PowerPoint has an undeservedly bad reputation among many users and is often ridiculed as unprofessional. PowerPoint presentations are said to look bad, be boring and confusing, and distract from the essential points. A prominent proponent of this view is Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who last April issued a general ban on PowerPoint in his companies. Instead, his employees are required to use six-page memos for company communication.

Many of the criticisms of PowerPoint are based on prejudice, stereotypes, or are not the program's fault: PowerPoint offers a wealth of options and possibilities for creating interesting and visually appealing presentations, but these are rarely fully utilized. Many presenters are unaware of the program's capabilities or even use it incorrectly. In such cases, even the best software is useless.

As the name implies, PowerPoint is meant to help present content effectively, not to be an excuse to dump endless data tables or use it as a cheat sheet. There's certainly enough potential for high-quality presentations; the key is HOW you use PowerPoint.

PowerPoint is a visual, not a verbal, tool.

PowerPoint should help give expression and weight to thoughts and content, and support them visually. PowerPoint presentations should consist of short, concise text fragments and keywords, as well as large, impressive images. Continuous text and tables, even sentences, are out of place – the content should be presented, not read aloud.

Presentations tell stories

PowerPoint is designed to help keep your presentation moving at the right pace. Good presentations tell stories, have a captivating narrative, and a compelling arc. They help the presenter use pauses and key points effectively and with impact. With the right structure, PowerPoint offers all the tools you need to captivate your audience with a presentation!

Every audience is different.

To create successful presentations, you need to consider who they are aimed at.

• Who is the target audience?
• What interests and passions, likes and dislikes do the people listening have?
• What is the context of the presentation, and what is the relationship between the presenter and the audience?

The story told in a presentation should be relevant to the audience and engaging for that group. This also means adapting the presentation if necessary when delivering it multiple times to different audiences.

PowerPoint presentations can be a special medium that bridges the gap between presenter and audience, creating a connection between them. A good presentation and a well-matched slideshow complement each other, telling a story that is both captivating and creates unique experiences. PowerPoint offers all the necessary tools for this. It's up to you to use them!