EB-PPTBP23-EN-PowerPoint-Best-Practices.pdf

PowerPoint
Best Practices
A primer for professional
PowerPoint users

PowerPoint is one of the most ubiquitous
software tools for businesses around the
world. Microsoft released its first official
version of PowerPoint in 1990 and for more
than 30 years it has been changing the way
organizations share information and make
decisions. This eBook is intended to bring to
life the foundational best practices required
to put your best forward. We would like
to thank the professionals, partners, and
friends of think-cell Software highlighted
throughout, who have contributed to this
effort, paving the path for everyone who uses
PowerPoint to create expert presentations.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
How Presentations Transform Businesses.................3
Presentation and Slide Types: The Basics...................6
Key Message Presentations............................................................................. 8
Recurring Reports...................................................................................................9
Insights, Documentation and Research Outcomes......................10
Structuring Your Slide Deck.............................................11
The MECE Principle..............................................................................................12
The Profitability Framework...........................................................................12
Common Slide Deck Components............................................................13
Should You Use Slide Templates?...............................................................17
Building Your Presentation Slides ...............................18
One Slide, Idea, and Key Message..............................................................18
Charts and Graphics.............................................................................................19
Slide Layout and Spacing.................................................................................21
Bullet Points.............................................................................................................23
Visualizing Your Data with Charts...............................24
Using Color in Your Charts..............................................29
Font Considerations...........................................................30
Iconography and Images..................................................31
Transitions and Animations............................................ 32
Common PowerPoint Mistakes.................................... 33
Basic PowerPoint Skills and Shortcuts.....................39
10 Must-Have Elements for
Compelling PowerPoint Slides.......................................41
Best Practices Cheat Sheet.............................................42
Resources ...............................................................................45
think-cell Trial.......................................................................46
About think-cell...................................................................47

PowerPoint Best Practices / 3
GROWTH
Low
High
High Low
MARKET SHARE
A B
C D
BCG Matrix
At the height of its
success, the growth
share matrix by BCG
was used by about
half of all Fortune
500 companies
Source: Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Growth Share Matrix, 1970
How Presentations Transform Businesses
Every day, business professionals across the world create millions of PowerPoint slides used in
everything from high stakes pitch decks and financial analysis to routine weekly team reports
and project plans.
While building presentations may seem like
just another ordinary task, the truth is that
presentations can—and have—changed how
the world does business. That is, when the
information is presented in a way that creates
value, as often achieved with a chart.
Consider, for instance, the famous Boston
Consulting Group (BCG) Growth Share Matrix.
First published in 1970, this chart reshaped how
companies prioritize investment in businesses
and products.

Tools such as the BCG Matrix and the Gartner
Magic Quadrant create value not just because of
the information they provide. It’s also about the
way the information is presented, driving change
by helping people see the meaning behind the
data in a clear and concise way.
What’s more, presenting information in a
compelling way doesn’t require a high level of
technical expertise or sophisticated visuals. It does,
however, require following a set of basic principles
for creating presentations that ensure your
message is clear, concise and meaningful.
To help you get there, this eBook covers basic
PowerPoint best practices for communicating
your message and delivering actionable insights
to business audiences. PowerPoint’s success
has birthed a variety of competitive solutions for
presentation creation. Yet, it still remains far and
away the primary business tool to share ideas,
results and drive business decisions.
CHALLENGERS
Ability
to
Execute
Completeness of Vision
LEADERS
NICHE PLAYERS VISIONARIES
Vendor 1
Vendor 9
Vendor 10
Vendor 8
Vendor 13
Vendor 7
Vendor 5
Vendor 11
Vendor 6
Vendor 2
Vendor 12
Vendor 3
Vendor 4
Source: Gartner, Inc.
Gartner’s Magic Quadrant is another example of a visual that
has driven investment strategy in the software industry.
Gartner Magic Quadrant
How Presentations Transform Businesses
Source: Gartner, Inc. (www.gartner.co.uk/en/methodologies/magic-quadrants-research)

This eBook aims to help you be more effective with your presentations,
providing examples of what to do—and what not to do—plus tips for how
to make more compelling slides faster.

Presentation and Slide Types: The Basics
Businesses use a number of presentation types from standard reports to executive
presentations to pitch decks, each of which have unique goals and formats. Below we discuss
the basic categories of presentations, exploring the core characteristics of each and how to
consider the audience’s needs when creating them.
It’s important to note that these presentation
types aren’t mutually exclusive, and some slide
decks may be a blend of one or more categories.
It’s also useful to think about slides on a continuum
from lighter to heavier in content, as well as the
level of repetition involved in presenting the
information.
Generally speaking, presentations and slides
fall into one of three categories:
1. Key message presentations
2. Recurring reports
3. Insights, documentation and research outcomes

There are several different ways to think about the types of presentations produced in PowerPoint.
The below are just 3 examples of many. Starting with these high-level classifications we came up with
a visual way of looking at presentation types across two axes.
These categories exist on a continuum from a low to high density of information,
as well as presentation frequency and the overarching goal.
Frequency
of
Updates
Density of Information
High
Low
Recurring
One-off
Financial
Reporting
Documentation
Standard
Pitch Decks
Project Plans
Conference
Talk
Board
Meeting
Insight
Summary
Consumer Research
Market
Trend Reports
Core Team
Reports
Data-Driven
Proposal Decks
Quarterly
Business Review
Onboarding
Training
Implementation
Plans
KEY MESSAGE
RECURRING REPORTS
INSIGHTS, DOCUMENTATION, RESEARCH OUTCOMES
Lighter
One-off
Persuade
Heavier
Recurring
Inform
© 2023 think-cell Software GmbH

Key Message
Presentations
Key message presentations or slides are lighter
in content and typically tell a persuasive story.
Compared with recurring reports, these are
typically one-off in nature.
Examples include:
‫ب‬ Pitch decks
‫ب‬ Conference talks (may overlap with insights)
Some of the most memorable presentations
fall into this category, such as TED Talks or a
Steve Jobs presentation.
Key Action: Focus on storylines and good use
of action titles.
It’s time to soar
>$10 BN
Process Efficiency
Automating inefficient
processes in healthcare
Predictive Analytics
Apply predictive analytics to
improve patient outcomes
AI
Clinical Decision Making
Use AI to improve decision making and
validate clinician recommendations
Key benefits
of digital
health

Recurring
Reports
Standard or recurring reports are more repetitive
than other presentations and generally include
more detail. With recurring reports, there can be
some overlap with documentation presentations
or slides, since these meetings may involve
documenting results, trends or other activities.
This type of presentation can include:
‫ب‬ Monthly or quarterly reports
‫ب‬ Recurring corporate reports
‫ب‬ Board or steering committee presentations
(may overlap with documentation)
Clicks Revenue
Channels Dashboard
1,520,000
Texts
3,784,000
Files
123,000
Users
Visitors
Page views
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
2017
2,370
4,650 4,890
6,200
7,150
4,100
Email
Direct
Referral
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
4,100
5,300
3,200
1,500
2,800
5,800
2017
2,100,000 €
2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-2021
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents $153.533 $153.533 $258.533 $165.533
Account receivable $226.256 $226.256 $226.256 $226.256
Inventory $256.587 $256.587 $256.587 $259.587
Plants and machinery $361.981 $228.981 $186.192 $313.981
Total assets: $998.357 $865.357 $927.568 $965.357
2017-2018 2018-2019 2019-2020 2020-2021
LIABILITIES
Accounts payable $98.257 $74.869 $110.664 $155.432
Taxes payable $101.665 $125.791 $130.279 $133.882
Common stock $298.970 $309.478 $304.541 $259.587
Long-term bonds issued $499.465 $355.219 $382.084 $416.456
Total liabilities: $998.357 $865.357 $927.568 $965.357
Financial Report
Key Action: When creating these types of
presentations focus on defining the templates and
presenting information in a similar way every time.

Insights, Documentation and
Research Outcomes
This type of presentation conveys business insights
or research outcomes, often presenting large
datasets distilled into key messages used for
business decision-making or the complete dataset
as documentation.
Examples of this type of presentation include:
‫ب‬ Consumer research
‫ب‬ Survey data
‫ب‬ Market trends
‫ب‬ Management and internal consulting
presentations
Energy Survey Insights
€5.0bn ESTONIA NET SPEND
RENEWABLE ENERGY
55,000
PARTICIPANTS
17
4,500
4,500
CURRENT HOUSE INSTALLS
DAYS
CONSUMED
KW HOURS WASTED
CSAT
RATING
24
SUBURBAN
FOCUS
400 TERRACED
HOUSES
Demographic Impact
SOLAR ENERGY ADOPTION
27% increase over prior year
********************
< 35 YEARS OLD
5,500
2,600 < 25 YEARS OLD
6,600
> 55 YEARS OLD
Question 5 – Household Expenditure
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
35.2
39.1
2018
38.3
48.6
2019
52.9
68.9
2020
67.5
Period
2021
91.9
118.4
2022 2023 F 2024 F
94.5
2017
Expenditure
[USD m]
35.4
35.3
2016
65.7 70.7 74.3
86.9
121.8
161.9
210.4
252.5
282.7
29.4
36.3
CAGR
+21.4%
11% Comments
Provisional results indicate:
• Segment A remained largely flat for
the initial 3-years
• Early growth driven exclusively by
Segment B
• Segment B is still marginally
outperforming Segment A
Segment A Segment B Combined
Key Action: As these can be text and/or data heavy,
create “fact packs” such that the information can be
easily extracted and used for other purposes.

Structuring Your Slide Deck
When building your slide deck, the most important thing to remember is that it must tell a
story. That means first crafting your story, then building your slides around that story.
Barbara Minto’s classic book, The Pyramid Principle,
explains a powerful strategy for compelling
business writing that involves presenting your
most important idea or governing thought first.
This is followed by supporting thoughts, starting
with your strongest point and backing each
supporting thought with data and facts.
Key to Minto’s approach is structuring your
information according to the MECE principle.
That means presenting topics in a way that’s
mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive
(MECE), creating a logical structure where topics
are covered comprehensively but don’t overlap.
Source: Barbara Minto, The Pyramid Principle, FT Publishing International, 2021
1
2
3
Key Message: The Answer
Supporting Arguments
Supporting Data or Facts
Building slides that tell a story
The Pyramid Principle

The MECE Principle
The MECE principle is useful for organizing your
thoughts into logical groups and is useful for
breaking down complex issues into smaller pieces.
‫ب‬ Mutually exclusive: groupings are distinct and
do not overlap
‫ب‬ Collectively exhaustive: groupings presented
cover all possible options
The Profitability Framework
One of the most common examples of the
MECE principle can be seen in the profitability
framework. Here profit breaks down into revenue
and cost. Revenue is impacted by number of units
sold and unit price. Cost is comprised of units
sold and cost, which is itself impacted by fixed vs.
variable unit cost.
Breaking down the components of profitability in
this way can drive a more effective presentation
or discussion on the different factors driving a
decline in profits.
Proﬁt
Revenue
Cost
Unit price
# Units sold
Variable
cost
Fixed cost
# Units sold
Unit cost
Swap over the icons on the lower part of the diagram i.e. Variable Cost + Fixed Cost and Unit price x # Units Sold
Example applied to profitability framework
The MECE Driver Tree
Source: Barbara Minto, The Pyramid Principle, FT Publishing International, 2021

Common Slide Deck Components
Generally speaking, all PowerPoint presentations
should incorporate the following core elements:
‫ب‬ Presentation title and subtitle if necessary
‫ب‬ Name and role of presenter, publisher or author
‫ب‬ Table of contents or agenda to provide an
overview of the content
‫ب‬ Visual elements such as graphs, diagrams and
flow charts
‫ب‬ Optional progress marker for longer
presentations
Presentations may be comprised of a blend
of slide types. For example, key message
presentations can include both key message
slides and documentation slides with detailed
data backing them up.
It’s helpful to think about which type of slide
you’re creating on an individual basis. What story
does the slide tell, and what is the best way to
convey that message? Next, we discuss elements
common to different presentation types and slides
to help you decide.

Key Message
Presentations
Key message slides and presentations use strong
wording and images to spark emotion and
persuade the audience. Visualizations are more
simplistic, omitting detailed tables and data. Slides
are light on text, though the presenter may use
a more detailed slide deck as speaker notes or a
post-presentation debriefing document to share.
Key message presentations may include one
or two slides of executive summary, with an
introduction that states:
‫ب‬ The situation: What is the problem being
addressed?
‫ب‬ The complication: What is the reason for the
problem? Why should people care?
‫ب‬ The resolution: What is the key point or
recommendation that you want to communicate?
From there, the presentation should give an
overview of key supporting points and evidence
according to the Pyramid Principle. If the
presentation requires decision-making, you might
include slides outlining different scenarios and
options for discussion.
SITUATION COMPLICATION RESOLUTION
Situation, Complication, Resolution Framework

Recurring Report
Presentations
Recurring reports are aimed at transparently
and correctly presenting information in a
descriptive way, as opposed to persuading an
audience. As such, recurring reports typically
include numerous charts and tables with
descriptive headlines highlighting any key
trends contained in the data.
Recurring report slides should follow a format
consistent with previous reporting presentations.
This makes it easier for the audience to digest
slides and quickly identify changes over time.
Conversely, adding meaningless difference in
visuals, fonts and layouts forces the audience
to try to figure out if the difference carries
meaning or not.
Annual Sales
0
100
200
300
900
800
700
600
500
400
68.7
124.0
2020
87.7
170.1
2021
119.5
213.2
2022 2023 F 2024 F
Period
2018
Revenue [USD m]
2019
87.4
49.8
232.0
186.3 197.4
233.3
327.6
438.2
565.6
695.7
848.7
70.4
45.8
2017
95.5 76.7 81.3 96.1 134.9
180.4
232.9
63.6
45.9
2016
52.9
83.6
CAGR
+16.0%
18%
Expansion Won
New Logo Won
Lost
Projected Pipeline
Pipeline
• Pipeline growth projected
to slow in 2023 and 2024
• 18% is consistent with
current plan
Win/Loss
• Win rate has held at 59%
over past 7 years
• Conducting analysis for
deeper insights
Expansion
• Expansion business
continues to lag but less
• However, CS investment
starting to pay off
New Logo
• Early growth was driven
by new customers
• This has shown no sign of
slowing down

Insights, Documentation and
Research Outcomes Presentations
Insights, documentation and research outcomes
presentations can contain high-level conclusions
drawn from larger datasets, just the data-
heavy slides built around tables and charts or a
combination of these. It is essential to provide
context around that data, including:
‫ب‬ Where the data came from
‫ب‬ How it was collected, e.g., survey methodology
‫ب‬ When the data was collected
Users should consider captioning each slide and
chart with the data source and date, if only as a
light gray watermark. This provides critical context
should slides be shared individually after the
presentation.

Should You Use Slide Templates?
(Not to be confused with Master Slides)
Slide templates can help you build presentations
faster, with many organizations providing a
company-branded master template or a repository
of earlier presentations for staff use. Factors to
consider before deciding whether to use these
types of templates include:
✔ Efficiency: Using templates lets you quickly
rework slide elements, reducing the need to
create custom icons and images. At the same
time, it can be time-consuming to sort through
a library of hundreds of slides to find what you
need.
✔ Branding: This approach ensures consistent
use of branding elements like logos and colors,
but if a template library isn’t well-maintained
the branding may be outdated.
✔ Design: Starting with a master template or
existing slide deck can help produce a more
professional-looking presentation, especially if
you don’t have design skills or access to design
resources.
✔ Content Fit: Avoid trying to fit the idea or
findings to the template. If it doesn’t fit,
consider a bespoke design instead.

Building Your Presentation Slides
Staring down a blank page can feel daunting as you begin creating your slides, but it’s
important to remember the goal is not a visually sophisticated presentation. The goal is to tell
a compelling story that effectively communicates your ideas, using the best practices outlined
below to build your slides one element at a time.
One Slide, Idea, and Key Message
The number one thing to keep in mind when
building a slide is that it should convey precisely
one idea. This idea is summarized with an action
title on each slide, with details reserved for the
body text. To write your action title, ask yourself—
what is the one idea your audience should take
away from this slide?
Action titles shape the story or message of each
slide. You can even structure your presentation
around this strategy, first writing action titles on
each slide before going back to fill in the details.
Taken in total, your action titles should tell a
cohesive story, such that they would be easy to
reorder if viewed on their own.

Section Title
Charts and Graphics
Each slide will usually have one or more charts or
graphics that convey one message supporting the
action title. For charts, keep in mind these three
governing principles:
1. Nothing on the chart should be irrelevant to
the action title
2. Charts should speak for themselves, so the
reader should be able to interpret a chart’s
meaning without explanation
3. Focus on making your message shine, rather
than using fancy formatting or effects
Getting the labels, axes and legends correct
on a PowerPoint can take a lot of manual work
and calculations. PowerPoint add-ins such as
think-cell provide greater control and automation
of chart elements for more impactful and visually
appealing slides. This includes automatic calculation
of CAGRs, value lines, difference arrows, derived
percentages and more.
Try think-cell

As you create your charts and graphics, you’ll want
to make sure they have:
A A chart title describing the data
B
The correct labels, including for graph axes
and a legend if necessary
C Measurement units
D
Source and date for any data cited, especially
for research-focused presentations
The types of charts and graphics used will vary
according to the presentation. For instance, for
documentation and recurring report slides, people
tend to use large tables and sophisticated charts
where the audience has time to read each slide
and look for changes. Presentation slides, on the
other hand, contain less detail and require the
speaker to explain the message.
A
C
D
Make your information more consumable
Core Chart Elements
B
Source and date for any data cited, especially for research-focused presentations

Slide Layout and Spacing
When arranging your slide elements, remember
that people will generally read them from left to
right and top to bottom.
Heinrich Rusche, former McKinsey strategy
consultant and founder of Firm Learning,
recommends thinking of slide layout in terms
of a grid made up of columns and rows. Every
slide is essentially structured like a table, with
elements aligned in rows and columns to
make the information easier to digest.
Get more of Rusche’s tips
on his YouTube channel
For creating complex slides,
the think-cell PowerPoint add-in
can make the process faster with
smart grids that eliminate the
need for manual alignment
and resizing.

The rule of thirds is also a universal composition
rule useful for structuring slides. Imagine a slide
divided into nine equal boxes along gridlines
placed one-third of the way from every edge.
Placing slide elements at one-thirds or two-
thirds from the edge, and especially where
these gridlines intersect, makes for a visually
appealing composition.
Sufficient white space is key to a visually engaging
slide, and you can also use separation lines to
create boundaries between different elements.
Slide layout should also take into account the type
of presentation or slide. For recurring reports, stick
to simpler layouts where you can just refresh the
data. Key message slides may be more sparse,
compared with documentation slides that may
contain more information.
Rule of thirds
Undisciplined Layout

Bullet Points
Avoid using a laundry list of bullets, instead
grouping your thoughts into logical order or
categories. Again, thinking of your slide in terms of
tables and rows can help you organize and arrange
your thoughts. A good rule of thumb is three or five
bullets, no more than seven if necessary, as that’s
generally the maximum people can absorb.
Sets of bullet points should follow a parallel
structure, making your ideas easier for the audience
to understand. So, if bullets use sentences, all items
in your list should be sentences. If bullets start with
nouns, all should use nouns. The same principle
applies if you are using sentence fragments or even
single words, starting every item with the same part
of speech.
Market Considerations
• Organic segment is growing at 29% YoY
• City centers are out-performing rural communities by 15%
• Inflationary pressures impacting consumer demand
• Develop criteria for a potential partner that is aligned with the company’s
goals and objectives
• Identify potential partners through networking and research into industry
trends and competitive landscape
• Vet potential partners to confirm they are a good fit for the company in terms
of values, goals, and objectives
• Contact potential partners to learn more about their capability and
capabilities
• Determine if the partnership is mutually beneficial
• Negotiate terms and conditions of the partnership agreement
• Monitor the partnership performance regularly to ensure it is meeting
expectations and evolving in accordance with the company's goals and
objectives
• Create joint marketing programs to involve both partners in promoting each
other’s products or services
• Develop an incentive reward system to ensure both partners are getting
their fair share of the benefits
• Leverage the partnership by attending tradeshows, seminars, and similar
events together to increase exposure
• Conduct an audience analysis to understand your target audience and
identify demographics such as age, gender, occupation, income level, and
location
• 23% of current partners in Latin Quarter
• 37% of potential partners within 5-mile radius of Latin Quarter
• Property prices is 10% more than surrounding areas
• Segment your audience into different groups based on their demographics in
order to create more targeted campaigns
• Utilize customer surveys and research to better understand the wants,
needs, and desires of your different demographic segments
• Leverage digital channels to reach out to different demographics with highly-
targeted messages in an efficient and cost effective manner
• Develop content that speaks directly to one or more demographics and use
appropriate language, images, and visuals that appeal to that group
• Utilize influencers who align with your target demographic's interests to
spread your message
• Incorporate location-targeted marketing tactics such as geo-fencing and
geo-targeting to reach customers in specific areas or locations
• Develop custom campaigns that focus on specific demographic elements
such as age or lifestyle preferences in order to increase relevancy of content
and improve engagement levels
• Monitor customer feedback or review websites for insights about customer
preferences or experiences that you can use for developing marketing
initiatives for different demographics
• Analyze campaign results from different channels in order to continuously
adjust campaigns and make improvements for each demographic segment
Market Considerations
IMAGE IMAGE IMAGE
Size
Market segments are morphing quickly
Demographic
Aging population and low growth impact
Location
Partners clustered in Latin Quarter
• Organic segment is growing at 29% YoY
• City centers are out-performing rural
communities by 15%
• Inflationary pressures impacting
consumer demand
• Average customer age is 59-years old
• Millennials are migrating to organic
products, accelerating trend
• Male-Female ratio holding steady
• 23% of current partners in Latin Quarter
• 37% of potential partners within 5-mile
radius of Latin Quarter
• 10% premium on property prices than the
surrounding areas

Source: Gene Zelazny, Say It With Charts, McGraw-Hill, 2001
Visualizing Your Data with Charts
Creating compelling charts is itself an art form, but again doesn’t need to be complicated to be
effective. Below we discuss some basic principles of data visualization, including how to choose
the right chart as well as guidelines for colors, text and iconography.
Choosing Your Chart Type
Gene Zelazny’s classic book Say It With Charts
provides a helpful strategy for choosing which type
of chart to use when presenting different kinds of
data. This approach follows three simple steps:
1. Identify the message: Here you choose which
aspect of the data you want to highlight with
your chart.
2. Find the comparison: Next, determine whether
you’re comparing components or items, looking
at change over time or identifying whether a
correlation exists.
3. Choose the chart: Each comparison identified
above corresponds with a specific chart type.

Order/ comparison
Composition
Timeline
Distribution
Relation/ correlation
Comparison type
Bar
Pie Column Line Scatter
Chart type
PowerPoint add-ins such as
think-cell can dramatically reduce the
time it takes to create charts without
extensive customization. This tool also allows
you to automatically import and update data
from linked Excel files, reducing errors and
broken charts.

Pie Charts
Pie charts are used for comparing component
parts such as percentages. Segments should be
arranged in clockwise order of importance, with
the most important segment at the top. Try not
to use more than 5-6 data points in a pie chart,
otherwise the chart may look messy and be
difficult to read.
1
5
10%
9%
23%
59%
1st Qtr. 2nd Qtr. 4th Qtr.
3rd Qtr.
59%
23%
10%
9%
1st Qtr. 2nd Qtr. 4th Qtr.
3rd Qtr.
22%

Column Charts
Column charts can be used for a variety of situations, including:
Item comparisons
Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4
Series 3
Series 2
Series 1
2.0 2.0
1.4
3.0
3.5
4.5
5.0
2.4 2.5
2.8
4.3 4.4
Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4
Change over time
Series 1
4.5
2.5
3.5
4.5
5.0
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
(1,5) (5,9) (2,13) (13,21) (7,21) (1,15)
Frequency distribution
0
5
10
15
20
25
Series 1
Item comparisons Change over time Frequency distribution

Line Charts
Line charts are one of the most common chart
types in PowerPoint presentations and are typically
used to show time-series data. In addition to
standard line charts, you can also use grouped
line charts to compare two sets of time-series data
or a surface chart to show how component totals
change over time.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
2031 2033
2032 2034
2030 2035
2029 2036
2028 2037
2027 2038
2026 2039
2025
2024
Growth [%]
Period (Forecast)
D&A Gap
(16%)
Revenue EV/EBITDA EV/EBIT
0
2
4
6
8
10
0 2 4 6 8 10
Price
Benetton
Mexx
Zara
H&M
Quality
Next
New Yorker
Orwell
Esprit
Orsay
Kenvelo
Lower-end Higher-end
Scatter Plots
Scatter plots show whether a correlation or
connection exists between two sets of data. For
example, a scatter plot would be useful for showing
that as employee turnover increases, revenue per
employee decreases. When creating a scatter plot,
plot your independent or causal variable on the
x-axis and the dependent or resulting variable
on the y-axis. Subtypes of this chart include the
grouped dot chart and bubble chart.

Using Color in Your Charts
Avoid using colors just for the sake of visual
interest. Any colors you use should have a
meaning. For instance, you might have a bar
chart with muted gray bars and a single navy
blue bar showcasing the one year on the chart
you’d like to highlight. This use of contrast will
draw the eye to the data supporting your idea.
Well-designed templates will already have chart
colors specified, and most of the time you will
want to use these defaults.
In general, use a light background with darker
text rather than a black background with white
text. Consider what the slides would look like
as a printout, which is common for recurring
reports or documentation presentations.
An intentional palette makes charts pop
Color Strategy
Question 5 – Household Expenditure
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
35.2
39.1
2018
38.3
48.6
2019
52.9
68.9
2020
67.5
Period
2021
91.9
118.4
2022 2023 F 2024 F
94.5
2017
Expenditure [USD m]
35.4
35.3
2016
65.7 70.7 74.3
86.9
121.8
161.9
210.4
252.5
282.7
29.4
36.3
CAGR
+21.4%
11% Comments
Provisional results indicate:
• Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
• Ut enim ad minim veniam
• Quis nostrud exercitation ullamco
Segment A Segment B Combined
Page
Analogous
Complimentary
5 6

Font Considerations
Color and font size should be consistent for
titles, headings and body text across all slides.
Slide titles should be 20 to 24 point, preferably
in a clean, sans serif font such as Arial. Body text
should be 12 to 18 point depending on the type of
presentation or slide. For instance, large fonts are
more common on key message presentations,
while documentation slides may contain more
information with a smaller font size.
When considering font size, also consider how
the presentation will be consumed. Presenting on
a large projector screen in person will be different
to presenting content on a web meeting or if
the content may even be consumed on a mobile
device. Font size matters in each of these contexts.
Slide Title Arial Bold 20
Slide Title Arial Bold 24
Body Text Arial Regular 12
The right font helps tell your story
Color and Font Size

Iconography and Images
Iconography can be helpful when expressing
thoughts such as category groupings or
interrelated ideas. Using the same set of icons to
refer back to ideas presented earlier can also help
strengthen your message in the audience’s mind.
In addition, callout elements can be helpful
for drawing attention to an important idea,
for instance:
‫ب‬ Adding a column to the right highlighting
the implications of your data
‫ب‬ Using an icon or bubble to set an idea apart
from the rest of the text
‫ب‬ Adding a sticker on the top right of the slide
to qualify the data, e.g., “preliminary data”
Our Services PowerPoint Illustrations
Microsites Maps
Brochures Interactive visuals
Videos and
animations
Posters and
placemats
Infographics Surveys
Digital Healthcare Operational Benefits
Corporate
functions
Commercial
operations
Procurement
Manufacturing Cross-
functional
R&D/Medical

While large images may be used in key
message presentations such as pitches, keynote
presentations, TED Talks etc., they should be
used minimally or not at all in recurring reports
and documentation slides. In general, you want
to avoid large background images and placing
text over photos.
Transitions and Animations
In most cases, you’ll want to avoid using
transitions and animations because they can
be distracting. If you do use animations, keep
it simple. For instance, you might make blocks
of content appear on a slide sequentially as you
present them, only using this technique sparingly
on a minimal number of slides. It’s most useful
if you don’t want people to read ahead as you
unveil content on the slide. One exception on slide
transitions would be using the fade transition to
create a smoother movement between slides.
Even so, only do this if presenting in person as
online presentations may not deliver the same
smoothness of transition.
Smart Art options in PowerPoint can be
helpful for process visualizations or other
concepts, but it can be difficult to make
these look natural. think-cell, a PowerPoint
add-in, can provide more and better
designed options for elements such
as process flow diagrams.

Common PowerPoint Mistakes
PowerPoint users can instantly make their
presentations more effective by avoiding
the top mistakes people make when using
the software.
Too Much Information Packed Into Slides
Resist the temptation to add too much information
to slides. The result is often a slide so full of text
and charts that it’s impossible to grasp the slide’s
overarching message. If you have to, split up the
content into multiple slides.
Trying to fit too many messages into a slide or
presentation is also a common problem. For
example, you don’t need a dozen supporting
arguments to get your point across.
Trends Report
• Growing appetite for experiential consumption
• Consumers are becoming more diverse
• Growing demand for online services
• Consumer habits are changing rapidly
• Sustainability becoming a top priority
• Companies are investing in digital
transformation
• Increasing demand for data-driven products and
services
• Trends toward greater personalization of
products and services
• Emergence of new technologies such as 5G, AI,
robotics, and IoT
• Growing importance of customer experience
and engagement
• Companies embracing automation to reduce
costs and improve efficiency
• Emergence of new markets and consumer
segments
• Shift in consumer values towards sustainability
and ethical practices
• Growing trend of personalization in products
and services
5
3
2
3
6
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Retail Channel Impact
Sales
7,525,174
• A shift to a more digital-centric
market
• Increasing demand for
personalized customer
experience
• Growing adoption of new
technologies such as AI and IoT
• Increase in mobile usage for
commerce and entertainment
• Emergence of new business
models such as subscription
services
• Growing focus on sustainability
• Growing demand for
convenience
• Increasing focus on data privacy
and security
• Emergence of alternative
payment methods
Trends Report
01
Retail channel is recovering
Emergence of new markets and segments
02
Competitive impact growing
Growing trend of personalization in products
03
Leading in eco manufacturing
New technologies such as 3-D printing
04
Delivering to plan
Increase in digital transformation initiatives
5
3
2
3
6
0
2
4
6
2020 2021
2019 2023
EUR
m
2022
Retail Channel Impact
Good by Material
Sales
$7,525,174
Orders
932,109
Leather Goods
Organic Canvas
MuSkin

Nancy Duarte’s Slide:ology
argues that when too much content is on a slide,
it’s no longer a presentation but a document that
just happens to be created in PowerPoint.
Image source: duarte.com

Arbitrary Colors
Using colors at random can be distracting, whereas
using color strategically can help highlight the idea
you’re presenting.
Flashy Formatting
Special effects and flashy formatting should be
avoided, as they only distract people from the
message you’re trying to communicate. This
includes 3-D charts, transitions, animations,
SmartArt and WordArt.
Business Goals
• Increase sales by 23% by introducing new products and services and expanding
into new markets.
• Improve customer service to reach NPS of 42 by providing faster response times
and more personalized service.
• Increase market share to 34% of share of wallet through aggressive targeted
marketing campaigns.
• Bring 2 new products to market this year through increased investment in research
and development with a plan to launch 5 new products per year in the future.
• Reach a 95% retention rate for middle and high performers through a positive
work culture that encourages employee engagement, satisfaction, and loyalty.
Goal 1
Goal 2
Goal 3
Goal 4
Goal 5
1
2
3
4
5
Business Goals
• Increase sales by 23% by introducing new products and services and expanding
into new markets.
• Improve customer service to reach NPS of 42 by providing faster response times
and more personalized service.
• Increase market share to 34% of share of wallet through aggressive targeted
marketing campaigns.
• Bring 2 new products to market this year through increased investment in research
and development with a plan to launch 5 new products per year in the future.
• Reach a 95% retention rate for middle and high performers through a positive
work culture that encourages employee engagement, satisfaction, and loyalty.
Goal 1
Goal 2
Goal 3
Goal 4
Goal 5
1
2
3
4
5
SHADOW
SHADOW
ANGLED TEXT
OUTER GLOW

A No Action Title
Without an action title, it’s unclear what your
audience should take away from the slide.
B Chart Doesn’t Match Action Title
If what your chart shows isn’t aligned with the
action title, your audience may wonder whether
your data or the conclusion you’ve drawn from
it is erroneous.
C Unlabeled Charts
Neglecting to include information such as titles,
measurement units and axis labels makes it hard
for the audience to read and understand your
charts.
© 2002-2022 think-cell Software GmbH Strictly confidential
Page 29: Item comparisons (horizontal)
3
Item comparison Bar Chart
2.0
2.0
3.0
5.0
2.4
4.4
1.5
4.3
2.5
3.5
4.5
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Category 1
Category 2
Category 3
Category 4 2.8
Series 1 Series 2 Series 3
Please include note: Chart created
with think-cell Software
A lack of labels impacts your story
Unlabeled Chart
A
B
C

Not Enough White Space
Crowded text and line spacing hurts readability
and can overwhelm your audience, who will
struggle to read the text rather than listening
to your message.
For line spacing, use the Paragraph option on
the Format menu to check the line spacing,
making sure it is at least 0.9 (if Multiple is selected).
PowerPoint automatically adjusts this value down
to make a large amount of text fit the text box, so
watch out for this.
Another area to watch when it comes to white
space is slide margin. While PowerPoint itself does
not have the concept of a margin, typically a slide
template will have pre-established boundaries for
where content should go based on default objects
such as the title and any placeholder boxes. Don’t
break these implied margin rules just to fit more
text on the slide.
Use PowerPoint Guides to set visual markers for
slide margins.
Check Line Spacing in the PowerPoint
Paragraph settings
Windows macOS

Visual Clutter
Disorganized slides cluttered with too many
messages or visuals makes it difficult for the
audience to digest the information you’re
presenting. Arranging slide elements in
columns and rows reduces confusion.
Laundry List of Bullets
Disjointed lists of bullets are visually distracting
and tough for audiences to take in. Compare this
with the same information presented in logical
groups of bullets with parallel structure.
BYOD Computer Preferences
• Cost of hardware and software
• IT support overhead
• System compatibility
• Employee productivity
• Employee personal preference
Consideration 1
Consideration 2
Consideration 3
Consideration 4
Consideration 5
A
B
C
D
E
• Mac offers a sleek design and a wide range of features and options, while Windows
offers more customization options.
• Macs tend to be more secure and less vulnerable to viruses, while Windows is more
susceptible to being hacked.
• Macs are typically more expensive and come with matching accessories, while
Windows PCs tend to be less expensive and offer more variety in terms of hardware
and software.
• Macs have fewer hardware requirements than Windows, making them simpler to
maintain and upgrade.
• Macs are user-friendly and well-suited for creative projects, while Windows is better
suited for gaming and business applications.
• Windows machines offer a wider range of applications and software that can be
used for any type of project.
Bring your own device is a growing
trend that has driven much debate
within IT teams of the relative
benefits of the Mac OSX and
Windows operating systems.
© 2002-2022 think-cell Software GmbH Strictly confidential
BYOD Computer Preferences
• Mac offers a sleek design and a
wide range of features and
options
• Macs tend to be more secure
and less vulnerable to viruses,
• Macs are typically more
expensive and come with
matching accessories
• Macs have fewer hardware
requirements than Windows
• Windows offers more
customization options
• Windows machines offer a
wider range of applications and
software
• Windows is better suited for
gaming and business
applications
• Windows is better suited for
gaming and business
applications
Bring your own device is a growing trend that has driven much
debate within IT teams of the relative benefits of the Mac OSX
and Windows operating systems.
Mac Windows

Basic PowerPoint Skills and Shortcuts
Getting comfortable with a few basic PowerPoint shortcuts can reduce the time it takes to
create presentations, while also helping make them more visually appealing.
Adding New Slides
Use Control + M on Windows / ⌘ + Shift + N on
Mac to insert a new slide. Alternatively use Control
+ Shift + D on Windows / ⌘ + D on Mac to duplicate
your current slide. This function can be helpful in
case you want to make changes to a slide but still
keep the earlier version in case you change your
mind.
Select Multiple Elements
Use Control + Shift + Click on Windows / ⌘ + Click
on Mac to select multiple slide elements at once.
This can be useful for moving a group of items or
applying other actions to them such as grouping,
alignment, copy + paste or nudge.
Copy + Paste Formatting
Once you’ve formatted a text box or other
element, you can reuse the formatting with
a simple copy + paste rather than creating a
new element.
Align and Nudge
You can select multiple items and align them
from the Arrange drop-down menu in PowerPoint.
Using Guides in PowerPoint allows you to add
guidelines for aligning elements in the same
location across multiple slides.

Basic PowerPoint Skills and Shortcuts
You can also use your keyboard arrows to nudge
slide elements by small degrees, which can be
helpful when trying to achieve your desired
alignment and spacing.
Default Shapes
Once you’ve formatted a shape, text box or other
element as you want it, right-click on the element
and select Set as Default Shape. This will give all
subsequent shapes the same settings such as color
and outline.
Group
After selecting multiple items, you can right
click + Group to turn the elements into a single
movable piece.
Duplicate Elements
Control + shift + Drag on Windows / Control + Drag
on Mac will duplicate a selected object in a single
stroke. Control + D on Windows / ⌘ + D on Mac
duplicates an element similar to copy + paste, and
is useful for duplicating an object multiple times.
Using Control + D after control + shift + Drag on
Windows will duplicate the object at the original
spacing as your first duplicate.
Note that if you duplicate an element that is
already part of a group (rather than creating a new
element), the duplicated element is automatically
added to the same group.

10 Must-Have Elements for Compelling PowerPoint Slides
1. One idea for each slide
2. Each slide has an action title
3. Any charts or graphics support the action title
4. Charts and graphics are labeled, including axes,
measurement units and data sources
5. Color palettes are simple, using contrast to
highlight to the chart’s message
6. Slides have sufficient white space to ensure
readability
7. Elements are aligned in rows and columns
8. Bullets follow a parallel structure and are
organized into logical groups
9. Slides have a light background with darker text
10. Titles are 20 to 24 point with body text 12 to
18 point

Image Source: Barbara Minto, The Minto Pyramid Principle: Logic in Writing, Thinking and Problem Solving, Minto International, London, 1996.
“Structure of Oral Presentation,” College of Arts and Science, University of Pennsylvania.
Best Practices Cheat Sheet
1. Identify your goal
݉ Persuade or sell an idea (Key message
presentation)
݉ Distill ideas from a large dataset (Insights
and research outcomes)
݉ Update your team or company leadership
(Recurring report)
݉ Document your work or other activities
(Documentation)
2. Build your story
݉ Use the pyramid principle to craft the
overarching story of your presentation
Why?
How?
or
In what way?
ANSWER
CONCLUSION
INTRODUCTION
Situation
Complication
Question
Logical structure is Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive “MECE”
Temporal ﬂow
Structure Presentations as a Pyramid

3. Write your action title(s) first
݉ Use the action title to determine what
information belongs on the slide
4. Choose your charts
Identify what you’re comparing and choose
the appropriate chart
݉ Pie chart: Component comparison
݉ Bar chart: Item comparison, change over time,
frequency distribution, correlation
݉ Line chart: Change over time or time-series data
݉ Scatter plot: Correlation

Slide Do’s and Don’ts
Do:
Convey one idea per slide
Include an action title on every slide
Align slide content in columns and rows
Use color strategically
Label your charts
Use Sans Serif font (title 20-24 pt, body 12-18 pt)
Follow parallel structure for bullets
Don’t:
Pack multiple ideas into a single slide
Place your conclusion at the bottom of the slide
Crowd slides with excessive text, charts or images
Use colors at random
Add transitions or slide animations
Use white text on a black background
Make text smaller than 12 pt

Resources
If you’re ready to take the next step in your PowerPoint journey, check out these resources that
will help you create better presentations and learn new skills.
Free Tutorials
݉ Watch Heinrich Rusche of Firm Learning as he
creates a slide from scratch.
݉ Leila Gharani is a Microsoft Excel and
PowerPoint expert and has both paid course
and free tutorials including free think-cell
tutorials. You can check out her videos at
XelPlus.
݉ Geetesh Bajaj is a Microsoft Most Valuable
Professional for PowerPoint and his Indezine
site contains various tutorials and PowerPoint
related articles.
PowerPoint Courses
݉ LinkedIn Learning offers a free 30-day trial
as well as a PowerPoint learning path with
courses PowerPoint tips and tricks, slide design
and more.

Try for free
think-cell Trial
Download a free 30-day trial of think-cell to see how
much faster you can create compelling charts, layouts
and presentations in PowerPoint.
Learn how to:
‫ب‬ Design Gantt charts, waterfall diagrams
and other complex visuals in minutes
‫ب‬ Create flexible, precisely aligned workflow
diagrams that eliminate the need for SmartArt
‫ب‬ Automatically update charts from Excel
spreadsheet data, ideal for recurring reports

EB-PPTBP23-EN
©2002–2023 think-cell Software GmbH
About think-cell
Founded in Berlin in 2002, think-cell is the defacto standard for creating
professional presentations in PowerPoint. With productivity tools and support
for 40+ chart types, 9 of the top 10 global consulting firms rely on think-cell,
it’s the software of choice for the Fortune 500, DAX 40 and taught at 9 of the
top 10 business schools.
Download a fully functional 30-day trial
to learn more about think-cell.
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