Let’s talk about layouts because with computers we have this freedom, we have this canvas that we can fill with whatever we want and wish. Well, that’s exhilarating, but we do need a set of rules so that we can know how to fill that space.

Why do we need rules? Basically because we want to give a sense of order to our space. We are going to give a sense of belonging to the single slides of your presentation, and we want to give to our audience a sense of the continuity of what we are telling.

Right now you should have some post-it notes with the sequence of your slides and you should have some sketches with the rough layouts that you need. My suggestion to you is to start thinking in terms of layouts, in terms of grids before you create the actual slides. Create all the layouts that you need, but remember to create as few as possible.

The layouts can determine the different moments and the different sections of your presentation. And to that purpose, you can also use color. You can alter the layout of your slides when it makes sense, but do it inside of the grids. And don’t be afraid to reuse the different layouts at different moments of your presentation. Your audience will appreciate it.

My message for you with all of this design process is to be consistent with your color palette, be consistent with your fonts, and be consistent with your layouts.

Summary:

• Work beforehand on your layout and determine the minimum amount of layouts that you will need to create your presentation