What are the recommended guidelines for adding color to a slide?

Colors have an impact on the way we see and interpret visual information. They can influence emotion, set the mood, build structure and emphasize certain elements. This means that choosing the right colors can make your presentation stand out and control how it’s received. So, what are some critical tips for using color theory in your presentations?

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Using color theory in your presentations
Keep it simple
Use color to build structure
Poster Presentation Instructions

Using color theory in your presentations

Colors are often associated with emotions. Warm colors, like reds, oranges, and yellows can be used to communicate energy, excitement, optimism, and enthusiasm. In contrast, cool colors such as blues, greens, and violets lend feelings of professionalism, dependability, and elegance.

Whether you’re designing PowerPoint slides, printed material, or infographics, using color theory for presentations will help you add depth and meaning. In XSplit Presenter, you can set the color of your slides and backgrounds to suit the mood and tone of your content. Why not subtly personalize your presentation? Choosing colors that align with either the brand identity of your company or of the client that you’re presenting to can really help!

You can make your material ‘pop’ by deploying complementary colors. The two colors that sit opposite each other on a color wheel, such as red and green or orange and blue. Using both complementary colors on a slide, for example, using one for the background and one for the text provides maximum contrast and achieves a high impact as a result.

It’s worth knowing that pure hues (color without any white or black pigment added) all have the same intensity and value (lightness or darkness). Sticking within that group will give a flat and unimpressive look. To avoid this and add interest, you should vary the tones, shades, and tints of the colors you use.

Photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash

Keep it simple

One key rule in the use of color theory for presentations is to keep colors simple and balanced. Choose a palette of no more than three colors (black and white don’t count as colors for this purpose). Create a simple but eye-catching color scheme by choosing two tones, shades, or tints of one color. Then selecting a third accent color which is at least three spaces away on the color wheel.

Another rule for balancing the proportions of colors in presentation and design is called the 60-30-10 rule. According to this rule, once you have chosen your three colors, you should use the primary color for 60% of the space on the slides. The secondary color for 30% of the space, and the accent color for 10% of the space.

Use a consistent palette throughout your entire presentation, so that the same colors appear on every slide. This builds a color association with your audience and helps them to remember your presentation or brand. Using your company color palette serves much the same purpose. What’s more, consistent color-coding on headers and data can also make it easier for you to organize your presentation.

Photo by Taylor Heery on Unsplash

Use color to build structure

You can also use color theory to give a clear structure to your presentations. For example, using shapes or negative space can help control the flow of visual information by highlighting the different sections of a slide.

We’ve all been subjected to presentations that consist of just a few text-crammed slides. Instead, build interest and keep the attention of your audience by spreading your content out into smaller chunks of information. You can then spread this out over more slides. Then, vary the arrangement of the colors you use to make each piece of content stand out.

You can also impose structure by using the same colors for headings and subheadings on every slide. This can help your audience to find the information they need at a glance.

By playing around with colors, you can draw your audience’s attention in the direction that you want. Ensure that your presentation flows naturally, and make your presentation, and possibly your brand, more memorable to your audience! This is something we have discussed on this blog in more detail talking about how better online presentations can help you stand out!

Well constructed visuals can make your presentation more exciting, effective and memorable. However, in order for the visuals to accomplish this, it is critical that they be properly planned and prepared or they can become a liability rather than an asset. The guidelines on these pages are designed to help you make the most of your visual presentation.

Oral presentations consist of varied time for the presentation of the final paper, which consists of the presentation and a question and answer section. Please include such content as the problem, the background, the innovative approach, the new results, and any comparative evaluation that the author wishes to present.

The presenter is required to bring the presentation on a memory stick to the session to which the paper is assigned. The presentation may also be uploaded to EDAS as a back-up method only.

Each paper is allocated 15 minutes of time--please leave a few minutes at the end for discussion and questions. Presentations should be clearly structured and should contain the essential elements of the accepted formal paper. The presenter should prepare a reasonable number of PowerPoint slides, so as not to exceed the time limit. Typically, 1 slide is presented in 1 minute. Slides should not be overcrowded by text and graphics. Too much text should be avoided. Slides should support the presentation, they should not simply be read by the presenter. Graphics help in communication, are more understandable and point out the basic ideas. Use large fonts so as they are readable without efforts; typically, 20 point fonts should be used.

Please fill out the presenter biography within your EDAS account, before arriving in Krakow. This will help the session chair introduce you during the session.

Poster Presentation Instructions

One poster board 1.2 m (tall) x 2.4 m (wide) will accommodate two posters, each poster will be 1 m x 1 m.

Therefore, the maximum usable area for each poster should be 1 m x 1 m.

Publishing Your Paper

All accepted papers are expected to be presented. If the primary author or co-author(s) are not able to attend due to extenuating circumstances, a substitute presenter should be found.

If authors like to post their papers electronically on any web site, any ftp site, or any other electronic dissemination technique, they must include the IEEE Copyright notice on the initial screen displaying the IEEE-copyrighted material. Additional information is available here.

ANY PAPER NOT PRESENTED AT IST 2018 WILL NOT BE INCLUDED IN THE OFFICIAL PROCEEDINGS PUBLISHED IN IEEE XPLORE.

Keep it simple. It is easier for the audience if you use three simple visuals than a single complex one.
Keep your audience in mind when designing your visual aids. What terminology will they understand? What examples have meaning for them?
Proofread very carefully. Try to have someone else proof in addition to yourself. It is hard to overlook errors when they are magnified in front of an audience. Remember, even a small error in such a focal part of your program can undermine the credibility of your entire presentation.
Fonts should be clear and easy to read. Use Helvetica or similar sans serif fonts. Decorative fonts are not recommended. Use only one typeface per visual. Add variety by using different sizes and bolding title lines.
Colored fonts should have a dark background (dark blue is best) with primary titles in either yellow or white and secondary titles in the remaining color. Details should be shown in clear bright, light contrasting colors. Use no more than three colors per visual.
Avoid using shades of the background color for titles or details.
Avoid commercial endorsements. A photograph of apparatus which incidentally includes a trade name is allowed, but a table comparing attributes of identified vendor’s products will not be allowed. There is much gray area in between these two examples; discuss any concerns you may have with your session chair. The display of the logo of the company with which you are associated is restricted for use to the first and last PowerPoint slides or visuals (usually the title slide). This restriction applies to logos of educational institutions as well.
Test your presentation ahead of time. Make sure it is easy to read from an appropriate distance, and that everything is in the proper order.

The text (or word) portion of presentations is used to state facts or objectives. When lines of text alone do not illustrate your point, a chart, graph or graphic might be more appropriate.

Avoid using more than six or seven words (30–40 characters) per line, six or seven lines per visual. Make sure type is well spaced and not crowded.
Eliminate words that do not add meaning, for example: the, an, etc.
Avoid complete sentences. Use bulleted phrases.
Be consistent in grammatical construction of lists; for example, use all verbs or use all noun phrases.
Use 36 point type for all titles, and for the text of visual aids to be used in very large rooms.
Use at least 18 point type for the main text in other than the largest rooms.
Use bullets at beginning of lines to separate ideas.
Use functions in PowerPoint that allow you to build information, bullet by bullet, on a slide, to keep the audience from reading ahead.

Title Pages

Use title pages to introduce new topics or add special emphasis to a very important point. The best titles are a few simple lines in large type.

Tabular charts are used to show raw data and numerical relationships. Use only a few key examples on the visual to illustrate your point.

Bar Graphs

Bar graphs are used to show absolute data or relationships and comparisons. Be sure to include scales and values. Be sure the type is legible.

Pie Charts

Pie charts are good for illustrating percentage relationships or parts of a whole. No more than eight segments are recommended.

Line Graphs

Line graphs are ideal for illustrating trends or performance over time. Your scale should include significant dates and milestones. Graphs should include no more than three lines. In black and white visuals, the lines should be distinctly different, e.g., dashed, solid, dots, etc. In color visuals, the lines should be easily differentiated colors which contrast well with the background.

Block or Process Diagrams

Block or process diagrams are good for illustrating structural relationships and designs. Graphics of this type show how each piece contributes to the whole. Avoid overcrowding. Limit your chart to no more than 10 simple geometric shapes and titles connected by lines and arrows.

One-Line Diagrams

IST 2019 papers often contain electrical one-line diagrams which are an integral part of a technical discussion. You should limit applying these to needed segments of a system to make them legible to the audience.

Photographs

Good quality photographic visuals can make a major contribution to your presentation. Be extra careful with photographs: they must be very crisp and clear, with high contrast between light and dark areas. Do not superimpose text over the image. If text is needed on the visual, it should be placed in areas that have been cleared of the image. Be sure to test your photos, projecting them to the size they will be when used to ensure that they are clear and easily recognizable.