ICDL Advanced Presentation common mistakes
ICDL Advanced Presentation · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Building slides first and only afterwards choosing a design theme, so colours, fonts and layout have to be reworked or stay inconsistent across the deck.
Candidates treat the theme as decoration rather than a structural decision, and start typing content immediately in the default template.
What to do instead
Before adding content, select a consistent theme and modify its slide master (fonts, colour scheme, placeholder positions) so every new slide inherits the design automatically.
Typing long paragraphs of body text onto slides instead of reducing content to short bullet points suitable for an audience.
Candidates copy source material verbatim because it feels complete, forgetting slides support a spoken presentation rather than being a document.
What to do instead
Apply the rule of roughly six bullets per slide and six words per bullet, moving detail into speaker notes so the slide stays readable from the back of a room.
Leaving the default title-and-content layout on every slide, even for section dividers, quotes or full-width images, then manually dragging boxes to fit.
Candidates are unaware that multiple layouts exist and default to the first one offered when inserting a new slide.
What to do instead
Use Insert New Slide's layout gallery (or right-click > Layout) to pick the appropriate layout for each slide's purpose, and reset the slide if manual moves break the layout.
Pressing Enter repeatedly to push text down the slide, or using spaces to align text, instead of adjusting placeholder and text-box properties.
It mimics word-processor habits and appears to work visually until the layout or font size changes and everything shifts.
What to do instead
Set vertical anchoring and internal margins in Format Shape, and use paragraph spacing and alignment tools rather than blank lines or space characters.
Inserting a chart and leaving it with default settings: generic title, no axis labels, no units, and a legend that duplicates the title.
Candidates treat chart insertion as finished once the graphic appears, and do not open the chart element menus to edit titles and axes.
What to do instead
After inserting, add a descriptive chart title, label both axes including units, remove redundant legends for single-series charts, and check the data labels match the source values.
Pasting a table from a spreadsheet as a plain-text block or as an unlinked picture, so it cannot be formatted or updated within the presentation.
Candidates use the default paste option without checking Paste Special, and later cannot apply table styles or edit cells.
What to do instead
Use Paste Special and choose a native table (or keep-source-formatting) option, then apply a table style, header row emphasis and appropriate column widths inside the presentation.
Inserting images, shapes or SmartArt at their default size and position, overlapping text or leaving them off-centre and out of proportion.
Candidates drop the object on the slide and move on, not realising alignment and sizing tools exist and that dragging corners distorts aspect ratio.
What to do instead
Resize from corner handles with Shift held to preserve proportions, then use the Align and Distribute tools and the Format pane's position and size fields for precise placement.
Applying a single transition to every slide and multiple unrelated animations to bullet points, producing a slow, distracting show.
Candidates equate animation with professionalism and add effects slide by slide without reviewing the cumulative effect on the audience.
What to do instead
Use one subtle transition consistently, animate only where it aids comprehension (for example revealing bullet points one at a time), and preview the full show to check timing.
Delivering the file without setting slide show options, so it starts from the wrong slide, shows in edit view, or loops endlessly on the presenter's machine.
Candidates rehearse by pressing F5 from wherever they are and never open the Set Up Slide Show dialog to configure show type and range.
What to do instead
Before delivery, open Slide Show > Set Up Slide Show to confirm show type, slide range and advance settings, and use From Beginning or custom shows for the intended start point.
Saving or exporting in a format that loses features or fails to open on the target machine, such as handing over an editable file when a fixed-format copy was needed.
Candidates use the default Save As without considering the recipient's software, fonts or the need for a non-editable handout.
What to do instead
Use Save As or Export to produce the required format (for example a PDF or video for handouts, or a package that embeds fonts and media) and reopen the exported file to verify it displays correctly.