Allow us to share some intriguing facts with you.
- YouTube goes through more than 500 hours of video uploads every minute (as of 2021).
- Each day, around 7 million blog posts are published.
- With 198.4 million active websites and 4.2 billion active social media users (as of 2021) – digital content is growing at a whopping speed.
You might be wondering about the purpose of sharing these statistics. We shall come to that later.
Bill Gates long ago said content is king. It has been the Holy Grail for any kind of work (irrespective of the medium) for a long time. But is there a king without a queen? This brings us to another important term – design.
Is it design we see as the queen, second to content?
Now, successful presentations are about thinking of content and design together.
The article is a detailed guide on everything you should know about the pairing of content and design in a presentation. How important are they for each other, and if either can play second fiddle to the other? That is, can we afford to separate the two and focus more on one over the other and expect a successful delivery?
Let’s find out.
What is the Content in a Presentation?
Before moving further, let’s cover the basics by establishing the meaning of the term content in a presentation.
It is the information you present to the end user. Apart from the actual information and idea, it also encompasses the structure and organization (introduction, body, and conclusion) of that information and ideas.
Importance of Content in a Presentation
Relevant, informative, and apt content will help you in the following ways-
- It will help you inform people about your business and industry and share the purpose of creating the presentation. It acts as the cornerstone of your presentation.
- Apt content will help people connect with your message (information, sales pitch, etc). You have better chances of forging a bond with people and engaging them with relevant and powerful content.
- It will help drive conversion and growth for your business.
What is Design in a Presentation?
When you think of design, it is aesthetics that usually comes to everyone’s mind. But design is a lot more than just making things look appealing.
Design in a slide focuses on elements like colors, fonts, layout, graphical representation of themes, etc. It is a continuous series of processes intended to achieve the desired goal of message communication in the best way possible.
Importance of Design in a Presentation
An impeccable design will help in the following ways.
- It will help make your ideas accessible, enticing, and easily understandable.
- A good design ensures engagement and lasting impressions, which is especially important as we deal with short attention spans.
- Design can help you emphasize your content appropriately, wherever needed.
- It can speak to your audience directly while representing everything your brand is.
- Enhanced usability, thus affecting the bottom line positively.
Content vs. Design
This argument is as good as the riddle of what came first – egg or chicken.
Now, both professionals might say that one is imperative to the other. But the truth is they work in tandem to create successful presentations. Hand in hand. You can’t favor one over the other.
What if a presentation slide has all text or beautiful graphics with no call-to-action or relevant messaging? Would you call it a successful presentation? Of course not.
The former would lack an engagement factor and might even look illegible. The latter would result in an unactionable presentation.
And coming back to our list of statistics – would you think this plethora of content on the internet survives based on words or design alone?
The kind of competition and information upload we see on the internet requires mastery in both design and content for businesses to stay afloat.
The Power Pair
Only by ensuring a seamless collaboration of content and design, you can expect slides that woo the audience and deliver a great user experience.
Don’t spend ages accessing valuable information that falls flat visually or creating stellar designs with nothing to base them on.
Let’s go through some of the expert tips that will ensure a successful collaboration of these two pillar aspects.
1. The Purpose Should Be Clear and Understandable
You have two ways to go about a presentation – either DIY or through a presentation design agency. In either case, the writers/researchers and designers should have a clear understanding of the purpose of their work. If you are doing it alone, the same is true with you.
For instance, (DIY presentations), you should be aware of what content compliments which design and vice versa. Certain data would best go with infographics, and some with plain bars. The key is to learn the purpose of both for a seamless integration.
What is the key message that needs to be highlighted through the slide?
How can that message be accentuated using the design elements?
The goal and purpose should be similar and clear between content and design teams to avoid duplicity of work and wastage of effort.
2. A Starting Point
It is wise to develop a basic framework of content to move ahead.
A lot of businesses favor the approach of content-first for the reason that it offers a framework for designers to work upon.
The design elements bring forward and accentuate the most critical aspects of content, and that’s only possible if the designers have an idea about it.
Working on both things separately can lead to completely different concepts, which then need multiple revisions and corrections.
Having said that, it doesn’t mean you need to get your entire content ready first. Get a basic framework ready and involve the designers to continue the eventual process.
3. Make Them Work Together
That’s the crucial takeaway of this write-up. The writers shouldn’t solely focus on the write-up and the designers on graphics. Both teams should have access to each other’s work and the bandwidth to suggest original ideas and corrections.
Collaborations like these can refine the work and encourage out-of-the-box thinking and creativity.
4. The Workflow and Branding
The eventual purpose of any presentation is to get the message across while highlighting the brand (business or personal). The teams should have clearly defined deadlines, goals, and benchmarks to streamline the process (especially for lengthy and intense presentations).
Also, at all times, everyone involved in the presentation development process should be clear with brand guidelines.
Consistent branding is essential for the success of a business, and everyone should work towards building upon the story their brands convey.
Wrapping It Up
Content and design are two of the essential keystones for a strong presentation. You can’t compromise on either one and expect a great delivery. The professionals need to work hand-in-hand to cover all the aspects.
Take the help of the tips to create more fluidity between both the creative aspects and enhance the engagement factor of your presentations.
