Two presentations with equally interesting content, but one is somewhat more exciting than the other. It seems like in one presentation, it’s easier for me to follow the speaker every step of the way. I am listening to the speaker and yet visually entertained by his presentation slides.

Believe it or not, motion does create added impact to our presentations. This is provided that we use motion effects correctly. Very often we are thrilled by the variety of motion effects (transitions and animations) available in our presentation software. We tend to overuse them making our slides busy, creating unnecessary distractions.

For presentation slides to be effective, they must aid the speaker in delivering his message and at the same time guide the audience in understanding the presentation content. Having that in mind, we want to use motion effects that are subtle and doesn’t distract.

We really only need a couple of simple motion effects to make our presentation slides more exciting. The few of my favorites are Dissolve (or Fade), Move In/Out, Wipe, and Push. Depending on the content of our message, we can use them interchangeably either on slide or object level.

To have better control of precise movement of objects, we use motion path and scale to position objects on our slides. These techniques are more advanced and require a little more technical skills.

Here are a few examples showing how motion effects can be executed.

1. Product benefits

This example shows how motion effects are used to guide audience as the speaker speaks through the benefits of the product in question. Play video

2. Timeline

Timelines can be complex and difficult to present. This example shows how we can use motion effects to simplify the timeline so that it's easier to follow. Play video

3. Process flowchart

A process flowchart developed for documentation is not quite suitable for use as a presentation slide. We need to recreate it if we want to use it for our presentation. This example shows how motion effects can be used to make an impact in flowcharts. Play video

Motion effects when used correctly can be very powerful and gives you that added impact in your presentations. Invest enough time to experienment and test your presentation before presentation day to ensure all effects play without a glitch.