QuickBites: How to Use Slides to Engage Your Audiences — Part 3.

Welcome to QuickBites — public speaking tips and techniques you can digest in five minutes or less.

This is the final installment of my three-part series on using slides to engage your audience.

Think Flashcards

When creating your slides, think of them as flashcards. This will help you keep them as simple as possible so your audience can quickly look at the slide, understand its relevance, and look back at you.

An Exception for Complex Slides

The one exception to the flashcard rule is when you’re working with a genuinely complex slide — for example, showing where pipes carrying chemicals and gases cross. In that case, introduce one element at a time. Show the green line and make your points. Then bring in the red line, discussing its proximity to the green. Then add the blue. Build the complexity gradually so your audience can follow each layer.

Draw on Sticky Notes First

Before creating slides on your computer, sketch each one — no matter how rough — on a 3×3-inch sticky note. If it doesn’t fit or isn’t legible on that small space, you’re trying to include too much on one slide.

Get Opinions the Right Way

Getting input from others is a great idea — but don’t just show them your slides and ask if they’re suitable. Instead, show the slides in random order, wait a few minutes, and ask them to write down which slides they remember. The ones that stand out are keepers; the ones that don’t need rethinking.

Ask Three Questions About Every Slide

Before including any slide, ask yourself: Is it necessary in this instance? Does it support the idea I’m conveying? Is it as impactful as it can be? If the answer to the first question is no, omit the slide. If the answer to either of the last two is no, omit or redesign it.

Turn Them Upside Down

When you can’t decide between two slides, try turning them upside down. I learned this from a photography mentor when deciding which image to enter in a contest. When I turned my 16-by-20-inch photos upside down, the right one became instantly obvious. The same principle applies to slides — stripped of context, the stronger one often reveals itself.

Consistency Matters

Every element in your deck should be consistent — typefaces, fonts, colors, image sizes, and all other design choices. Inconsistency is distracting, and distraction works against your message.

Don’t Rely on Your Slides as Notes

Many people use their slides as reminders of what’s next. That’s fine — but don’t rely on them. What will you do when your slides become unavailable? Know your talk inside and out. Paper notes are a reasonable backup, but nothing replaces truly knowing your material as a competent, audience-centric speaker should.

Wait Before You Speak

Most speakers begin talking the moment a new slide appears on screen. This divides your audience’s attention immediately — asking them to look and listen simultaneously, which is nearly impossible. Your audience will instinctively rely on their eyes first, which means they’ll miss what you said. After advancing a slide, give people time to see and comprehend it. Then, after about three seconds, begin speaking. For complex slides, give them even more time.

Thank you for listening to this episode of Public Speaking with Peter George. Are you ready to be calm, confident, and credible every time you speak in public? Then visit petergeorgepublicspeaking.com and let’s make it happen. I’ll see you next time.