6 Strategies for Presenting Data & Charts

6 STRATEGIES to make your presentation DATA & CHARTS VISUAL

©DILBERT by Scott Adams

Actually, I will show
6 STRATEGIES
to make even dull
ECONOMIC DATA
mesmerisingly
memorable!

Actually, I will show
6 STRATEGIES
to make even dull
ECONOMIC DATA
mesmerisingly
memorable!
Let‘s get started
with #1...

Use the
right CHART

Use the
right CHART
< i.e., a chart)

Use the right CHART. Some choices from

from CHARTS
Use the right CHART. More choices from

COMPARISON
Company Performance (US$ 000)
COLUMN Chart
BAR Chart
from CHARTS
Use the right CHART >

COMPARISON
COLUMN Chart
BAR Chart
from CHARTS
“Effective CHARTS but
visually flat, dull and
somehow very BORING.”
DILBERT TIP

MY DAILY ACTIVITIES
from CHARTS
“What must
be improved
on this CHART?”
DILBERT TIP
COMPOSITION

from CHARTS
“Fonts too
small to be read.
Min. size 24-28?”
DILBERT TIP
MY DAILY ACTIVITIES
Use the right CHART > COMPOSITION

Pie CHARTS also for > CONSUMPTION

Pie
eaten
Pie
NOT eaten
Table where
pie was eaten
Next portion
to be eaten
© mgtopen.com

Pie
eaten
Pie
NOT eaten
Table where
pie was eaten
Next portion
to be eaten
© mgtopen.com
DILBERT TIP
WARNING!
“Pie charts
make me
hungry!”

from CHARTS
Use the right chart > TRANSITION

Correlation between Life Expectancy, Fertility Rate and Population (2010)
from CHARTS
Use the right chart > Combined DATA

from CHARTS
“Maps are
visually
AWESOME!”
DILBERT TIP
Use a MAP for > COUNTRY DATA

Be
colourful
< (note the colours)

Be colourful > BEFORE?

Be colourful > AFTER !

Be colourful > BUT limit the DATA on the CHART

DILBERT TIP
“I’m hungry again but why do I crave spaghetti???

DILBERT TIP
“I’m hungry again but why do I crave spaghetti???
This CHART is far too complicated which brings us
to our next and 3rd STRATEGY.”

Keep it
simple
< (“K.I.S.S.”)

Keep it simple > “K.I.S.S.” (NOTE: This is NOT simple)

Keep it simple > “K.I.S.S.” (NOTE: This is NOT simple)
DILBERT TIP
“This DOCUMENT can be READ
but please NEVER PROJECT it onto
a screen as part of a presentation!”

DILBERT TIP
“Expressing DATA in raw figures (i.e., MILLIONS of
unemployed) is meaningless to your audience (how much
is a million?) and thus not very impactful or memorable.”
Keep it simple > and read DILBERT’s TIP below

EUROZONE YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT
Keep it simple > “K.I.S.S.”

“Have I mentioned
yet that MAPS are
totally AWESOME?”
DILBERT TIP
EUROZONE YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT

“Using circles that contain raw DATA but also show the
comparative, relative size vs. other “data circles” is a new popular
and simple strategy. See another example on our next slide >
DILBERT TIP

“Even though this lacks
data on Debt Per
Capita by Nation, it is a
simple & clear CHART”
DILBERT TIP

Get
animated
< (“OOOH, we love
animation”)

Get animated >
“Animations allow the speaker to lead his audience - step by step – through any
complex DATA! Using this same CHART above, the next slide introduces
animation - and VISUALS - to make the DATA and the SPEAKER easier to follow!”
p.s. If you are on SlideShare.net download the PPT to see the animations!
DILBERT TIP

+41%
+21%
+32%
A Lost Generation?
Only nation with
less unemployment

“Watch how animation in this next
CHART helps the presenter “lead the
audience” and also build suspense.”
DILBERT TIP

Comparing Some Leading Economies
120
60
0
122,809#1intheworld?
51,496
48,328
44,111
GDP
P E R C A P I TA
( I M F 2 0 1 1 )
$(US,000) © www.mgtopen.com
Luxembourg >
59,937

Connect
VISUALLY
(a is worth
a 1000 words)

Which PARTY Should Be Trusted with the Economy?
PUBLICINCREASEinDEBT

Which PARTY Should Be Trusted with the Economy?
DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
PUBLICINCREASEinDEBT
“The VISUALS
were already
good but I also
added the
Party INDEX
& SYMBOLS.
(Never assume
your audience
knows it all.)”
DILBERT TIP

Connect VISUALLY >
©Haaretz.com
“The burning car creates
an “emotional” connection
with the DATA (the Youth)
be it either +ve OR –ve.”
DILBERT TIP

EUROZONE YOUTH
UNEMPLOYMENT %
May 2013
EUROSTAT

EUROZONE YOUTH
UNEMPLOYMENT %
May 2013
EUROSTAT
62.5%!
Capitalism is
murder?
“Now, I am
THINKING!”
DILBERT TIP

Tell a Story
with the DATA
( people
remember stories!)

“A nice CHART (plus less spaghetti) but if the DATA is NOT
presented as a memorable “story-line” the purpose of
the assembling, and presenting, the DATA will be lost”
DILBERT TIP

12.3%
7.8%
1990’s 2010-14
TOTAL EUROZONE Unemployment %
2000’s
“This visual
begins the
story-telling!”
DILBERT TIP

12.3%
7.8%
1990’s 2010-14
TOTAL EUROZONE Unemployment %
2000’s
Are There
EUAny Jobs
for Your Kids?
“Asking this question puts the focus on the main characters
in this story…the Youth! It also makes parents (even if they
have a job!) wonder about the future for their children!
DILBERT TIP

62.5
56.4 42.5 40.5 8.0 7.5
“More than 60% of
my friends have NO
JOB! What options
do I have?”
EUROZONE YOUTH
UNEMPLOYMENT %
May 2013
“This final slide uses animation to present the DATA with some suspenseful drama.
Now, our story also has a title – “A Lost Generation? – posed rhetorically to create
intrigue. And, a visually powerful image of graffiti creates curiosity - and concern!”
p.s. If you are on SlideShare.net download the PPT to see the animations!
DILBERT TIP
?

©Scott Adams has not endorsed this Educational Presentation but we are grateful for his inspiration!
Thanks Dilbert (and Scott Adams) for
the inspiration for this presentation!
©by Scott Adams
To be inspired EVERY DAY
we recommend you subscribe to the
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6 Strategies for Presenting Data & Charts

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