Ohio University College of Business Communication Standards

The audience reads text on the screen in phrases. If a font interferes with that process
and causes viewers to look at the letters instead of the words, they may not be able to
finish reading the text before it disappears from the screen. Too many typeface styles
and your audience will have difficulty giving their attention to the content of the text.
• Choose only two or three styles of text.
Use underlining and italic type sparingly. Use “fancy" text sparingly. Do not use all
capital letters.
Use underlining and italic type only when you want to emphasize a particular word or
phrase. Use the "fancy" styles even more sparingly; they are very difficult to read.
• Separate your text from the background.
Use black to shadow your text. Make your text bold-face.
Surround the edges of text or individual characters with black. It provides the sharpest
contrast and separation between text and backgrounds. Boldfacing your text will also
make it easier to read. Keep the high contrast between the text and the background (e.g.
white text on black background, or black text on white background). There is nothing
more difficult than trying to read text that blends in with the background.
• If color is desirable, select warm colors for graphics and text.
Use yellow, white, and gold for text colors.
Warm colors come forward in space. Therefore, warm colors should usually be chosen
for graphics and text to bring them visually forward and attract the eye.
• If color is desirable, make backgrounds in cool tones.
Make your background dark blue. Black or dark gray can also be used.
Generally, backgrounds should not dominate a scene. Cool colors tend to recede in
space. Use cool colors for backgrounds.
• Use one background per topic/section/presentation.
Your choice of background can contribute to effective organization of your presentation.
Use one background for one topic or section, and then change the background when you
change the topic or idea.
• Leave text on the screen long enough.
Text should be left on the screen long enough for the average viewer to read it twice out
loud before it is removed. Do not use Timed Advance feature to move forward in your
presentation.
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