How to use Powerpoint Tools (Basics for Beginners)

Microsoft PowerPoint is not very complex; in fact, it is simple and user-friendly. It is designed to help users create professional presentations with ease, even without advanced technical skills.

PowerPoint provides a variety of tools that allow you to design, edit, and present information effectively. With features like text formatting, image insertion, animations, and slide transitions, users can create visually appealing slides in just a few steps.

The interface is easy to understand, with clearly labeled tabs such as Home, Insert, Design, and Slide Show. Each tab contains tools that help you perform specific tasks, making it easy to navigate and use.

Whether you are a student, teacher, or professional, PowerPoint makes it simple to organize your ideas and present them in a clear and engaging way. 

                                                                      

Understanding the PowerPoint Interface

When you open PowerPoint, you’ll see:

• Slides Pane (left) – shows all your slides
• Main Slide Area (center) – where you design your slide
• Ribbon (top menu) – contains all tools like Home, Insert, Design, etc.

Home Tab (Basic Editing Tools)

This is where you’ll work the most.

• New Slide → Add a new slide
• Layout → Choose slide structure (title, content, etc.)
• Font Tools → Change text size, color, bold, etc.
• Paragraph Tools → Align text (left, center, right)
• Drawing Tools → Add shapes

Insert Tab (Adding Content)

Use this to add elements to your slides:

• Pictures → Insert images from your computer
• Shapes → Add arrows, boxes, icons
• Icons → Use built-in graphics
• Chart → Create graphs
• Text Box → Add custom text anywhere

Design Tab (Making Slides Look Good)

• Themes → Pre-designed styles
• Variants → Different color styles
• Slide Size → Change dimensions

 

Now let’s dive in:

 

Search for Powerpoint on your search bar on your desktop as shown below.

 

Why use the search bar? When what you are looking for is not already visible on the desktop or pinned on the taskbar. So, use the search bar and type the word Powerpoint. And viola!

 

At this point you will be greeted with this page.

 

Now, you can choose a design or let’s start with a blank page oh! Blank slide in Powerpoint your work space is called a slide not a page like in MS word which we will look into soon.

After you click on the blank presentation, you get this.

 

CHOOSING A DESIGN

Firstly, what I do is to choose a design for here and make sure you choose the right design that fits. Cause if you don’t choose a good design changing it will alter your presentation. Move your cursor to the “Design” on the Navbar.

 

At this point I have click on a nice design on the “Theme.”

 

You can change the variants on the “Variants” dropdown. But I will leave mine like this because this is just the basic. Now you can add your title and subtitle. Go back to the Home and click on the “New slide” to add a new slide below the title slide. Now you can continue adding your content depending on what you are presenting.

If you look closely, some tools are not clear or clickable so to enable that you click on the design like you are adding a text and it will display clearly and you can at this point click on what ever tool you like e.g. Fonts, Font size, Bold, Italic and so on.

ADDING AN IMAGE

You can at this point add an image into the slide by going into the “Insert” and click on Pictures, select this device a pop window will display, select the picture or image you want to add and click on Open as shown below.

MANUPILATING THE IMAGE

Adjust your image to how it suits your presentation I will show you that now.

After you insert the image click on it and you will see the Format Picture option. But as a beginner all you need in to resize, move, rotate or crop your image. When your cursor turns either way it means.

With this you can work on your image with ease.

So now we have learnt how to add text, images, more slides. Now let’s view our presentation on the “Slide Show” click on the From Beginning. Or as we do it in shortcuts Ctrl F5 to begin then to end the slide click on esc.

 

Tips for Creating Professional Slides

To make your presentation stand out, follow these tips:

1. Keep It Simple

Avoid overcrowding your slides with too much text.

2. Use Large Fonts

Make sure your text is readable from a distance.

3. Use Visuals

Images and icons make your slides more engaging.

4. Be Consistent

Use the same colors, fonts, and styles throughout.

5. Use Bullet Points

Break information into short, clear points.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Even though PowerPoint is simple, many beginners make these mistakes:

• Using too many animations
• Adding too much text
• Choosing poor color combinations
• Ignoring slide consistency
• Reading directly from slides

Avoiding these will make your presentation more effective.

In conclusion

Simple Step-by-Step Example

Let’s create a quick presentation:

1. Open PowerPoint
2. Click Blank Presentation
3. Add title: “My First Presentation”
4. Click New Slide
5. Insert → Picture
6. Add some text
7. Go to Design → Pick a theme
8. Add transition (Fade)
9. Press F5 to present

If you still find it hard, you can book a session with me for a little fee and I will guide you through. Just go over to the comment session, or better still our contact page and you can write or email us. I will get back to you.