You have a business presentation coming up. Even without thinking about it, you open up PowerPoint. You like that it is easy to use, and you can customize the slides as you wish. You have options of using texts or images. Furthermore, you can add audiovisual elements to increase engagement levels.
To top it all off, you can find tons of free PowerPoint templates and themes. It saves you time because you don’t need to start putting together the presentation from scratch. All you need to do is identify the one you like and tweak it according to your needs.
But, is it effective to use themes in business presentations?
Themes in Business Presentations; To Use or Not To Use
In answering the question above, we must explore both sides of the coin. Only then can you determine whether to use them or not.
Arguments for the Use of Themes in Business Presentations
1. It Helps Avoid Manual Formatting
Putting together a business presentation can be challenging. You can end up spending hours on manual formatting a presentation from scratch. You spend time deciding on fonts, colors, and even images. Also, you have to decide on how the layout will look, and where to place the different elements.
Using themes saves you from having to do all that. They come with predefined fonts, colors, and visual effects.
All you need to do is choose one that is specific for business presentations. You then customize it as per your wish. A presentation that could have taken days can be ready in an hour.
2. You Get Professional-Looking Slides
You may find that you struggle to put together the slides. You are not sure about what to include and where to place it. How many times have you seen presentations that look unprofessional? Smart and strategic placement of elements is lacking in presentations like these.
Take a look at the example below.
Imagine trying to digest the information from the slide above. Your eyes will probably glaze over, and before long, you will give up. The right theme will guide on where to place the information. It will also limit how much you put on your slide so that the situation above does not occur.
The final slides look professional, and your audiences can get the information they need without too much effort.
3. You Have a Choice of Themes Specific to Business Presentations
Look up business presentation themes online and you will get tons of responses. The wide array of choices can be overwhelming at times. The only tricky part for you will be to decide which one to use.
With options, you can choose the theme that best fits the audiences you are targeting. If, for example, you are presenting to top business executives, look for professional themes. Simple layouts, easy-to-read fonts, and minimal colors work well for such audiences.
Check the example below.
If you are pitching a product to younger audiences like Millennials or Gen Z, you can use the more creative themes.
4. You Increase the Aesthetic Appeal with Original Themes
Designers who come up with themes need to be very creative. It’s part of their job description. Because of this, the themes they come up with are aesthetically pleasing. Pair this with your top-notch content and you’ve got yourself a powerful presentation.
Gone are the days when you took too much time stressing over how you’re going to make your presentations beautiful. This in turn allows you to concentrate on putting together the information, not how to lay it out.
5. They Do Not Need a Skillset to Use
Another advantage is you do not require a particular skill set to use the themes. Customizing the slides is easy and does not require a background in graphic design. Most are intuitive and have clear guidelines of where everything goes. You do not require special training or skills to use themes.
Although, you can also get themes that allow greater flexibility because all of the elements are fully customizable. They work well for those with more advanced techniques, who may want more control with how the slides look.
Arguments against the Use of Themes in Business Presentations
Let’s look at the other side of the argument.
1. Your Presentations Will Start to Look Similar
It is not uncommon to find the same themes in different presentations. What appeals to you could have the same effect on thousands of other people. Further, once you find a theme that works for you, you may find it challenging to go for another.
2. It May Limit Space You Have
When choosing a theme, look at how much space it gives you for other things. Some contain unnecessary design elements. It ends up crowding the slides, giving you only a little room to work with.
You may end up using tiny fonts, graphs, or other visual elements. If not, you may compensate for the lack of space with too many slides. You will end up with a slide that looks like the one below.
3. You May Have To Stick To What Is Available
Some of the theme elements may not work for you. Color palettes, for example, may restrict what you can do. Try pasting an image with a white background on such a slide. It ends up looking out of place because it will not blend in.
You have to be careful about the type of visuals you use. You may also need to adjust font colors to something you would not ordinarily use.
Final Thoughts: To Use or Not To Use Themes
We have come full circle to our question, to use or not to use themes for business presentations. Our answer would be why to reinvent the wheel when it already exists. Why not take advantage of what is available to make your work easier.
We have looked at the pros and cons of using themes in business presentations. Without a doubt, they provide many functionalities that you can use to your advantage.
You get professional-looking presentations. It cuts back the time you would spend on manual formatting. You also have tons of free, very creative options available.
But, please pay attention to the type of theme you choose. The wrong choice could result in an unprofessional-looking business presentation.
