Create clear and convincing internal communications, strategic plans, research reports and other boardroom-style slides.

Color  

Color on a slide will make the reader more likely to agree with you. They will also spend nearly twice as much time looking at your slides. Color infuses energy into a slide.

Try to use 2-3 colors on each slide. Again, brain research shows we cannot hold more than four distinct colors in working memory at the same time.

Use color intelligently: to assist in chunking, to highlight important information or to convey meaning (eg. red means danger, green means on track). If color cannot be used in these ways, add 2-3 colors to add visual interest as long as they don’t interfere with chunking, distract from the main point or convey unintended meaning.

If you must use more than 2-3 colors on a slide, such as a pie chart with eight slices, use different tints of the same color.

Adopt a standard color palette that you use on every slide and in every slide deck. It will give your slides a consistent, professional look that enhances your credibility and you will save time searching for different color combinations for each deck.

Next: Picture & Wallpaper