Generating Slide Visuals with Copilot
1. Generating Slide Visuals with Copilot
Welcome back! You've used prompts to generate structured slide decks to deliver your message with a clear narrative. Now, let's make those slides visually engaging! We'll explore how Copilot can help you design slides, add images, and transform your deck into a story that your audience remembers.2. Why Visuals Matter
Think about the last presentation that grabbed your attention. It probably wasn't because of dense slide text or bullet points — it was likely either the delivery style of the speaker or the slide design. Because Copilot can't yet deliver your presentations for you, we'll focus on the latter: using Copilot to optimize slide design. Copilot can help you create real visual impact, whether by generating imagery or reorganizing layouts. Let's begin by using Copilot to generate images!3. Adding Visuals with Copilot
We do this from the same Copilot panel that we used to build our deck. The panel isn't only for creating presentations — it can also be used to chat about your deck and create individual elements, like images. We make sure it's in Edit mode so Copilot can add content directly to our slides. For example, we can ask for an image of a fully-charged battery for the presentation.4. Adding Visuals with Copilot
Copilot looks at the current slide's layout and design, considering the best way to integrate the image into what's already there.5. Adding Visuals with Copilot
It may ask you to make a key decision, like whether to add or replace an existing image, but the key thing is that the edits are tailored and specific - Copilot isn't blind to the rest of the slide.6. Adding Visuals with Copilot
Image generation can take a minute or two, as there's a lot of computation that goes into image generation versus text generation.7. Adjusting Images
If the image isn't quite right, or we're not happy with how it's been integrated, we can ask Copilot to adjust the style or composition until it fits the slide.8. When to Override Copilot's Suggestions
This critical review of Copilot's generated slides and images is crucial for quality decks. Look out particularly for9. When to Override Copilot's Suggestions
color and branding mismatches, so your deck can match your organization's look and feel.10. When to Override Copilot's Suggestions
Also carefully review accessibility standards, so your slides are suitable for people with visual impairments. Ultimately, it's up to you to refine the details to ensure that it matches your story, your brand, and your audience.11. Design Prompts
In the Copilot panel, we can request particular colors using their hex codes, update fonts, or make broader statements like "review the text colors to ensure there is a strong contrast with the background".12. Branding
If your organization has set up its brand in Microsoft 365, you can apply it directly using the Select brand option in the panel's plus menu, so Copilot matches your brand's colors and fonts automatically.13. Act vs. Delegate
Given that Copilot can edit virtually every aspect of your slide deck from prompts, you might be wondering when to delegate this work versus manually edit it yourself. A good rule-of-thumb is that if the edit is isolated to a small number of components or would be difficult to explain to Copilot - make these edits yourself. This is where being familiar with PowerPoint's features is still incredibly valuable. However, if the edits would touch multiple slides or components - like updating colors, fonts, or branding - and is easy to explain, delegate this work to Copilot. While it's doing the grunt work, you can focus on the more valuable higher-level thinking, like the delivery and message.14. Let's practice!
Now it's time for you to get some practice with designing visually compelling slides with Copilot!Create Your Free Account
or
By continuing, you accept our Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy and that your data is stored in the USA.