How one can create an infographic in PowerPoint [free templates]

As a former digital journalist and now a content material creator at HubSpot, I’ve designed the whole lot from breaking information graphics to viral memes — however infographics are the place actual affect occurs.

Whether or not it is a advertising funnel breakdown or a buyer journey map, an ideal infographic makes complicated concepts easy and shareable.

Actually, I want Canva for fast design, however on this information, I’ll stroll you thru tips on how to create an infographic in PowerPoint. I’ve been utilizing it since my faculty days and know all these little hacks to make it look good, movement easily, and, after all — stick in folks’s minds.

Even higher, I will throw in some useful ideas and offer you examples of various sorts you possibly can work with utilizing our 15 fabulous infographic templates without cost inside PowerPoint.

Desk of Contents

You may as well merely use PowerPoint as an infographic maker if it’s your most popular design software program.

Listed here are a number of the methods I like to make use of PowerPoint infographics:

1. Presenting a Case Examine

I briefly needed to write case research at earlier jobs, and let me let you know — they’re the bane of my existence.

Writing a lovely, readable case examine is much from straightforward, so I recommend making a PowerPoint infographic showcasing the important thing details of your case examine.

You’ll be able to embrace essential data corresponding to the issue your buyer skilled, the answer you served, and the end result.

You’ll be able to embrace aesthetically pleasing graphics and dynamic typography — one thing chances are you’ll not be capable to embrace in a conventional, one-page case examine.

2. Presenting Analysis

Since I write for HubSpot’s Advertising and marketing Weblog, I typically current knowledge, tendencies, and analysis in my content material.

Should you‘re in the identical boat, you’ll be completely happy to know you need to use all the info visualization choices PowerPoint provides to current your knowledge in a digestible approach.

Because the infographic will likely be bigger than a typical slide, you may be as descriptive as you need. Nevertheless, for those who’d prefer to reuse the identical data, you solely want to repeat it into a brand new presentation.

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3. Presenting a Pitch

You should use PowerPoint infographics to current a pitch to stakeholders or potential consumers.

On this case, your infographics can embrace knowledge factors, testimonials, anticipated outcomes, and even descriptions of the prospect’s downside to emphasise the significance of buying your answer.

Photos and graphics may be more practical than simply phrases, and because you’re in PowerPoint, you possibly can create an infographic of any measurement, together with the horizontal 16:9 dimensions.

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4. Presenting a Multi-Step Course of

Whether or not you’re onboarding a brand new crew or informing stakeholders on a brand new course of, a PowerPoint infographic is an efficient medium to speak your message.

PowerPoint comes filled with loads of “course of” graphics, corresponding to text-filled arrows, cascading charts, and grids.

5. Presenting an Announcement

A sophisticated firm announcement — with many transferring elements or parts — deserves an infographic to make it simpler for stakeholders to learn and perceive.

You’ll be able to create one proper in your PowerPoint presentation and embrace all pertinent data in a single handy slide.

Alternatively, you need to use PowerPoint as a design device and easily obtain your infographic for straightforward saving and sharing.

Do you know you possibly can add your PowerPoint shows to HubSpot?

Simply head to Library > Recordsdata, click on Add recordsdata, and choose your PowerPoint out of your laptop – or just drag and drop it in. As soon as uploaded, you possibly can add it as a downloadable hyperlink in emails, touchdown pages, or weblog posts.

Remember the fact that recordsdata are public by default, so if wanted, you possibly can regulate the visibility settings in HubSpot.

To start making an infographic from scratch, it’s important to readjust the scale of the PowerPoint Slide to offer you extra space to work with.

Start by opening a brand new PowerPoint. Within the prime navigation bar, click on on Design and choose Slide Measurement.

Then, within the drop-down menu, choose both one of many predetermined sizes or click on Web page Setup.

Enter your most popular width and peak dimensions and click on OK.

2. Choose SmartArt from the PowerPoint navigation bar.

To make a timeline graphic in PowerPoint, appropriate for any infographic, open PowerPoint and click on Insert from the highest navigation bar.

Then, choose the SmartArt icon beneath the navigation bar, the place you will discover a number of classes of graphics to select from.

3. Discover a graphic that matches your knowledge.

When you click on on SmartArt, you will discover the choices from lists to photos. I picked the Matrix one for my wants:

4. Add or take away knowledge factors, time stamps, or different key data.

As soon as you have inserted this graphic into your first PowerPoint slide, you possibly can add or take away icons to match the varieties of knowledge and inputs you’re presenting.

5. Insert your knowledge into the graphic.

At this level, the scale of your graphic ought to match the quantity of knowledge you’ve gotten.

Start to fill your graph with the data you propose to report and discover PowerPoint’s wonderful drag-and-drop options to assist prepare graphics as essential.

6. Edit the textual content and imagery of your SmartArt graphic.

As with the opposite graphics obtainable in PowerPoint’s SmartArt, you possibly can edit the textual content and the photographs related along with your timeline to your liking.

I’ve added 4 phrases to characterize every a part of the SWOT evaluation.

To insert pictures into my Matrix graphic, I right-clicked the sq. panorama icon and chosen “Format Form.”

Then I selected “Format Image” → “Image or texture fill” and uploaded one picture to every of the rounded squares.

Right here’s the way it seemed as soon as I uploaded all of them and highlighted the textual content.

To point out you what you are able to do additional, I made a decision to create one other slide. I made up a model referred to as Inexperienced Fairy for this objective, pretending I wished to focus on its strengths for SWOT evaluation.

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7. Regulate the colour scheme to match your story.

I went to SmartArt once more, however this time, I selected the Vertical Curved Checklist.

Because the unique had solely three fields, and I wanted two extra, I added them by right-clicking → Add Form → Add Form After.

Then I added textual content to every field, so it initially seemed like this:

Actually, I didn’t prefer it. One thing felt off. So, I right-clicked, went to Format Form → Fill, and switched it to inexperienced.

8. Use numbering to enhance visible movement.

At this level, I wished so as to add numbers to the circles, so I went to Insert → WordArt and picked a mode I preferred.

Now, it was wanting higher, however I didn’t just like the blue colour of the curved traces and circles, so I made a decision to alter them to match the remaining. I chosen the item, right-clicked → Format Form → Line, and picked a brand new colour.

9. Add ending touches and polish the format.

It was nearly excellent, however I nonetheless wished to fine-tune it as a result of the left aspect felt empty and disconnected. I examined how it will look with some textual content there.

I went with WordArt once more, picked a font I preferred, and added the phrase “Strengths” on the left to tie the whole lot collectively.

Principally, you possibly can design your infographic nevertheless you need – including background colours, extra visuals, or different components to make it stand out. This was only a primary instance, however there are lots of methods to refine it and make it look even higher, extra interactive, and extra catchy.

If these “design” issues will not be your cup of tea, you possibly can obtain our infographic templates that open straight in PowerPoint so you can begin creating sooner and simpler.

Truly, individuals are 30 occasions extra more likely to provoke fee when prompted by visuals.

Additionally, when pitching shoppers and sending proposals, a compelling visible story typically wins over lengthy blocks of textual content. DemandSage analysis reveals that folks keep in mind 65% of information when paired with a related infographic.

2. Aligning Groups on Technique

Infographics maintain advertising plans from getting misplaced in translation throughout departments. Talking from expertise – laying out a technique with out visuals or a strong presentation is a waste of breath. Individuals hear it, nod, and neglect 5 minutes later.

And if we keep in mind that our brains course of pictures as much as 60,000 occasions sooner than textual content, it’s straightforward to see why infographics are such a strong device for communication and higher understanding.

Plus, when the crew hits a roadblock or blanks on one thing, they will at all times re-open this presentation and rapidly discover what they want with out back-and-forth.

3. Inner Coaching & Onboarding

A fast visible information may be more practical than a prolonged doc when coaching new crew members.

Dr. John Medina says we neglect 90% of what we hear after three days. However throw in an image, and all of a sudden, we keep in mind 65%.

Supply

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We have loaded this template with a wide range of completely different charts and graphs, which you’ll simply replace with your individual knowledge. (Excellent-click on a graph, select Edit Knowledge, and you’ll customise the values in an Excel spreadsheet.)

What to Add to a Knowledge-Centric Infographic

• Column chart: Use for evaluating completely different classes or for exhibiting adjustments over time (from left to proper).
• Pie chart: Use for making part-to-whole comparisons. (Be aware: They work finest with small knowledge units.)
• Line graph: Use this visualization to indicate knowledge that adjustments repeatedly over time. Very best for displaying volatility, tendencies, acceleration, or deceleration.
• Doughnut chart: Use a pie chart. This stylistic variation means that you can put a quantity, graphic, or different visible within the heart of the chart.
• Bar chart: Use a column chart. (The horizontal bars make it simpler to show lengthy class names.)

What I like: I really like this infographic as a result of whereas it highlights a whole lot of qualitative knowledge, the whole lot ties completely collectively because of its colour scheme. It sticks to only three colours, holding the infographic clear and uncluttered.

When to make use of: I strongly recommend utilizing an infographic just like the one above when you have to current a hefty quantity of essential knowledge as a part of a cohesive, visible narrative.

2. Timeline Infographic

Telling the historical past of a selected trade, product, model, pattern, or tactic is usually a nice subject for an infographic.

Whereas there are a selection of various methods which you could visualize time — together with in a circle, which is what we did with our Google algorithm updates infographic — the timeline is by far the most typical and best design methodology to make use of.

Timeline Infographic Finest Practices

• Analysis. Analysis. Analysis: The very best timeline infographics aren’t simply fantastically designed — additionally they inform an ideal story based mostly on intensive analysis. So, earlier than you begin the design section of your infographic, put within the time to floor the most effective data doable.
• Slender the scope: Timelines that cowl a whole bunch or hundreds of years can actually be fascinating, however they will additionally require weeks or months of analysis. To maintain your sanity, persist with shorter time intervals.
• Hold your copy concise: Infographics are imagined to be visible. If you end up writing 100+ phrases for every date in your timeline, a weblog submit will be the higher content material format.

Why I prefer it: Clearly marked spots for textual content and pictures make it straightforward to customise the infographic. Clear traces, a constant colour scheme, and a balanced format give it a elegant, skilled look.

When to make use of: Should you’re seeking to clarify the historical past of a subject or predictions for the long run, a timeline infographic is usually a nice illustrative device

3. Trendy Design Infographic

Right here, we centered extra on making the design really feel dynamic as an alternative of sticking to strict straight traces.

We didn’t add any charts besides for 3 circles in every part, however there’s loads of house if you wish to add your individual. Simply go to Insert > Chart and choose the fashion you want.

Trendy Design Infographic Finest Practices

• Experiment with new colour palettes. There are tons of free colour palettes on-line. Do a Google picture seek for “Colour Palette.” Once you discover a palette you want, drag the picture straight into your PowerPoint presentation.
• Subsequent, choose the Colour Fill bucket, select Extra Colours, and click on on the eyedropper icon. With the eyedropper device, you possibly can choose colours out of your palette and use them for components in your infographic.
• Take the time to control shapes. PowerPoint has an in depth library of shapes — together with banners, ribbons, and arrows — that you need to use in your infographic design.

By clicking and dragging on the little yellow diamonds that seem on these shapes, you possibly can customise them. For instance, you can also make the sharp ends of a ribbon longer or shorter. You may as well make the physique of an arrow thinner or thicker.

What I like: This contemporary design is modern, straightforward to comply with, and leads your eyes completely via the infographic to digest the data. Plus, there’s extra room for creativity right here.

When to make use of: In case your infographic is an equal mixture of quantitative knowledge and textual content, this contemporary design may help you show each varieties of data seamlessly.

4. Flowchart Infographic

On the floor, a flowchart infographic might seem easy and enjoyable. However I guarantee you, a whole lot of thought and planning wants to enter guaranteeing the completely different sections logically movement into one another.

In our flowchart PowerPoint template, we created a primary flowchart construction, with optimistic responses guiding viewers to a conclusion on the backside left of the infographic.

There are additionally unfavorable responses guiding viewers to a separate conclusion on the backside proper of the infographic.

Flowchart Infographic Finest Practices

• Draw out the branches beforehand. Earlier than you dive into PowerPoint, get out a pen and paper and do a tough define of your flowchart. Take a look at for weaknesses in your logic by answering questions in each doable mixture and seeing the place you find yourself.

For finest outcomes, have a pal or coworker run via the flowchart, too.

• The smaller the scope, the better the execution. The extra questions or phases you add to your flowchart, the harder it will likely be to create (and the tougher it’s going to probably be for viewers to grasp). So, attempt to slender the main focus of your flowchart.

What I like: Colours and shapes are strategically used to distinguish between optimistic and unfavorable conclusions of the movement chart. Discover the inexperienced circles used for “Sure” and crimson circles used for “No”.

When to make use of: I recommend utilizing flowcharts to map out completely different outcomes and conclusions to your viewers to assist them comply with/perceive processes and workflows.

5. Aspect-By-Aspect Comparability Infographic

We all know typically you want an infographic to show a comparability. That’s why we created the side-by-side comparability infographic template to make it straightforward so that you can evaluate and distinction two various things.

Aspect-By-Aspect Comparability Infographic Finest Practices

• Use acceptable knowledge. It is best to make use of knowledge that may simply be described in a chart. Use pie charts, graphs, or different knowledge factors to obviously and pretty evaluate and distinction.
• Use borders. Including borders to your pictures will assist make them really feel like their a part of a cohesive design. In PowerPoint, you possibly can management the scale, fashion, and colour of borders underneath the Format Image tab.
• Save your infographic as a PNG file. It is a finest follow for all infographics however is especially related when publishing an infographic that comprises pictures. The PNG extension provides higher high quality than different choices. To save lots of your completed infographic as a PNG file, you merely want to decide on File > Save As … and choose PNG from the dropdown.

Able to create your individual side-by-side comparability infographic? Obtain 15 free infographic PowerPoint templates to get began.

What I like: Either side of the infographic use complementary colours, which makes it much more interesting by inverting the colour scheme in each sections.

When to make use of: This infographic template is nice for evaluating completely different classes, concepts, or outcomes, and because you don‘t must create or customise a whole lot of shapes, it’s quite a bit much less work.