How to Make Google Slides Presentations Look Good (10 Cool Effects for 2022)

In this tutorial, we’ll show you five cool effects you can add to your Google Slides presentations to make them more memorable and more visually appealing. 

We’ll share where you can find beautiful Google Slides templates to use as a starting point as well as show you some examples of awesome Google Slides effects templates. We’ll also share resources that’ll help you learn more about using cool Google Slides effects for making presentations.

Ten Cool Effects For Better Google Slides Presentations

As mentioned earlier, you can add cool effects to Google Slides to make your presentations more appealing and memorable. Below, we’ll cover five cool and popular tips and tricks to use on Google Slides: 

1. Animate Objects

If you want to emphasize an object or image on your slide, add animations to that object. To add animations, click on the object you want to animate. Next, click on Insert and a menu drops down. From the menu, click on the Animations option. A sidebar appears where you can choose which animation you want.

2. Add Music

If you want to add some soft music to your presentation, you can. First, click on Insert. From the menu that drops down, click on the Audio option.

Once you’ve clicked on the Audio option, a window will pop up. Search for the music file on your drive. After you’ve found the file click on the file and click on the Select button at the bottom of the window.

3. Use a Professional Google Slides Theme

Our number one tip is to use a professional Google Slide theme. While this isn’t technically a cool effect, a professional template will do wonders for your presentation design. Here are some of the benefits:

1. Variety of slide designs. All professionally designed templates come with many different slides to present information about your company, present your services, and share important statistics about your company. 
2. Design elements. Professionally designed themes have all the design elements in place. So, all you’ve got to do is to customize them with your presentation text and brand colors and fonts. This will help keep your presentation on brand, so your slides look cohesive. 
3. Extra design elements. Many premium Google Slides themes include icons and elements such as graphs, maps, and image placeholders that make customizing your presentation a breeze. Want to add a chart to showcase your company’s financial growth? How about a map that shows a global distribution of your clients and customers? With a professional template, these are quite easy to do. 

While there are some free Google Slides templates out there, most of them have limited features. Not to mention that they don’t have as many individual slides to choose from. Choosing a professional and premium Google Slides template is the best option.

4. Get Creative With Your Text With Fonts and Drop Shadows

You’ve probably heard many times that you should keep the text to a minimum to keep your audience engaged throughout the presentation. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t get creative with your text. 

First, consider changing the fonts used in your Google presentation. Since Google Slides is a part of Google, that means you get access to thousands of Google Fonts. To change the fonts, click on a text box you want to edit and highlight the text. Then, click on the font name and click More fonts to see all the available Google Fonts. 

Clicking on a font name will add it to your font list. Then use it in your presentation. 

Second, make your text stand out more by adding a drop shadow effect for Google Slides. Follow the steps below to achieve this effect:

1. Select the text where you want to apply the drop shadow effect. 
2. Click Format Options and check the box next to Drop Shadow. 
3. Adjust the settings for your drop shadow by dragging the slides for the transparency, blur, angle, and distance.

You can apply this effect to both images and text, so get creative.

5. Make Creative Image Shapes With Shape Masks

Another way to make your presentation stand out is to create a shape mask and give your image a different shape. Let’s face it. Standard square and rectangular images in presentations can get boring rather quick. 

Not to mention, everyone uses them. Instead, stand out from your competition and get creative with your images. Here’s how to apply a shape mask to any image in your presentation.

To use shape masks, follow these instructions:

1. Click on the image that you want to apply the shape mask to. 
2. Locate the crop tool on the toolbar. If the image is too big, adjust the size of your image first. 
3. Click the caret symbol next to the crop tool and select a shape from the drop down. In this example, I’ve chosen the oval shape. You can also get creative and apply a bevel shape for a more sophisticated look and to make your photo appear more as a portrait. 

Apply this effect to make your team slides or about slides more interesting or to make your portfolio pieces stand out. 

6. Reflect the Images

Aside from an easy way to add a drop shadow in your Google Slides presentation, there’s another cool feature that can be applied to both images and text. We’re talking about the ability to reflect images and text. 

While you can apply this to text, it’s recommended to reserve this effect for images alone. Use it on a few images to make them stand out. This effect would work well for a slide with a single image and it’s easy to do. 

To apply the reflect images and text effect, follow these steps:

1. Decide which image you want to apply the reflect effect to. Then, click the image to select it. 
2. Click the Format Options. Tick the box next to the Reflection option.
3. Adjust the transparency, distance, and size using the sliders. 

To apply this effect to text, consider using it only on the title slide to avoid making your presentation look amateurish. 

7. Add Subtle Transitions

Our next tip is to add subtle animations to individual slides. This can be done with slide transitions. Adding transitions can help delay certain text on your slide. It’s perfect when you’ve got a lot of information to share but don’t want your audience to lose interest. 

To add or change existing slide animations, all you’ve got to do is follow the steps below: 

1. Click on the slide that you want to apply the transition to. 
2. Click the Transition option on the top toolbar. 
3. A sidebar will appear with all the options for an existing transition. Now add or change the transition options. 
4. You can change the type of transition. You can also adjust how fast or how slow the transition is. 
5. Another option is to adjust which objects are animated and define the animation trigger. 
6. Choose whether the transition should apply to all slides. It’s useful if you want the same animation throughout your presentation. 
7. When you’re done customizing or adding the transition, play it to see how it’ll look. Then adjust as necessary. 

You can animate both images and text. 

8. Add a GIF

A GIF can add some visual interest to your slide. To add a GIF to your slide, click on Insert. When you click on Insert, a menu drops down. Click on the Image option. Then click on the By URL option. If you’ve got a GIF downloaded on your computer, just drag and drop the GIF onto the slide.

9. Embed a Video

You can add a YouTube video right onto your slide. This saves you from exiting your presentation and finding the video. To start, click Insert from the menu that drops down. Then select the Video option.

Next, a window pops up where you can search YouTube for the video you want. Click on the video and click on the Select button to add it.

10. Add Voice Dictation

If your computer has a microphone or if you can hook a microphone up to your computer, you can use voice dictation. Start by making sure your microphone is turned on.

Next, click on the Tools tab. From the menu that drops down, click on the Voice, Type Speaker Notes option. When you click on this option, a speaker window appears. Click on the Microphone and begin speaking.

5 Quick Design Trends to Make Google Slides Look Good

If you want to know how to make your google slides presentation better, then using a premium template from Envato Elements is the best way. Here are some presentation design trends to get you started:

1. Geometric Shapes

Geometric shapes are a simple design but can add a lot of visual interest to your slide. Geometric shapes can have a modern or a retro look, depending on the design. Some geometric design even have 3D shapes and animation. Geometric shape design work with any presentation topic.

2. Minimalism

Minimalism has been a trend for a long time, and this trend won’t be going anywhere for a long time. This trend is popular because it’s hard to create a messy and unprofessional presentation if you use a minimal design.

3. Nature-Themed

A Nature-themed presentation doesn’t necessarily need plants and flowers. (Even though it still can have those.) A nature them can also mean a nature-inspired color scheme.

So, a nature color scheme would have browns, greens, and other colors found in nature. This has become a trend because these colors and nature can soothe the audience.

4. Muted Pastels

Muted pastels are part of the monochromatic color scheme trend.

A muted pastel background won’t distract your audience from important information. For some, musted pastels can even be fun while also relaxing. Try musted pastels to add a touch of whimsy and color without distracting the audience.

5. Dark Backgrounds

Dark backgrounds are a new trend that’s become popular because of the dark mode on technology. Dark backgrounds are often paired with neon elements because the neon elements stand out on the slide. This creative trend works with most presentation topics.

Where to Find Google Slides Templates

If you’re planning to create a presentation for your business, you’re probably wondering where to find Google Slides templates. The good news is that there are thousands of great Google Slides templates available on marketplaces like Envato Elements and GraphicRiver: 

Envato Elements has thousands of Google Slide decorations templates. Download an unlimited number of templates, all for one low monthly price. Besides Google Slides templates, you also get access to thousands of other design assets and templates such as:

• web mockups
• social media templates
• stock photos
• icons
• and more

Customize these templates to your liking and use them in an unlimited number of projects. 

Envato Elements is the perfect choice if you need design assets and templates on a regular basis. But if you prefer buying resources individually, check out GraphicRiver. It’s got thousands of Google Slides effects templates. Buy them one template at the time. 

5 Gorgeous Google Slides Template Examples

Now that you know where to find Google Slides templates, let’s look at a few examples. Below, you’ll find out top five best-selling Google Slides templates from Envato Elements and GraphicRiver: 

1. Kintel – Modern Nature Google Slides Template

The Kintel template has a modern, nature-oriented design. It would be a great fit for any nature-related business or animal-related business. The template was designed in full HD. It comes with 75 unique slides with creative designs. The template also includes custom icons and vector shapes. Use them to spice up your presentation design. 

2. Netto – Architecture Google Slides Template

The Netto template is a perfect choice if you’ve got an architecture or construction company and need to make a presentation. The template has a clean and professional design. Easily add your own images thanks to image placeholders and use included icons for extra visual appeal. The template was designed in full HD and includes 100 slides. 

3. The Riffs – Creative Google Slides Template

Consider The Riffs Google Slides template if you’re looking for a creative presentation. This template is a perfect choice to create a portfolio presentation. It’s suitable for designers, illustrators, and artists. The template includes 150+ premade slides, five premade color themes, and image placeholders. 

4. Swift – Minimal Google Slides Template

The Swift template has a clean and modern design. Thanks to the minimal design, it can be used for any type of presentation. The template includes over 200 unique slides, 3000+ vector icons, and was designed in full HD. You’ll also find image placeholders, resizable vector shapes, and various infographic elements such as maps and charts. 

5. Report – Multipurpose Google Slides Template

The Report template has a multipurpose design. It makes this template suitable for a variety of business presentations. Inside the template, you’ll find 660 total slides (which are based on master slides), image placeholders, custom icons, and editable shapes. The template was designed in full HD and is fully animated. It also includes a dark and a light version.

More Google Slides Templates

To see even more Google Slides templates, check out the articles below featuring various Google Slides themes for all kinds of presentations:

• 
  Google Slides
  30+ Cool Google Slides Themes (With Aesthetic Slide Design Ideas for 2020)
  Sean Hodge

• 
  Google Slides
  35 Simple Google Slides Themes (Free + Premium) to Design Minimalist Presentations
  Andrew Childress

• 
  Presentations
  20 Google Slides Themes With Cool (Customizable) Background Template Designs 2022
  Alexis (Lexi) Rodrigo

Common Google Slides Questions Answered (FAQ)

If you have a question about Google Slides, you’re not the only one. Here are some common Google Slides questions and answers:

1. Can I Use a PowerPoint Presentation Template in Google Slides?

You can convert a PowerPoint presentation to a Google Slides. First, add your presentation to Google Drive. Next, click on Open With Google Slides. Now you can use your PowerPoint template in Google Slides. Find more information here:

• 
  Presentations
  How to Convert PowerPoint (PPT) to Google Slides Presentations on Import
  Laura Spencer

2. How Do I Zoom In and Out on Google Slides?

There’s a Zoom button in the toolbar on Google Slides. It’s a magnifying glass with a plus sign in it. If you click on that button, then Google Slides will zoom in. If you select the arrow next to the button, then you’ll have the option to zoom in or zoom out. Learn exactly what to do in this tutorial:

• 
  Google Slides
  How to Zoom In & Zoom Out in Google Slides (Quick Trick)
  Sarah Joy

3. Can I Add Infographics to My Slide?

If you want to know how to make google slides look better, add infographics to your presentation. The easiest way to have infographics in your presentation is to use a premium template that already contains them. For more information on how to add an infographic, read this helpful tutorial:

• 
  Google Slides
  How to Make a Great Infographic With Google Slides Using a Template (+Video)
  Sharon Hurley Hall

4. Can I Add a Map to my Slide?

One way to make Google Slides look good is to add maps. This is especially helpful if you’re talking about different countries. A map helps people visualize the information you’re presenting. There are premium templates on Envato Elements that come with maps. For more information, read this article:

• 
  Google Slides
  How to Make Awesome Maps in Google Slides With Editable Templates
  Sarah Joy

5. How Do I Show Time Passing in My Presentation?

If you’re showing time passing or projecting when you think milestones will be completed for a project, a timeline is the best way. You can easily make a timeline to add to your Google Slides template. For a step-by-step tutorial, read this article:

• 
  Google Slides
  How to Make a Timeline on Google Slides With Templates
  Laura Spencer

Learn More About Using Google Slides

Google Slides is easy to use, but there are plenty of features in this software to create beautiful and professional presentations. To become a Google Slides pro and learn more about how to make Google Slides look cool, we’ve got you covered. Get started with these tutorials on Google Slides: 

• 
  Presentations
  How to Use Google Slides in 2020 (Quick Start Guide)
  Rebecca Tarnopol

• 
  Presentations
  How to Convert PowerPoint (PPT) to Google Slides Presentations on Import
  Laura Spencer

• 
  Google Slides
  How to Add Text & Bullet Points in Google Slides Presentations
  Laura Spencer

Create Awesome Google Slides Presentations With Cool Effects Today

Google Slides makes it easy to create great-looking presentations. With the help of this article, add cool effects on your Google Slides presentations and make them even more visually appealing. 

Get started on your presentation today by finding the perfect template for Google Slides on Envato Elements. Take advantage of everything this marketplace has to offer. 

Or, if you prefer buying individual templates, stop by GraphicRiver and browse our Google Slides templates. Download your favorite today.

Editorial Note: This post has been updated with contributions from Sarah Joy. Sarah is a freelance instructor for Envato Tuts+.