This article will take a closer look at Sway, Microsoft’s application that was designed exclusively for visual storytelling and presenting.
What is Microsoft Sway?
Microsoft Sway is an online storytelling and presentation application that was created to help users make websites to store content such as texts, videos, links, and images. This cloud-based tool is an alternative to Microsoft’s other presentation application, PowerPoint, and is favored by many users because of how intuitive it is to learn and use, as well as the array of narrative devices it offers beyond slides containing bullets.
When creating Sway, Microsoft recognized how difficult it can be to stare at a blank presentation and know where to insert content. Since most people who make presentations aren’t formally trained in design, Sway includes a variety of templates to help users move past their initial fear and get right into the design component of the presentation.
Unlike PowerPoint and other presentation software, Sway emphasizes the storytelling element more than the presentation itself. The design of the app reinforces this focus; it was created to present a flowing narrative structure from the left to right or top to bottom. The person presenting is able to use a mouse wheel to navigate instead of clicking a button. In lieu of slides, Sway offers a coherent storyline. This helps Sway to feel more like a narrative journey rather than a set of steps, which makes it easier for audience members to stay focused and engaged.
Here are just a few of the templates included in Sway:
- Portfolio
- Resume
- Newsletters
- Business presentations
Sway users can also choose from a selection of “get inspired” presentations for help selecting an appropriate presentation type. This impressive feature can take a topic such as “technology” and generate an outline of the presentation, which includes information like what areas should be included, key definitions of terms, applications, images, linked topics, and other relevant content. This Wikipedia-powered feature also provides corresponding links to the source material so that citations can be provided as needed.
In addition, for presenters who don’t find a template best suited for what they’re trying to convey, Sway has the necessary tools to assist with outlining the project. Those interested in doing so can select the “Start From a Topic” option, which provides an array of topics from which to select.
Features of Microsoft Sway
Sway users rely on the following features to create engaging, dynamic, professional-grade presentations that can connect with audiences from all backgrounds:
- With the help of built-in applications, Sway users can automatically search for pertinent content from various outlets, such as videos, social media, and images. Third-party content can be included from sites like X (formerly known as Twitter) or YouTube as well. In addition, users can upload images directly from Microsoft OneDrive as well.
- Sway users can customize their content style to better suit the needs of the presentation and material. Customization options include font, color, text size, and emphasis, among others.
- When creating a presentation, text placement is a crucial component. Presenters using Sway can place text in a variety of places, such as next to images or videos, left-aligned, right-aligned, or even on top of an image. This application also provides intelligent text placement capabilities. This feature helps users who need to add several paragraphs of text, as well as an image, into a vertical layout. In instances like this, Sway pins the image to the right automatically.
- When creating presentations, one important consideration is that they can be seen by users on various devices, such as smartphones, laptops, tablets, or desktops. In order to ensure that a Sway page is accessible to all users, the creator can email the presentation link to any tablet or mobile device to get a feel for how it looks. In addition, Sway can resize a website browser and automatically make adjustments to the web page so that it fits when the browser window is minimized or maximized.
- Those who are interested in adding images to their Sway presentation can easily do so by selecting the image holder. A panel will then appear on the right side. Sway will then offer auto-suggestions of pictures based on the selected theme.
- Accessibility is another important element of a successful presentation. Thanks to Sway’s accessibility mode, those who create presentations in this application can rest assured that they are accessible by all users. Alternative text can be incorporated in place of images so that presentation content is available to those who use screen readers. In addition, pages can be restructured into a more accessible layout so that they are more accessible to viewers with dyslexia. Sway’s built-in accessibility checker and their free guidelines are available as well, both of which help users make sure the content they created is accessible to those with visual impairments as well.
- It’s also possible for Sway users to import a pre-existing document into Sway, such as a Word file or outline. When doing so, Sway deconstructs the document into its various components, such as titles, headlines, body text, and images. It is then displayed in Sway. At this point, Sway adds some cosmetic touches designed to improve the visual layout, such as text extracts. Best of all, imported content can still be edited as needed.
As the above list indicates, Sway is a versatile and powerful tool that can help any user make their own compelling and accessible presentation.
Learn Microsoft Office with Hands-On Classes
Proficiency in Microsoft Office can open professional doors across industries. A great way to get started learning about Microsoft Office and its various applications is to enroll in one of Noble Desktop’s Microsoft Office courses. These small group classes are offered in-person in Manhattan, as well as in the live online format.
For students and professionals on the go, there are also in-person and live online Microsoft Office courses available through Noble Desktop or one of its affiliate schools. A variety of course options are offered, ranging in length from three hours to three days and costing between $229 and $1,785. You can also browse in-person Microsoft Office classes in a city near you.
In addition to general Office classes, Noble Desktop also offers courses in PowerPoint for learners who want to learn how to create stunning presentations. Noble Desktop’s live online and in-person PowerPoint courses prepare students at all levels to work with this industry-standard presentation software.