Effective presentation skills reduce miscommunication, which is likely the biggest cause of work-related stress. Better presentation skills also reduces the stress on presenters which means they will be more willing to present and more effective with their communication. (George Torok)
Here are 10 PowerPoint alternatives to better your presentation skills in 2017…
#1: Haiku Deck
Although we definitely fall on the side of PowerPoint fans rather than haters, this is still one of our favourite PowerPoint alternatives – especially for very visual slides with limited text. Very easy to use, making beautiful slides even if your own design skills are fairly limited. Plus, you can save the result as a PowerPoint file meaning it works with Glisser of course!
Pros: Incredibly user-friendly tool, for people who want to create a presentation with no prior experience and minimum effort.
Cons: The biggest downfall of Haiku Deck is that the free version looks painfully unprofessional due to the company branding and it’s impossible to export your masterpiece (Only way to escape this is to pay for an account)
#2: Keynote
Keynote stays true to Apple’s principals and contains all the beautiful simplicity which we love about this tech giant’s endless supply of products! Keynote allows you to create elegant and concise presentations via a fresh and appealing interface.
Pros: Polished and skilful presentations at the click of your fingertips thanks to another one of Apple’s triumphant accessible creations!
Cons: The software only works on Apple devices (but the majority of us own at least one piece of Apple tech right?)
#3: ClearSlide
Back in 2013 ClearSlide acquired SlideRocket, a big move with two of the leading innovators in online presentations joining forces! ClearSlide enables you to create vivid, breathtaking presentations with a reliable and quick web-based platform. The layout and movement in the slides, provide you with the opportunity to really showcase and support the message you are delivering through the impact of your presentation.
Pros: ClearSlide is very, very easy to use (we would even go so far as saying it’s more user-friendly than PowerPoint!)
Cons: Despite the option of a free trial, the slide templates available aren’t great and editing your presentation in offline mode isn’t possible without the paid version.
#4: Glisser
Surely you didn’t think we’d recommend PowerPoint alternatives for 2017 and not include ourselves? We like to think of Glisser as an interactive presentation software option that complements many of the other solutions out there – from PowerPoint and beyond. Take your existing content, and integrate live polls, audience Q&A and Twitter feeds – then share each slide live to your audience’s smartphones so they can get your content and interact. So you get a poweful audience response system, straight from PowerPoint. Plus you can embed ‘Glissered’ interactive slides on your website, to collect data as well as present your content.
#5: Google Slides
Google Slides does what it says on the tin, and like the tech-pro that it is, Google has succeeded in creating a presentation creation platform accessible from ANYWHERE. Google Slides can easily be shared between you and your colleagues, plus multiple people can edit simultaneously…so the saying ‘all hands on deck’ can really be put to the test with this one. You can also save your presentation as a PDF or PPT – need we continue?!
Pros: COMPLETELY FREE…..so long as you have a Google Account, i.e [email protected] then you’re ready to go!
Cons: Despite the accessibility of this software, the design features and basic templates don’t really provide the WOW factor we believe in when it comes to presenting.
#6: Prezi
Prezi’s interpretation of presentations is revolutionary – they’ve banished the traditional slide decks and replaced with one giant idea canvas! You can drop all sorts of creative material/info across the board and create your own route by zooming, twisting and switching between different areas through a completely modern presenting technique.
Pros: Uber cool, super modern and Prezi’s guidance videos walk you through all you need to know to create a killer presentation.
Cons: All presentations created through the free edition of Prezi become public by default.
#7: Canva
Seriously challenging (if not superseding) Haiku Deck for the quality of the visuals you can produce is Canva. With perhaps one of the easiest registration and get started processes out there, this is a great piece of software to deliver high-quality presentation content at warp speed. You’ve the option to download your content as a PDF which means, you’ve guessed it, you can drop it straight into Glisser and make it interactive as well.
Pros: Canva is simple to use and completely free, allowing you to use your own selection of images.
Cons: For those with OCD tendencies, who like to ensure their work is visually perfect – Canva currently doesn’t have page grids or alignment tools…so a sharp eye for detail is required.
#8: Slidebean
Slidebean allows you to create a free account and choose from a variety of presentation templates. Once you’ve created your presentation, Slidebean generates a link which can be viewed at your audiences’ leisure or presented on the traditional ‘big screen’.
Pros: Slidebean is a quick presentation tool, with lots of ready-to-go templates available.
Cons: The platform isn’t ideal for multiple users and lets the side down when it comes to functionality.
#9: PicHit.Me
This is an awesome plug-in for PowerPoint that makes the process of finding images for your slides much easier. I don’t know about you, but once I’ve created a presentation plan and basic storyboard, it’s hunting down useful (and free) images that take all the time. It’s a laborious task, but PicHit makes it easy to do from within PowerPoint.
Pros: PickHit has combined all the best stock photography websites into one. No more switching between sites trying to find the best photos
#10: SlideDog
SlideDog enables you to upload your presentation or videos onto a ‘presentation launch pad’ where you can edit your play-list ready for presenting in an alternative style to your audience. Your SlideDog presentation can then be viewed by your live audience, or those wishing to participate remotely.
Pros: SlideDog is software friendly, meaning you can upload a presentation from your favourite tool (Glisser obviously) onto their platform seamlessly.
Cons: The major downfall here is that you can only upload pre-made presentations, so it’s yet another cog in an already time-consuming wheel when it comes to preparing your presentation.
We hope you enjoyed our blog, check out our recent Infographic called The PowerPoint Alternatives Universe, which includes insight into more powerpoint alternatives.