Guest Author - Chris Curtis

PowerPoint is a slide show application program that makes developing your formal presentation a breeze. You can use it for live presentations, and also for web presentations, demonstrations, kiosk presentations, and any other time where a slide presentation can be effective.

What it is not:
• It is not a wordprocessor
• It is not a graphics editor
• It is not a desktop publisher
• It is not a graph plotting program
• It is not a organization chart tool

The MS Office suite provides a variety of functionality across all of its application programs. By learning to use each program's competency, users are more effective when they choose the right software program to do the job. For example, although PowerPoint will allow you to create a org chart or to create simple graphs within your presentation, Excel is far more effective for creating sophisticated charts and Visio is designed to handle complex organization, timelines and gant charts. Once you have your created your charts, it is a simple process to copy and paste them onto your PowerPoint slide.

Why do you need to give a presentation? Generally, the reasons for giving a presentation is to convince, motivate, inspire, and educate an audience. A well developed slide show presentation will enhance and support the message you are trying to convey to your audience.

PowerPoint is expert at helping you create and deliver slide shows. Its simple interface, wizards and templates put easy-to-use tools at your finger tips. Features such as handouts, notes, and outlining tools are excellent aids for speakers and presenters to use when preparing a presentation. Speakers can add graphical, audio and visual impact to emphasize their message by thoughtfully adding pictures, sound, and animation. Visuals such as data and org charts enhance a presentation immensely.

Beyond live presentations, slideshows can be used in a variety of ways. Companies use it to convey an advertising message or as a self-study training tool. Artists and photographers can use it to display their work. Churches use it as a teleprompter for praise and song. It's used by individuals to pass along inspirational messages on the internet or simply to convey feelings of friendship. It's use is only limited by the user's imagination.

Next time you are asked to prepare a presentation, consider using PowerPoint to make an impactful impression.