A Simple Alternative To Bullet Points

Death By Powerpoint is often the result of slides riddled with bullet points. However, despite the fact that bullet points are a trademark component of boring presentations, many people still rely on this undesirable formatting option to highlight concepts in their presentation. Why? Well, bullet points are a fast and easy option for highlighting important points on slides. In addition, most people simply do not know any formatting alternatives that can replace their beloved bullet points.

The abuse of bullet points needs to stop, and I am here to help you join the revolution of presenters who are saying no to bullet points in their presentations. Bullet points are not only boring, they are also proven to be an ineffective method of communication for presentations.

Are you ready to leave bullet points behind? I hope so.

To help you avoid creating presentations that result in Death By Powerpoint for your audience, I want to show you an easy alternative to bullet points.

The Bullet Point Problem

To demonstrate an alternative to bullet points, let’s use this slide as an example:

bullet point example

This slide is representative of slides used in most business presentations. The main problem with this slide is clear – the bullet points.

While the bullet point formatting is ineffective and unappealing, this slide has additional problems beyond just the bullet points. The bullet points have a negative ripple effect on the rest of the slide design. As you can see, the header and bullet points leave very little room for creativity as the majority of the slide is filled with the basic, black font. As a result, the slide background is white, which is a missed opportunity to add creativity and meaning to the slide.

An Alternative to Bullet Points

An easy solution for this slide can be seen below: use one slide for each bullet point idea. Since each slide will have minimal text, there is enough room on the slide to replace the white background with a stock image that will enhance the meaning of the slide. 

People prefer visuals and as a result, they will be more attentive to slides that are visual.

In addition, visuals will make your message easier for the audience to remember.

bullet point example 2

bullet point example 5

bullet point example 4

bullet point example.005

By breaking free of bullet points and instead presenting only one idea per slide, you will not only create a presentation that your audience will enjoy, but you will also add additional layers of meaning to a presentation that was originally flat and void of any connection to the real world. Photos infuse slides with a sense of narrative and real world context.

If you like the idea of filling your slides with images, but you’re concerned about the price of stock photos, let go of all your worries; there are many great stock photo sites that offer creative, professional photos for free. Most of these sites let you use their images for any type of project – personal or commercial.

To help you design visual slides that are free of bullet points, check out some of the resources below.

Stock photo sites

Pexels

StockSnap

Life of Pix

Cupcake

Unsplash

Conclusion

With the many studies supporting the claim that visual slides are superior to text-heavy slides, there is no excuse for creating bullet point slides. Take advantage of the beautiful stock photos available free-of-charge to design slides that your audience will love and remember for weeks or months after your presentation.

Additional resources:

Why Bullet Points Kill Presentations

How to Turn Your Bullet Points Into Visually-Engaging Elements

How To Create Presentations That Stick

Slide Makeovers: Transforming PowerPoint Bullets Into Visual Learning

The Scientific Reason Why Bullets Are Bad for Presentations





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