PowerPoint is the most popular presentation software. It is regarded by many as the most useful and accessible way to create and present visual aids to the audience.

On the other hand, others believe it has created its own mind-set which forces presenters to spend countless hours thinking in PowerPoint and developing slides. A political party has even formed to ban PowerPoint in Switzerland. Depending on one’s perspective, it seems that many advantages could easily be viewed as disadvantages. 

• Visual Impact

Making your presentation more interesting through the use of multimedia can help to improve the audience's focus. PowerPoint allows you to use images, audio and video to have a greater visual impact. These visual and audio cues may also help a presenter be more improvisational and interactive with the audience. However, try not to overly rely on these sources as your message might get lost in the clutter.

• Collaboration

PowerPoint allows you to work with other people in a collaborative manner. This is especially useful in office settings where teamwork is key. Multiple people can collaborate on and contribute to a presentation. By going to the "Review" tab at the top of the program and clicking the "New Comment" button, you can leave notes and reposition them on the screen for other team members to view. Comments can be an especially beneficial tool for clarification.

• Content Sharing

Share your PowerPoint presentation with the world. Did someone miss your presentation? Have them view it online at a time that is convenient for them. You can upload your presentation to websites such as YouTube with everything featured in your work including all of the slides, commentary and transitions. All you have to do is go to "File," "Save and Send" and "Create a Video." The file will be saved in WMV format, which is capable of playback on Windows Media Player and can be uploaded to most video sites.

• Flexibility

PowerPoint can be used in a number of different effective ways to communicate with your audience. Slides are completely customizable to fit your needs. Depending on your approach, you may want to have a presentation that is text-heavy, image-heavy or some combination of both. Text-heavy presentations are generally good if you are giving a lecture to a group within your company and want them to take notes. Image-heavy presentations can help to make your presentation more conversational in style since there only visual cues. Combining the two approaches gives listeners the benefits of both visual aids and notes