Saying that images are key tools for visual communication may seem obvious, but it’s all too easy to fall into the trap of using pretty pictures in a presentation simply because they’re pretty. Images can be so much more than decoration!
Think about it: if you’re presenting to a live audience, there’s no point having a slide like this one – a bunch of bullets with loosely connected images:
PowerPoint slide with a list of bullet points portugal phone code and images placed at random on the slide. The images show two people high fiving and a rocket launching. The title of the slide is 'Who are we?'
It doesn’t look professional, the visuals don’t mean anything, and your audience can’t read and listen at the same time, so they’ll probably tune you out as your read through the bullet points. (Not very compelling…) Instead, consider how visuals might add substance to your narrative in place of words – choose images that engage your audience and help to tell the story you want to communicate. Read on to discover some handy tips and tricks for choosing and using relevant images to create compelling visuals.
Keep your images diverse. Ask yourself whether you’re representing a range of ethnicities, disabilities, ages, and people in leadership roles. Avoid stereotypes.
Check the resolution of your images. No matter how well it tells your story, if a picture is grainy, it will distract your audience. Delve into our blog post on PowerPoint picture size and resolution for tips on how to perfect image quality.
Consider your brand guidelines. Does the tone of the images you’ve selected fit with your brand? Do you need to focus on people, technology, or natural imagery? Should images feel dark and dramatic, or light and fresh?
A fabulous presentation doesn’t have to cost the earth. If you’re looking for some free stock images, we’ve got you covered in this blog post: The best websites for free design resources.
Now let’s look at five ways you can take your imagery from pretty to pretty persuasive!