How To Create An Infographic In PowerPoint [+Free Templates]

As a former digital journalist and present content material creator for HubSpot, I have been designing graphics for years, together with breaking information graphics, humorous memes, and, most significantly — infographics.

Although I favor to design graphics in Canva, I’ll present you the best way to create an infographic in PowerPoint since it is a presentation program that almost all entrepreneurs are acquainted with. 

Even higher, I am going to throw in some useful ideas and provide you with examples of various sorts you possibly can work with utilizing our 15 fabulous infographic templates without spending a dime inside PowerPoint.

Use Instances for PowerPoint Infographics

PowerPoint infographics are a strong software to current data-heavy data in an accessible, digestible format — regardless of in the event you plan to disseminate the infographic digitally or in particular person.

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

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

1. Presenting a Case Research

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 phenomenal, readable case research is way from simple, so I counsel making a PowerPoint infographic showcasing the key facts of your case study.

You possibly can embody essential data comparable to the issue your buyer skilled, the answer you served, and the result.

You possibly can embody aesthetically pleasing graphics and dynamic typography — one thing it’s possible you’ll not have the ability to embody in a conventional, one-page case research.

2. Presenting Analysis

Since I write for HubSpot’s Advertising and marketing Weblog, I oftne current information, traits, and analysis in my content material.

When you’re in the identical boat, you may be completely happy to know you should utilize all the information visualization choices PowerPoint provides to current your information in a digestible manner.

For the reason that infographic shall be bigger than a typical slide, you could be as descriptive as you need. Nevertheless, in the event you’d wish to reuse the identical data, you solely want to repeat it into a brand new presentation.

3. Presenting a Pitch

You need to use PowerPoint infographics to current a pitch to stakeholders or potential patrons.

On this case, your infographics can embody information factors, testimonials, anticipated outcomes, and even descriptions of the prospect’s drawback to emphasise the significance of buying your resolution.

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

4. Presenting a Multi-Step Course of

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

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

5. Presenting an Announcement

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

You possibly can create one proper in your PowerPoint presentation and embody all pertinent data in a single handy slide.

Alternatively, you should utilize PowerPoint as a design software and easily obtain your infographic for straightforward saving and sharing.

Okay, now you realize the completely different makes use of for PowerPoint infographics — time for me to indicate you what you are right here for.

For higher comprehension, I will stroll you thru the best way to make a easy timeline infographic in PowerPoint.

1. Within the Design tab, modify the Slide Dimension to finest suit your infographic.

To start making an infographic from scratch, it’s a must to readjust the dimensions of the PowerPoint Slide to provide 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 Dimension.

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

Enter your most well-liked 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 may discover a number of classes of graphics to select from.

3. Discover a graphic that matches your information from the Course of or Image menu.

There are two classes of graphics that make efficient timelines. The primary is the Course of class. Click on this selection to increase the graphics menu proven beneath.

Creating Graphics for Timelines

When you’re working to create a timeline infographic, we have highlighted in purple a number of of probably the most becoming timeline-related graphics.

Except for the Course of menu of graphics, you may additionally discover a viable timeline graphic within the Image class.

Choose this class, and you will find the Alternating Image Circles possibility close to the middle of the graphics menu. We have highlighted it in purple beneath.

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

For the sake of those directions, we’ll use the Alternating Image Circles graphic from the Image menu.

As soon as you’ve got inserted this graphic into your first PowerPoint slide, you possibly can add or take away round icons to match the sorts of information and inputs you’re presenting.

5. Insert your information into the graphic.

At this level, the dimensions of your timeline graphic ought to match the quantity of information you’ve gotten.

Start to fill your timeline with the data you intend to report on utilizing this timeline and discover PowerPoint’s glorious drag-and-drop options to assist prepare graphics as crucial.

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.

As you possibly can see beneath, we have edited the years and the photographs to higher signify what occurred at every time limit.

To insert pictures into your timeline graphic, right-click the sq. panorama icon, choose a graphic From File, and add a picture out of your laptop onto your PowerPoint slide.

To inform your story, you possibly can replace the time intervals within the heart circles, change the placeholder textual content, and modify the visuals and colours to your liking.

For these latter changes, you possibly can select Insert > Form in PowerPoint so as to add completely different visuals and use the paint bucket (a.okay.a. Colour Fill) icon to alter the colours of various components.

You possibly can select to create the infographic of your liking, including background colours, extra imagery, or different visible components as you please, however for the sake of guiding you thru the essential method to create your personal infographic, the instance stops right here.

However in the event you’re in search of one thing extra handy, you possibly can obtain a few of our infographic templates that open immediately in PowerPoint so you may get to creating sooner.

PowerPoint Infographic Suggestions

1. Hold your infographics easy.

I am a really wordy particular person usually. I are likely to overexplain in common dialog, and generally I’ve to remind myself to not use so many pointless phrases to elucidate easy ideas in my writing.  

So, naturally, my infographics had been muddled with an excessive amount of data, photographs, and lengthy sentences after I first began making them early into my profession. Ultimately, I discovered the worth of Okay.I.S.S. (Hold It Easy Sweetheart).

When designing your infographics, hold sentences brief and solely embody probably the most essential data. Imagery is useful, however do not go overboard. Ask your self does this picture or icon assist illustrate your level, or is it simply distracting?

2. Use complementary colours.

Use a colour scheme that includes greater than 3-4 colours that complement one another. Even higher, keep on with your model’s colours so your infographic matches along with your group’s aesthetic. 

Keep away from too many colours or ones that conflict. In any other case, your infographic will look too busy and can distract away from the data you are attempting to convey. 

3. Jazz it up with icons, borders, and fonts. 

I do know I stated to maintain it easy, and you need to, however that does not imply you possibly can’t have slightly enjoyable with icons, borders, and fonts.

You continue to need your picture to face out, so think about incorporating these components (sparingly) to go away a long-lasting impression in your viewers. 

4. Emphasize numbers. 

When you’re presenting quantitative information, use your colour scheme to emphasise essential numbers. Use the boldest and/or brightest colours to attract viewers’ eyes to the numbers.

You might also wish to use shapes like circles or squares to additional spotlight the data.

PowerPoint Infographic Examples

1. Knowledge-Centric Infographic Instance

We have loaded this template with quite a lot of completely different charts and graphs, which you’ll be able to simply replace with your personal information. (Good-click on a graph, select Edit Knowledge, and you can 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 displaying modifications over time (from left to proper).
• Pie chart: Use for making part-to-whole comparisons. (Be aware: They work finest with small information units.)
• Line graph: Use for displaying information that modifications constantly over time. Excellent for displaying volatility, traits, 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 like this infographic as a result of whereas it is highlighting loads of qualitative information, all the pieces ties completely collectively due to its colour scheme. Each graph makes use of the identical colours, conserving the infographic from showing clunky or busy.

When to Use: I strongly counsel utilizing an infographic just like the one above when you must current a hefty quantity of essential information as a part of a cohesive, visible narrative. 

2. Timeline Infographic

Telling the historical past of a specific business, product, model, pattern, or tactic generally is a nice subject for an infographic.

And whereas there are a selection of various methods 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 Greatest Practices

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

When to Use: When you’re seeking to clarify the historical past of a subject or predictions for the long run, a timeline infographic generally is a nice illustrative software 

3. Fashionable Design Infographic

For this infographic template, we wished to do one thing that mirrored trendy design traits. By way of content material, we supplied loads of house for each stats and replica. There’s additionally room for a column chart.

However keep in mind, you possibly can at all times add completely different charts and graphs to the template wherever you see match. Simply choose Insert > Chart, and you will have a number of choices to select from.

Fashionable Design Infographic Greatest Practices

Experiment with new colour palettes. There are tons of free colour palettes on-line. Do not consider me? Do a Google picture seek for “Colour Palette.” Whenever you discover a palette you want, drag the picture immediately into your PowerPoint presentation.

Subsequent, choose the Colour Fill bucket, select Extra Colours, and click on on the eyedropper icon. With the eyedropper software, 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 intensive library of shapes — together with banners, ribbons, and arrows — that you should utilize 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 may make the sharp ends of a ribbon longer or shorter, or make the physique of an arrow thinner or thicker.

What I like: This contemporary design is modern, simple to comply with, and leads your eyes completely alongside the picture to digest the data. 

When to Use: In case your infographic is an equal mixture of quantitative information and textual content, this contemporary design may also help you show each sorts of data seamlessly. 

4. Flowchart Infographic

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

In our flowchart PowerPoint template, we created a fundamental flowchart construction, with constructive 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 Greatest 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 attainable mixture and seeing the place you find yourself.

For finest outcomes, have a pal or coworker run by means of the flowchart, too.

• The smaller the scope, the simpler the execution. The extra questions or levels you add to your flowchart, the harder it is going to be to create (and the tougher it’s going to possible be for viewers to know). So attempt to slender the main focus of your flowchart.

What I Like: Colours and shapes are strategically used to distinguish between constructive and unfavorable conclusions of the movement chart. Discover the inexperienced circles used for “Sure,” purple circles used for “No,” and purple containers for “Please strive tougher.”

When to Use: I counsel 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 generally you want an infographic to show a comparability. That’s why we created the side-by-side comparability infographic template to make it simple so that you can evaluate and distinction two various things.

Aspect-By-Aspect Comparability Infographic Greatest Practices

• Use acceptable information. It is best to make use of information that may simply be described in a chart. Use pie charts, graphs, or different information 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 dimensions, fashion, and colour of borders beneath the Format Image tab.
• Save your infographic as a PNG file. This can be a finest observe for all infographics however is especially related when publishing an infographic that accommodates 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 personal side-by-side comparability infographic? Obtain 15 free infographic PowerPoint templates to get began.

What I Like: Each side of the infographic use complementing colours and make it much more interesting by inverting the colour scheme in each sections.

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

Make an Eye-Catching Infographic At present

The probabilities are countless once you uncover the best way to begin creating infographics. You’ll have the ability to increase your expertise as a marketer and create extra elaborate content material that your viewers shall be intrigued by and interact with.

We hope you discovered this text helpful and that you just’ll take the initiative to construct your personal infographics in PowerPoint.

Editor’s word: This text was initially revealed in October 2020 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.