A detailed look at the 10/20/30 PowerPoint rule. (2024)

In the ever-evolving business world, successful communication is the key to triumph. In presentations, the ability to articulate your message clearly and concisely can make all the difference.

Discover the transformative power of Guy Kawasaki's 10/20/30 rule, redefining how we craft and deliver business and marketing presentations.

The Genesis of the 10/20/30 Rule

Guy Kawasaki, an esteemed Silicon Valley venture capitalist and former member of Apple's original Mac team, embarked on a mission after being underwhelmed by numerous pitches from entrepreneurs.

His solution?

The game-changing 10/20/30 rule, designed to revolutionize the world of PowerPoint presentations and enhance entrepreneurs' pitch success.

Decoding the 10/20/30 PowerPoint Rule

Embrace the 10-20-30 rule for presentations, which recommends keeping them under 10 slides, delivering them within 20 minutes, and using a font size no smaller than 30 points. By applying this rule, you can make your presentations more direct, memorable, and compelling.

The Rule in Detail:

10 PowerPoint Slides

To grab your audience's attention, opt for concise, visually striking presentations. Stay clear of an excessive slide count. As a rule of thumb, 10 slides are sufficient to deliver your message compellingly. Ensure your slides remain free from overly dense content.

1. Title – Start with a suitable name or title for your presentation.

2. Problem/Opportunity – Illustrate the opportunities that you are providing or the pain points you are resolving.

3. Value Proposition – Explain the value that you will be delivering through your solutions.

4. Underlying Magic – Explain the secret recipe of your product or the technology that sets you apart.

5. Business Plan – Explain your vision for the business and how you plan to achieve it.

6. Go-to-Market Plan – Share your approach for marketing your product to the public.

7. Competitive Analysis – Showcase the strengths and weaknesses of potential and current competitors.

8. Management Team – Showcase the key members of your management team, such as the Board of Directors, advisors, investors, etc.

9. Financial Projections and Key Metrics – Explain future revenues and expenses as well as key metrics to measure financial performance.

10. Current Status, Accomplishments to Date, Timeline, and Use of Funds – Explain the achievements, current status of the product, and how the money will be utilized.

20 Minutes Presentation

As the attention span of the audience is narrowing, the presentation should not last more than 20 minutes. The lengthy presentations will make your audience lose interest. A well-structured 20-minute presentation might include:

Introduction – 1 minute

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Talk about the problem/ask a question – 4 minutes

Main body – 13 minutes

Conclusion – 2 minutes

30 Font Size

Keep the size of the fonts 30 in your presentations to include only important points. A font size lesser than this will negatively impact the readability. Contrary to this, the font size of more than 30 will compel the audience to focus more on what has been written on slides than what is being said.

In today's landscape, investors and audiences prioritize content depth over font size, making it advisable to decrease the font size to 15 or 20 in order to accommodate more content.

Revisiting the Relevance of the 10/20/30 PowerPoint Rule in Today's World

The 10/20/30 rule, although criticized by some for favoring text-heavy slides, is highly praised by marketers for creating powerful presentations. It emphasizes the importance of having only 10 slides to focus on essential points, a 20-minute time limit for including only crucial information, and a 30-point font size for key takeaways.

In the ever-evolving landscape of business and technology, the 10/20/30 rule remains a timeless guide to crafting presentations that captivate, inform, and inspire. Whether you're pitching a groundbreaking idea or sharing your vision with the world, remember that clarity is paramount, and Guy Kawasaki's rule is your secret weapon for success.

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A detailed look at the 10/20/30 PowerPoint rule. (2024)
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