3 Tips to Design Better in PowerPoint

No matter your role, designing in PowerPoint can feel challenging. With a user interface (UI) that many consider awkward and a common belief that control is limited, building beautiful presentations that engage audiences can feel daunting. To gain more control and improve continuity between slides, try implementing some of the following tips.

‍

1. Adjust Typography

Typography is the secret sauce that can transform your design from boring to captivating. By paying attention to how you arrange and present text, you can enhance the visual appeal and readability of your slides. Here are a few things we like to do to enhance typography in PowerPoint:

‍

Remove Text Box Padding

By default, PowerPoint adds extra space between your text and the edge of the bounding box that contains it. This can make aligning your text to other elements difficult, as the padding can create awkward gaps and spaces. To remove this padding, select the Format pane > Size and Properties > Text Box, and then simply set the inside margins to 0’’. This way, your text boxes will play nice and align just the way you want them to.

‍

‍

Adjust Line Spacing 

Think of line spacing as the air between lines of text—it can greatly affect how your content feels. The tighter it is, the more crowded things feel. Adjusting the line spacing can make your text more comfortable to read and give your slides a polished look. A general rule of thumb we like to follow for paragraphs of text is removing “Single Line” and setting it to: "Multiple" set to “1.2 points.”

‍

‍

2. Organize Your Elements

Here's a trick that many PowerPoint users overlook: the layers panel. This tool gives you full visibility and control of all elements on your slide. It’s a lifesaver when you're dealing with complex animations or designs. Accessing the layers panel isn’t very intuitive but really easy once you know where to locate it.

To access it, click on "Shape Format” and then hit "Selection Panel."

With the layers panel at your fingertips, you can give your elements meaningful names, hide them when they're not needed, and even rearrange them effortlessly. This not only makes designing a breeze but also keeps your workflow organized.

‍

3. Build a Custom Grid with Guides 

Any “good” designer will tell you that using a grid provides more control, continuity, and precise alignment for any layout. And, guess what? PowerPoint has a solution that's as easy as a few clicks.

PowerPoint offers a basic square grid that can be adjusted. To activate the grid, hold down the "Control" and click your mouse, then select “Grid.” Boom. You now have a framework for creating your custom grid.

Next, activate your guides by again holding down “Control” but this time hitting “Guides”.

With your guides active, you can create new instances by holding “Option” and clicking and dragging an existing guide. You can fine-tune your guides to create columns and gutters — space between columns that best fit your design. These guides act as your loyal assistants on each slide, helping you place elements with pixel-perfect accuracy.

‍

For an extra dose of alignment magic, turn on "Smart Guides." In doing so, PowerPoint will automatically look for logical alignment between elements as you move them around your slide.

‍

‍

Conclusion 

Designing in PowerPoint doesn't have to be a daunting task. By applying some or all of these three practical tips, you'll be well on your way to creating presentations that captivate and impress your audience. So, the next time you're faced with the challenge of PowerPoint design, remember these techniques and watch your slides come to life with style and confidence.