As professional presentation designer, I hardly use animations, and my presentation software SlideMagic does not have animation functionality.
- Animations do not show well on mobile devices and/or in PDF files
- Most animations are used for slide transitions or spectacular intros and exits of slide objects. These just distract the audience and reduce the level “seriousness” of your pitch. Flying text boxes work in MBA class, but giggling venture capitalists are less likely to invest in you.
- Layered animations are a pain to edit
If I need to build up the content on a slide slowly, I duplicate a slide multiple times and add a bit more on each page. To the audience, it looks like an animation, it shows on mobile devices/PDF, and it is easy to edit/change.
Art: Georges Seurat, The Circus, 1891. Sign up for SlideMagic. Subscribe to this blog. Follow me on Twitter.