PowerPoint 2016 provides useful tools for reviewing and collaborating on presentations before finalizing them. Being able to get feedback from others and track changes can greatly improve your presentations.
Using Comments for Feedback
When revising a presentation or collaborating with others, you may want to provide feedback or suggestions on specific slides without actually editing them. PowerPoint allows you to add comments directly on slides for this purpose.
To add a comment:
- Go to the Review tab
- Click New Comment
- Type your comment in the box that appears
Comments are indicated by a red comment bubble on the slide. You can view, reply to, or delete comments from the Show Comments pane.
Comparing Presentations
If you want to see exactly what changes were made between versions of a presentation, you can compare them in PowerPoint.
To compare two presentations:
- Open the original version
- Go to the Review tab and click Compare
- Select the revised version to compare it to
This will open a side-by-side view showing the differences between the two files.
Reviewing Changes
The Review tab also allows you to inspect all the changes made by reviewers in detail through the Revisions pane. Here you can see:
- Deleted slides
- Inserted slides
- Slide content changes
- Comment threads
You can choose to accept or reject each change individually before finalizing the presentation.
Using Presentation Proofing
PowerPoint 2016 has new Presentation Proofing tools to help polish your presentation:
- Spelling – Checks spelling and grammar
- Language – Detects grammar and conciseness issues
- Accessibility – Identifies content that may be difficult for people with disabilities
- Comments – Provides feedback to help improve clarity and impact
Rehearsing with Coach
The new Rehearse with Coach feature provides helpful feedback as you practice your presentation. It will analyze things like:
- Pacing
- Use of filler words
- Inclusive language
This allows you to identify areas to improve before delivering your presentation to an actual audience.
Enabling Co-Authoring
To collaborate on a presentation at the same time with others, you can enable co-authoring which allows multiple people to edit the file simultaneously.
To co-author:
- Save the presentation to OneDrive or SharePoint Online
- Share the file with others
- Have them open the file at the same time
You will see the initials of each person editing the file at the top. The changes will merge automatically.
Final Review
Before finalizing your presentation, be sure to:
- Use Document Inspector to check for hidden metadata or personal information
- Check accessibility with the Accessibility Checker
- Review comments and changes from collaborators
- Rehearse with Presentation Coach
- Check formatting consistency, fonts, colors, effects, etc.
- Review slide order and flow
- Spell check
Getting feedback from others and thoroughly reviewing your presentation using the tools in PowerPoint 2016 can make a big difference. Taking the time to polish your presentation can vastly improve it before the final delivery.
