast in ideas is coming. What we have just looked at is the bad news; what comes next is the good news.

Draw a circle around this word. Ask, “If wages are what a person earns, then what is a gift?” Remind Jeff that though every gift is free for the person receiving it, someone still has to purchase it.

Circle this and explain that the gift you are talking about is free. It is from God Himself. It’s so special that no one else can give it. Ask, “How do you feel when someone gives you a special gift?”

Eternal Life

Circle these two words next, and then ask, “How would you define these words?” Contrast one side of the cliff, death, with the other side, eternal life. Ask, “What is the opposite of separation from God?”

Christ Jesus

Write these words so they create a bridge between the two cliffs. Help your friend to consider that just as every gift has a unique giver, only Jesus Christ can give the gift of eternal life.

Write this word over the bridge you just drew. Explain that a true friend is a friend you can trust, and tell Jeff that Jesus is offering to be a true friend to him. All Jeff has to do is admit that he is responsible for his sin—either of fighting against God or excluding Him from his life. Trusting Jesus means believing that He has power to forgive us for rejecting God and that He will wash us clean from all that we have done wrong in life. At this point, you can ask him if he wants to start a relationship with God that will last forever. If he says “Yes,” invite him to pray a short prayer in his own words, asking Jesus to forgive him and make him new.

Close by reminding him that this simple illustration shows what God is like: Someone who really cares about people—especially him. Invite him to read all about it in the Bible–the Gospel of John is a great place to start.

Get this Navigator Discipleship Tool

Navigator Discipleship Tools are designed for sharing with your Bible study, church group, and those you are discipling. Order a copy of the One-Verse Evangelism booklet today for more detailed step-by-step instructions for drawing out and sharing this helpful illustration.

Adapted with permission from One-Verse Evangelism , copyright 2000 Randy D. Raysbrook. All rights reserved.

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Fine-tuning Your Presentation’s Core Message

November 12, 2014 / Blog, Lessons, Presentation Science, Rick Enrico Blog core message, presentation content, presentation preparation, presentation writing

As a presenter, your main goal is to make sure that the audience remembers the vital parts of your discussion. It’s not a particularly easy task, especially if you’re tackling several different points throughout an hour-long presentation. That’s why crafting a fine-tuned core message is important. You should have a clear and effective way to deliver the “big idea” behind your presentation. You should have something short and straight to the point that the audience can repeat and memorize.

The core message is the anchor that keeps your presentation from floating off. In other words, it keeps your presentation set on a single premise. Everything you present—from the data you share to the slides you show—should contribute in driving home this key idea. When you first sit down to prepare your presentation , it should be the first thing you have in mind. What do you want the audience to take away from your discussion? What’s the outcome you’re aiming for? The answer to these 2 questions is the first step towards an effective core message. After that, you’ll need to fine-tune your message to make sure it’s easy to repeat, recognize, and remember.

Spend some time scribbling down your ideas . Keep revising your core message to meet the following criteria:

1. Is it specific and straight to the point?

As we’ve already mentioned, the core message will be the center of your presentation. If you want to keep the discussion on the right track, your core message needs to focus on the particulars of your message. The topic of your presentation gives the audience an overview of what you might talk about, but the core message is specific and straight to the point. Determine the purpose of your presentation and make sure it’s evident in your message.

2. Is it short and conversational?

If you want the audience to remember your message, you have to make sure that it stands out. Try to write your core message in a more conversational style. As you know, there are distinct differences between the way we write and speak. Craft your presentation as you would a conversation. If you want your message to stick, keep it short and cut back on jargon and industry talk.

3. Is it relevant to your audience?

Maintain the audience’s interest by placing them at the center of your presentation. Make sure your message is relevant to their interest by keeping in mind their point of view. Do this by addressing your message directly to them. Try to answer these four questions to learn more about your audience.

Featured Image:  Horia Varlan  via Flickr

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Keep It Simple

Avoiding confusion and complexity.

By the Mind Tools Content Team

simple message presentation

In a complex world, simplicity is important. With so many things competing for people's attention, the more basic you can make something, the better.

Simplicity is why slogans can be so important. When you hear, "Just do it," you think of the Nike brand and all the things that go along with it – Michael Jordan, air, running, high quality, high performance, innovation, and so on. The power of those three little words can be incredible.

When you see several brochures, which one are you more likely to pick up – the brochure with lots of words written in tiny print, or the brochure with a bold background and only a few key words? The more simple the message, the more impact it can have – and the more likely it will be to attract someone's attention.

So, in this article we'll look at how you can turn complex messages into simple ones using the "Keep It Simple" or KISS principle.

When Less Is More

It's hard to be simple. There's so much you want to communicate, and you don't want to leave anything out. What people tend to forget is that to effectively communicate something, you need to first cut it down to the basics.

Let's look at the following paragraph:

Essentially, the important message that you really need to understand is that less can be quite a bit more. When you think of something like sentence structure, when it actually comes down to it, the fewer words you use, the much better the sentence is likely to be. Pretty much when you have better sentences, you have a much improved understanding.

WHAT?! OK, let's reword and shorten that last paragraph to show you simplicity in action:

Less can be more. In a sentence, for example, fewer words can lead to better understanding.

Which paragraph do you prefer and understand better?

The KISS principle is commonly used to communicate this concept. KISS stands for "Keep It Simple, Stupid." Other variations are "Keep It Simple, Silly", "Keep It Short and Sweet." Regardless of how you spell it out, the message is powerfully simple.

But KISS isn't only useful in communication, it's important in design and thinking: the more complex things get, the fewer the number of people who can understand them. What's more, it's more likely that mistakes will be made, that key factors will be overlooked, or that something will go wrong.

As well as this, a conscious preference for simplicity helps to combat the natural tendency to trip ourselves up by being "too clever for our own good." (Click here for our article on humility if this is a danger!)

The KISS Principle

There are opportunities all around us to practice the KISS principle. Whether you're making products easy to use, streamlining processes, or communicating important information, a simple approach is often the most efficient and most effective.

A question that often comes up is this: "If being simple is so effective, then why don't we see it more often?" The answer is that making things simple is not about reducing or doing less just to get rid of volume or quantity. It's about breaking things down to clarify and get to the real meaning, which takes a lot of thought and analysis.

Simple does not necessarily equal less, and it doesn't mean superficial or dull. Simple is the absence of unnecessary elements. The challenge is to figure out what's unnecessary.

For example, creating charts and graphs may take more effort than writing a summary. Think about the impact of the end result. The phrase "a picture speaks a thousand words" is clear evidence of the power of KISS.

Using KISS at Work

Choose your words carefully in written communications , including when you try to write effective emails :

  • Be clear about what you want to say.
  • Use headings and bullets to stress key information.
  • Proofread your work, and take out words and information that don't add value.

Format your communication pieces effectively:

  • Use lots of white space.
  • Highlight or underline key words and concepts, or use bold formatting.
  • Know your audience and your objective, and develop your communication accordingly.

Create simple and effective presentations :

  • Keep information short and direct.
  • Create visual aids that are clean and easy to read.
  • Use handouts to present detail.
  • Minimize distractions to keep your audience focused.

Focus your problem solving:

  • Use root cause analysis techniques to put the problem in the right perspective.
  • Use continuous improvement to simplify your systems and processes.
  • Create support systems that encourage people to look for opportunities to improve efficiency. See our article on Kanban and Just In Time for examples.

Remember to stay humble: don't be too arrogant or assertive. Otherwise, when you want to prove yourself, you may risk doing too much. If you don't know when to stop talking in a meeting, or if you try too hard to convince someone how clever you are, you may end up looking foolish.

Show that you're really clever by telling people what they need to know quickly and simply – people who try to stretch or exaggerate their knowledge or skills may take forever to say very little. The volume of what you say, write, or do is far less important than the value you communicate in the process.

Keeping it simple is not necessarily easy. You have to think and plan what you want to say or do, and you have to understand why you're saying or doing it. When you're highly focused on the output or results of your efforts, you can adapt your actions to your specific objective and the elements that are most important.

Details have a time and place. However, if you get stuck in details too early, it can make you less efficient and make your message difficult to understand. By keeping it simple, you can have the greatest impact and create the most value. Don't try to say or do everything – concentrate more on what really needs to be said or done.

When you can change something complex into something simple, you've really added value!

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Apr 22, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) look up during his team’s Game 2 loss to the Knicks.

© Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Dr. J’s Simple Message for Joel Embiid, 76ers to Forget About Game 2 Collapse

The Sixers legend weighed in on Monday night’s brutal loss.

  • Author: Andy Nesbitt

Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers looked well on their way to winning Game 2 of their series against the New York Knicks on Monday until disaster struck in the final minute and they coughed up a five-point lead before losing, 104-101 .

Now the team heads back home needing a win in Thursday night's Game 3 to avoid going down 3-0 in the series.

What's the best way for Philadelphia to put that brutal loss behind them? 76ers legend Julius Erving explained to Sports Illustrated this week the best way for Embiid and Co. to move forward.

"Watch the tape a couple of times and then get over it," Erving told SI, while promoting his work with FreedomPop , a wireless service catered for senior citizens. "Get over it while you’re still in the video room and while the coach is right there addressing you and you’re addressing him as you’re sitting there as a unit of one. Come out of that room with that solidarity, that says, 'OK, the only way we can remedy this is by playing winning basketball and winning the next game.'"

Erving also spoke of what he'd like to see from Embiid as a leader, who's not at full strength thanks to a lingering knee injury.

"I want to see (Embiid) with his head up and his chest out and come out there, and if he’s only going to play 20 minutes, give it 20 good minutes and let the other guys—they’re getting paid, too— let them do what they’re supposed to do," Erving said. "And (playing at) home should be to their benefit. They should have a little bit more confidence coming home even though the Knicks have all the confidence in the world after winning the first two games."

Game 3 should be another good one in a series that has been extremely close thus far.

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  2. 4 10 24 FMS Morning Message Presentation 1

  3. 3 6 24 FMS Morning Message Presentation

  4. 2 28 24 FMS Morning Message Presentation 1

  5. Psalm 101

  6. The simple message of the Gospel

COMMENTS

  1. Free Simple Google Slide themes and PowerPoint templates

    A clean, Simple slide design can help you deliver your message straight to your audience without distractions. Make good use of these Google Slides themes and PowerPoint templates and create engaging presentations. ... Download the "How to find the antiderivative of simple polynomials" presentation for PowerPoint or Google Slides and teach with ...

  2. Free Simple Presentation Template for Speakers

    How to use the Simple Presentation Template. Here are the steps you can follow to get the most out of the Simple Presentation Template. Step 1: Decide on your colors. Don't choose more than two colors. You can either use your business colors or choose theme colors that portray your message best. For example, when you look at color psychology ...

  3. How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

    Apply the 10-20-30 rule. Apply the 10-20-30 presentation rule and keep it short, sweet and impactful! Stick to ten slides, deliver your presentation within 20 minutes and use a 30-point font to ensure clarity and focus. Less is more, and your audience will thank you for it! 9. Implement the 5-5-5 rule. Simplicity is key.

  4. Free Simple Presentation Templates

    With Venngage, creating a simple presentation is a breeze. Choose from a wide range of beautifully designed templates, each carefully crafted to exude simplicity and elegance. Whether you're presenting sales data, sharing project updates, or delivering a motivational talk, Venngage has the perfect template to amplify your message.

  5. 150+ Best Minimal & Simple Presentation Templates

    Minimal & Simple Presentation Templates are designed for individuals who want to present their information in a clear and straight-forward manner. These templates are free of distracting elements and focus on your content, making sure it stands out and delivers the message effectively.

  6. How to make a great presentation

    The secret structure of great talks. From the "I have a dream" speech to Steve Jobs' iPhone launch, many great talks have a common structure that helps their message resonate with listeners. In this talk, presentation expert Nancy Duarte shares practical lessons on how to make a powerful call-to-action. 18:00.

  7. How to Structure your Presentation, with Examples

    This clarifies the overall purpose of your talk and reinforces your reason for being there. Follow these steps: Signal that it's nearly the end of your presentation, for example, "As we wrap up/as we wind down the talk…". Restate the topic and purpose of your presentation - "In this speech I wanted to compare…". 5.

  8. Simple Powerpoint Templates and Google Slides Themes

    These simple PowerPoint templates can enhance your presentations by providing a clean and minimalist design, allowing your content to take center stage. With their sleek and uncluttered layouts, they ensure that your message is easily understood and visually appealing to your audience.

  9. 45+ Best Simple Presentation Templates

    45+ Best Simple Presentation Templates. Delivering a simple presentation can clearly convey your message, and remove any clutter. This collection of modern, simple presentation templates is a great place to start—they put the focus on you as the speaker, and what you have to convey!

  10. Simple Style Presentation Theme Presentations Theme

    The Simple presentation theme is ideal for businesses and individuals who want to create a minimalist presentation that looks professional and conveys a clear message. This theme is packed with 300+ fully designed slides across various categories, including timeline, welcome, comparison, pricing table and team slides.

  11. How to craft a memorable key message in 10 minutes

    In a spoken presentation, clarity trumps clever. 3. Test your key message. There are a number of tests to check that you've got a memorable key message. First, can you remember it! You need to be able to say it without looking at your notes. Test yourself.

  12. What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

    Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired ...

  13. 23 presentation examples that really work (plus templates!)

    We love them because they're the most visually appealing and memorable way to communicate. 1. Animated characters. Our first presentation example is a business explainer from Biteable that uses animated characters. The friendly and modern style makes this the perfect presentation for engaging your audience.

  14. A simple, engaging presentation structure that works every time

    Your audience won't notice it, because they'll be fully engaged with your central message and key points. Keep your presentation structure simple: Open with a central message. Structure your content around 3 key points. Close with a call to action. Always have a call to action, that's the business value. Keep it simple, let your content ...

  15. Top Tips for Effective Presentations

    Make sure that you are giving the right messages: body language to avoid includes crossed arms, hands held behind your back or in your pockets, and pacing the stage. Make your gestures open and confident, and move naturally around the stage, and among the audience too, if possible. 10. Relax, Breathe and Enjoy.

  16. Core Message: Developing&Communicating the Key Message!

    The SUCCESS method is an acronym that provides a framework for creating and assessing core messages in presentations to ensure they resonate and stick in the minds of the audience. Here's what each letter stands for: S - Simple; The core message should be clear and easy to understand. The audience should be able to grasp it quickly. U ...

  17. How to Share the Gospel: Simple Presentation Tools

    Here are a few things I think are critically important when it comes to sharing the gospel. 1. Keep it simple. What each of these evangelism tools help to do is keep the message of the gospel simple. If the message is simple, it will be clear. If the message is simple, it will be understandable.

  18. How to Make a "Good" Presentation "Great"

    When in doubt, adhere to the principle of simplicity, and aim for a clean and uncluttered layout with plenty of white space around text and images. Think phrases and bullets, not sentences. As an ...

  19. One-Verse Evangelism: How to Share Christ's Love

    One-Verse Evangelism ® is a simple, interactive way to share Christ's love conversationally and visually. Using just one verse, it's easy to learn, and you can write it anywhere. One-Verse Evangelism shares the powerful message of the gospel in a 10 to 15 minute conversation. Many times we feel that to be effective in evangelism we have to ...

  20. Fine-tuning Your Presentation's Core Message

    November 12, 2014 / Blog, Lessons, Presentation Science, Rick Enrico Blog core message, presentation content, presentation preparation, presentation writing. As a presenter, your main goal is to make sure that the audience remembers the vital parts of your discussion. It's not a particularly easy task, especially if you're tackling several ...

  21. The Gospel in 6 Minutes

    Lay it down. And simply embrace the gospel that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Righteous One, died for your sins. He was raised on the third day, triumphant over all his enemies. He reigns until he puts all of his enemies under his feet. Forgiveness of sins and a right standing with God come freely through him alone, by faith alone.

  22. Keep It Simple

    The more simple the message, the more impact it can have - and the more likely it will be to attract someone's attention. ... Create simple and effective presentations: Keep information short and direct. Create visual aids that are clean and easy to read. Use handouts to present detail.

  23. HOME

    The Simple Message Three-Step Process. We form a solid foundation by finding your most original, fertile, and resonant. IDEAS . We create presentations, messages, and scripts that capture your ideas in the perfect . WORDS. We make your ideas and words come alive in performance formats that inspire people to take ACTION. Talk to David about what ...

  24. Power Presenting

    Outcomes: A killer presentation that shows off your expertise. Your knowledge in modules that can be used for interviews and short talks. For new speakers: Core performance skills used by professional speakers. For pro speakers: theatrical techniques used by professional performers A true and honest connection with your audience, every time

  25. How to give a good group presentation

    The "conductor" will also manage time and wrap up the Q&A. Pay attention even when you aren't answering. Consider yourself in the spotlight even when you aren't speaking. Look at the ...

  26. Homeowners Insurance Providers. Free PPT & Google Slides Template

    Perfect for insurance agents and companies, this template comes in eye-catching green and orange hues, designed to grab your audience's attention while keeping things simple and professional. Whether you're pitching to potential clients or training your team, this presentation template makes it easy to convey your message clearly and ...

  27. The Gospel: A Simple, Powerful Message

    The Gospel: A Simple, Powerful Message. Kevin Lawson — April 26, 2024. And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my ...

  28. Visa's stock gains after earnings, as one simple message resonates

    On an adjusted basis, Visa V, +0.65% earned $2.51 a share, while analysts tracked by FactSet were looking for $2.44 a share. Revenue rose to $8.78 billion, up 10% from a year before, whereas the ...

  29. Dr. J's Simple Message for Joel Embiid, 76ers to Forget About Game 2

    Dr. J's Simple Message for Joel Embiid, 76ers to Forget About Game 2 Collapse. The Sixers legend weighed in on Monday night's brutal loss. Andy Nesbitt. 1 minute ago. Joel Embiid and the ...

  30. Southwest flight attendants OK contract that'll raise pay about 33%

    DAL. -2.62%. DALLAS — Flight attendants at Southwest Airlines have ratified a contract that includes pay raises totaling more than 33% over four years, as airline workers continue to benefit ...