defined presentation graphics

• Software applications

presentation software

• Rahul Awati

What is presentation software?

Presentation software, also known as graphics presentation applications or presentation graphics programs, is a category of software used to create content where information is often represented in a graphical or visual way. A variety of presentation software is available to help tell a story or support written information using pictures, charts, graphs and other visual elements.

Types of presentation software

There are two main types of presentation software: business presentation software and general multimedia authoring tools.

Business presentation software products generally emphasize ease of learning and use, particularly for nontechnical and business users. However, they can include more advanced functions for experienced users. Most business presentation applications let users include visual elements like images , and sometimes audio and video.

General multimedia authoring software lets users create sophisticated presentations that might include photos, icons , audio narrations, transitions, animations and video sequences. Some presentations products combine ease of use and sophisticated features.

Key features in presentation software

Presentation software often includes templates to create visually rich presentations and slide decks. Templates can be easily edited to match user requirements or company brand guidelines. The software usually includes a search feature to discover these templates, as well as approved layouts and previous presentations.

Cloud-based presentation applications generally include shared workspaces and team folders that let multiple people securely collaborate , provide inputs, set status updates, and add comments and reactions. Users can also share presentations, project plans, conference keynotes, sales decks and more in real time. Versioning capabilities might be included so authorized users can manage version history, recover previous versions and view current progress.

Many vendors offer a centralized library of images, photos, icons and animations, and regularly update these libraries so customers can access the visual elements for their presentations. Some applications also integrate with external image sources like Unsplash, Giphy and Brandfetch, so business users can find additional digital assets such as images, logos , fonts and colors.

Other vendors' presentation software integrates with external video sites like YouTube or Vimeo, enabling users to embed video to support the deck's story or main message. Still other graphics applications include audio and data capabilities so users can add narrations to content and integrate data from Google Analytics , Google Sheets and other sources to accompany and strengthen the text.

Some applications include a built-in designer that implements predefined design rules and guardrails. Once content is added to the software, the designer converts notes, data and more into visually rich slides. The slides automatically adapt to the rules, so users don't have to make manual adjustments to change text font and resize images, for example. In addition, the software might include intuitive editing options and smart formatting capabilities to let users make quick edits and finalize a presentation.

The best presentation software includes support for brand esthetics. The application updates every slide and deck with the brand's specific fonts, colors, logos, themes and templates to create consistent brand presentations with the approved brand style. In most cases, style themes are customizable so company logos, colors, fonts and icon styles can be added to the presentation theme and updated as needed.

Artificial intelligence in presentation software

Presentation software products have evolved with more advanced capabilities and intuitive options for edits, sharing and collaboration. Sophisticated applications also include conversational AI engines so users can automatically generate new presentations quickly.

Depending on the software's capabilities, the AI engine may create the first draft of the presentation based on a user's description and needs.

Some AI-powered presentation products include smart templates that can quickly edit the autogenerated software and adapt the content to a user's or brand's story. The application might also include a designer bot that takes design inputs from the (human) user in natural language and generates unique images.

Common applications of presentation software

Presentation software is especially useful to create presentations and decks that include some combination of text, animations, images, video, audio and transitions. These might include creative briefs, pitch decks, moodboards , competitor analyses, proposals, bulletins, project reports, annual reviews, marketing plans and meeting discussions.

All these presentations can be displayed in a slideshow format. Built-in templates, content libraries and editing tools accelerate the design process, regardless of the presentation's purpose or intended audience.

Popular presentation software products

Microsoft PowerPoint is one of the most popular presentation software applications available today. It includes numerous user-friendly features for design, sharing and collaboration, object insertion, slideshows, text formatting, audio and video.

Other popular products include Lotus Freelance Graphics, Google Slides , Prezi, Slidebean, Canva and Keynote. Most of these products offer PC and Mac versions. In addition, many are free to download and use, while others come in free, paid or freemium versions.

Presentation software might include different features and capabilities. Organizations and users must assess their requirements, technical stack, audience type and budget before making a purchase.

For example, a geographically dispersed team might be better suited to a cloud-based application that supports borderless collaboration than a desktop application that can't be accessed from outside the enterprise network . Similarly, a marketing plan might require more visual elements while an investor update might require more graphs or charts. The software that is ultimately selected should satisfy these specific requirements.

For more on this topic, learn how to create a successful presentation .

Continue Reading About presentation software

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• 15 tips for delivering a successful presentation to the board
• Shared workspaces merge physical and digital worlds with IoT
• 7 key benefits of AI for business
• Microsoft makes PowerPoint Presenter Coach widely available

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A Beginner’s Guide To Presentation Design [+15 Stunning Templates]

Table of Contents

• What Is Presentation Design? 

What Is the Significance of Presentation Design?

Understanding various forms of presentations.

• 10 Tips to Create a Compelling Presentation Design 

5 Inspirational Presentation Design Trends

• 15 Best Presentation Design Templates to Consider 
• Key Takeaways 
• Conclusion 

Once you’ve mapped out your presentation, it’s time to tackle the intimidating task of creating a visually stunning presentation design . Creating an excellent presentation design becomes simpler by learning and adhering to fundamental presentation design standards. Here is a presentation design guide to creating an engaging and well-designed presentation,  regardless of the kind of project you are putting together. 

What Is Presentation Design?

Presentation design focuses on the visual facet of your presentation to captivate your audience. An outstanding presentation design may significantly impact your target audience, whether it is investors, employees, collaborators, or potential customers. The design must ideally complement the material of your presentation to help get your views across and convince your audience.

Creating a presentation for the first time to present in a professional setting or to a large audience might feel challenging. This guide to presentation design will walk you through the elements required for building a visually appealing presentation. 

A presentation is much more than just a layout of slides with text and graphics on them. You need to make sure it’s visually appealing too. It is mainly because visuals are much more engaging than written words in your presentation slides. Presentation design is crucial because it allows you to combine your ideas, narrative, graphics, facts, and statistics into one cohesive tale that drives your audience to the decision you desire.

A robust presentation design may unlock doors you never imagined could be opened. An effective design is much simpler to understand and earns a lot of credibility for your brand. You can communicate your message effectively, encourage your audience to take subsequent actions, and get them to engage with what you’re saying with excellent presentation design.

You have the potential to communicate your point of view, create a brand identity, and get your audience to see and hear you loud and clear when you build a presentation with impeccable design. The material of your presentation is crucial to your project’s success, but a poor design may divert the listener’s attention (and not for a good reason). Don’t let a lousy presentation design force you to lose out on a huge business opportunity.

Creating a winning presentation design involves combining design components to produce slides that will neither bore nor exhaust your audience. Instead, it will engage and inspire them effectively. So, instead of creating a lousy presentation using shoddy designs, it is significant to master the fundamentals of creating the best presentation design.

Presentations may be used for several purposes and can come in different forms. A quarterly sales presentation with your team will not be the same as a presentation focused on employee training. 

In the first scenario, you’ll strive to advance your team to achieve targeted sales growth. In the second, you’ll focus on imparting essential knowledge and skills to your employees. Looking at some of the most prevalent presentation types can give you a better idea about presentation design and when to begin constructing your own.

1. Investor pitch presentation

Using facts to convince rather than enlighten is the primary goal of this presentation style, as indicated by the name. If you’re a startup or a small firm looking for investment, you’ll need to use this form of presentation to your advantage. An investor pitch presentation will be required when you’re explaining your company’s user acquisition growth rate to prospective investors. Such presentations are created using the classic pitch deck concept to make the perfect, thoroughly professional pitch.

2. Educational presentations

Educational presentations are sometimes misunderstood as informative presentations since they are designed to teach viewers new skills and educate them on a new subject. You may need to produce a presentation for a school for various reasons, such as presenting an idea or providing an academic report.

Academic and corporate training programs often employ this presentation format. A video tutorial with comments and suitable themes may be added to the slides to improve them. Educators are always looking for new and unique methods to provide engaging and enthralling presentations for their students. Using an educational presentation template may guarantee that your presentation is visually appealing as well as easily comprehensible.

3. Webinar presentations

Webinar presentations are the newest craze, and they’re a win-win for presenters and the audience alike. A webinar refers to an online presentation, but unlike a video posted elsewhere, the webinar takes place in real-time and with the active participation of the audience. There are several themes and settings for which webinar presentations might be utilized. 

Short surveys, quizzes, and Q&A sessions let participants feel more involved in the webinar. Most commonly, a webinar is meant to disseminate information, but it may also act as a marketing tool, a source of leads, or a way to generate new sales and sign-ups.

4. Report presentations

A report presentation is intended to offer the necessary information to those engaged in a process or project. Report presentations are critical in ensuring these stakeholders that the procedures that must be followed for the project’s completion are effectively planned and executed. Sample reports are also accessible to these stakeholders. 

A report presentation may take numerous forms, such as a business report or an infographic. Reports on sales and marketing performance, website statistics, income, or any other data that your team or supervisors wish to know about can be presented during the report presentation.

5. Sales presentations

Sales presentations are often the initial phase in the sales cycle, and are, therefore,  critical. A sales presentation, often known as a sales pitch deck, is a form of presentation you would need to provide a prospective customer or client with when pitching a product or service.

Not every sales presentation is designed to close a deal right away. The goal might be to pique the curiosity of the people concerned. Sales presentations often include your company’s unique selling proposition (USP), product price points, and testimonials. Your sales presentation must be engaging and successful in influencing potential customers, using a well-thought-out approach.

6. Inspirational presentations

An inspiring presentation is a standard tool used by managers, team leaders, motivational speakers, and business owners to stimulate and encourage their audience. Inspirational presentations are essential to influencing others and achieving your individual and business goals. 

To get a desirable result from this kind of presentation, elicit an emotional response from the audience and motivate them to act. Using a presentation template that has been professionally developed provides you with an advantage over others. 

7. Keynote presentations

Keynote presentations are given in front of a larger audience. A good example can be those shown at TED Talks and other conferences. While the presenter gives the entire speech, there are advantages to using slides, such as keeping an audience engaged and on track.

10 Tips to Create a Compelling Presentation Design

If your presentation is lousy, you might come across as unprepared, uninterested, and lacking any credibility. A well-designed presentation makes you appear reliable and competent. Here are some fantastic points to help you develop the best presentation design.

1. Outline your content and fine-tune the message

It’s crucial to prepare your content and fine-tune your main message before you begin developing your presentation. Try to figure out what your target audience wants to know, what they may already know, and what will keep them engaged. Then, when you create your presentation’s content, keep those things in mind and furnish designs accordingly. It is vital to remember the key takeaway of each deck you create.

Too much information shown on a single slide is difficult for most viewers to comprehend. Make sure you don’t overwhelm your viewers; each presentation slide should include no more than one key point. Make your information as brief as possible, yet make it detailed enough and valuable.

2. Use more visuals and less text in your decks

Your audience recalls information considerably better when images complement it because they can better understand visual features than simple text. Presenters that employ images instead of words get more favorable feedback from their audience than those who rely only on text.

Using visual examples in slide decks increases audience engagement, encourages more questions, and registers your message in the minds of your audience. Remove any unnecessary text from your slides and replace it with visuals that will engage your audience.

You may use various methods for adding images, but the most common is using your data’s visual representation. It’s important to note that adding visuals does not mean sprinkling fancy images and symbols across your slides. Relevant images and iconography are a must.

3. Limit the use of fonts and colors

It is vital to pay attention to color schemes and other design components, such as fonts, to ensure your presentation succeeds. Although it may be thrilling to employ as many fonts and colors as possible, the best presentation design practices imply that you should only use two or three colors overall. Also, make sure the content in your slides is of a different font than the headers.

When it comes to color schemes, certain combinations work better than others. When choosing colors, keep in mind that they should not detract from the message you want to convey. Add an accent color to one or two of your primary hues for a cohesive look. It’s critical that the colors you choose complement one another and communicate your purpose effectively. Headers should be in one typeface, while body content should be in another. Add a third font for the accents, if you’d like. 

4. Create a visual hierarchy

Visual hierarchy is an important consideration when including text in a presentation. Visual hierarchy is one of the most significant but underappreciated presentation design principles. Color, size, contrast, alignment, and other aspects of your slide’s elements should all depend on their value.

When creating a visual hierarchy, you must clearly understand the story and its structure. Your audience’s attention should be drawn to the most critical components first, then to the second-most essential aspects, and so on. When creating your presentation, think about the story you want to tell and the visual hierarchy you need to support it. If you do this, the essential ideas you wish to convey will not be lost on your audience. 

5. Incorporate powerful visuals

It is important to use visual aids to make a compelling presentation: think images, icons, graphics, films, graphs, and charts. You should also ensure your slides’ aesthetics accurately portray the text they contain. Alternatively, if you don’t have words on the slide, make sure the visuals mirror the words you’re saying in your speech.

Visual aids should enhance your presentation. In addition, you’ll want to ensure that your slide has some form of visual representation so that you’re not just dumping a bunch of text onto a slide.

6. Avoid using bullet points

These days, any excellent presentation design instruction would encourage you to avoid bullet points as much as possible. They’re dull and old-fashioned, and there are more effective methods to display your material. 

A slide consisting of icons, images, and infographics is more exciting and conversational than one written in list form. Using bullet points for each slide’s primary theme is a standard PowerPoint design recommendation that you should refrain from while designing your presentation.  

7. In group presentations, segregate slides by theme

While making a group presentation, finding an appropriate balance of who should be demonstrating which presentation segment is often challenging. Arranging a group presentation by topic is the most natural technique to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to speak, without the presentation becoming incoherent. Your group presentation should be divided into sections based on the subject.

Prepare your presentation ahead of time so that everyone understands when it’s their turn to talk. It’s up to each person in the group to pick one thing to talk about when they give this presentation to investors or potential customers. For instance, the business model slide may be addressed by one person, while another can discuss the marketing approach.

8. Maintain consistency

Consistency is essential when you work on the design of your presentation. Your presentation is still one presentation, no matter how many slides it has. Design elements, color schemes, and similar illustrations can all be used to achieve design consistency.

Although some of the slides in your presentation may appear to be styled differently than the others, the overall presentation must be held together by a single color scheme. To ensure that your viewers don’t lose track of what you’re saying, make sure each of your slides is visually connected.

9. Emphasize important points

It is pertinent to use shapes, colorful fonts, and figures pointing to your material. They help emphasize vital information to make it stand out. This not only keeps the reader’s attention on the page but also makes your design more streamlined. Emphasizing the point you’re trying to put across with visual elements makes it easier for your audience to grasp what you’re saying.

10. Integrate data visualization

Consider utilizing a chart or data visualization to drive your argument home, especially if you have vital figures or trends you want your audience to remember. This might be a bar graph or a pie chart that displays various data points, a percentage indication, or an essential value pictogram. 

Confident public speaking mixed with good visuals may greatly influence your audience, inspiring them to take action. The use of design features makes it simpler for your audience to grasp and recall both complex and fundamental data and statistics, and the presentation becomes much more enjoyable too. 

Even though trends come and go, effective presentation design paired with some inspiration to get you started will always be in style. Think about what’s current in the world of graphic design before you create a staggering presentation deck for a creative proposal or a business report. To help you better, we’ve come up with a list of the most popular presentation design concepts. 

1. Dark backdrops with neon colors

While white backgrounds have long dominated web design, the advent of “dark mode” is gradually altering that. Designers may use dark mode to play with contrast and make creative things stand out.

This is a great way to get your audience’s attention and keep them interested in what you have to say. The key is to pick one or two bright colors and utilize them as highlights against a dark backdrop, rather than using an abundance of them.                                                                                            

2. Monochromatic color schemes

In recent years, color schemes originating from one base hue, such as monochromatic color schemes, have been given a subdued pastel makeover. The usage of monochromatic color schemes in presentation design is always seen as clean and professional. It’s ideal for pitch decks and presentations since monochrome is generally utilized to assist people in concentrating on the text and message, rather than the colors inside a design.

3. Easy-to-understand data analysis

The fundamentals of data visualization should be restored. In other words, even the most complicated measurements may be made easy to grasp via effective design. Designers, marketers, and presenters are generating snackable stats in the same way infographics have found a place on visual-first social networks.

Create a dynamic proposal or presentation with the help of an infographic template that is easy to use. You can create distinctive slides with animations and transitions to explain your point more effectively. With the help of templates, you can convert your data into bar graphs, bar charts, and bubbles that represent your idea simply, guaranteeing that every data point is simple to comprehend.

4. Straightforward minimalism

Minimalism is a design trend that will probably never go out of style. It has always been a show-stopper. Each slide should offer just enough information to let the reader comprehend what’s going on. You should use a color palette that isn’t distracting. Your simple presentation will enthrall your audience if you boldly highlight your most significant points and use trendy fonts.

5. Geometric structures

There’s a good reason why designers are so fond of geometric patterns, 3D objects, and asymmetrical layouts. They’re basic yet stunning, making them perfect for times you want to make a lasting impression with the information you’re sharing. 

More cutting-edge components, such as 3D shapes and floating objects, are used in presentation graphics these days. Go for a presentation template that contains editable slides that enable you to easily add your visuals and material to brighten your presentation. 

15 Best Presentation Design Templates to Consider

In the case of presentation designs, you should never sacrifice quality. Ideally, you should have a design that improves your brand’s image, amplifies your message, and enables you to deliver various content forms efficiently. 

The problem is, it’s pretty challenging to locate premade themes and templates of this merit. We’ve made it easy for you by putting together a list of the best 15 presentation design templates out there. These presentation design suggestions are a great place to start.  

1. Business plan presentation template

This is a crucial business presentation template with a significant emphasis on visualizations and graphics. To create a business strategy, you need this presentation template. It consists of several crucial elements, such as a mind map, infographics, and bar graphics. Replace the placeholder text with your own to complete the presentation.

2. Pitch deck template

Startups seeking financing require a clean and eye-catching pitch deck design to impress investors. You may use it to present significant aspects and achievements of your company to investors. You can include slides for mockups, testimonials, business data like statistics, and case studies.

The pitch deck presentation template is excellent for your next client pitch, as it allows you to pick from a range of different startup tales to showcase the most crucial features of your firm.

3. Brand guidelines presentation template

Creating a bespoke presentation talking about the company dos and don’ts may be a terrific approach to discuss your brand rules with your team and stakeholders. You can easily show off your brand’s typeface and color schemes using this presentation template.

4. Marketing plan presentation template

Marketing is a vast concept, and the slides included in this design stock set reflect that broadness. A well-executed marketing strategy is essential to the success of any team. A marketing plan presentation template should ideally include slides for charts, timelines, and competition research. You can create executive summaries or mission statements with the below-mentioned presentation’s elegant and minimalistic slides.

5. Keynote presentation template

This keynote template has a lovely color scheme that is equal parts captivating and professional. You can employ a keynote presentation template if you’re going to be a keynote speaker at an upcoming event and want to ensure that your design stands out.

In addition to several slides, the template comes with various predefined color schemes. This template is perfect for any business presentation requiring a well-designed layout.

6. Training manual presentation template

A training manual presentation template may be used to convey new hire training to your workforce. It is essential for the design to be as clean and straightforward as possible.

These training material decks created with a predesigned template make it easy for new employees to learn the ins and outs of their jobs. 

7. Case study presentation template

A case study is an excellent way to illustrate a point in your presentation. The best way to attract new consumers using a case study presentation is to show them how your existing customers are using your product or service. Make sure to highlight how your product solved their pain points.

8. Interactive brief presentation template

It’s common to provide a creative brief when working with a contractor, freelancer, or designer to ensure everyone involved understands what the final product should look like.

An interactive presentation template like a creative brief is a terrific concept for absorbing and memorizing that information.

9. Workforce handbook presentation template

When hiring a new employee, your company needs to create an employee handbook to ensure they know the company’s objective and general working norms. You may connect this presentation to your intranet or website, or just distribute the digital version through a password-protected or private link.

10. Ignite presentation template

Using this template as a starting point for an Ignite presentation would be ideal. An Ignite presentation is a five-minute presentation consisting of 20 slides, compelling the speaker to speak fast and concisely. As a result, an Ignite presentation template prevents you from using too much text on any slide. 

11. Informative presentation template

The need to create an educational presentation may arise due to several reasons, such as onboarding new hires, explaining a concept to students, and more. An informative presentation template is a suitable solution in all cases.

Regardless of who they are meant for, presentations are the optimal format for sharing information with any audience. Create an educational presentation that you can embed in a blog post or publish on several platforms online. Make presentations to provide knowledge at conferences and other meetings.

12. SWOT analysis presentation template

A strength, weakness, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis is a valuable tool for gauging where your business stands, and how your strategic planning measures are paying off. This presentation template is an excellent tool for SWOT analysis or refining your marketing strategy.

It comes in several formats; circular design and hexagonal shapes being two of them. You may modify the colors as desired.

13. Competitor analysis presentation template

Knowing your competition and what they offer is essential for a successful business. Competitor analysis means researching your competitors’ key strengths and weaknesses, which can, eventually, help you define your goals and USPs more clearly. 

There are built-in interactive elements in this competitor analysis presentation template, which can help hook your audience. 

14. Bold presentation template

Ideal for non-corporate sales presentations, a bold and daring presentation template includes slides with a vibrant, attention-grabbing theme that is neither overbearing nor distracting. The color combination is striking without being oppressive.

15. Company overview template

Creative presentation templates are all the rage today. Using a lot of negative space will allow your audience to take a breath and direct their attention to the most crucial parts of your presentation. It is suitable for corporate presentations, since it doesn’t stick out more than is necessary.

Key Takeaways

• Audiences tend to forget a large percentage of what was addressed before the presentation is through. This is why it is important to create a presentation design that is memorable.
• A presentation is much more than just a layout of slides with text and graphics on them. You need to make sure it’s visually appealing too. 
• Use a wide range of best presentation design tools, components, and styles until you discover the one that resonates with your target audience. 
• Consider the most recent trends and best practices, and dedicate time to thoroughly crafting every presentation.
• Fine-tuning your message, avoiding the use of bullet points, incorporating visual hierarchy, and incorporating data visualization are a few design tips to create a winning presentation. 

Both your presentation style and design are crucial. You can deliver more dynamic, memorable presentations by creating visually pleasing decks. It’s advisable to create a resourceful presentation design if you want to elevate your personal as well as professional credibility.

Take cues from some popular presentation templates, and enhance one little aspect at a time. Now is the time to practice everything you’ve learned in this presentation design guide. As with any other visual communication, creating the best presentation design requires time, effort, and patience. Never be afraid to try something new; you’ll quickly see the benefits a strong presentation can have on your project.

A presentation design puts ideas, tales, words, and pictures into a series of slides that convey a narrative and engage your audience.

A presentation design template is used to achieve a uniform look for your slides. Templates are pre-made presentations into which you may insert your data.

People remember images and words better than just words. The design of your slides should be simple and consistent. This way, your audience will focus on the most important points.

Use high-quality images to back your message, but don’t use too many special effects. Make sure you don’t read from your slides.

A well-presented, memorable introduction and conclusion are two essential parts of a presentation. Don’t forget them when you write your outline.

Presentation design is essential, because it helps you weave your ideas, narrative, images, facts, and statistics into a unified story that leads your audience to the choice you want them to make.

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Presentation Graphics Program

A presentation graphics program is an application designed to create and enhance charts and graphs so that they are visually appealing and easily understood by an audience through the use of a slideshow. A full-featured presentation graphics package such as Lotus Freelance Graphics or Microsoft PowerPoint includes facilities for making a wide variety of charts and graphs and for adding explanatory content like titles, legends, and labels anywhere in the chart or graph.

Author Mel Hawthorne

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Blog Graphic Design Visual Presentation: Tips, Types and Examples

Visual Presentation: Tips, Types and Examples

Written by: Krystle Wong Sep 28, 2023

So, you’re gearing up for that big presentation and you want it to be more than just another snooze-fest with slides. You want it to be engaging, memorable and downright impressive. 

Well, you’ve come to the right place — I’ve got some slick tips on how to create a visual presentation that’ll take your presentation game up a notch. 

Packed with presentation templates that are easily customizable, keep reading this blog post to learn the secret sauce behind crafting presentations that captivate, inform and remain etched in the memory of your audience.

Click to jump ahead:

What is a visual presentation

15 effective tips to make your visual presentations more engaging, 6 major types of visual presentation you should know , what are some common mistakes to avoid in visual presentations, visual presentation faqs, 5 steps to create a visual presentation with venngage.

A visual presentation is a communication method that utilizes visual elements such as images, graphics, charts, slides and other visual aids to convey information, ideas or messages to an audience. 

Visual presentations aim to enhance comprehension engagement and the overall impact of the message through the strategic use of visuals. People remember what they see, making your point last longer in their heads. 

Without further ado, let’s jump right into some great visual presentation examples that would do a great job in keeping your audience interested and getting your point across.

In today’s fast-paced world, where information is constantly bombarding our senses, creating engaging visual presentations has never been more crucial. To help you design a presentation that’ll leave a lasting impression, I’ve compiled these examples of visual presentations that will elevate your game.

1. Use the rule of thirds for layout

Ever heard of the rule of thirds? It’s a presentation layout trick that can instantly up your slide game. Imagine dividing your slide into a 3×3 grid and then placing your text and visuals at the intersection points or along the lines. This simple tweak creates a balanced and seriously pleasing layout that’ll draw everyone’s eyes.

2. Get creative with visual metaphors

Got a complex idea to explain? Skip the jargon and use visual metaphors. Throw in images that symbolize your point – for example, using a road map to show your journey towards a goal or using metaphors to represent answer choices or progress indicators in an interactive quiz or poll.

3. Engage with storytelling through data

Use storytelling magic to bring your data to life. Don’t just throw numbers at your audience—explain what they mean, why they matter and add a bit of human touch. Turn those stats into relatable tales and watch your audience’s eyes light up with understanding.

4. Visualize your data with charts and graphs

The right data visualization tools not only make content more appealing but also aid comprehension and retention. Choosing the right visual presentation for your data is all about finding a good match. 

For ordinal data, where things have a clear order, consider using ordered bar charts or dot plots. When it comes to nominal data, where categories are on an equal footing, stick with the classics like bar charts, pie charts or simple frequency tables. And for interval-ratio data, where there’s a meaningful order, go for histograms, line graphs, scatterplots or box plots to help your data shine.

In an increasingly visual world, effective visual communication is a valuable skill for conveying messages. Here’s a guide on how to use visual communication to engage your audience while avoiding information overload.

5. Employ the power of contrast

Want your important stuff to pop? That’s where contrast comes in. Mix things up with contrasting colors, fonts or shapes. It’s like highlighting your key points with a neon marker – an instant attention grabber.

6. End with a powerful visual punch

Your presentation closing should be a showstopper. Think a stunning clip art that wraps up your message with a visual bow, a killer quote that lingers in minds or a call to action that gets hearts racing.

7. Tell a visual story

Structure your slides like a storybook and create a visual narrative by arranging your slides in a way that tells a story. Each slide should flow into the next, creating a visual narrative that keeps your audience hooked till the very end.

Icons and images are essential for adding visual appeal and clarity to your presentation. Venngage provides a vast library of icons and images, allowing you to choose visuals that resonate with your audience and complement your message. 

8. Show the “before and after” magic

Want to drive home the impact of your message or solution? Whip out the “before and after” technique. Show the current state (before) and the desired state (after) in a visual way. It’s like showing a makeover transformation, but for your ideas.

9. Add fun with visual quizzes and polls

To break the monotony and see if your audience is still with you, throw in some quick image quizzes or polls. It’s like a mini-game break in your presentation — your audience gets involved and it makes your presentation way more dynamic and memorable.

10. Use visuals wisely

Your visuals are the secret sauce of a great presentation. Cherry-pick high-quality images, graphics, charts and videos that not only look good but also align with your message’s vibe. Each visual should have a purpose – they’re not just there for decoration. 

11. Utilize visual hierarchy

Employ design principles like contrast, alignment and proximity to make your key info stand out. Play around with fonts, colors and placement to make sure your audience can’t miss the important stuff.

12. Engage with multimedia

Static slides are so last year. Give your presentation some sizzle by tossing in multimedia elements. Think short video clips, animations, or a touch of sound when it makes sense, including an animated logo . There are tons of video and clip creator tools like HubSpot or Adobe But remember, these are sidekicks, not the main act, so use them smartly.

13. Interact with your audience

Turn your presentation into a two-way street. Start your presentation by encouraging your audience to join in with thought-provoking questions, quick polls or using interactive tools. Get them chatting and watch your presentation come alive.

When it comes to delivering a group presentation, it’s important to have everyone on the team on the same page. Venngage’s real-time collaboration tools enable you and your team to work together seamlessly, regardless of geographical locations. Collaborators can provide input, make edits and offer suggestions in real time. 

14. Incorporate stories and examples

Weave in relatable stories, personal anecdotes or real-life examples to illustrate your points. It’s like adding a dash of spice to your content – it becomes more memorable and relatable.

15. Nail that delivery

Don’t just stand there and recite facts like a robot — be a confident and engaging presenter. Lock eyes with your audience, mix up your tone and pace and use some gestures to drive your points home. Practice and brush up your presentation skills until you’ve got it down pat for a persuasive presentation that flows like a pro.

Venngage offers a wide selection of professionally designed presentation templates, each tailored for different purposes and styles. By choosing a template that aligns with your content and goals, you can create a visually cohesive and polished presentation that captivates your audience.

Looking for more presentation ideas ? Why not try using a presentation software that will take your presentations to the next level with a combination of user-friendly interfaces, stunning visuals, collaboration features and innovative functionalities that will take your presentations to the next level. 

Visual presentations come in various formats, each uniquely suited to convey information and engage audiences effectively. Here are six major types of visual presentations that you should be familiar with:

1. Slideshows or PowerPoint presentations

Slideshows are one of the most common forms of visual presentations. They typically consist of a series of slides containing text, images, charts, graphs and other visual elements. Slideshows are used for various purposes, including business presentations, educational lectures and conference talks.

2. Infographics

Infographics are visual representations of information, data or knowledge. They combine text, images and graphics to convey complex concepts or data in a concise and visually appealing manner. Infographics are often used in marketing, reporting and educational materials.

Don’t worry, they are also super easy to create thanks to Venngage’s fully customizable infographics templates that are professionally designed to bring your information to life. Be sure to try it out for your next visual presentation!

3. Video presentation

Videos are your dynamic storytellers. Whether it’s pre-recorded or happening in real-time, videos are the showstoppers. You can have interviews, demos, animations or even your own mini-documentary. Video presentations are highly engaging and can be shared in both in-person and virtual presentations .

4. Charts and graphs

Charts and graphs are visual representations of data that make it easier to understand and analyze numerical information. Common types include bar charts, line graphs, pie charts and scatterplots. They are commonly used in scientific research, business reports and academic presentations.

Effective data visualizations are crucial for simplifying complex information and Venngage has got you covered. Venngage’s chart templates enable you to create engaging charts, graphs,and infographics that enhance audience understanding and retention, leaving a lasting impression in your presentation.

5. Interactive presentations

Interactive presentations involve audience participation and engagement. These can include interactive polls, quizzes, games and multimedia elements that allow the audience to actively participate in the presentation. Interactive presentations are often used in workshops, training sessions and webinars.

Venngage’s interactive presentation tools enable you to create immersive experiences that leave a lasting impact and enhance audience retention. By incorporating features like clickable elements, quizzes and embedded multimedia, you can captivate your audience’s attention and encourage active participation.

6. Poster presentations

Poster presentations are the stars of the academic and research scene. They consist of a large poster that includes text, images and graphics to communicate research findings or project details and are usually used at conferences and exhibitions. For more poster ideas, browse through Venngage’s gallery of poster templates to inspire your next presentation.

Different visual presentations aside, different presentation methods also serve a unique purpose, tailored to specific objectives and audiences. Find out which type of presentation works best for the message you are sending across to better capture attention, maintain interest and leave a lasting impression. 

To make a good presentation , it’s crucial to be aware of common mistakes and how to avoid them. Without further ado, let’s explore some of these pitfalls along with valuable insights on how to sidestep them.

Overloading slides with text

Text heavy slides can be like trying to swallow a whole sandwich in one bite – overwhelming and unappetizing. Instead, opt for concise sentences and bullet points to keep your slides simple. Visuals can help convey your message in a more engaging way.

Using low-quality visuals

Grainy images and pixelated charts are the equivalent of a scratchy vinyl record at a DJ party. High-resolution visuals are your ticket to professionalism. Ensure that the images, charts and graphics you use are clear, relevant and sharp.

Choosing the right visuals for presentations is important. To find great visuals for your visual presentation, Browse Venngage’s extensive library of high-quality stock photos. These images can help you convey your message effectively, evoke emotions and create a visually pleasing narrative. 

Ignoring design consistency

Imagine a book with every chapter in a different font and color – it’s a visual mess. Consistency in fonts, colors and formatting throughout your presentation is key to a polished and professional look.

Reading directly from slides

Reading your slides word-for-word is like inviting your audience to a one-person audiobook session. Slides should complement your speech, not replace it. Use them as visual aids, offering key points and visuals to support your narrative.

Lack of visual hierarchy

Neglecting visual hierarchy is like trying to find Waldo in a crowd of clones. Coupling this with video transcription can make your presentation more comprehensive and engaging. Use size, color and positioning to emphasize what’s most important. Guide your audience’s attention to key points so they don’t miss the forest for the trees.

Ignoring accessibility

Accessibility isn’t an option these days; it’s a must. Forgetting alt text for images, color contrast and closed captions for videos can exclude individuals with disabilities from understanding your presentation. 

Relying too heavily on animation

While animations can add pizzazz and draw attention, overdoing it can overshadow your message. Use animations sparingly and with purpose to enhance, not detract from your content.

Using jargon and complex language

Keep it simple. Use plain language and explain terms when needed. You want your message to resonate, not leave people scratching their heads.

Not testing interactive elements

Interactive elements can be the life of your whole presentation, but not testing them beforehand is like jumping into a pool without checking if there’s water. Ensure that all interactive features, from live polls to multimedia content, work seamlessly. A smooth experience keeps your audience engaged and avoids those awkward technical hiccups.

Presenting complex data and information in a clear and visually appealing way has never been easier with Venngage. Build professional-looking designs with our free visual chart slide templates for your next presentation.

What is a visual presentation?

A visual presentation is a method of presenting information through visual aids such as slides, images, charts and videos. It enhances understanding and retention by illustrating key points and data visually. Visual presentations are commonly used in meetings, lectures, and conferences to engage and inform the audience effectively.

What is the role of storytelling in visual presentations?

Storytelling plays a crucial role in visual presentations by providing a narrative structure that engages the audience, helps them relate to the content and makes the information more memorable.

What software or tools can I use to create visual presentations?

You can use various software and tools to create visual presentations, including Microsoft PowerPoint, Google Slides, Adobe Illustrator, Canva, Prezi and Venngage, among others.

What is the difference between a visual presentation and a written report?

The main difference between a visual presentation and a written report is the medium of communication. Visual presentations rely on visuals, such as slides, charts and images to convey information quickly, while written reports use text to provide detailed information in a linear format.

How do I effectively communicate data through visual presentations?

To effectively communicate data through visual presentations, simplify complex data into easily digestible charts and graphs, use clear labels and titles and ensure that your visuals support the key messages you want to convey.

Are there any accessibility considerations for visual presentations?

Accessibility considerations for visual presentations include providing alt text for images, ensuring good color contrast, using readable fonts and providing transcripts or captions for multimedia content to make the presentation inclusive.

Most design tools today make accessibility hard but Venngage’s Accessibility Design Tool comes with accessibility features baked in, including accessible-friendly and inclusive icons.

How do I choose the right visuals for my presentation?

Choose visuals that align with your content and message. Use charts for data, images for illustrating concepts, icons for emphasis and color to evoke emotions or convey themes.

How can I adapt my visual presentations for online or virtual audiences?

To adapt visual presentations for online or virtual audiences, focus on concise content, use engaging visuals, ensure clear audio, encourage audience interaction through chat or polls and rehearse for a smooth online delivery.

What is the role of data visualization in visual presentations?

Data visualization in visual presentations simplifies complex data by using charts, graphs and diagrams, making it easier for the audience to understand and interpret information.

How do I choose the right color scheme and fonts for my visual presentation?

Choose a color scheme that aligns with your content and brand and select fonts that are readable and appropriate for the message you want to convey.

How can I measure the effectiveness of my visual presentation?

Measure the effectiveness of your visual presentation by collecting feedback from the audience, tracking engagement metrics (e.g., click-through rates for online presentations) and evaluating whether the presentation achieved its intended objectives.

Follow the 5 simple steps below to make your entire presentation visually appealing and impactful:

1. Sign up and log In: Log in to your Venngage account or sign up for free and gain access to Venngage’s templates and design tools.

2. Choose a template: Browse through Venngage’s presentation template library and select one that best suits your presentation’s purpose and style. Venngage offers a variety of pre-designed templates for different types of visual presentations, including infographics, reports, posters and more.

3. Edit and customize your template: Replace the placeholder text, image and graphics with your own content and customize the colors, fonts and visual elements to align with your presentation’s theme or your organization’s branding.

4. Add visual elements: Venngage offers a wide range of visual elements, such as icons, illustrations, charts, graphs and images, that you can easily add to your presentation with the user-friendly drag-and-drop editor.

5. Save and export your presentation: Export your presentation in a format that suits your needs and then share it with your audience via email, social media or by embedding it on your website or blog .

So, as you gear up for your next presentation, whether it’s for business, education or pure creative expression, don’t forget to keep these visual presentation ideas in your back pocket.

Feel free to experiment and fine-tune your approach and let your passion and expertise shine through in your presentation. With practice, you’ll not only build presentations but also leave a lasting impact on your audience – one slide at a time.

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• Presentations
• Presentation Techniques

PowerPoint Graphics Complete 2024 Guide (PPT Presentation Design)

Warning: this tutorial may contain graphic content! But don't worry, it's all family friendly. We're talking about  PowerPoint graphics  and how you can use them to create your best presentation yet.

PowerPoint graphic design is an art. Ultimately, the goal of a presentation is to share information with your audience. Choosing the right PowerPoint graphics is all about  supporting  your message with the proper illustration or infographic.

You don't have to build PowerPoint presentation graphics from scratch! One thing you'll see in this tutorial is a source for unlimited PPT graphics included inside of templates. Plus, get  graphics for presentations that you can source one-by-one with the help of GraphicRiver.

What Are PowerPoint Graphics?

The term PowerPoint graphics is a bit broad. There are many types of graphics that pro presenters use. Here are three types of popular PowerPoint presentation graphics and how you can use them:

• SmartArt.  These flexible graphics are great if you aren't a graphic designer. You can create graphics that adapt to your content like org charts and flowcharts.
• Infographics . At the intersection of information and graphics are these helpful explanatory visuals. These PowerPoint presentation graphics can help drive understanding with the audience.
• Shapes . You might be surprised by how much a few simple shapes add to your slide. Try out shapes like arrows to add a bit of annotation, for example.

In this tutorial, we'll explore all three of these popular types of PPT graphics. For a complete deep dive on infographics, we've got an excellent resource for you:

How to Access Unlimited PowerPoint Graphics Templates

At the end of this tutorial, you'll be a master of working with PPT graphics. Best of all, you won't have to learn how to design all those graphics for presentations from the ground up. With the help of templates, talented designers have already created all you need.

You might have seen a few built-in templates in Microsoft PowerPoint. They're certainly an upgrade from a pure, blank slate in PowerPoint. But the bottom line is that they're simple combinations of color schemes and layouts.

There's another type of template that offers so much more. With premium templates, you'll find that powerful PPT graphics are built into the presentation file. And thanks to Envato Elements, you can download them easily.

Don't think that Elements will break the bank. For a single flat rate, you unlock unlimited downloads of the top PowerPoint presentation graphics templates. 

As a bonus, the all-you-can-download subscription includes so many extras that enhance your PowerPoint presentation. That provides access to assets like:

• Stock photos . Need to spice up a slide? Just jump to the well-organized stock photography library and download a high-resolution image for your slide.
• Graphics and illustrations . Some templates will benefit from supplementary graphics. Download those from Elements too and add them to  any  PowerPoint presentation.
• Background music . Add some looping background music for an engaging presentation that you could leave on loop in a conference room, for example.

For three outstanding examples of the best graphics for PowerPoint presentations (packaged inside of PPT graphics templates), here are our three top picks in the Envato Elements library. Remember, they're all included!

1. The X Note

Consistently topping our list of the best PowerPoint templates, The X Note is a stunning design. This template's got many PPT graphics that are to add so much to your next presentation. You'll be impressed by how easy it is to customize the included graphics. Use more than 40 unique slides in multiple color schemes to create a PPT graphics focused presentation.

2. Beauty | PowerPoint Template

Beauty might be in the eye of the beholder. But some PPT graphics templates capture it perfectly. That's certainly the case for the appropriately named "Beauty" PowerPoint template. It's one of the best PowerPoint presentation graphics options thanks to its inclusion of graphics across 30 unique slides.

3.  Groningen - PowerPoint Template

Remember, there are many types of PowerPoint presentation graphics. The best PPT graphics templates have a range of infographics, shapes, and more. This PowerPoint presentation graphics-focused template's got all the above. Plus, it's easy to edit these cool presentation graphics thanks to smartly constructed slides.

These three templates are just the start of graphics for presentations included on Elements. For infographic-focused templates and professional designs, make sure to check out these articles:

Find More PowerPoint Presentation Graphics on GraphicRiver

PowerPoint graphics templates come in all shapes and sizes. You can use Envato Elements for unlimited access to the entire library. 

But sometimes, you know  exactly  what you're looking for. in that case, the cost-effective GraphicRiver library might be perfect for you. It's a pay-as-you-go option to source single PPT graphics templates.

With the help of a template, you're on your way to the best graphics for PowerPoint presentations. Best of all, you're getting ready to see that it's easy to edit those background graphics for  your  presentation.

How to Use and Edit Graphics in PowerPoint

Sure, templates are great. But you might be wondering how to edit background graphics in PowerPoint along with other visuals. Are templates adjustable?

The answer is: yes, PowerPoint graphic design is easy to master with templates. Cool presentation graphics are easy to edit. So, use templates for practically any purpose!

In this section, I'm going to use one of the outstanding templates that we highlighted in the section above. We're going to use The X Note , which includes some of the best PPT graphics. 

The X Note is part of Envato Elements, the best source for unlimited downloads with the best PowerPoint presentation graphics . Most of the templates are built by PowerPoint graphic design experts.

Maybe you're wondering how to edit background graphics in PowerPoint. Or, you need some help inserting graphics in PowerPoint. Let's tackle all those topics (and more) in our guide to creating better PowerPoint graphics below.

How to Use SmartArt PowerPoint Graphics

The first type of PPT graphic that we'll cover in our guide is  SmartArt.  This feature is built into Microsoft PowerPoint and helps you create graphics for presentations with fewer clicks. You don't have to open a separate graphic design app.

To start working with SmartArt, click  Insert  on the ribbon. Then, click on the  SmartArt  menu option. The new window gives you many options to begin building SmartArt graphics for PowerPoint.

As you'll see in this window, SmartArt starters are divided into multiple categories. The goal here is to choose a preset that's as close as possible to what you need. For our quick example, let's work with a  cycle chart.  Specifically, I'm going to edit the SmartArt graphic for PowerPoint called  segmented cycle.

After you choose a preset and click  OK,  you'll see the graphic added to your slide. Also, you'll see an accompanying text box to the side that's got bullet points. These correspond to the text on the slide.

Think of this menu as the way to edit SmartArt graphics in PowerPoint. Type in the text box. The chart will update with your details. 

Press return to add a new bullet point. The chart will update automatically.

Here's why I love SmartArt graphics for PowerPoint: they're flexible . When you want to update a PPT graphic with a new bullet point or detail, you won't have to jump back to a design app like Illustrator or Photoshop. 

Instead, type inside the edit window. Your PowerPoint SmartArt will update automatically.

Want to learn more about SmartArt? We've just scratched the surface with an introduction in this section. read the complete guide to master the feature in our article below: 

How to Edit PowerPoint Infographics

The best way to work with PowerPoint infographics is to use ones that are already built. That's why we recommend templates as the proper starting point for PowerPoint infographics.

Take  slide 21  in The X Note .  This beautiful, arctic scene is just the tip of the iceberg for what you can do with better PowerPoint graphics. It looks great from the outset. But with a few tweaks you can make it all your own.

Right-click the graphic and choose  Group > Ungroup.  Now, the individual shapes are easy to select and edit.

The best graphics for PowerPoint presentations help you explain your ideas more easily. After you ungroup the components, you can create business graphics for PowerPoint that explain a case study or concept.

From this point forward, editing this slide is easy. You've got all the controls you usually would to reposition, resize, and update the components of the chart. Some example tweaks I made in the finished product below include:

• Clicking on the water  area  of the chart and using the fill color to change the water to blue.
• Clicking and dragging the arrows  to change the annotation on crucial items.
• Updating the text boxes  with helpful text that serves the purpose I've got in mind for the slide.
• Removing one unused  iceberg part by clicking on it and tapping "delete" on my keyboard.

When you're busy creating a presentation, you won't have time to create business graphics from the ground up. Instead, start with a pre-built option like the one you see above.

This is just one example of working with PowerPoint graphics in templates. Templates are flexible enough to help you create practically any presentation! Check out our guide below to learn more.

How to Use Shapes as Illustrative PowerPoint Graphics

For our third look at PowerPoint presentation graphics, let's check out a straightforward option.  Shapes  are PowerPoint graphics that are easy to add and can draw attention.

To add a shape, jump to the  Insert  tab on the ribbon. Then, click on the  Shapes  dropdown. You'll see an incredible variety of shapes that are easy to add to your slide. 

Just choose your shape, then click and drag to draw it on your slide. These vector graphic shapes are scalable. So, you never have to worry about the shape's quality becoming pixelated or distorted.

One of my favorite PowerPoint shape examples is a simple arrow. It's the perfect way to point to a specific slide fact.

After you add a shape, style it with the  Drawing Tools > Format  menu. Click on a shape, then check out options like  Shape Fill,  for example. Select a new color to transform the shape on your slide.

That's it! The only thing left to do is to try out many PowerPoint graphics with a deep set of shape options.

Learn More About Microsoft PowerPoint

PowerPoint graphics are just the beginning of the learning journey. With the help of more learning resources, you're on your way to feeling like a confident presenter every time you speak.

That's why we've invested time in building out the most in-depth library of PowerPoint tutorials. With the help of our resource,  How to Use PowerPoint (Ultimate Tutorial Guide,)   you're sure to conquer PowerPoint's learning curve.

Here are three tutorials from the guide that you can use to power up your learning:

Create a Presentation with PowerPoint Graphics Today

PowerPoint graphics aren't a "nice to have" in 2024 and beyond. They're a must that every audience expects. But if you're still learning how to edit background graphics and infographics in PowerPoint, you owe it to yourself to start with a pre-built template. 

Whether you use one of the PowerPoint graphics templates from Elements' unlimited library or a single graphics presentation for PowerPoint from GraphicRiver, you've got options!

Download a template, design today, and present with confidence. No matter what option you choose, cool PowerPoint presentation graphics are sure to wow the audience.

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Presentation Graphics

Presentation graphics is often called business graphics.

Since 1995, more than 100 tech experts and researchers have kept Webopedia’s definitions, articles, and study guides up to date. For more information on current editorial staff, please visit our About page.

Presentation graphics

Presentation graphics is any graphic used during a presentation in place of data. A good example is a graphic of a chart , rather than the actual data it represents.

Graphic , Video terms

• Presentation Design

PowerPoint Graphics to Enhance Your Presentations

Camille del Rosario

Preferred by 89% of users , Microsoft PowerPoint is still the most popular presentation platform in the world. After almost four decades of existence, it’s the most familiar presentation platform on earth, and almost every other similar platform is based on its user interface.

What is PowerPoint Graphics?

PowerPoint Presentations cannot live on text alone. Sure, you can have an ultra-minimal PowerPoint presentation with titles, subtitles, and bullet points only, and call it a day — but that’s not very exciting, is it? That’s why most engaging and effective presentations include relevant, professionally designed visuals that help your audience understand strong ideas and digest complex information.

Some of you may remember the earlier days of Microsoft Office, with WordArt, Clip Art, and Clippy the Office Assistant. In those days, there was a limited range of images and shapes you could select from and drop into presentations — unless you created your own custom photos, charts and graps from scratch with design tools such as Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator.

Today, the internet is chock-full of free and premium resources and Powerpoint templates you can easily customize, so you’ll never run out of creative material for whatever kind of corporate presentation you want to create.

Advantages of Using PowerPoint Graphics in Your Presentation

A single graphic can take the place of many words which can improve your PowerPoint presentation greatly. For example, to get your audience’s attention, instead of a bulleted list or paragraph explaining a process, you can show a photo, an animated video, or infographic instead.

PowerPoint graphics are not only informative and explanatory — they can be thought-provoking and mood-changing as well. If you’re trying to send a message, communicate strong ideas or evoke emotion in your audience, the right graphic will take you much farther than any words can.

Finally, your audience will appreciate any extra effort that has gone into creating your dynamic presentations and will be impressed by their strong visual impact.

It’s not about visuals or vanity — a well-designed slideshow presentation shows that you are passionate and professional. This implies that you have deep knowledge and authority when it comes to your subject.

How to Insert Graphics into PowerPoint

How do you insert a graphic into your PowerPoint Presentation? According to this guide from Microsoft corporation, there are three ways to do it if you’re a Microsoft 365 subscriber:

Use an image from your computer.

Go to Insert > Images > Pictures , and in the popup that appears, select Insert Picture From > This Device . Alternatively, you can simply right-click and copy the image then paste it on the desired slide.

Use a Microsoft stock image.

Go to Insert > Images > Pictures , then click Stock Images . Microsoft 365 subscribers have built-in access to thousands of royalty-free images!

Use an image from the web.

Go to Insert tab > Images > Pictures , then click Online Pictures . In the search box that appears, type a keyword or two, press enter, and select images from the results.

You can use the Format Picture tools to edit an image’s size, position, and more. And if you want an image to appear in every single slide, you don’t have to copy-paste it one by one — simply add it to the Slide Master under the View menu!

Keep all this in mind for your next project.

Where to Get Free PowerPoint Graphics

Welcome to the internet, where you can actually get things for free! The following websites are extremely helpful, fully customizable resources for amateur and professional designers alike.

Vecteezy is a high-quality resource for vector graphics, photos, and even videos. Their well-curated collections include trending graphics and team favorites. There are free and paid options on their website, but with millions of free options, you don’t have to worry about pulling out your wallet anytime soon!

Also, all resources are licensed for personal and commercial use, so you can use Vecteezy graphics for marketing and advertising purposes as well.

Unsplash hosts more than two million high-resolution images from “the world’s most generous community of photographers.” Unsplash alone can really level up your zero-budget presentation design game!

With patrons like BuzzFeed, Squarespace, and Trello, you don’t have to worry about industry-standard quality when it comes to Unsplash.

Photos from Unsplash are free to download for personal and commercial use, and while photographer attribution is appreciated, it isn’t required. It’s the perfect image library for great PowerPoint Presentations!

Freepik provides vector graphics, photos, editable mockups. They’re also affiliated with graphic resources Storyset (customizable and downloadable illustrations), Slidesgo (presentation templates), and Flaticon (vector icons) — all of which you can use to boost your presentation designs.

Attribution is requested, but not required if you’re a premium user. Free downloads are limited to around 30 resources a day — maybe not enough for professional PowerPoint design work, but absolutely perfect occasional presentation designers who just need to get a deck done.

Where to Buy Graphics for PowerPoint

For battle-ready PowerPoint power users, free resources may not be enough. If you’re looking for an intense level-up and no limitations when it comes to visual resources, these are for you!

Envato Elements

Envato Elements provides a wide range of creative assets, from images to audio to website templates. You can download full presentation templates, or get illustrations, photos, PowerPoint infographic templates, animations and fonts for a more personalized experience.

Adobe Stock

Like Envato, Adobe Stock offers a wide range of assets, such as photos, videos, illustrations, and vector graphics. High-resolution and royalty-free, you can use Adobe Stock assets for any project with full confidence that you have industry-standard quality at your fingertips.

Getty Images

Getty Images provides world-class images, illustrations, and videos with highly customizable plans. They take a data-driven approach to creativity concepts, generating and curating visuals based on what consumers really respond to.

A Getty subscription can also give you access to royalty-free video clips from the BBC Motion Gallery and the NBC News Archives. This is great for presenters who discuss highly technical topics, like science, history, business, and more. You can even license assets exclusively if that’s something you feel your brand needs.

Need Unique PowerPoint Graphics and Design?

Whether you choose free PowerPoint graphics, pre-designed layouts (check out these free presentation layouts that you can download), Google slides themes or a paid resource for your presentation graphics, you might still end up with some work to do — the presentation design itself.

At Design Pickle, you can focus on your pitch and we can take care of the deck. A Graphics Pro subscription includes unlimited access to custom graphics , illustrations , and PowerPoint presentation design services.

If you can imagine it, we can design it! Schedule a free consultation today!

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100+ Free PowerPoint Graphics For Better Presentations [Free PPT]

PowerPoint graphics to move your presentation up a level, and plenty of top quality free options.

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By Lyudmil Enchev

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4 years ago

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PowerPoint graphics are a great addition to all PowerPoint presentations no matter what the audience. A Powerpoint simply containing text and bullet points is not going to hold the attention, even with your hot topic content. You run the risk of being dry and dull, and simply put graphics are more visual and therefore more interesting. You know it too if you are happy with your material you feel better and more confident as a speaker. Double plus.

Of course, the quality of your PowerPoint Graphics is important, this isn’t just a case of adding visuals for visual’s sake. High quality, highly appropriate, thoughtful graphics will enhance any presentation and will be a vital tool in getting your message across, succinctly and memorably. Equally poor quality clip art type graphics, blurry, pointless, and inappropriate images may get you to remember as well, but probably not how you would wish.

So let’s look at some great keys ways you can impress with a presentation, it’s not hard but it is effective.

In this article: 1. How to insert graphics into PowerPoint 2. 100+ Free PowerPoint Graphics by GraphicMama 2.1. Free PowerPoint Templates 2.2. Free Arrows, Pointers, Bullets for PowerPoint 2.3. Free Icons for PowerPoint 2.4. Free Stats, Charts, Graphs for PowerPoint 2.5. Free Numbers and Steps Graphics for PowerPoint 2.6. Free Text Section Graphics for PowerPoint 2.7. Free Presentation Graphics for PowerPoint 2.8. Free Speech Bubble Graphics for PowerPoint 2.9. Free Sale Graphics for PowerPoint 2.10. Free Infographic Kit 2.11. Free Infographic Templates 3. More places to find PowerPoint Graphics

In the meanwhile, do you know, that you can use premade infographic templates? Check out our  50 Free Timeline Infographic Templates .

1. How to insert graphics into PowerPoint

Once you’ve created your presentation it’s time to add those all-important PowerPoint Graphics. And it’s easy, easy, easy.

Step 1: Go to the slide and create a space for your graphic Step 2: Go to insert on the toolbar at the top of PowerPoint, click on it Step 3: This will open up insert options depending on your version of PowerPoint ( 2019 reveals online pictures, photo albums, pictures, or screenshots, older versions are similar but replace online pictures with clip art.) Step 4: Choose an image from your files or online through categories or the search bar – filter general images through creative commons only licensed pictures (free to use), select, click on insert. Step 5: Resize and reposition

Alternatively:

Step 1: Select an image, right-click, and copy. (Ctrl+C) Step 2: Right-click and paste on the desired slide. (Ctrl+V)

It really is that easy.

2. 100+ Free PowerPoint Graphics by GraphicMama

One of the best ways to make your presentation look professional is by using professionally designed PowerPoint graphics and one of the best design agencies, Graphic Mama has plenty of options to choose from. As well as paid-for bundles of design icons you can take advantage of a great range of free graphics from sales icons, holiday icons, speech bubbles, people avatars, and many more. These are graphics designed in a vector file format, so the quality will stay as good even when resized. there are free backgrounds, templates, and infographic bundles too. It’s a no-risk option that will certainly add a high-quality, professionally designed look to your slideshow. Just click on the links below and you are almost there.

2.1. Free PowerPoint Templates

A tremendously good way to create a stunning professional look is by using templates for your PowerPoint Design and the good news is there are lots of free options out there just waiting for you to fill with content.

Free Hand-Drawn PowerPoint Presentation

This freebie from Graphic Mamas’s collection of free templates shows off the power of a sketched hand-drawn style in adding a customized look that is both attractive and clear.

Free Corporate Presentation Template

Ideally suited to a business proposal, this free template can be edited and customized for anything that would benefit from fresh, clear colors and fantastically designed and organized slides.

Free Business PowerPoint Presentation Template

Another free business template that benefits from strong structural elements and a great mix of text boxes and images in this modern-looking option. Superb editable infographics to get that all-important message to stand out.

Free Minimalist Presentation Template

This minimalist template broken up into large blocks of strong color is perfect for making a statement. Instant impact and full of confidence.

Take a look at Graphic Mama’s Modern Templates for the New Era of PowerPoint Presentations

2.2. Free Arrows, Pointers, Bullets for PowerPoint

Basic icons such as arrows, bullets, and pointers are so ubiquitous that they are often forgotten about. Big mistake. These free PowerPoint graphics show just how much impact well-designed elements can make and they’re a quick and easy way of raising your presentation to another level, and all for free.

2.3. Free Icons for PowerPoint

The cool, simplicity of these PowerPoint graphic icons can add swagger and style to your show. This completely free bundle gives a great selection all in the same consistent style and multiple usages will hold a presentation together in a subtle way.

2.4. Free Stats, Charts, Graphs for PowerPoint

Powerful infographics give you a great chance to get inventive and creative. Fully customizable, fully editable, and a fantastically varied and imaginative selection of all kinds of charts, graphs, and pictograms. It’s difficult to believe they are free but they really are.

2.5. Free Numbers and Steps Graphics for PowerPoint

You will need numbers, so why not take advantage of this free collection and make the mundane come alive. The key is to keep a consistent design and it will create a magical flow throughout the whole show from beginning to end.

2.6. Free Text Section Graphics for PowerPoint

PowerPoint graphics for text sections do a vital job. It is well known that text-heavy presentations are not popular and therefore less effective but you do need text. A great way of drawing the eye, focusing on text content, and still keeping people awake are these text section graphics. Customizable colors (ideal for branding), all forms and functions, a fully flexible and fully free bundle of creativity.

2.7. Free Presentation Graphics for PowerPoint

PowerPoint Graphics come in all shapes and sizes and illustrate all kinds of ideas. Download this free pack and check out a wide range of options to create visual impact, a professionally customized look, and vitality.

2.8. Free Speech Bubble Graphics

Speech bubble PowerPoint graphics can make your presentation pop, and with this stylish selection, you can’t go wrong. Flat, shaded, angular, rounded, clouds, and all sorts of variations on the theme. Impactful and fun they help create the conversation you want to have.

2.9. Free Sale Graphics

PowerPoint graphics for sales will do the crucial job of getting you and your product noticed. Fit your show with these free high-quality vector graphics and watch the crowds flock in. Once you’ve downloaded the graphics, you are not limited to PowerPoint, use the same images on posters, advertising, social media, etc., and get selling. The vectors’ technique means that there will be no loss of quality whatever the size and function.

2.10. Free Infographic Kit

A fully comprehensive infographic PowerPoint graphic pack that is crammed full of everything you could want to bring your statistics to the audience. Carefully crafted, tremendously varied, customizable, editable, flexible, and all this with the added professional pizzaz of expert design. It’s free and it’s ready to rock.

2.11. 20 Free Infographic Templates

If you want to speed things up, you can try using premade PowerPoint templates for your presentation. In this huge bundle of 539 infographics, you will find 20 free infographic templates. They are made with a lot of graphics, and you can easily grab some of the elements and adapt it to your presentation.

3. More places to find PowerPoint Graphics

Although it’s difficult to believe you haven’t found exactly what you are looking for already in our classic collection, let’s not worry. The one thing we do have now is plenty and plenty of choice. Here are some paid-for possibilities that you may want to jazz up that make or break a presentation.

PresentationPro

For $49.00 you could check out this royalty-free Graphics pack from PresentationPro. This pack contains thousands of graphics, clipart, and illustration in all sorts of categories from geography to calendars, from Scrabble to sport, and in differing styles. The graphics can be used in other formats too so you are not limited to PowerPoint.

GraphicMama

As well as the free offers, already covered Graphic Mama has a top-class selection of paid-for bundles ranging from characters to graphics assets, backgrounds , and templates from a little as $31 per set. This is ideal if you’d like to theme your presentation around a character as there are multiple gestures and poses for each. All are easily customizable, editable, and adaptable to any project and design. A gallery of cartoon characters , including businessmen, animals, robots, superheroes, doctors, ninjas, and more. Graphic Mama also offers custom designs, so you can turn yourself into a caricature and animated puppets to really make waves.

GetMyGraphics

At GetMyGrpahics you can take up a subscription giving you access to over 9,000 professional PowerPoint graphics starting at $49 per month or a Pro package at $99 per month.  Obviously, at this price, it is not for a one-off or occasional piece but for professionals it does provide plenty of options. They include infographics and illustrations in a wide range of categories and differing styles.

Final Words

The old PowerPoint presentation. It’s been around for years and it truly isn’t enough to just churn out the old stuff. Vital though they may be, people always expect more, always expect better, and why not? With a little extra effort, you can turn your slideshow presentation into something that isn’t just a time filler but that really makes a difference, communication, and shows you off in the best light. PowerPoint graphics can make all the difference by breathing life and energy into your presentation and consequently your performance. If you feel confident in your material it will help your delivery. Best of all you can step it up for free, so why wouldn’t you?

You may also be interested in some of these related articles:

• The Best Free PowerPoint Templates to Download in 2022
• Need PowerPoint Backgrounds? The Best Places to Check Out [+ Freebies]
• 10 PowerPoint Tutorials to Help You Master PowerPoint

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Lyudmil Enchev

Lyudmil is an avid movie fan which influences his passion for video editing. You will often see him making animations and video tutorials for GraphicMama. Lyudmil is also passionate for photography, video making, and writing scripts.

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Introduction to Computer Graphics

The term ‘Computer Graphics’ was coined by Verne Hudson and William Fetter from Boeing who were pioneers in the field. Computer graphics is a dynamic and essential field within computing that involves the creation, manipulation, and rendering of visual content using computers.

In today’s digital era, computer graphics technologies have revolutionized how we perceive and interact with visual information, playing a pivotal role in video games, movies, architectural design, medical imaging, and more. There are several tools used for the implementation of Computer Graphics. The basic is the graphics.h header file in Turbo-C, Unity for advanced, and even OpenGL can be used for its Implementation.

This article delves into the fundamental concepts of computer graphics, its diverse applications, and the underlying technologies that drive innovation in this field.

What is Computer Graphics?

Computer Graphics including digital images, animations, and interactive graphics used in various sectors such as entertainment, education, scientific visualization, and virtual reality. Computer Graphics can be used in UI design , rendering, geometric objects, animation, and many more. In most areas, computer graphics is an abbreviation of CG.

Computer Graphics refers to several things

• The manipulation and the representation of the image or the data in a graphical manner.
• Various technology is required for the creation and manipulation.
• Digital synthesis and its manipulation.

Types of Computer Graphics

• Raster Graphics: In raster, graphics pixels are used for an image to be drawn. It is also known as a bitmap image in which a sequence of images is into smaller pixels. Basically, a bitmap indicates a large number of pixels together.
• Vector Graphics: In vector graphics , mathematical formulae are used to draw different types of shapes, lines, objects, and so on.

Applications of Computer Graphics

There are many applications of computer graphics discussed below-

• Computer Graphics are used for the aided design of systems engineering and architectural systems- These are used in electrical automobiles and electro-mechanical, and electronic devices. For example gears and bolts.
• Computer Art – MS Paint.
• Presentation Graphics – It is used to summarize financial statistical scientific or economic data. For example- Bar charts systems and line charts.
• Entertainment- It is used in motion pictures, music videos, and television gaming.
• Education and training- It is used to understand the operations of complex systems. It is also used for specialized systems such as framing for captains, pilots, and so on.
• Visualization- To study trends and patterns. For example- Analyzing satellite photos of earth.

Why are Computer Graphics used?

Imagine a car manufacturing company that wants to showcase its vehicle sales over the past decade. Storing and presenting this huge amount of data can be both time-consuming and memory-intensive. Furthermore, it can be difficult for the average person to understand. In such cases, by using graphics can be a more effective solution. By using charts and graphs to visually signify the data, it becomes much easier to understand and analyse the data.

Interactive computer graphics utilize a two-way communication concept between users and computers. The computer receives input signals from the user, and the picture is modified accordingly. When a command is applied, the picture updates promptly.

How To Get Started in Computer Graphics

Step by step process to getting started with computer graphics-

Step-1: Understaind the basics

Learn the fundamental and basics of computer graphics such as rendering, shading, animation, and modeling. Learn basic concepts of mathematics like linear algebra , geometry , and calculus as well as basic principles of physics that support computer graphics.

Step-2: Choose Your Area of Interest

Choose your area of interest like 2D-Graphics, 3D-Graphics, Animation, and special effect (VFX ).

Step-3: Learn Programming

Learn programming language that is used in graphics, such as Python , C++ , and JavaScript . Learn about Graphics Libraries and APIs like OpenGL , Vulkan, DirectX, and frameworks like WebGL that is used in web based graphics.

Step-4: Use Graphics Software

Learn about modeling and animation tools such as Blender , Autodesk Maya , or 3ds Max for 3D modeling and animation. Learn about 2D-Graphics software like Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and GIMP.

Step-5: Study and Practice

Take online courses and tutorials, many institution offer Computer Graphics course like Coursera, Udemy, and Khan Academy. And read textbooks like “Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice” by John F. Hughes. Now, Starts with simple projects, such as creating basic shapes and gradually move on to more complex scenes and animations.

Step-6:  Create a portfolio of your work

create your own projects and build an online portfolio to display your work, which is helpful for job application.

Step-7: Apply for jobs in computer graphics

If you aim to build a career in computer graphics and grow in this field, gaining experience is important. Search for entry-level positions, freelance, contract work, and internships. When searching for jobs, read the descriptions carefully to understand the responsibilities, required qualifications, and company details. This will help you find roles that align with your career goals and skill set.

Frequently Asked Question On Computer Graphics – FAQs

What are examples of computer graphics.

Examples of computer graphics are photographs, drawings, line art, mathematical graphs, line graphs, charts, diagrams, typography, numbers, symbols, geometric designs, maps, engineering drawings, or other images. Graphics often combine text, illustration, and color.

What are the different types of computer graphics?

There are two type of computer graphics Vector graphics Raster graphics

What are the basic elements of computer graphics?

Basic elements of computer graphics included Line, Shape, Form, Texture, Space, Imagery, Typography, Color.

What are the main application of computer graphics?

main application of computer graphics are in marketing, entertainment, education, healthcare, architecture.

What are the four type of computer graphics?

Four type of computer graphics are Raster graphics Vector graphics 3D-Graphics Animation

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What is PowerPoint Presentation with Features & Examples?

PowerPoint is a presentation software developed by Microsoft, which allows users to create, edit, and deliver visually engaging slideshows, whether you're a student, professional, or simply curious, explore the power of Microsoft PowerPoint and learn how you can create impactful presentations effortlessly.

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According to Glassdoor , a PowerPoint designer's average salary in the UK is about £37,811 annually. Who knew there was big money in presentations alone? In this blog, you will learn What PowerPoint is, its key features, its benefits, and how to use it, as well as learn some tips for creating effective presentations. 

Table of contents      

1) What is PowerPoint?   

2) Understanding the PowerPoint interface   

3) Key features of PowerPoint  

4) How to use PowerPoint to create a presentation?  

5) Benefits of PowerPoint   

6) Tips for creating effective PowerPoint Presentations  

7) Alternatives to PowerPoint    

What is PowerPoint?  

PowerPoint is an essential multifunctional tool for making presentations which had been created by MS. As a part of the Microsoft Office Suite, it offers a toolbox to organise the presentation by using different tools and features to make it visually pleasant and attractive. MS PowerPoint gives the opportunity for the text, graphics, multimedia objects, and animation elements to be combined in one place to allow the users to present information in a more effective way.  

Evolution of PowerPoint  

In the course of time, PowerPoint has become a very functional tool to produce high-quality presentations Moreover, a secure system would be established to manage risks of data leakage or theft. First released in 1987 for Apple computers, it defies to the competition with its easy Graphical User Interface (GUIGUI)) and its large range of functions. With every new release, MS PowerPoint offered new functionality and boasted significant improvements, staying the wonder of the world of presentations.

Understanding the PowerPoint interface  

 The PowerPoint Program provides the presenter with an easy-to-use interface for designing and updating the presentation. It is important to master its main functions in order to conduct operations using this software with a level of proficiency.Here's a breakdown of the MS PowerPoint interface:   

1) Ribbon: The Ribbon is located at the top of the MS PowerPoint window and has several tabs which include Home, Insert, Design, Transitions, etc.

2) Slides pane: Slide pane which is positioned to the far left of the window, is the PowerPoint window. You will see there a collection of your slides examples (thumbnails) which enables you to adjust and customize them with greater ease. The floating pane of the editor lets you not only add, delete, duplicate, but also hide slides from there.

3)   Notes pane : The Notes pane is located below the Slides pane. It provides space for adding speaker notes or additional information related to each slide.    

4)  Slide area : The Slide area occupies the central part of the PowerPoint window. It displays the selected slide, where you can add and arrange content such as text, images, charts, and multimedia elements .    

5)  Task panes : Task panes are additional panels on the PowerPoint window's right side. They offer various functionalities such as formatting options, slide layouts, animations, etc. Task panes can be opened or closed based on your specific needs.   

Understanding the MS PowerPoint interface will help you navigate the software effectively and make the most of its features. Whether you are creating slides, adding content, or applying formatting, having a good grasp of the interface ensures a smooth and productive experience .  

Key Features of PowerPoint  

When it comes to creating captivating and professional presentations, MS PowerPoint stands out as versatile and feature-rich software. Its array of tools and functionalities enables users to bring their imagination and ideas to life. Moreover, it also helps engage their audience effectively .    

From slide templates to multimedia integration, there are various Features of PowerPoint ; let's discuss some of them below.

1) Slide Templates : PowerPoint provides a collection of pre-designed templates that make it easy to create visually appealing slides.   

2)  Slide Master : The Slide Master feature allows users to define the overall layout, font styles, and colour scheme for the entire presentation .   

3)  Animations and transitions : PowerPoint offers various animation effects and slide transitions to add visual interest and captivate the audience .   

4)  Multimedia integration : Users can embed images, videos, and audio files directly into their presentations, enhancing the overall impact .   

5)   Collaboration tools : MS PowerPoint allows multiple users to work on a presentation simultaneously, making it ideal for team projects and remote collaboration .   

6) Presenter View : The Presenter View feature gives presenters access to speaker notes, a timer, and a preview of upcoming slides, enabling a seamless presentation experience .   

These features collectively contribute to PowerPoint's versatility and make it a powerful tool for developing engaging and impactful presentations.  

Take your Microsoft Office skills to the next level – sign up for our Power Apps and Power Automate Training ! 

How to use PowerPoint to create a presentation?   

Creating a presentation in PowerPoint is a straightforward process. Whether it's simple animations or explainer videos learning H ow to use PowerPoint is an extremely valuable skill. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to create a presentation:   

1)  Launch PowerPoint and choose a template or start with a blank slide. 

2)  Add slides by clicking "New Slide" or using the shortcut key (Ctrl + M). 

3) Customise slide content by entering text and inserting visuals.  

4)  Rearrange slides for a logical flow by dragging them in the slide navigation pane.  

5)  Apply slide transitions for visual effects in the "Transitions" tab.  

6)  Add animations to objects in the "Animations" tab.  

7)  Preview your presentation by clicking "Slide Show".   

8)  Save your presentation and choose a format (.pptx or .pdf).  

9)  Share your presentation via email, cloud storage, or collaboration tools.   

By following these steps, you can create a well-structured and visually appealing presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint. Remember to keep your content concise, use engaging visuals, and practice your presentation skills to deliver an impactful presentation .   

Unlock your full potential and optimise your productivity with our comprehensive Microsoft Office 365 Masterclass . Sign up now!  

Benefits of PowerPoint   

PowerPoint is a very popular presentation software and for a good reason. It offers numerous benefits for users, from easy collaboration to ease of use. These are some of the key benefits of PowerPoint.

1) Visual appeal : Microsoft PowerPoint allows you to create visually appealing presentations with its wide range of design tools and features. You can use templates, themes, and customisable layouts to make your slides visually engaging and professional .   

2)  Easy to use : PowerPoint has a user-friendly interface, making it accessible to users of all levels. The intuitive tools and straightforward navigation make it easy to create, edit, and deliver presentations efficiently .   

3)   Flexibility : PowerPoint provides flexibility in terms of content creation. You can include various types of content, such as text, images, charts, graphs, videos, and audio files, to enhance your message and engage your audience effectively.   

4)   Organisation and structure : PowerPoint offers features to help you organise and structure your content. You can create multiple slides, use slide masters for consistent formatting, and arrange the sequence of slides to create a logical flow .   

5)  Presenter tools : PowerPoint includes built-in presenter tools that aid in delivering presentations smoothly. You can use presenter view to see your notes and upcoming slides while your audience sees only the presentation. Additionally, features like slide transitions and animations add visual interest and help you control the flow of information .   

6)  Collaboration and sharing : PowerPoint allows for easy collaboration and sharing of presentations. Several users can simultaneously work on the same presentation, making it convenient for team projects. You can also share your presentations via email, cloud storage, or online platforms, ensuring easy access for viewers .   

7)   Integration with other tools : PowerPoint can seamlessly integrate with other Microsoft Office applications, such as Word and Excel. You can import data and charts from Excel or copy and paste content between different Office applications, saving time and effort .  

8)   Presenter-audience interaction : PowerPoint provides features that facilitate interaction between the presenter and the audience. You can include interactive elements like hyperlinks, buttons, and quizzes to engage your audience and make your presentations more dynamic.   

9)   Portable and accessible : PowerPoint presentations can be saved in various formats, such as .pptx or .pdf, making them easily accessible on different devices. This portability allows you to deliver presentations on laptops, tablets, or even projectors without compatibility issues .   

10)  Time and effort savings : PowerPoint simplifies the process of creating presentations, saving you time and effort. The pre-designed templates, slide layouts, and formatting options enable you to create professional-looking presentations efficiently .   

Tips for Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations   

PowerPoint presentations can be powerful tools for communicating information and engaging an audience. Consider the following PowerPoint Tips to create effective presentations .

1) Simplicity is key : Keep your slides clean and uncluttered. Use concise bullet points and simple visuals to convey your message effectively .   

2)  Visuals matter : Incorporate relevant, high-quality visuals such as images, charts, and diagrams to enhance understanding and engagement .   

3)  Limit text : Avoid overwhelming your audience with excessive text on slides. Use brief phrases or keywords to communicate key points .   

4)  Choose legible fonts : Opt for clear and readable fonts that are easy to read, even from a distance. Maintain consistency in font styles throughout your presentation .   

5)  Consistent design : Maintain a consistent design theme, including colours, fonts, and layout, to create a visually appealing and professional presentation.   

6)  Emphasise important points : Use visual hierarchy techniques, such as font size, colour, and formatting, to draw attention to essential information .   

7)  Use transitions and animations sparingly : Incorporate slide transitions and animations thoughtfully, focusing on enhancing content and transitions without distracting the audience .   

8)  S lide notes for guidance : Utilise the slide notes feature to include additional details, explanations, or reminders for a well-prepared and confident presentation.   

9)  Practice and time yourself : Rehearse your presentation to ensure smooth delivery and stay within the allocated time. Practice helps you refine your content and delivery.   

10)  Engage the audience : Encourage audience participation through interactive elements, questions, or discussions to foster engagement and make your presentation more memorable.   

By implementing these tips, you can create effective MS PowerPoint presentations that capture attention, communicate information clearly, and engage your audience effectively.  

Alternatives to PowerPoint  

Most of you are used to using PowerPoint for your presentation needs since it was the first option available to us through our academics. However, if you wish to check out alternative options to Powerpoint know if they work better for you, here are ten options that is worth a short: 

5) Slidebean

6) Zoho Show 

7) Google Slide 

9) Beautiful.ai

10) Microsoft Sway

Conclusion     

This blog walked you through What is PowerPoint and how it can aid you in curating compelling visual representations of the message you wish to get across. We discussed it features and the process of how you can create presentations on PowerPoint. Now take what you know and run with it explore your options with your templates and building new ones, let your creativity take its course. 

Learn how to create customised slide shows in MS PowerPoint with our Microsoft PowerPoint MO300 Training .  

Frequently Asked Questions

Well, making a presentation can be tricky business. Here are some of the common mistakes people make:

1) Adding too much text! The presentation needs to have brief and simple points you elaborate on in person. 

2) Bad colour schemes for template and font colour. Sometimes the clash of colour may make the text illegible. 

3) Too many elements! Crowding of elements may lose your audience’s attention.   

Yes, you most definitely can! You can use PowerPoint online with a Microsoft Office 360 plug in that allows you to use all Microsoft applications on your browser. 

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The Knowledge Academy’s Knowledge Pass , a prepaid voucher, adds another layer of flexibility, allowing course bookings over a 12-month period. Join us on a journey where education knows no bounds. 

The Knowledge Academy offers various Microsoft Excel Training & Certification Course , including Microsoft Excel Masterclass Course, Six Sigma Black belt Microsoft Excel VBA and Macro Training and Excel for Accountants Masterclass Course. These courses cater to different skill levels, providing comprehensive insights into Excel Cheat Sheet: A Beginner's Guide . 

Our Office Applications Blogs covers a range of topics offering valuable resources, best practices, and industry insights. Whether you are a beginner or looking to advance your skills, The Knowledge Academy's diverse courses and informative blogs have you covered.  

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Presentation definition & meaning, what is a presentation, 10 types of presentations, presentation uses, purpose, importance, what’s in a presentation parts, how to design a presentation, presentation vs. deck, what’s the difference between a presentation, representation, & speech, presentation sizes, presentation ideas & examples, graphic design, presentation.

Presentations are staple communication tools in school, business, or any professional matter where presenters impart topics to an audience. Often presented as a slideshow or digital animation, relaying a well-thought-out presentation to an audience is a creative and compelling way to share content while making discussions fun and engaging.

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What does a presentation convey?

Who are the two main parties of a presentation, what are examples of presentations, what consists of a presentation, what are the types of presentations, what are some tips to make a presentation, what are the 5ps of a presentation, what are the top three elements of a presentation, what makes a good presentation, what are the 4ps for oral presentations, more in graphic design.

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• How To Make/Create an Invitation in Google Docs [Templates + Examples]
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How to Use Graphics in Your Presentation

Here are five easy rules for when and how to put graphics in your presentations..

Most business presentations are about as interesting as watching paint dry in slo-mo, so the last thing you want is to make your presentation MORE boring by misusing your graphics.

Here are some simple rules based on a conversation with psychologist Stephen M. Kosslyn, author of the book Clear and to the Point .

Note: I've included some very rough examples to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. Needless to say, your own slides will be somewhat more polished.

1. Use a graphic when illustrating relative amounts.

Graphics are particularly good at communicating that one thing is larger than another. If you attempt to express this with words and numbers, you're forcing your audience to do mental mathematics. Why not make it easy for them?

2. Use graphics to simplify rather than more complex.

If your data contains multiple elements (like sales over time), a graph is the best way to communicate. However, don't crowd the slide with data lest it become a puzzle-solving exercise. Keep it simple.

3. Break complicated concepts into multiple graphics.

It's very difficult for an audience to absorb a complicated graphic. Rather than present it as a massive wall of visual data, break the graphic into chunks and show how each chunk relates to the previous chunk.

You: "Here is our basic organizational structure." (Click)

You: "We are now going to focus on the R&D group."

4. Don't use corny clip art.

Actually, Kosslyn didn't say anything about this, but it needs to be said: enough with the happy workers who look like they've stepped out of a soap opera!

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The Minard Map – “The best statistical graphic ever drawn”

“The best statistical graphic ever drawn“, is how statistician Edward Tufte described this chart in his authoritative work ‘The Visual Display of Quantitative Information’.

The chart, or statistical graphic, is also a map. And a strange one at that. It depicts the advance into (1812) and retreat from (1813) Russia by Napoleon’s Grande Armée , which was decimated by a combination of the Russian winter, the Russian army and its scorched-earth tactics. To my knowledge, this is the origin of the term ‘scorched earth’ – the retreating Russians burnt anything that might feed or shelter the French, thereby severely weakening Napoleon’s army.

As a statistical chart, the map unites six different sets of data. • Geography: rivers, cities and battles are named and placed according to their occurrence on a regular map. • The army’s course: the path’s flow follows the way in and out that Napoleon followed. • The army’s direction: indicated by the colour of the path, gold leading into Russia, black leading out of it. • The number of soldiers remaining: the path gets successively narrower, a plain reminder of the campaigns human toll, as each millimetre represents 10.000 men. • Temperature: the freezing cold of the Russian winter on the return trip is indicated at the bottom, in the republican measurement of degrees of réaumur (water freezes at 0° réaumur, boils at 80° réaumur). • Time: in relation to the temperature indicated at the bottom, from right to left, starting 24 October (pluie, i.e. ‘rain’) to 7 December (-27°).

Pause a moment to ponder the horrific human cost represented by this map: Napoleon entered Russia with 442.000 men, took Moscow with only 100.000 men left, wandered around its abandoned ruins for some time and escaped the East’s wintry clutches with barely 10.000 shivering soldiers. Those include 6.000 rejoining the ‘bulk’ of the army from up north. Napoleon never recovered from this blow, and would be decisively beaten at Waterloo under two years later.

Almost exactly a century and three decades later, Hitler would repeat Napoleon’s mistake by again underestimating the vastness of Russia, the inhospitability of its winters and the determination of the Russians.

The Economist, which in its last issue of 2007 published a story on the way in which some charts succesfully visualise statistical data (yes, those editorial meetings must be a riot), pointed out that “As men tried, and mostly failed to cross the Berezina river under heavy attack, the width of the black line halves: another 20,000 or so gone. The French now use the expression C’est la Bérézina to describe a total disaster.”

The map was the work of Charles Joseph Minard (1781-1870), a French civil engineer who was an inspector-general of bridges and roads, but whose most remembered legacy is in the field of statistical graphics, producing this and other maps in his retirement. This is a translation of the legend at the top of the map:

Figurative chart of the successive losses in men by the French army in the Russian campaign 1812-1813. Drawn up by Mr Minard, inspector-general of bridges and roads (retired). Paris, 20 November 1869. The number of men present is symbolised by the broadness of the coloured zones at a rate of one millimetre for ten thousand men; furthermore, those numbers are written across the zones. The red signifies the men who entered Russia, the black those who got out of it. The data used to draw up this chart were found in the works of Messrs. Thiers, de Ségur, de Fezensac, de Chambray and the unpublished journal of Jacob, pharmacist of the French army since 28 October. To better represent the diminution of the army, I’ve pretended that the army corps of Prince Jerôme and of Marshall Davousz which were detached at Minsk and Mobilow and rejoined the main force at Orscha and Witebsk, had always marched together with the army.

Jas Ellis sent me this link to the aforementioned Economist article, which enumerates and shows several other interesting infographics. It also has the clearest, most detailed reproduction of the Minard map I’ve ever seen; the map had been suggested to me previously by several readers, among whom Brian Westley, M. Kranz and Stephen Eckett.

Strange Maps #229

Got a strange map? Let me know at [email protected] .

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Napoleon’s Disastrous Invasion of Russia Detailed in an 1869 Data Visualization: It’s Been Called “the Best Statistical Graphic Ever Drawn”

in Data , Design , History | July 11th, 2019 1 Comment

It’s tempt­ing to asso­ciate data visu­al­iza­tions with Pow­er­Point and online graph­ics, which have enabled an unheard-of capac­i­ty for dis­sem­i­nat­ing full-col­or images. But the form reach­es much fur­ther back in his­to­ry. Fur­ther back, even, than the front pages of USA Today and glossy side­bars of  Time and Newsweek . In 1900, for exam­ple, W.E.B. Du Bois made impres­sive use of sev­er­al full-col­or data visu­al­iza­tions for the First Pan-African Con­fer­ence in Lon­don, with no access what­so­ev­er to desk­top pub­lish­ing soft­ware or a laser print­er.

Almost fifty years before Du Bois turned sta­tis­tics into swirls of col­or and shape, Flo­rence Nightin­gale used her lit­tle-known graph­ic design skills to illus­trate the caus­es of dis­ease in the Crimean War and John Snow (not Jon Snow) illus­trat­ed his rev­o­lu­tion­ary Broad Street Pump cholera the­o­ry with a famous info­graph­ic street map.

Around this same time, anoth­er data visu­al­iza­tion pio­neer, Charles Joseph Minard, pro­duced some of the most high­ly-regard­ed info­graph­ics ever made, includ­ing the 1869 illus­tra­tion above of Napoleon’s march to, and retreat from, Moscow in the War of 1812. View it in a large for­mat here .

Made fifty years after the event, when Minard was 80 years old, the map has been called by the bible of data visu­al­iza­tion studies—Edward Tufte’s The Visu­al Dis­play of Quan­ti­ta­tive Infor­ma­tion —“prob­a­bly the best sta­tis­ti­cal graph­ic ever drawn.” Over at thoughtbot.com, Joanne Cheng sums up the con­text , if you need­ed a his­tor­i­cal refresh­er: “The year is 1812 and Napoleon is doing pret­ty well for him­self. He has most of Europe under his con­trol, except for the UK.”

Angered by Czar Alexander’s refusal to sup­port a UK trade embar­go to weak­en their defens­es, Napoleon “gath­ers a mas­sive army of over 400,000 to attack Rus­sia.” The cam­paign was dis­as­trous: over­con­fi­dent advances on Moscow turned into dev­as­tat­ing win­ter­time retreats dur­ing which the Grande Armée only “ nar­row­ly escaped com­plete anni­hi­la­tion .” So, how does Minard’s 1869 Tableau Graphique  tell this grand sto­ry of hubris and icy car­nage? And, Cheng asks, “what makes it so good?”

Cheng breaks Minard’s series of jagged lines and shapes down into more con­ven­tion­al XY axis line graphs to show how he coor­di­nat­ed a huge amount of infor­ma­tion, includ­ing the loca­tions (by lon­gi­tude) of dif­fer­ent groups of Napoleon’s troops at dif­fer­ent points in time, their direc­tion, and the pre­cip­i­tous­ly falling tem­per­a­tures in the stages of retreat. He drew from a list of the best his­tor­i­cal sources he could con­sult at the time, turn­ing dense prose into the spare, clean lines that set data sci­en­tists’ hearts a‑flutter.

Minard began his career in a much more rec­og­niz­ably 19-cen­tu­ry design field, build­ing bridges, dams, and canals across Europe for the first few decades of the 1800s. As a civ­il engi­neer “he had the good for­tune to take part in almost all the great ques­tions of pub­lic works which ush­ered in our cen­tu­ry,” not­ed an obit­u­ary pub­lished in Annals of Bridges and Roads  the year after Minard’s death in 1870. “And dur­ing the twen­ty years of retire­ment, always au courant  of the tech­ni­cal and eco­nom­ic sci­ences, he endeav­ored to pop­u­lar­ize the most salient results.”

He did so by ven­tur­ing out­side the sub­ject of engi­neer­ing, while using the “inno­v­a­tive tech­niques he had invent­ed for the pur­pose of dis­play­ing flows of peo­ple” on paper, writes Michael Sand­berg at DataViz . In order to tell the trag­ic tale” of Napoleon’s crush­ing defeat “in a sin­gle image,” Minard imag­ined the event as a dynam­ic phys­i­cal struc­ture.

Minard’s chart shows six types of infor­ma­tion: geog­ra­phy, time, tem­per­a­ture, the course and direc­tion of the army’s move­ment, and the num­ber of troops remain­ing. The widths of the gold (out­ward) and black (return­ing) paths rep­re­sent the size of the force, one mil­lime­tre to 10,000 men. Geo­graph­i­cal fea­tures and major bat­tles are marked and named, and plum­met­ing tem­per­a­tures on the return jour­ney are shown along the bot­tom.

This was hard­ly Minard’s first info­graph­ic. In fact, he made “scores of oth­er graph­ics and charts,” Nation­al Geo­graph­ic writes, “as well as near­ly 50 maps. He pio­neered sev­er­al impor­tant the­mat­ic map­ping tech­niques and per­fect­ed oth­ers, such as using flow lines on a map.” (See oth­er exam­ples of his work at Nation­al Geographic’s site .) Minard may not be much remem­bered for his infra­struc­ture, but his abil­i­ty, as his obit­u­ar­ist wrote, to turn “the dry and com­pli­cat­ed columns of sta­tis­ti­cal data” into “images math­e­mat­i­cal­ly pro­por­tioned” has made him a leg­end in data sci­ence his­to­ry cir­cles.

Again, view Minard’s visu­al­iza­tion of Napoleon’s failed inva­sion in a large for­mat here .

Relat­ed Con­tent:

Flo­rence Nightin­gale Saved Lives by Cre­at­ing Rev­o­lu­tion­ary Visu­al­iza­tions of Sta­tis­tics (1855)

W.E.B. Du Bois Cre­ates Rev­o­lu­tion­ary, Artis­tic Data Visu­al­iza­tions Show­ing the Eco­nom­ic Plight of African-Amer­i­cans (1900)

Napoleon’s Eng­lish Lessons: How the Mil­i­tary Leader Stud­ied Eng­lish to Escape the Bore­dom of Life in Exile

Josh Jones  is a writer and musi­cian based in Durham, NC. Fol­low him at  @jdmagness

by Josh Jones | Permalink | Comments (1) |

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JUST LIKE HITLER IN 1941.NAPOLEAN WAS A FOOL

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They Traveled Home After Defending Ukraine, and Ended Up in a Russian Prison

Two Colombian soldiers who had fought for Ukraine are now under arrest in Moscow. They wound up there after stopping over in Venezuela, which apparently extradited them.

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By Anatoly Kurmanaev Simón Posada and Oleg Matsnev

Anatoly Kurmanaev and Oleg Matsnev reported from Berlin, and Simón Posada reported from Bogotá, Colombia.

Venezuela appears to have sent two foreign members of Ukraine’s military this week to face trial in Moscow, a significant escalation of Kremlin’s campaign to punish its enemies abroad.

The arrest of Colombian fighters in Moscow followed their arrival and subsequent disappearance last month in Venezuela, a neighbor of Colombia and a Russia ally.

Their apparent extradition could damage relations between the governments of Venezuela and Colombia, which share close economic and historical ties, experts said, underlining how the war in Ukraine is creating geopolitical ripples far from the battlefield.

Russian state media on Friday published a video of the country’s secret police interrogating the two Colombians, José Medina and Alejandro Ante, about their combat service in Ukraine, where they fought in the ranks of Ukrainian Armed Forces for eight to 10 months.

A Moscow court on Thursday separately ordered Mr. Medina and Mr. Ante taken into custody on accusations of being mercenaries, a crime under Russian and international law.

Relatives of the two Colombian servicemen confirmed to The New York Times that the men seen in the video being hauled through a corridor by security officers and later interrogated were Mr. Medina and Mr. Ante.

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Analyzing Minard's Visualization Of Napoleon's 1812 March

In The Visual Display of Quantitative Information , Edward Tufte calls Minard’s graphic of Napoleon in Russia one of the “best statistical drawings ever created.” But what makes it so good?

Before we analyze this graphic, we need to know a bit of history.

The year is 1812, and Napoleon is doing pretty well for himself. He has most of Europe under his control, except for the UK. No matter how many times he tried to invade them, he couldn’t break through their defenses. His plan was to place an embargo on them, forcing the other European countries to stop trade with the UK which would weaken them enough so that Napoleon could invade and take over easily.

Czar Alexander of Russia sees that Napoleon was becoming too powerful, so he refuses to participate in this embargo. Angry at Czar Alexander’s decision, Napoleon gathers a massive army of over 400,000 to attack Russia in June of the year 1812. While Russia’s troops are not as numerous as France’s, Russia has a plan. Russian troops keep retreating as Napoleon’s troops move forward, burning everything they pass, ensuring that the French forces could not take anything from their environment. Eventually the French army follows the Russian army all the way to Moscow during October, suffering major losses from lack of food. By the time Napoleon gets to Moscow, he knows he has to retreat. As winter settles into Europe and the temperature drops, Napoleon’s troops suffer even more losses, returning to France from lack of food, disease, and weather conditions.

Let’s look at all the data we have for this battle.

We have the numbers of Napoleon’s troops by location (longitude), organized by group and direction. We can plot it on line graphs like so.

Next, the temperature experienced by his troops when winter settled in on the return trip.

We also have the path that his troops took to and from Moscow. We can display this information by plotting the paths on a map.

Finally, here is Minard’s graphic.

We have many dimensions of data that takes several individual graphs to represent. Minard’s graphic is quite clever because of its ability to combine all of dimensions: loss of life at a time and location, temperature, geography, historical context, into one single graphic. He shows these various details without distracting text or labels as well. For example, he displays the points where Napoleon’s troops divide into subgroups by breaking out the main bar into branches. He adds thin lines to represent river crossings on the return trip that further decimated Napoleon’s diminishing troops. And he is able to show the drastic loss in life from Napoleon’s decision in just a single corner of the diagram.

The beginning of Napoleon’s march vs the end of his retreat.

Equally important as what’s shown is what’s not shown — here’s an earlier example of a well-published data visualization:

This graphic was created by William Playfair, largely considered to be the father of information design, in 1786 — about 100 years before Minard’s diagram was made. Playfair is the inventor of the pie chart, the bar graph, and the line graph - statistic graphics we use regularly today. This graphic has gridlines to mark the years and the number of exports. There are five colors, each color representing something different, as well as a number of specific labels in large text. Compare this to Minard’s graphic: when he draws the map, there are no geographical borders and only very minimal geographical plotting. There are many labels describing cities and number of troops, but they are very small. Minard only uses two colors to represent all of the data in the graphic. Additional labels, gridlines, and geographical markings would have made the graphic too overwhelming for the eye, which makes the impact of the data so much stronger.

There are some similarities to designing print data graphics and designing modern interfaces for mobile and web. When we need to translate numbers into graphics to users, we want to focus on communicating lots of information without overwhelming the users with extraneous content, much like Minard with his visualization of Napoleon’s March. Both designers created effective graphics to turn numbers into a narrative, but Minard was able to tell a much more detailed story with his design techniques.

What’s next

If you would like to learn more about information design, check out Edward Tufte’s The Visual Display of Quantitative Information or any of his other books. You can also take one of his courses in your city.

You can also read:

• Design for Information by Isabel Merielles
• Data source for analysis
• The R code I used to analyze the data

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