How to Present Dense Data Visualizations in PowerPoint (Without Losing Your Audience)

Download my PowerPoint slides and explore them on your own: depictdatastudio.gumroad.com/...
00:00 Being Up In the Middle of the Night & Making UA-cam Videos
01:09 Present to Succeed Conference
02:03 Overview of My Conference Talk
03:08 What's Inside This Video
04:17 First, Editing the Bar Chart
04:32 Adding a Target Line
04:43 Categorizing by Adding White Space
05:29 Categorizing by Using Different Colors
05:58 Adding More Words, and Quantified
06:18 Adding Icons for Memorability
06:34 Recap of Bare-Minimum Dataviz Edits
07:12 Second, Storyboarding that Bar Chart Over Multiple Slides
09:21 Third, Behind the Scenes in PowerPoint
09:37 Using Multiple Slides with Slide Sorter View (Not Animation)
10:20 Make the "Final" Slide First & Copy It
10:34 Delete the Icons and Text Box
11:02 Cover Up Graph Labels with White Rectangles
11:45 Make Some Bars Invisible with "No Fill"
12:43 Delete Some Graph Labels
12:59 Copy the Slide Again & Delete or Hide One Thing
12:45 Making the Target Line Stand Out
15:46 When to Storyboard Dense Dataviz
16:27 Get in Touch
Ten years ago, I had terrible insomnia. I was working full-time and finishing graduate school at night. My stress came out as insomnia. I’d get tired of laying in bed… and go make UA-cam videos. 😊 For me, being up in the middle of the night + making UA-cam videos = intertwined.
I was up in the middle of the night again to speak at the Present to Succeed Conference (it’s mostly a European conference - different time zones). I woke up at 3, presented at 4, and decided to make a UA-cam video for you at 5. I was up anyway, and I wanted to share some highlights from the conference session with you. Enjoy!
Watch a 16-Minute Segment
In the conference session, we learned about avoiding Death by PowerPoint by storyboarding. Instead of presenting a single graph all at once, we’d explain the graph one piece at a time.
How to Edit the Existing Graph
In the video, you’ll learn about:
• adding target lines (if/when that applies to your project);
• grouping data with space (top vs. bottom categories);
• grouping data with color (blue vs. gray categories);
• adding words to explain our categories; and
• adding icons to increase memorability.
How to Storyboard the Graph
In the video, you’ll see me turn on my presentation voice and give a mini presentation. I talk through the graph one piece at a time.
Behind the Scenes in My PowerPoint
In the video, you’ll see how I:
• make the finished graph;
• copy and paste that slide; and
• delete or hide one thing.
I’ve got all sorts of not-so-magical magic tricks: deleting icons and text boxes; adding white rectangles to cover words; changing the color of some bars to make them transparent; and deleting some of the numeric labels.
When It’s Worth Storyboarding Your Dense Graph
You don’t have to break up every graph across multiple slides.
I use storyboarding:
1. at the beginning of a presentation (to start with a bang), and
2. to explain dense, complex visualizations one piece at a time.
Your Turn
If or when you apply this technique, get in touch! I’m cheering for you.
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[@chilombocareers29]

I love this video because it shows how not everything needs to be done using fancy features, and there's more than one way to get to the end result and sometimes more manual methods actually end up saving time! -Vanessa

[@sarastacy3557]

I was going to come in the comments to say the same thing. Love how you can use really manual, easy little adjustments to make the end product look beautiful. Even if the "behind the scenes" process is totally "unsexy"--the end product totally is!

[@aimeerussillo6146]

love that you showed some of those clunky workarounds that we all have done! its real!! thanks Ann - that just makes me admire you even more!

[@SueMentors]

The "clunky work-arounds" make life easier for us when we need to do something quickly! I always appreciate your behind-the-scenes discussions. So helpful!

[@dkhartman1]

Thanks for pulling back the curtain and showing easy-to-do masking and sequencing to build an audience's understanding of a chart. Brilliant!

[@hummingbirdmsc]

Simple and effective. And like you, I much prefer several slides over animation. Somehow it's been less fraught with bugs. Well explained!

[@carinarivera161]

I can only get target lines to cooperate sometimes so you just saved me so much time to think I don't have to use them!

[@hpottstock]

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication"... no need to use or have all the bells and whistles if you know what's simpler and more effective for you. Great video. Thanks!

[@fivetimesyo]

This is great! I love this and you and the whole approach. Thanks, Ann!

[@paulfrankelphd]

Very clever. It's always enjoyable to learn from you.

[@ashleygesty7671]

Thanks for sharing, great tips!

[@rawal786]

Thank you

[@ericmallery8583]

I like the multiple-slide instead of transitions approach; but if someone wants a copy of your slides to review after the presentation would you recommend sharing it as-is or slimming down by removing the "intermediate" ones?

[@AnnKEmery]

The best-case scenario would be to make a separate handout or "slidedoc" that actually has our speaking points typed out into complete sentences. When I'm pressed on time and can only share my slides, then I simply "hide" all the build-up slides and just distribute the "final" slide, like you mentioned.