Designing Effective PowerPoint Presentations – Color Schemes

Color has an effect on how we perceive information. Choosing the right color scheme directly impacts the visual communication of your content and the success of your presentation. Let’s take a look at what goes into choosing the right color scheme.

When you’re conceptualizing your presentation, you should always keep your presentation situation in mind. What kind of audience are you expecting? What emotional message do you want your presentation to communicate? These and other similar questions can help you find the right color scheme. Once you’ve picked a base color, a color wheel can help you find complimentary colors.

Colors and What They Communicate

Colors are often associated with emotions and feelings. Here’s a list of some colors and the emotions and associations they evoke:

• red: passion, anger, speed
• yellow: kindness, youth, joy
• green: nature, growth, balance
• blue: knowledge, trust, security
• white: purity, peace, virtue
• black: luxury, secrecy, formality

Monochromatic Color Scheme

A monochromatic color scheme uses various shades and tones of one base color. This understated and harmonious color palette is great for more factual presentations.

Complementary Colors

Complementary colors are found opposite each other on the color wheel. Using complementary colors creates a vivid color scheme which is ideal for presentations that aim to motivate and stimulate.

Triadic Color Scheme

A triadic color scheme uses three colors that are evenly spaced out on the color wheel. These colors need to be carefully balanced. Choose one as your dominant color and use the other two as accent colors.

Analogous Color Scheme

This scheme uses colors that are found next to each other on the color wheel. Because these colors are so similar, make sure there is enough contrast between them. This can be used to create a very subtle and balanced color palette without any sharp contrasts.

Now you can get started finding the perfect color scheme for your presentation. A large selection of ready-made templates in different colours and designs can also be found in our shop.