This is the third in a series of quick video tips for business managers using PowerPoint by guest blogger Bruce Gabrielle, author of Speaking PowerPoint. Bruce's second tip showed how to quickly create custom silhouettes using free pictures, and his first was about turning clip art into custom icons.

You've got a great picture for a slide, but your slide title can't be seen against its cluttered background. Here's a great trick for quieting noisy backgrounds by using shapes and gradients so your slide title stands out.

-- Bruce Gabrielle