If I ever find out that you are using one of the three final slides in the infographic—in any language—then, to paraphrase Liam Neeson, “I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill … your slide presentation.”
Your audience can certainly benefit from well designed slides. For example, an aerial photo of a site on which you plan to build; a simple graph showing your company’s profit growth over the last five years; a relevant quotation superimposed on a compelling photograph.
But do people really need to see the words “Thank You!” or “Questions?” to understand understand what is coming next? No.
The best way to thank your audience is to say “Thank you”. If you have time to entertain questions, say so and invite the audience to ask them. It’s more personal and it’s more effective.
There are better slides with which to end a presentation: an inspirational image that signals a call to action; a (very) short statement that encapsulates your key message; your main contact details; or no slide at all — just a black screen.
Your final slides are too important to waste.
And if you want to see me in action with Liam Neeson, you can watch here.
