Custom fonts are tricky, because PowerPoint needs them installed on the computer to accurately display text with the custom font. However, Microsoft PowerPoint does not tell us if a font is missing on that computer, and “helps” us by swapping the missing font with a Microsoft font, which may or may not (and usually does not) keep the slide formatting as intended. Often, we are left looking at slides wondering why the text is jumbled and wrong… with a puzzle, a missing piece is obvious. With PowerPoint, the user needs to first on their own identify the piece is missing, then work on fixing the issue.
Once you know custom fonts are needed and missing, the solution is to install the custom font(s) on the computer, so PowerPoint slides display as they were designed. 
Here’s a quick how-to for adding custom fonts to PowerPoint, with two notes:
- these steps are for Windows computers. Mac users have a similar process (using the default FontBook app).
- These steps assume you have know what custom fonts are needed, and have the font files on the computer (SlideWise is a great third party app for auditing a presentation and knowing what fonts are used on the slides).
The process is easy on Windows computers. First close the PowerPoint app. In File Explorer, right-click the font(s) and select “Install”. Done. The font will be added to the computer’s font folder (c: > Windows > Fonts).
It’s important to note that if you have PowerPoint open when you install the font, it will not show up in the font dropdown menu. Simply close and restart the application. Don’t just close and reopen the presentation; the entire app needs to be closed and then restarted. When launching PowerPoint includes all installed custom fonts in the font library dropdown menu (same for Word, Excel, etc.).
Troy @ TLC