Monday, September 10, 2007
You don't need no stinkin' PowerPoint templates...
PowerPoint Templates? You don't need no stinkin' PowerPoint templates!
I often write about PowerPoint fashion trends. As far as hip new styles go, I can easily get behind the "Just Say No" movement with regard to PowerPoint templates. The overly fussy template with gradients and dizzying, swirling colors is a look that is so 1990's.
The logo plugged into the corner on every corporate slide? That staid practice is as dead as a dinosaur.
Template Backlash. Face it: we've all seen the same PowerPoint templates over and over again. Sheer visual repetition has burned us out. It's one reason why our eyes glaze over...
PowerPoint Themes. And sorry, the new PowerPoint 2007 Themes don't help, either. They simply promote the banal idea that so-so content can be made better by thoughtlessly slapping it on a "new & fresh looking" visual boilerplate.
(Quite frankly, the "PowerPoint 2007 Themes" look isn't that fresh. See above comment on "overly fussy".)
Long live the PowerPoint Story. Many of the most beloved (zinged!) PowerPoint presentations at Slideshare.net do not rely on PowerPoint templates at all. Instead, zinged presentations rely on great storytelling.
Good Stories are Timeless. And happily, terrific storytelling is not a fashion statement! Outstanding stories (and story tellers) never go out of style.
For Today's PowerPoint Chic... The content comes first. And today, content is supported by a lean and clean design that favors compelling photography over cliched clipart. Now, will this "Zen" design look become kitsch in a few years? Quite likely! But until then...
PowerPoint Templates? You don't need no stinkin' PowerPoint templates!
I often write about PowerPoint fashion trends. As far as hip new styles go, I can easily get behind the "Just Say No" movement with regard to PowerPoint templates. The overly fussy template with gradients and dizzying, swirling colors is a look that is so 1990's.
The logo plugged into the corner on every corporate slide? That staid practice is as dead as a dinosaur.
Template Backlash. Face it: we've all seen the same PowerPoint templates over and over again. Sheer visual repetition has burned us out. It's one reason why our eyes glaze over...
PowerPoint Themes. And sorry, the new PowerPoint 2007 Themes don't help, either. They simply promote the banal idea that so-so content can be made better by thoughtlessly slapping it on a "new & fresh looking" visual boilerplate.
(Quite frankly, the "PowerPoint 2007 Themes" look isn't that fresh. See above comment on "overly fussy".)
Long live the PowerPoint Story. Many of the most beloved (zinged!) PowerPoint presentations at Slideshare.net do not rely on PowerPoint templates at all. Instead, zinged presentations rely on great storytelling.
Good Stories are Timeless. And happily, terrific storytelling is not a fashion statement! Outstanding stories (and story tellers) never go out of style.
For Today's PowerPoint Chic... The content comes first. And today, content is supported by a lean and clean design that favors compelling photography over cliched clipart. Now, will this "Zen" design look become kitsch in a few years? Quite likely! But until then...
Long live the PowerPoint Story.
Labels: PowerPoint Templates
¶ 9/10/2007 11:08:00 AM
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Thankfully, I've seen less and less clipart used in corporate presentations over the past year. I think professionals are beginning to understand the potential influence of their slides.
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