Why Your Presentations Are Putting People to Sleep (And How to Wake Them Up)

We‘ve all had the misfortune of sitting through a mind-numbingly boring presentation at some point. You know the ones – endless walls of text on every slide, cheesy clip art, formulaic bullet points, and a presenter who sounds like they‘d rather be anywhere else.

It‘s no surprise then that a recent survey found that 32% of people have fallen asleep during a PowerPoint presentation. But here‘s the thing – it doesn‘t have to be this way! With some strategic changes to your slide design and delivery, you can transform even the driest subject matter into a captivating presentation.

As a marketer and public speaker myself, I‘ve given hundreds of presentations over the years, and I‘ve seen firsthand how the right approaches can make a world of difference. In this post, I‘ll break down the top reasons why your current presentations are putting people to sleep, and share my best tips for designing and delivering slides that will keep your audience engaged from start to finish.

Your Slides Are Drowning in Text

One of the most common mistakes I see in presentations is slides that are overloaded with text. I get it – you have a lot of important information to convey. But cramming it all onto your slides in complete sentences and paragraphs is a surefire way to tune your audience out.

Research has repeatedly shown that people cannot read and listen at the same time. When you confront your audience with a wall of text, their brains have to choose between reading your slides or listening to you. Spoiler alert: the slides usually win, and you lose your audience‘s attention.

So what‘s the solution? Minimize the amount of text on each slide. Aim for no more than 6-8 words per line, and 6 lines per slide total. Focus on concise headlines, keywords, and brief phrases. If you feel like you need to include more detail, put it in your speaker notes so YOU can reference it, not your audience.

Here‘s an example of transforming a text-heavy slide into something more streamlined:

Notice how the revised slide strips away extraneous text to focus only on the key takeaway, supported by a relevant visual. The original version required the audience to do a lot of reading to extract the main point.

Remember, your slides are meant to be a visual aid, not a comprehensive transcript of everything you‘re going to say. Adopt a "less is more" philosophy when it comes to on-slide text.

Your Slide Design Is Stuck in the 90s

Do you remember the last presentation that really dazzled you with its stunning visuals and immaculate design? I‘m willing to bet it wasn‘t one that used a tired old PowerPoint theme and looked like it hadn‘t been updated since dial-up was the norm.

In addition to keeping text sparse, the actual aesthetic of your slides plays a huge role in how engaged your audience will be. A well-designed slide deck signals to your audience that you‘ve put time and effort into crafting your presentation, which builds trust and credibility.

On the flip side, slides that are cluttered, sloppy, or just plain ugly can undermine your message, no matter how brilliant your ideas are. In fact, one study found that presentations with compelling visuals were 43% more persuasive than those without.

Now, if you‘re thinking to yourself, "But I‘m not a designer!" – don‘t worry. You don‘t need to be a creative genius to put together attractive slides. Start with these basic principles of good slide design:

• Simplicity: Don‘t include any elements on your slide that aren‘t absolutely necessary. Embrace white space to give your content room to breathe.
• Consistency: Use the same fonts, colors, and graphic styles throughout your deck to create a polished, cohesive look.
• Contrast: Make sure there is high contrast between your text and background to ensure readability, especially in less-than-ideal presentation environments.
• Alignment: Thoughtfully align text and images to create a sense of visual structure and balance. No random placement allowed!

If you‘re looking for an easy way to level up your slide design skills, there are tons of fabulous free resources out there. Canva has an extensive library of professional presentation templates that you can customize with your own content. SlidesCarnival offers fun, designer-quality themes for PowerPoint and Google Slides. Pexels and Unsplash are my go-to sources for free stock photos.

The bottom line? Taking the time to create visually appealing slides is well worth the effort. Not only will your audience be more engaged, but you‘ll feel more confident as a presenter knowing your slides look sharp.

You‘re Still Using Default Fonts

When‘s the last time you actually thought about the fonts you use in your presentations? If your answer is "Never," you‘re not alone. Most people just stick with the default fonts like Calibri or Arial and call it a day.

However, your font choices communicate more to your audience than you might think. Just like a novel‘s font can influence how immersed you become in the story, your presentation fonts can either pull people in or push them away.

So how do you choose fonts that will capture and hold your audience‘s attention? Here are some tips:

• Prioritize legibility above all else. No matter how cool a font looks, if people can‘t read it easily, it‘s not going to do you any favors. Opt for clean, simple typefaces.

• Use fonts that match the tone of your presentation. A serious business presentation calls for a different font than a lighthearted creative pitch. Make sure your font matches the mood you‘re trying to convey.

• Limit yourself to 2-3 fonts max. Using too many different fonts in one presentation creates a disjointed, chaotic feel. Stick to a couple complementary fonts for a cohesive look.

• When in doubt, go big. Err on the side of making your fonts slightly larger than you think you need, especially for titles and headings. You want to ensure people in the back of the room can read your slides clearly.

Not sure where to find great fonts beyond the default selections? Google Fonts is an incredible resource, with hundreds of free fonts that are easy to download and install. A few of my current favorites for presentations are Raleway, Open Sans, Montserrat, and Lato.

Here‘s a pro tip: when selecting fonts for your presentation, start by choosing a simple, legible sans-serif for your body text (like Open Sans). Pair it with a more distinct font for your headlines (like Raleway) to create hierarchy and visual interest.

Your Images Are Cheesy and Irrelevant

Pop quiz: which of the following is NOT an example of a terrible image choice for a presentation slide?

A) A low-resolution, pixelated photo that looks like it was taken on a flip phone camera
B) A tacky clip art graphic of shaking hands in front of a globe
C) An irrelevant, unintentionally hilarious stock photo (woman laughing alone with salad, anyone?)
D) A high-quality, impactful photo that perfectly reinforces your message

If you answered D, congratulations! You understand that great images can take your slides from forgettable to memorable. But if you‘re tempted to go with A, B, or C – keep reading.

Research has shown that when information is presented orally, people remember about 10% of it 3 days later. However, when that same information is paired with a relevant image, people retained 65% of it after 3 days.

The key word here is relevant. Too often, I see presenters fall back on generic stock photos or clip art that adds nothing to their message. You know what I‘m talking about – the corporate-looking handshakes, the random cityscapes, the people in business attire jumping for some reason.

Not only are these types of images completely forgettable, but they can also be unintentionally comical in the wrong context. Imagine trying to convey a serious message about global economic risks while a smiling stock photo model stares at your audience from the corner of your slide. Not exactly impactful, right?

The solution is to choose images that are:

• High-quality and high-resolution to avoid that ugly, pixelated look on a big screen
• Directly related to and supportive of your message at that moment in your presentation
• Authentic and natural rather than generic or posed
• Memorable and thought-provoking to help key ideas stick with your audience
• Properly formatted and cropped to fit your slide layout (no awkward stretched aspect ratios!)

There are tons of great free stock photo websites out there with high-quality, modern images that you can use in your presentations. A few of my favorites are Pexels, Unsplash, and Pixabay.

If you really want to add visual impact, try incorporating customized illustrations, branded infographics, or even GIFs or videos. Just remember, each visual element on your slide should have a clear purpose.

Investing a bit more time to find the perfect photos and graphics to accompany your message will pay off majorly in audience engagement. Show, don‘t tell, whenever possible.

You‘re Addicted to Bullet Points

You‘ve probably heard the famous saying, "Death by PowerPoint." But in my experience, it‘s not PowerPoint itself that bores people to tears – it‘s the bullet points.

Look, I get it. Bullet points are an easy way to organize information into a list. They give presentations a sense of structure. And when used sparingly, in the right way, they can be an effective tool for highlighting key information.

But 9 times out of 10, bullet points are used as a crutch. A never-ending crutch that lulls people to sleep and encourages them to tune you out completely. Here‘s why bullet points can be so ineffective:

• They lack a sense of hierarchy and importance since every line has equal weight
• They require a lot of reading for the audience to extract the meaning
• They discourage the use of visuals, which are more engaging and memorable
• They‘re often paired with a presenter simply reading them verbatim, which is redundant for the audience
• They can go on…and on…and on – until they take on a life of their own, and your core message gets lost

So does this mean you should never use bullet points in a presentation? Not necessarily. But you should absolutely look for opportunities to present that same information in a more visual, compelling way.

Try using a timeline to walk through a process or series of events. Use a flowchart to show relationships between ideas. Create a comparison matrix to evaluate different options. The possibilities are endless.

If you do opt for bullet points, use them sparingly. Limit yourself to 3-5 bullets max per slide to avoid overwhelming your audience. Treat them as a jumping off point for you to elaborate on, not a script to be read.

Remember, your presentation is for the benefit of your audience. Bullet points are easy for you as the presenter to create, but they put all the work on the audience to decipher. Ditch the lazy formatting and explore more engaging ways to get your point across.

Your Delivery Falls Flat

You could have the most exquisitely designed slide deck in the world, but if your delivery doesn‘t do it justice, you‘ll still struggle to hold people‘s attention. In fact, a famous study at UCLA found that a whopping 93% of communication effectiveness is determined by non-verbal cues.

So what does a presentation delivery that captivates vs bores look like? Let‘s break it down:

Flat delivery:

• Monotone vocal inflection with little variety in pitch or cadence
• Low energy and enthusiasm
• Absence of personal anecdotes or stories to illustrate points
• Over-reliance on slides (essentially reading them)
• No clear connection between ideas or overarching narrative
• Hunched posture, minimal eye contact, and stiff gestures

Engaging delivery:

• Passionate, dynamic voice – think of how you‘d speak to a friend about something you‘re excited about
• Incorporation of stories, examples, and analogies to make content relatable
• Slides serve to enhance your words, not replace them
• Strong eye contact, open body language, and purposeful gestures
• Compelling structure with clear transitions and a powerful start and finish
• Polished but not overly rehearsed (occasional "ums" and stumbles are human and authentic)

Great public speaking is an art, and like any art it requires a lot of practice. But one of the most impactful things you can do to immediately level up your delivery is to focus on the transitions between your slides. Rather than barreling through your deck, take a moment before each new slide to create anticipation.

Use phrases like:

• "Now, I‘m going to share something with you that might surprise you…"
• "Let‘s dive deeper on that last point…"
• "This next slide is one of my favorites because…"
• "You might be wondering how to apply this to your own situation…"

These transitions provide a natural place to pause, reconnect with your audience, and pique their interest for what‘s coming up next.

There‘s a reason the world‘s best TED talks often feel more like intimate conversations than formal presentations. Those speakers have mastered the art of delivering information with conviction, storytelling, and a deep sense of purpose. Tap into what makes your topic fascinating to YOU and let that energy come through.

It‘s Time to Awaken Your Audience

Presentations have incredible potential to spread ideas, spark conversations, and spur people to action – but only if we do them well. Our audiences deserve more than subpar slides and sleep-inducing delivery.

If you want to craft presentations that not only keep people awake, but have them hanging on your every word, remember these key points:

• Keep text on slides concise – focus on headlines and key phrases
• Design visually compelling slides with a consistent look and feel
• Choose fonts that are legible, appropriate, and used sparingly
• Use relevant, high-quality images to reinforce your message
• Swap overused bullet points for more engaging visual formatting
• Practice an enthusiastic, authentic delivery with strong transitions

No more snoozing in the back of the room. No more watching the clock and waiting for it to be over. When you put these strategies into practice, your presentations can be something people actually look forward to – imagine that!

Your ideas have the power to inspire people and spur them to action. Don‘t let lackluster slides or delivery overshadow them. You‘ve got this!

Data Sources:
Survey of 1500 office workers by Prezi, 2018
"The Power of Visual Communication" by Hewlett-Packard, 2004
"Persuasive Pitching and Storytelling" by Bert Decker, 2017