6 Data-driven presentation tips for marketers

3 min read

This is a third-party blog from guest writer Marina Andresi at Storydoc.

Whether you’re trying to pitch a new creative campaign to your team, or a product to a new customer, creating an engaging marketing presentation is essential, no matter the use case.

It can seem like a tedious task, even technical at times if you have to build charts and infographics for your analytics and data. Still, with a few tips and the right resources, you’ll be able to create the most stunning and up-to-date presentations that get read and shared among stakeholders.

Here are some tips that will take your presentation to the next level:

Move from static to interactive presentations

Why not step out of your comfort zone and consider other presentation options, rather than always using your trusted go-to PowerPoint and PDF? Static slide presentations can be heavy with data and blocks of text and, as such, sometimes difficult to digest. Try something different and keep your audience on their toes by using a newer, fully interactive presentation maker.

According to a recent study of 100k+ presentation sessions, classic static slides have an average reading time of approximately 2.5 minutes, while interactive presentations keep readers engaged for up to 4.5 minutes on average.

1. Include a video in your cover slide

The same aforementioned study on presentation sessions reveals that presentations which used a video in their cover slide had over 30% more readers spend at least one minute on the slide. This means that the audience for those cover slides took the time to watch the video included.

It’s important to remember that, as a marketer, your customers and team expect you to convey your message through various mediums of communication. Video is one of the easiest ways to capture professionals’ attention.

2. Your first slides are crucial – optimise them

When you send a presentation to your stakeholders or team, make sure not to lose them from the very first slides. It seems that most readers who “bounce” from your presentation do so within seconds of opening your deck.

So, to keep your audience reading your presentation, optimise the first three slides as best as you can. Don’t overcrowd them with text or data, but rather use them to introduce your hypotheses or ideas with enough details that it makes readers keep going.

If your first three slides are optimised, there is a whopping 80% chance that your audience will read your presentation in full.

3. Let your audience interact with your deck

One of the features that PowerPoints or other static presentations simply cannot offer you is interactive content.

It’s simple – when you let your customers or team click around different tabs, charts or visual elements, they will be much more likely to digest the content you’re delivering. That’s why an interactive presentation maker is so much more powerful in the business of marketing presentations.

Imagine that you’re presenting to a customer an overview of their product market. A loading chart or interactive infographics that they can click on to view different data sets will truly capture their attention and make you look good as a marketer. Despite interactive presentation makers being easy to use, their slick visuals and design will make your audience believe that you spent hours preparing them.

And the numbers behind interactive presentations show that 41% more people will read your deck in full if it lets them play around with the content, so make sure not to skip this step.

4. Add information on average reading time

Adding average reading time to your presentation goes a long way. It’s a simple trick, but it will let your presentation readers know that you are considerate of their time and that they won’t scroll endlessly not knowing where your presentation ends.

5. Don’t end with a generic message, but a powerful call to action

Finally, when ending your presentation, your tendency may be to thank your audience for going through every slide. But what you really want to achieve with your presentation is to determine your readers, be they internal decision makers, or customers, to take the next step.

With an interactive presentation maker, like Storydoc for example, you can integrate your calendar into your presentation. This way you’ll get much more than your message across, but also a meeting booked to discuss or even accomplish the next steps.

Conclusion

Marketing presentations can have as diverse use cases as the type of marketing you perform, and creating them may seem like a daunting task given today’s decreased reader time and complex visualisation elements. But, whatever type of marketing presentation you need to create, following these steps and using modern presentation software will increase your rate of success with your audience.