Editing files in PowerPoint means you don’t have access to Word’s macros and other tools that make editing faster and more consistent. Sure, you could copy the content from each text block on every slide into a Word file, but the net savings just aren’t found in that method.
Enter the export: in PowerPoint, export the file as an RTF, then open that RTF in Word, save it as a docx file, then run your usual magic. Edits need to be transcribed into the PowerPoint file, but it’s still more efficient and effective than plodding away, old school.
Don’t Forget the Speaking Notes
To export the speaking notes, take a few more steps:
- Select Print in the PowerPoint file.
- In the Layout options, select Notes (shown below).
- Select PDF as the output, then Save/Print.
- Open the PDF and select all, copy, then paste the text into a Word file.
Each printer’s interface looks slightly different. To see extended options as shown here on a Mac, click the Show More button that’s probably near the bottom left of the print dialog box. 
Click the third drop-down to access the option to print notes on a Windows computer.
Showing Changes to Files
There’s no Track Changes function in PowerPoint. But using the Compare tool in PowerPoint itself will mark up differences between the original and edited file for everyone to see — and vet — them. Vetting the mark-up is not exactly the same as approving changes in Word. Each change would have to be undone by hand rather than by clicking “reject”. The team might find it easier to work on a final version with the marked-up changes used for reference only.
An Imperfect Solution
Getting the content of a slide presentation into Word for editing isn’t a perfect solution:
- exporting speaking notes takes an extra step (or more);
- changes are not marked up as they are when using Track Changes in Word; and
- changes must be transcribed into the slides.
But it’s better than working without Word’s efficiency altogether.
Got a gnarly Word problem? Submit your problem and we’ll try to answer it in the Q&A thread.
Learn with us! Join a course today.
© This blog and all materials in it are copyright Adrienne Montgomerie on the date of publication. All rights reserved. No portion may be stored or distributed without express written permission. Asking is easy!
