Breaking Down the 5/5/5 Rule in PowerPoint Presentation Design

Mar 6, 2023

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Creating a successful and effective PowerPoint presentation is a skill that is extremely valuable in any professional environment. Whether you are a student or a corporate executive, the ability to craft a visually appealing and informative presentation can be essential in order to effectively communicate your message. While most people understand basic presentation design, corporate presentations require a more in-depth approach. Thankfully, there is a simple rule that can make creating an effective presentation much easier. The 5/5/5 rule in PowerPoint presentation design is an easy-to-follow formula that will help to ensure that your presentation is well-organized, concise, and engaging. You’ve already heard of Guy Kawasaki and his 10/20/30 rule which we covered in our previous article - The Importance of the 10/20/30 Rule for PowerPoint Presentations. In this article, we will explore the 5/5/5 rule and its practical applications.

The 5/5/5 Rule Explained

When it comes to creating a PowerPoint presentation, it’s important to remember that less is often more. While it’s tempting to include every piece of information and visual design element available, this almost always backfires. Too much clutter and a busy design can overwhelm your audience, making it difficult for them to stay focused on the content. This is where you should consider using the 5/5/5 rule in PowerPoint presentation design. This rule provides a simple way to design slides that will capture and keep the audience’s attention.

All you need to know and remember are these 3 key points:

• Stick to putting down only 5 words on a single line
• Stick to having no more than 5 lines of text on a single slide
• Stick to putting in only 5 slides that apply the first two rules in a row

Let’s explore these in a little more detail so that you can go about creating simple yet effective PowerPoint presentations.

Stick to putting down only 5 words on a single line

Whenever you create a PowerPoint presentation, it’s important to remember that the goal is to communicate your message or information to a large audience. You must keep in mind that merely throwing every bit of information you have onto your slides is not going to have desirable results. Not only will it look cluttered and disorganized, but it can also make your presentation less effective and less memorable.

The key to delivering an effective presentation is to keep it concise, organized, and visually appealing. This is why the old adage of "less is more" is so important. By limiting yourself to only five words per line on your slides, you ensure that the information on each slide is sharp and clear and that the audience is focused on you rather than the screen.

Using only five words per line also ensures that your audience will be able to quickly absorb and understand the information being presented. Keeping your slides simple also makes your presentation look more professional and organized, which will leave a lasting impression on your audience.

Stick to having no more than 5 lines of text on a single slide

Creating a PowerPoint presentation can be a tricky task. You have a limited amount of time to convey a message or communicate information. Therefore it's essential to be able to convey your message in a crisp and concise manner so that your audience is able to easily understand it. Unfortunately, when there’s a lot of material to be communicated, the tendency is to cram each slide with information, which is an ineffective approach.

The average person is only able to retain between seven and nine pieces of short-term information in their brains at one time. If a slide contains more than this, the audience won’t be able to retain any of the information. This is why it’s important to limit the information to no more than 5 lines of text per slide. This will make the information on each slide easier to understand, absorb, and retain.

Not only that, but it will also help your audience to focus better on the information you’re sharing. The fewer words and points on each slide, the easier it will be for your audience to keep track of and stay engaged. You can also add visuals or videos to break up the monotony of text slides, as these can be more effective in communicating your message.

By keeping a few simple guidelines in mind, you can ensure that your PowerPoint presentation design is effective, thus conveying the message or information you want to get across. Limiting yourself to 5 lines of text per slide, and adding visuals and videos can help your audience to stay engaged and understand the information better.

Stick to putting in only 5 slides that apply the first two rules in a row

Presentations are often most effective when they are concise. The 5/5/5 rule in PowerPoint presentation design is a popular way to ensure that presentations stay on track and remain engaging. The rule states that each slide should have a maximum of 5 words per line, with just 5 lines per slide, and there should be no more than 5 slides in total.

For larger organizations, however, this rule can be difficult to follow. It can actually be tricky to limit the number of slides to just 5. However, it’s still possible to create an effective presentation by ensuring that the content is relevant and easy to understand. It may be necessary to trim back some of the slides to reduce the amount of content and make the presentation more concise. Here's a small tip: if you want to make the presentation more engaging, use visuals such as images, infographics, graphs, and charts in place of certain slides.

Ultimately, the 5/5/5 rule in PowerPoint presentation design is a great way to keep presentations focused and engaging. Unfortunately, larger organizations may not be able to adhere to it strictly. However, if they can ensure that the content is relevant and easy to understand, these organizations can still create effective presentations without having to stick to the rule.

Utilizing the 5/5/5 Rule in PowerPoint Presentation Design Effectively

You can definitely use the 5/5/5 rule to create effective presentations, but don't blindly use it. Depending on the audience, purpose, and size of the presentation, the number of slides and content can vary greatly. Therefore, it is important to consider what information is actually necessary for the audience. This rule is, in fact, a great way to create basic presentations and structure larger presentations. When you use it, you ensure that you provide the audience with the content necessary for a great experience.

Overall, our presentation design team at Deck Sherpa is committed to creating effective and impactful presentations for our clients. We know how to apply the 5/5/5 and 10/20/30 rules to create effective presentations that will make a lasting impression. If you're interested in learning more about our services or have any questions, please visit our website or contact us for a quote. We look forward to helping you create a powerful and impactful presentation.