brief presentation definition

• PRESENTATION SKILLS

What is a Presentation?

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The formal presentation of information is divided into two broad categories: Presentation Skills and Personal Presentation .

These two aspects are interwoven and can be described as the preparation, presentation and practice of verbal and non-verbal communication. 

This article describes what a presentation is and defines some of the key terms associated with presentation skills.

Many people feel terrified when asked to make their first public talk.  Some of these initial fears can be reduced by good preparation that also lays the groundwork for making an effective presentation.

A Presentation Is...

A presentation is a means of communication that can be adapted to various speaking situations, such as talking to a group, addressing a meeting or briefing a team.

A presentation can also be used as a broad term that encompasses other ‘speaking engagements’ such as making a speech at a wedding, or getting a point across in a video conference.

To be effective, step-by-step preparation and the method and means of presenting the information should be carefully considered. 

A presentation requires you to get a message across to the listeners and will often contain a ' persuasive ' element. It may, for example, be a talk about the positive work of your organisation, what you could offer an employer, or why you should receive additional funding for a project.

The Key Elements of a Presentation

Making a presentation is a way of communicating your thoughts and ideas to an audience and many of our articles on communication are also relevant here, see: What is Communication? for more.

Consider the following key components of a presentation:

Ask yourself the following questions to develop a full understanding of the context of the presentation.

When and where will you deliver your presentation?

There is a world of difference between a small room with natural light and an informal setting, and a huge lecture room, lit with stage lights. The two require quite different presentations, and different techniques.

Will it be in a setting you are familiar with, or somewhere new?

If somewhere new, it would be worth trying to visit it in advance, or at least arriving early, to familiarise yourself with the room.

Will the presentation be within a formal or less formal setting?

A work setting will, more or less by definition, be more formal, but there are also various degrees of formality within that.

Will the presentation be to a small group or a large crowd?

Are you already familiar with the audience?

With a new audience, you will have to build rapport quickly and effectively, to get them on your side.

What equipment and technology will be available to you, and what will you be expected to use?

In particular, you will need to ask about microphones and whether you will be expected to stand in one place, or move around.

What is the audience expecting to learn from you and your presentation?

Check how you will be ‘billed’ to give you clues as to what information needs to be included in your presentation.

All these aspects will change the presentation. For more on this, see our page on Deciding the Presentation Method .

The role of the presenter is to communicate with the audience and control the presentation.

Remember, though, that this may also include handing over the control to your audience, especially if you want some kind of interaction.

You may wish to have a look at our page on Facilitation Skills for more.

The audience receives the presenter’s message(s).

However, this reception will be filtered through and affected by such things as the listener’s own experience, knowledge and personal sense of values.

See our page: Barriers to Effective Communication to learn why communication can fail.

The message or messages are delivered by the presenter to the audience.

The message is delivered not just by the spoken word ( verbal communication ) but can be augmented by techniques such as voice projection, body language, gestures, eye contact ( non-verbal communication ), and visual aids.

The message will also be affected by the audience’s expectations. For example, if you have been billed as speaking on one particular topic, and you choose to speak on another, the audience is unlikely to take your message on board even if you present very well . They will judge your presentation a failure, because you have not met their expectations.

The audience’s reaction and therefore the success of the presentation will largely depend upon whether you, as presenter, effectively communicated your message, and whether it met their expectations.

As a presenter, you don’t control the audience’s expectations. What you can do is find out what they have been told about you by the conference organisers, and what they are expecting to hear. Only if you know that can you be confident of delivering something that will meet expectations.

See our page: Effective Speaking for more information.

How will the presentation be delivered?

Presentations are usually delivered direct to an audience.  However, there may be occasions where they are delivered from a distance over the Internet using video conferencing systems, such as Skype.

It is also important to remember that if your talk is recorded and posted on the internet, then people may be able to access it for several years. This will mean that your contemporaneous references should be kept to a minimum.

Impediments

Many factors can influence the effectiveness of how your message is communicated to the audience.

For example background noise or other distractions, an overly warm or cool room, or the time of day and state of audience alertness can all influence your audience’s level of concentration.

As presenter, you have to be prepared to cope with any such problems and try to keep your audience focussed on your message.   

Our page: Barriers to Communication explains these factors in more depth.

Continue to read through our Presentation Skills articles for an overview of how to prepare and structure a presentation, and how to manage notes and/or illustrations at any speaking event.

Continue to: Preparing for a Presentation Deciding the Presentation Method

See also: Writing Your Presentation | Working with Visual Aids Coping with Presentation Nerves | Dealing with Questions Learn Better Presentation Skills with TED Talks

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What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

• Carmine Gallo

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

• Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

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Business Jargons

A Business Encyclopedia

Presentation

Definition : A presentation is a form of communication in which the speaker conveys information to the audience. In an organization presentations are used in various scenarios like talking to a group, addressing a meeting, demonstrating or introducing a new product, or briefing a team. It involves presenting a particular subject or issue or new ideas/thoughts to a group of people.

It is considered as the most effective form of communication because of two main reasons:

• Use of non-verbal cues.
• Facilitates instant feedback.

Business Presentations are a tool to influence people toward an intended thought or action.

Parts of Presentation

• Introduction : It is meant to make the listeners ready to receive the message and draw their interest. For that, the speaker can narrate some story or a humorous piece of joke, an interesting fact, a question, stating a problem, and so forth. They can also use some surprising statistics.
• Body : It is the essence of the presentation. It requires the sequencing of facts in a logical order. This is the part where the speaker explains the topic and relevant information. It has to be critically arranged, as the audience must be able to grasp what the speaker presents.
• Conclusion : It needs to be short and precise. It should sum up or outline the key points that you have presented. It could also contain what the audience should have gained out of the presentation.

Purpose of Presentation

• To inform : Organizations can use presentations to inform the audience about new schemes, products or proposals. The aim is to inform the new entrant about the policies and procedures of the organization.
• To persuade : Presentations are also given to persuade the audience to take the intended action.
• To build goodwill : They can also help in building a good reputation

Factors Affecting Presentation

Audience Analysis

Communication environment, personal appearance, use of visuals, opening and closing presentation, organization of presentation, language and words, voice quality, body language, answering questions, a word from business jargons.

Presentation is a mode of conveying information to a selected group of people live. An ideal presentation is one that identifies and matches the needs, interests and understanding level of the audience. It also represents the facts, and figures in the form of tables, charts, and graphs and uses multiple colours.

Related terms:

• Verbal Communication
• Visual Communication
• Non-Verbal Communication
• Communication
• 7 C’s of Communication

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What is a Pitch Deck? Examples, Tips and Templates

Written by: Mahnoor Sheikh

A pitch deck is a brief presentation that gives potential investors or clients an overview of your business plan, products, services and growth traction.

As an entrepreneur, you probably know this: your company or idea needs financing.

Oftentimes, this financing will come from external sources—i.e. people who aren’t friends or family. This means that you’ll need to communicate your ideas to potential financiers in a way that gets them excited about investing in your business.

In other words, you’ll need a pitch deck .

Here’s a short selection of 8 easy-to-edit pitch deck templates you can edit, share and download with Visme. View more templates below:

Table of Contents

What is a pitch deck, what’s included in a pitch deck presentation, 8 real-life pitch decks to know, the dos and don'ts of pitch decks, how to create a pitch deck in 3 easy steps, pitch deck faqs, looking for presentation software.

• A pitch deck is a visual presentation that tells the story of a business to persuade and engage potential investors.
• The most common pitch deck slides are introduction, problem, solution, market size and opportunity, product, traction, team, competition, financials and use of funds.
• Learn from the eight real-life pitch deck examples to get inspired about creating your own.
• Visme helps you create pitch deck presentations to secure funding in just three steps: choose a template, customize it and download or present it.
• Sign up for Visme's free online presentation software and start customizing your pitch deck templates now.

A pitch deck, also known as a start-up or investor pitch deck, is a presentation that helps potential investors learn more about your business.

As strange as it sounds, the primary goal of a pitch deck is not to secure funding—it’s to make it to the next meeting.

Surprised? Wait, let me explain!

Securing funding is a multi-step process. A good, informative pitch deck is the first rung on the ladder. You’ll want to present investors with an idea that intrigues them and gets them to engage with you.

Build relationships with customers and drive sales growth

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What is a Pitch Deck Presentation?

A pitch deck presentation usually consists of several slides that help you tell a compelling story about your business . You can put one together using a generic software like PowerPoint or use a modern tool like Visme to create an out-of-the-box presentation.

What is an Investor Deck?

An investor deck is a presentation entrepreneurs prepare when seeking financing rounds from investors. It presents valuable information about the business, which is critical when seeking financing or looking to convince the best investors.

When faced with busy executives who won't sit through a presentation, opt for a startup one pager as an alternative. It'll help you grab their interest faster and secure a meeting where you can share your pitch.

Interested in learning more about creating compelling investor decks? Read this article and take advantage of our professional design templates to get started.

It’s tempting to dump information onto investors. As a founder, every part of your business is important to you. But the best pitch decks are ones that are short and easy to follow.

A good rule of thumb is to include no more than 19 slides in a pitch deck.

There are many different opinions about the components of a pitch deck. But when we looked at some successful startup pitch decks out there, we noticed 10 key slides included in most of the presentations.

Create beautiful infographics using this drag-and-drop tool! Sign up. It's free.

Let’s take a look at each of these slides in detail.

1 Introduction

The first slide of your pitch deck is also the most important one. It’s your chance to make a great first impression, so make sure you don’t let this opportunity go.

Keep the introduction slide short and sweet—tell people who you are and why you’re here.

You can also use this slide to communicate the value proposition of your business . Try to articulate it in a single phrase or sentence, like:

“We make video games for doctors.”

“We make Happy Meals for adults.”

“We’re Sephora for pets.”

You get the point.

A good value proposition will make your audience sit up straight and want to listen to the rest of your presentation.

Image Source

If your business idea doesn’t solve an actual problem, what are you doing?

You should identify a problem your target audience faces, a gap that the market is currently not addressing.

A good problem slide will identify two or three problems your product will tackle without being long-winding. Keep the text focused so that investors will have an easy time following.

Airbnb’s ‘problem slide’ from their original pitch desk is a great example.

In this slide, identify a concise and clear solution that investors can easily follow. This is an important slide that makes your product deck captivating.

Airbnb’s solution slide highlights how they aim to solve each of the three problems they pointed out earlier in big and bold letters.

In this slide, identify a concise and clear solution that investors can easily follow.

Airbnb’s solution slide highlights how they aim to solve each of three problems they pointed out earlier in big and bold letters.

Avoid making grand statements like “we are the only ones doing this.” Most people in the room will probably know multiple companies trying to address the problem you’ve identified.

Another good strategy is to offer multiple possible solutions to the problem presented and then move on to the one you have chosen and why. This shows investors your dedication and research.

Instead of uniqueness, focus your presentation on your research, drive, commitment and capability in solving the problem.

But make sure you don’t put all of that on your slide. Keep it simple and to the point, and let these guidelines shape your entire presentation.

Airbnb Pitch Deck Template

Here's a pitch deck template inspired by Airbnb that you can customize for your own startup.

Customize now!

Customize this pitch deck template to make it your own! Edit and Download Now

Visme's AI Writer is a game-changer for crafting pitch decks. It provides clear, concise information, making sure your pitch deck impresses every audience. Just explain the tool about what you want write and it will take care of the rest.

4 Market Size and Opportunity

When creating a sales pitch structure, be sure to include a summary of your market research.

The market will determine if you get your funding or not. If you are operating in a small market, investors might find that the potential ROI is too small or too risky to fund you.

Using sources from your research, a solid market slide will graph out past market growth and future potential market growth so that investors can easily see what the potential of your product is.

A good example of a market size slide is from Lunchbox’s pitch deck.

Notice how the slide clearly shows the market size and identifies the opportunity in measurable numbers.

Create a powerful pitch deck in minutes!

• Choose from hundreds of ready-to-use templates
• Customize text, images, logos and more
• Add interactive buttons and animations

This is the part where you show off the actual product or service your business is selling.

If it’s a physical product, add professional photos of your product from different angles. You can also include exploded or cutaway views that highlight the materials and features of your product.

If your product is an app, online tool or service, consider adding screenshots that show off its most unique features.

Dandelion Energy's product slide includes a comprehensive explanation of their product in a concise and easy-to-understand manner with an illustrated graphic.

To take things further, you can also do a physical demo of your product in the middle of your presentation. Or embed a video or link into your slide to do a virtual demo.

TouristEye Pitch Deck Template

Here's a pitch deck template inspired by TouristEye that you can customize for your own startup.

This slide should be all about the growth of your business—the numbers of sales you’ve made, the major goals you’ve achieved till now and the next steps.

Most startups include a hockey stick growth chart in the traction slide of their pitch deck.

This slide in Buffer’s pitch deck is a great example of how you can show off your current achievements to investors.

The traction slide plays a crucial role in crafting a compelling pitch deck for investors as it reduces risk in their eyes. They want to see proof that your business idea or solution has what it takes to be profitable.

Buffer Pitch Deck Template

Here's a pitch deck template inspired by Buffer that you can customize for your own startup.

Customize this pitch deck template to make it your own!

• Add your own text, images, logo and more
• Customize anything to fit your brand image and content needs

Your pitch deck outline will include your core team members. The investor is interested in the drive of these people and what makes them unique enough to see this project to its success.

Under each core team member, consider including bullets, descriptions or titles that show why they are central to your mission.

Here’s an example of a team slide from Teton AI's pitch deck.

Keep the members here limited to your core team. Advisors need not be included.

8 Competition

Utilize the competition slide to visually illustrate your competitors and communicate the factors that make your startup special.

Airbnb has a great slide in this regard.

Notice how they use affordability and ease of access as the driving force setting their business apart from other travel or listing companies.

Buzzfeed also does great by showing how they offer more than what their competition can. They use their plan to reach across the aisle and offer the services of multiple competitors as their selling point.

Buzzfeed Pitch Deck Template

Here's a pitch deck template inspired by Buzzfeed that you can customize for your own startup.

9 Financials

The financials slide in your pitch deck is one that investors spend the most time looking over.

Your pitch deck outline should contain your company’s projected growth over the next three to five years, along with details about your business model and finances.

Enlive’s pitch deck does a good job at showcasing their income statement projection in this slide.

Create engaging data visualizations for your presentations!

• Upload an Excel file or sync with live data from Google sheets
• Choose from 16+ types of charts, from bar and line graphs to pyramid and Mekko charts
• Customize anything, from backgrounds and placement of labels to font style and color

The use of colors and a bar chart makes the financials easier to understand and definitely look more interesting than a boring spreadsheet full of numbers.

A lot of this information is not set in stone. No one can accurately predict where you’ll be in the next three years, but investors expect to see you outline your plan and show that you have the financial knowledge to reach it.

You can also explain your economic plan here. This includes your operating structure and distribution channels as well as your plan to make money.

10 Investment and Use of Funds

Before you wrap up, don’t forget to tell investors what you need from them.

But instead of just asking for a certain amount of funding, also let them know what you plan to do with the money.

When you justify your ask, it helps build trust and lets investors take you seriously.

Here’s a no-nonsense investment slide from Intercom’s original pitch deck as an example.

Remember to be strategic here. Let your investors know the amount you are asking for, but keep it real. You don’t want to lose out on a big investment simply by aiming too high. Cover your bases.

Intercom Pitch Deck Template

Here's a pitch deck template inspired by Intercom that you can customize for your own startup.

While there’s no universal structure for creating pitch decks, make sure your pitch deck outline contains the slides we’ve highlighted.

When it comes to choosing pitch deck dimensions, you can either use the 4:3 aspect ratio or 16:9 aspect ratio. When emailing your pitch, ensure the file size isn’t larger than 10MB.

Learning from real examples is like getting advice from experts. By looking at what has worked for other businesses, you can better understand how you should design your own pitch deck.

So, here are some good pitch decks and examples that real-life companies have used recently to secure funding.

1. Finix ($126M)

Finix's pitch deck presents a tailored solution for businesses to manage payments, emphasizing their platform's efficiency and scalability. It effectively visualizes their unique value proposition, revenue model and market opportunity with a sleek and professional design that reflects their purpose well.

2. Softr ($15.7M)

Softr's deck uses aesthetic consistency with clear visuals to highlight their no-code platform's functionalities. Their compelling narrative includes discussion on market trends, competitive differentiation and growth plans, capturing the essence of their vision.

3. Lunchbox ($72.1M)

Lunchbox is a restaurant technology platform that enhances the customer experience by offering online ordering, loyalty programs, and other digital solutions to streamline operations.

They've cleverly included lots of additional visual elements like icons, illustrations, charts and data visuals in their presentation. Everything in their deck shows how they mix food and technology together.

If you want to elevate your pitch deck's visual appeal using unique and high-quality graphics, like this example, Visme's AI image generator is there to help.

It can help you generate any graphic in different formats, like icons, illustrations, drawings, abstracts and more. Use the tool to generate a high-quality graphic to emphasize your pitch deck content.

4. Plum ($82.4M)

With its sleek, minimalist design, Plum's pitch deck establishes its mission to automate wealth management effectively. Their slides are rich with data on target markets, growth strategies and financial projections, reflecting their drive to democratize personal finance. Also, they limited their slides to 9 and still managed to cover enough.

5. Teton AI ($6.4M)

Teton's pitch deck features a clean and professional design, aligning with its focus on cutting-edge AI technology in healthcare. They've used Venn diagrams, charts, shapes and high-quality, relevant images to emphasize their deep learning and computer vision products.

6. Vue Storefront ($38.9M)

Vue Storefront's pitch deck smartly incorporates its brand color – a refreshing green scheme. This not only aligns with their brand identity but also infuses vibrancy and a distinctive sense of innovation into the design.

They used boxes for text organization to convey clarity and structure, making information easily digestible.

7. Party Round ($7M)

Party Round, with a recent funding of $7 million, is dedicated to simplifying the fundraising process for founders.

This pitch deck is smartly designed with a balanced layout that quietly hints at automation and user-friendliness. The use of big letters boldly captures attention, while adding 3D design elements adds a layer of dynamism, creating a visually engaging presentation that stands out.

8. Dandelion Energy ($134.5M)

The color choice of Dandelion Energy's pitch deck aligns with the company's focus on sustainable energy, evoking warmth and eco-friendliness. The deck incorporates visual elements such as bar graphs, images, and an illustration to vividly explain how their geothermal product works.

Now that you’re clear on what a pitch deck is and what a good one contains, let’s take a look at some common dos and don’ts for creating and giving powerful pitch presentations.

But before that, make sure you watch the video below on the top pitch deck design tips for creating the perfect startup pitch.

When Designing 

Do use bullet points on slides..

Remember that this is a presentation with a short time span. Make your sales pitch deck brief and to the point.

Don’t overwhelm your audience with a lot of text. Explain the things you want to explain in detail but don’t cram them onto your slides.

DON’T stuff your slides with text.

As you can see from the examples above, it’s best to have bullets, not paragraphs, on slides.

Furthermore, use large font sizes, lots of visuals and a readable color scheme. This will help you put together an engaging and informative presentation.

DO include your contact details.

Make sure you include your contact information at the end of your presentation to let your audience know who to reach out to for queries.

Here is the contact slide from Facebook’s 2004 pitch deck.

This slide also allows your business to have a ‘face’ and encourages investors to look this person up.

DON’T add too many team members.

In your Team slide, stick to core members. Too many executives can overwhelm; your investors want to know who is piloting the ship.

When Presenting

Do tell a story..

Make sure you present your audience with an engaging narrative that allows them to feel why your business is tackling the problem it is and how this will affect them.

DON’T focus on only the stats.

Without a cohesive narrative and a bigger picture dealing with the why of your business and what it will bring to your customers, all your stats sound dry and boring.

Make sure a purposeful narrative runs throughout your presentation, not just at the beginning. The stats are important, especially financial stats, but they aren’t the only important thing.

DO elaborate and minimize as you see fit.

What is on the slides is important, but so is how you present it.

As you’re speaking, gauge your audience, their interests in the particulars of your business, and what they most care about. Then, tailor your company pitch deck to their needs.

DON’T just read from the slides.

Tailor your presentation to keep your audience engaged and never just recite what is written on your slides.

Remember, investors can read. The reason this is a presentation and not an email is so you can engage with them.

Creating a startup pitch deck doesn’t need to be difficult. If you’re short on time, you can use a design tool like Visme to put one together in literally just a few minutes.

No more starting from scratch and creating slides one by one. You can simply use ready-made templates and replace the placeholder content with your own.

Here’s how it works.

Step 1: Choose a template.

To get started, sign in to your Visme dashboard and choose a pitch deck template that fits well with your content and type of business.

There are hundreds of presentation templates in Visme’s library, and they’re all fully customizable.

Customize your favorite pitch deck template! Edit and Download

You can also mix and match slides of a similar style using our presentation themes.

Step 2: Customize.

When you find a pitch deck template you like, click on Edit to start customizing it inside the Visme editor.

You can change anything and everything to fit your content needs. The editor is easy-to-use with drag-and-drop functionality. You can use it even without any prior design experience.

Change colors, fonts and images. Swap icons for relevant ones using our free icon library. Add and customize data visualizations to make boring numbers more interesting. Insert animations and links, embed videos, and more.

You can also add, remove or rearrange slides as you see fit. Use Dynamic Fields to keep your personal, company and other key information accurate and consistent throughout your presentation.

The entire customization process will barely take you an hour if you just replace the placeholder content with your own.

Step 3: Download or share.

You can download your pitch deck in image or PDF format, or as a PowerPoint file.

Generate a link to share it privately with specific people, like in an email. You can also publish your presentation on the web so it can show up in search results on Google.

You can also embed the pitch presentation on your company website using a responsive code. Once you’ve shared your deck, you can start tracking analytics to see how many people viewed it or have taken action.

Running out of time? You can generate a complete and captivating AI pitch deck in minutes using Visme's AI presentation maker .

Just describe the type of presentation you want the tool to create and Visme's Chatbot will suggest different template styles. Once you've chosen the most relevant template for your presentation, you can wait for the tool to create the design.

After that, you can preview, regenerate, or open your project in the Visme editor. Once you're sold on the template design, you can further customize it using the wide range of design tools and assets available in Visme's pitch deck maker.

Here are some frequently asked questions that will help you clear any doubts about creating your pitch deck.

Q1. What should you avoid in a pitch deck?

When developing a pitch deck, you should take care of several pitfalls to deliver an effective and impactful presentation:

• Avoid using unnecessary jargon and complex terminologies to keep your explanation simple and clear.
• Don't overcrowd a single slide with too much information, as it can make it hard for your viewers to grasp the key elements.
• Ensure to include the unique aspects of your product or service that set it apart from others in the market.
• While you need to recognize your competitors, highlight what makes your venture different and, perhaps, more appealing.
• Be realistic with your revenue predictions; overly optimistic numbers can cause investors to doubt your credibility.

Q2. How long should a pitch deck be?

The ideal pitch deck should be about 10 to 15 slides long. Each slide should discuss critical business aspects, like problem statement, market size, solution, business model, etc. However, the number of slides may change based on your business complexity and target audience.

Q3. What is the difference between a pitch deck and a business plan?

A pitch deck and a business plan are both critical for startups but serve different purposes:

Pitch Deck: A pitch deck is a brief presentation to give your audience (typically potential investors, partners, or customers) a quick overview of your business plan. It's generally used during face-to-face or online meetings and should be engaging, concise and to the point.

Business Plan: A business plan, on the other hand, is a formal document that details the tactics and strategies you intend to employ to start and grow your business. It covers minute aspects such as your business model, detailed market analysis, organizational structure, cash flow projections, etc.

Q4. What is the best software for creating a pitch deck?

It depends on your business, but you’ll generally want to choose software that blends the ease of use with cutting-edge functionalities. In that case, Visme is the best software for creating a pitch deck with advanced features like data visualization tools , presenter notes , presenter studio , animated graphics and more.

Q5. Cost of making a pitch deck?

The cost of making a professional pitch deck can vary depending on whether you hire a designer or do it yourself. Hiring a designer to create a custom deck from scratch could cost hundreds or thousands of dollars.

However, tools like Visme allow you to easily create high-quality decks without design experience or costs. Visme offers free online presentation software with hundreds of professionally designed templates for pitch decks and other types of presentations.

Q6. What types of investment pitch decks are there?

There is no universally accepted classification of investment pitch decks into specific types, but they vary based on the nature of the business or the purpose of the pitch.

However, there are a few common types or themes of pitch decks that companies often use:

• Pre-Seed Pitch Deck: This pitch deck serves the purpose of securing initial funding to shape and refine a business concept. This deck outlines the problem, solution, market potential, basic financials and team.
• Seed Pitch Deck: Crafted to attract funding for the launch and early development of the business. It builds upon the pre-seed deck by offering more details on market validation, product development, and initial traction.
• Series A/B/C Pitch Deck: This type of pitch deck is for seeking significant funding rounds for growth and expansion. They provide comprehensive information on market leadership, financial performance, scaling strategies, competitive landscape and potential exit plans.

Q7. What is the difference between a pitch deck and a presentation?

A pitch deck is a type of presentation designed specifically to propose an idea, product, solution or opportunity to potential clients, investors or partners. A presentation, on the other hand, is a content format composed of slides, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be used for pitching purposes.

Q8. What should not be included in a pitch deck?

A pitch deck should not include irrelevant information, unrealistic financial projections, unverified claims, technical jargon and overly complex data or slides. You should also steer clear of presenting negative information like potential risks or challenges without offering mitigation strategies or solutions.

A powerful pitch deck can help you secure the funding you need to make your business idea a reality. This article will give you the confidence you need to design and present a killer investor pitch deck .

If you want to learn more about pitch decks and giving great presentations, check out some of the resources below.

• 17 Pitch Deck Templates Inspired By Real-Life Startups and Businesses
• 15 Expert Tips for Giving a Powerful Business Presentation
• Presentation Success Formula: How to Start Strong and End Powerfully

You can also watch this video on how to structure your presentation to keep your audience hooked till the very end.

If you're looking for an easy-to-use, professional presentation software to help you make a powerful pitch deck, Visme can be just what you're looking for.

You can browse through fully designed pitch deck templates that are inspired by real-life pitch decks of successful companies, such as Airbnb, Buffer and more.

Each template is customizable, so you can easily plug in your own content, graphics and brand assets, and download it in PowerPoint or PDF format, or publish it online.

Ready to create your very own pitch deck? Sign up on Visme for a free account and take it for a test drive!

Create captivating pitch decks in minutes using Visme

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About the Author

Mahnoor Sheikh is the content marketing manager at Visme. She has years of experience in content strategy and execution, SEO copywriting and graphic design. She is also the founder of MASH Content and is passionate about tea, kittens and traveling with her husband. Get in touch with her on LinkedIn .

How to Write a Creative Brief in 11 Simple Steps [Examples + Templates]

Published: June 11, 2024

The first step in any successful project is drawing up a game plan with a clear objective. It's one of the reasons marketers love creative briefs.

A creative brief acts as a roadmap that takes a project from ideation to completion. It ensures the scope, timeline, key stakeholders, and purpose of the project are communicated clearly.

The creative brief is the single source of truth for everyone working on a project. If questions come up or tasks become unclear, the creative brief will steer things in the right direction.

What is a creative brief?

A creative brief is a short document that sums up marketing, advertising, or design project mission, goals, challenges, demographics, messaging, and other key details. It's often created by a consultant or a creative project manager. The goal of a brief is to achieve stakeholder alignment on a project before it begins.

The Purpose of a Creative Brief

Whether you’re a consultant pitching a creative brief to a client, or a project manager presenting a brief to your team, start by speaking with the project stakeholders.

These discussions will help you understand the company's mission, project goals, and challenges your team faces. Then, you’ll have enough information to write a compelling brief that focuses on what’s really important to your company or client.

The idea of a creative brief sounds simple, but it can be hard to wrap a lot of important details into just a few pages. Therefore, a creative brief is typically comprised of eight sections that can fit on one to two pages.

Free Creative Brief Templates

Three customizable templates designed to serve as the blueprint for your next campaign.

• Campaign brief template.
• Video brief template.
• Client brief template.

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How a Creative Brief Works

Creative briefs are pretty standard documents within just about every marketing, advertising, or design team.

For smaller projects that live in-house (like designs, templates, marketing assets, etc.) the brief is owned by the team who will be executing on the information in the brief.

This is usually the creative team, but this team can fall within the brand department or even live within marketing.

For more advanced, long-term projects that involve an agency, the creative brief is owned by the creative team or agency who will be executing the work.

This is because they'll work closely with the stakeholders on the project to understand what is needed, plus they'll bring their own expertise and competitive research to the brief that the internal team may not have access to.

These types of creative briefs aren't rare, but they are created infrequently due to the nature of the projects they support. So for this post, we'll focus mostly on the day-to-day creative briefs that you're likely to use often. Here's how they work.

Creative Brief Outline

• Project Name
• Company Background
• Project Objective
• Target Audience
• Competitors
• Key Message
• Key Consumer Benefit
• Call to Action
• Distribution

Step 1. The teams who need assistance from the creative team will retrieve the creative brief template from a repository like OneDrive, Google Drive, or an online form.

Step 2. The team that is requesting the project will complete the brief according to their team's needs and goals. The completion of the creative brief starts with the team requesting the project so that they can explain their vision and goals clearly to the creative team.

Step 3. From there, the brief is sent back to the creative team to review. They'll be looking for timelines, resources, and budget requirements.

Step 4. If they have any questions, they'll go back to the team who wrote the brief and finalize the details.

Step 5. After that, the project is kicked off, sometimes with the help of a project manager, who will check-in with stakeholders on the project and keep everything on schedule, within scope, and within budget.

Step 6. Once the project is complete, both teams will review the deliverables against the creative brief to ensure everything is completed correctly.

The format of every company's creative brief might vary slightly to suit the needs of the project or client. Below is a simple outline that will be the foundation of your creative brief.

It includes the most important steps in the creative process and information that'll be relevant to stakeholders involved in the project.

Once you’re fully informed and ready to write, use the following steps to draft yours. To make it even easier, I've included a fill-in-the-blank template in the last step.

How to Write a Creative Brief

• Decide on a name for the project.
• Write about the brand and summarize the project’s background.
• Highlight the project objective.
• Describe the target audience.
• Interpret the competitive landscape.
• Prepare the key message.
• Choose the key consumer benefit.
• Select an attitude.
• Determine the best call to action.
• Draft the distribution plan.
• Share the creative brief with stakeholders.

1. Decide on a name for the project.

The first step in developing a creative brief is deciding on a project name. This might sound simple, but it's one of the most critical components of a creative brief.

If you're building a campaign around a brand new product or service, the campaign name will be the first time many members of your team will be introduced to it.

Referring to the campaign (and therefore product or service) by the correct name prevents the game of telephone from happening. Without a specific and clear campaign name, people will make up their own terminology which can alter the intent of the campaign .

To create a project or campaign name for your creative brief, keep it creative and brief. A few words or a short sentence should work just fine.

If you're launching a product, identify what the call to action will be for the target audience, then center the name around that. Here are a few examples of fictional campaign names:

• The Search for Adventure Campaign- A scavenger hunt-themed amusement park.
• The Don't Forget Your Memories Campaign - A photo frame company.
• The "What's hotter than Pepperco hot sauce?" Campaign - A hot sauce brand.

2. Write about the brand and summarize the project’s background.

Another simple, yet essential section is the company background. If you work in an agency setting, this is non-negotiable as your team is likely handling several client campaigns at once.

However, if you're developing a creative brief for an in-house project, you'll still want to include this part. New hires on your team, freelancers, and vendors will appreciate the background that your internal team is already privy to.

The company background shouldn't be a general history of the company or a copied and pasted paragraph from the about page. Instead, tailor this to the project at hand.

Set the scene with one or two sentences that sum up the brand’s mission. Follow this with a few sentences that give background on the brand and what led to the development of the project.

While some creatives have put this information all together in a quick paragraph, others separate it with headers like “Brand Statement” and “Background.”

Here are some questions to consider when writing a company background for your creative brief:

• Has the company launched a campaign like this before?
• Why is the company choosing to launch this campaign right now?
• What's happening in the market and how will this campaign respond to it?

3. Highlight the project objective.

Here is where the creative brief gets more specific. The project objective should briefly explain the purpose of the project, the timeline, and the audience it'll target. This can be done in a sentence or two, but you can get creative and stylize it in sections.

This part of the creative brief will be helpful in emphasizing why the project needs to happen. The goal aspects will help you and your team align on the project’s expectations.

If the company or client hasn’t identified any major challenges, you can focus this section on goals and objectives. Explain what a successful project looks like and how it will benefit the company.

Pro Tip: Writing a project objective is very similar to writing a goal, so take a look at this blog post for more detail on goal and objective writing.

Here’s an example of a sample creative brief for PayPal that offers separate sections for “The Problem” and “The Goal”:

4. Describe the target audience.

Next, it's time to define the target audience for the project. This is the segment of your market that will directly benefit from the product or service being launched.

You can take audience segmentation a step further by identifying a primary and secondary audience. Doing so will give your team more freedom to explore creative ideas that might resonate with one group more than the other.

When crafting the target audience section, be sure to include the following:

• Demographics - Simple demographic information gives your team insight into exactly who the audience is. This includes data points like age, income, education, ethnicity, and occupation.
• Behaviors - Buying behaviors, trends, and other customer history make up the target audience behaviors. These provide important context to the creative brief because they explain where the customer is in their buyer journey.
• Psychographics - This is how the audience thinks and feels about your brand and the product or service you sell, in general.
• Geographics - Digital, physical, and hybrid campaigns will benefit from having geographics stated explicitly in the creative brief so that media buyers can price ad slots in each market.

Pro Tip: Your creative brief shouldn't be too long, and this section can take up quite a bit of space. To make this section more digestible, consider using buyer personas .

Here’s how the sample brief for PayPal noted above thoughtfully explains a new product’s target audience:

5. Interpret the competitive landscape.

Knowing what your competitors are doing is advantageous for the whole team.

You can use competitive data to come up with ideas that haven’t been tried yet, learn from their failed projects, or build a project that improves on a strategy they’ve used in the past.

Include a quick list of competitors with similar product or service offerings.

Briefly list a few things your company has in common with them, how your brand has differentiated itself already, and a few areas where this project can help you get ahead.Get Your Free Templates

6. Prepare the key message.

The key message can be the most difficult part of the creative brief to develop because just about every stakeholder will have a different opinion of what it should be.

To get buy-in faster, try this simple trick. Ask yourself "We're launching this project, so what?" The "so what?" is your key message. It explains why your target audience should stop what they're doing and pay attention to your campaign.

The key message includes the pain point, what the audience's experience might be like without the pain point, and the benefit they'll receive as a result of your company's solution.

This framework places the customer in the spotlight of the campaign. Instead of telling them what this product or service could do for them, it positions them as the main character in the journey from problem to solution.

7. Choose the key consumer benefit.

If you're launching a new product, there are likely several features and benefits that the target audience will experience when they decide to purchase it. However, it's very difficult to structure a campaign around several different features.

That's why marketers and creatives use something called a key consumer benefit (KCB) in the creative brief to keep everyone aligned on the primary benefit being communicated.

To choose the right KCB, you'll want to get input from the project stakeholders and rely on consumer data to guide the decision.

Pro Tip: Your KCB won't always be the fanciest feature of your product. The benefit that solves the biggest problem for your audience is a great choice for the KCB.

8. Select an attitude.

The tone and voice of your campaign create the overall attitude and that should be consistent throughout every creative element that's being developed.

Identifying a few adjectives that describe the attitude of the campaign can help copywriters draft copy that sends the correct message within the right context.

Graphic designers can use colors and techniques to portray the tone and voice as well.

In this section of the brief, you should also note the appropriate voice for your audience. While some audiences, like those in the business world, prefer more formal language, others might engage more with a casual, relatable tone.

To substantiate your decision to choose a particular brand voice and tone, you could write something like, “Our brand voice is a casual and carefree tone because it speaks to younger Gen-Z audiences.”

Pro tip: Use a thesaurus to find specific words that evoke nuanced emotions and attitudes for a hyper-targeted campaign.

9. Determine the best call to action.

Finally, your audience needs something to do once they see your campaign. The good thing about CTAs is that they don't have to be physical actions.

A CTA could have a goal to change thoughts and perceptions about your brand which doesn't require the audience to do anything at all.

Your creative brief might include several different CTAs, especially if you have a primary and secondary target audience. But it's a good idea to have one primary CTA that drives the project objective we talked about earlier.

10. Draft the distribution plan.

When the project is done, you’ll need to make sure your audience actually sees it. List a few channels or platforms on which you plan to announce the launch, as well as any promotional content you plan to create.

When drafting this section, think about your target audience. Don’t waste time on a promotional strategy that they won’t see.

For example, if you’re promoting a project to Gen-Z, you’ll want to invest in social media rather than billboards or newspaper ads.

11. Share the creative brief with stakeholders.

Once you’ve drafted a creative brief, share it with the team you’ll be working with. You’ll also want to circulate it around the company via Slack, email, or presentations.

If you’re a consultant working outside of a client’s company, encourage your clients to share the brief internally.

As you or your clients spread awareness, you should be open to answering questions or taking feedback from colleagues in case they have any great ideas.

This strategy will improve team alignment , increase support of the project, and ensure that all of your colleagues are on the same page.

Follow Along with HubSpot's Free Creative Brief Templates

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Creative Brief Templates

Having trouble with the flow and organization of your brief? Here are simple templates that could help. Copy and paste into a document and fill in the blanks. You can also add to the templates or adjust them as needed for your project.

Download More Creative Brief Templates

[Inset company or client logo at the top along with the project name.]

COMPANY BACKGROUND:

For ___ years, ______ [Brand Name] has been serving customers in the ____________ [group/job field/geographical area] with ____________________ [product or service].

[Brand Name] has made achievements including __________,__________, and ___________. We have also launched marketing campaigns that have touched on ____________,________, and ____________. With the launch of _________ [project name] they hope to ___________.

PROJECT OBJECTIVE:

With this project, the company aims to solve problems related to ____________________, while also expanding on ___________ and improving on _____________.

TARGET AUDIENCE:

Our target audience is ____ [gender], in the age range of _ and _, and live areas like ____, _____, and ______. They enjoy _____, dislike ______, and might work in fields like _____, _____, and _____. They want more of ________ and their daily pain points include ________.

Their favorite products might include _______ and ______. They learn about these products through channels including ________, _________, and _______.

COMPETITORS:

Our three biggest competitors [are/will be] ________, ________, and _______. These competitors offer _____, ______, and ______. We are ahead of them in _____ and ______, but we are behind when it comes to product offerings like __________ and _________.

KEY MESSAGE:

The target audience is experiencing __________ [pain point], but with our newest project ___________, they'll get to experience _________ [new experience without the pain point]. That's what makes ______ [solution] an unrivaled solution within the market.

KEY CONSUMER BENEFIT:

________ [feature] is the best way for our target audience to experience _____ [benefit].

[Include three to five adjectives that describe the tone and voice of the project.]

CALL TO ACTION:

When the target audience sees our campaign, they will [feel/think/do] _________.

DISTRIBUTION:

We will promote the launch on platforms and channels that our demographic regularly engages with. These will include ________, ________, and _______.

We will also release content including _______, _______, and ________ to gain attention from our audience and inform them of the project.

Below are a few messages we will use:

• _________________________________________________.

Here are more templates to consider:

1. Simple Campaign Creative Brief

2. video creative brief, 3. simple client creative brief, types of creative briefs.

Creative briefs serve several purposes in the communications field. Marketers, designers, and advertisers use them differently. Depending on your role, your team, and the project you're working on, one might be more effective than the other. Below are some of the most common types of creative briefs used across industries today plus examples of what they might look like.

1. Marketing Creative Briefs

A marketing creative brief is most commonly used to bring campaigns to market. This type of creative brief can be used for both new and existing campaigns. Broad business goals and strategies to accomplish them are usually included in this type of creative brief. It's also not uncommon to see revenue goals and a budget included in a marketing creative brief.

Simple Marketing Creative Brief Example

2. Product Design Creative Briefs

Product design creative briefs outline the go-to-market strategy for a new product or feature launch. Product marketers are responsible for developing this type of brief. Developed in conjunction with the product manager, the product design creative brief will describe the features and benefits of the product and how the audience will benefit from them. Unique features of this type of creative brief include product documentation and product descriptions.

Product Design Creative Brief Example

3. Advertising Agency Creative Briefs

Advertising agencies develop creative briefs often for the various clients they serve. These briefs are concise and include the client's brand guidelines as well as the specific project guidelines. A budget may also be included in the brief so that all teams can make wise decisions about the tactics they recommend for the client. An account manager or supervisor develops the creative brief and shares it with client stakeholders before the agency begins working on the project.

Advertising Agency Creative Brief Example

Creative Brief Examples

1. creative request template.

For the day-to-day management of creative projects, using a creative request template in Asana acts as a dynamic take on a traditionally static creative brief. With a few tweaks to suit your business's needs, this template flows through each stage of the project while specifying tasks, deliverables, and key points that need to be included in the project. Moreover, Asana provides several types of views that make this template easy to look at from a calendar view, list view, board view, and timeline view so you'll always know the progress of your project in relation to the creative brief.

When to Use This Creative Brief:

This creative brief example is great for marketing, brand, creative, and design teams who handle a large backlog of projects with stakeholders on many different teams. Use this brief for both ad-hoc and regularly occurring projects.

2. Creative Brief Presentation Template

This creative brief example was designed by TemplateForest. It's a visual-forward example of a brief that works well for long-term projects like building a business or refreshing a brand. This longer brief includes a variety of information from internal brand insights to an external competitive analysis.

Use this creative brief when you're partnering with a creative agency on bigger projects. They can use this layout to inspire a creative brief that fits the needs of your business.

3. Red Bull

Image source

This creative brief is straightforward and simple. The only eye-catching visual is the use of the brand's logo. However, all the necessary information is included. 

When to Use this Creative Brief

Use this kind of brief when you want a straightforward document detailing your brand's longterm creative projects.

4. Quaker 

This Creative Brief by Quaker lays out the brand's problem, plan, and guidelines and includes visually appealing graphics to drive home the brief's point. 

A brief like the one above is most useful if your organization is embarking on a long-term project or if there's a lot of information and data that needs to be conveyed in an understandable manner.

5. Graphic Design Creative Template 

This template is designed to allow graphic designers to gather important information from clients so that they designer can create a product that is aligned with the client's vision.

When to Use this Creative Brief 

Briefs like this work best when working with clients on detailed projects. 

6. Nike Creative Brief

This creative brief example for Nike features all the crucial information a brief should include while utilizing the Nike logo and symbols to create visual interest. 

A brief like this serves the same purpose as the Quaker brief. If you have a lot information to convey, including symbols and interesting colors will help the information stick out and remain top of mind. 

Streamline Projects with a Creative Brief

Scope creep happens to the best of us. Projects get bigger, stakeholders are added, and the objective of the project seems to morph as time goes on.

Streamline your next product launch or marketing and advertising campaign with a creative brief. As a result, you'll find that your team is more aligned with the project's goals.

We've even provided free creative brief templates to get you started — download them below.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in July 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

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Definition of brief

 (Entry 1 of 3)

Definition of brief  (Entry 2 of 3)

Definition of brief  (Entry 3 of 3)

transitive verb

• apothegmatic
• compendious
• elliptic
• epigrammatic
• monosyllabic
• sententious
• telegraphic
• encapsulation
• recapitulation
• resume
• resumé
• run-through
• summarization
• familiarize

Examples of brief in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'brief.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Middle English bref, breve , from Anglo-French bref, brief , from Latin brevis ; akin to Old High German murg short, Greek brachys

Middle English bref , from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin brevis , from Late Latin, summary, from Latin brevis brief entry 1

verbal derivative of brief entry 2

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

1836, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing brief

• a brief word
• hold a brief for
• keeping a watching brief
• watching brief

Articles Related to brief

A Brief on 'Brief' and 'Debrief'

The 'de-' in 'debrief' means "do the opposite of."

Dictionary Entries Near brief

Cite this entry.

“Brief.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brief. Accessed 10 Sep. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of brief.

Kids Definition of brief  (Entry 2 of 3)

Kids Definition of brief  (Entry 3 of 3)

Middle English bref, breve "short, brief," from early French brief, bref (same meaning), from Latin brevis "short" — related to breve

Middle English bref "formal letter," from early French bref (same meaning), derived from Latin brevis "summary," from earlier brevis (adjective) "short, brief"

Legal Definition

Legal definition of brief.

 (Entry 1 of 2)

called also memorandum

Note: Briefs are filed either by a party or an amicus curiae with a court usually regarding a specific motion (as for summary judgment) or point of law.

Legal Definition of brief  (Entry 2 of 2)

Old French bref , brief letter, writ indicating legal proceedings, from Late Latin brevis , breve short document, summary, from Latin brevis , adjective, short

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Nglish: Translation of brief for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of brief for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about brief

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• Presentation Skills
• Skills & Tools

Presentation skills can be defined as a set of abilities that enable an individual to: interact with the audience; transmit the messages with clarity; engage the audience in the presentation; and interpret and understand the mindsets of the listeners. These skills refine the way you put forward your messages and enhance your persuasive powers.

The present era places great emphasis on good presentation skills. This is because they play an important role in convincing the clients and customers. Internally, management with good presentation skills is better able to communicate the mission and vision of the organization to the employees.

Importance of Presentation Skills

Interaction with others is a routine job of businesses in today’s world. The importance of good presentation skills is established on the basis of following points:

• They help an individual in enhancing his own growth opportunities. In addition, it also grooms the personality of the presenter and elevates his levels of confidence.
• In case of striking deals and gaining clients, it is essential for the business professionals to understand the audience. Good presentation skills enable an individual to mold his message according to the traits of the audience. This increases the probability of successful transmission of messages.
• Lastly, business professionals have to arrange seminars and give presentations almost every day. Having good presentation skills not only increases an individual’s chances of success, but also enable him to add greatly to the organization.

How to Improve Presentation Skills

Development of good presentation skills requires efforts and hard work. To improve your presentation skills, you must:

• Research the Audience before Presenting: This will enable you to better understand the traits of the audience. You can then develop messages that can be better understood by your target audience. For instance, in case of an analytical audience, you can add more facts and figures in your presentation.
• Structure your Presentation Effectively: The best way to do this is to start with telling the audience, in the introduction, what you are going to present. Follow this by presenting the idea, and finish off the presentation by repeating the main points.
• Do a lot of Practice: Rehearse but do not go for memorizing the presentation. Rehearsals reduce your anxiety and enable you to look confident on the presentation day. Make sure you practice out loud, as it enables you to identify and eliminate errors more efficiently. Do not memorize anything as it will make your presentation look mechanical. This can reduce the degree of audience engagement.
• Take a Workshop: Most medium and large businesses allow their employees to take employee development courses and workshops, as well-trained employees are essential to the success of any company. You can use that opportunity to take a workshop on professional presentation skills such as those offered by Langevin Learning Services , which are useful for all business professionals, from employees to business trainers and managers.

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• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Meaning of presentation in English

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presentation noun ( EVENT )

• talk She will give a talk on keeping kids safe on the internet.
• lecture The lecture is entitled "War and the Modern American Presidency".
• presentation We were given a presentation of progress made to date.
• speech You might have to make a speech when you accept the award.
• address He took the oath of office then delivered his inaugural address.
• oration It was to become one of the most famous orations in American history.
• The presentation was a collaborative effort by all the children in the class .
• The charity invited the press to a presentation of its plans for the future .
• The magazine asked its readers to send in their comments about the new style of presentation.
• Jenny's retiring and I think there's going to be a small presentation this afternoon .
• Graduates must be in full academic dress at the presentation of certificates .
• call for papers
• deliver a speech
• maiden speech
• public speaking
• talk at someone

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

presentation noun ( APPEARANCE )

• adverse conditions
• good/bad karma idiom
• have it in you idiom
• unaffiliated
• undercurrent

presentation | American Dictionary

Presentation | business english, examples of presentation, collocations with presentation, presentation.

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a toy made from cloth and filled with a soft material so that it is pleasant to hold, often in the form of an animal

Like a bull in a china shop: talking about people who are clumsy

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What is PowerPoint Presentation with Features & Examples?

PowerPoint is a presentation software developed by Microsoft, which allows users to create, edit, and deliver visually engaging slideshows, whether you're a student, professional, or simply curious, explore the power of Microsoft PowerPoint and learn how you can create impactful presentations effortlessly.

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According to Glassdoor , a PowerPoint designer's average salary in the UK is about £37,811 annually. Who knew there was big money in presentations alone? In this blog, you will learn What PowerPoint is, its key features, its benefits, and how to use it, as well as learn some tips for creating effective presentations. 

Table of contents      

1) What is PowerPoint?   

2) Understanding the PowerPoint interface   

3) Key features of PowerPoint  

4) How to use PowerPoint to create a presentation?  

5) Benefits of PowerPoint   

6) Tips for creating effective PowerPoint Presentations  

7) Alternatives to PowerPoint    

What is PowerPoint?  

PowerPoint is an essential multifunctional tool for making presentations which had been created by MS. As a part of the Microsoft Office Suite, it offers a toolbox to organise the presentation by using different tools and features to make it visually pleasant and attractive. MS PowerPoint gives the opportunity for the text, graphics, multimedia objects, and animation elements to be combined in one place to allow the users to present information in a more effective way.  

Evolution of PowerPoint  

In the course of time, PowerPoint has become a very functional tool to produce high-quality presentations Moreover, a secure system would be established to manage risks of data leakage or theft. First released in 1987 for Apple computers, it defies to the competition with its easy Graphical User Interface (GUIGUI)) and its large range of functions. With every new release, MS PowerPoint offered new functionality and boasted significant improvements, staying the wonder of the world of presentations.

Understanding the PowerPoint interface  

 The PowerPoint Program provides the presenter with an easy-to-use interface for designing and updating the presentation. It is important to master its main functions in order to conduct operations using this software with a level of proficiency.Here's a breakdown of the MS PowerPoint interface:   

1) Ribbon: The Ribbon is located at the top of the MS PowerPoint window and has several tabs which include Home, Insert, Design, Transitions, etc.

2) Slides pane: Slide pane which is positioned to the far left of the window, is the PowerPoint window. You will see there a collection of your slides examples (thumbnails) which enables you to adjust and customize them with greater ease. The floating pane of the editor lets you not only add, delete, duplicate, but also hide slides from there.

3)   Notes pane : The Notes pane is located below the Slides pane. It provides space for adding speaker notes or additional information related to each slide.    

4)  Slide area : The Slide area occupies the central part of the PowerPoint window. It displays the selected slide, where you can add and arrange content such as text, images, charts, and multimedia elements .    

5)  Task panes : Task panes are additional panels on the PowerPoint window's right side. They offer various functionalities such as formatting options, slide layouts, animations, etc. Task panes can be opened or closed based on your specific needs.   

Understanding the MS PowerPoint interface will help you navigate the software effectively and make the most of its features. Whether you are creating slides, adding content, or applying formatting, having a good grasp of the interface ensures a smooth and productive experience .  

Create impactful project timelines! Click to learn How to Make a Gantt chart in PowerPoint and impress with your project planning skills!

Key Features of PowerPoint  

When it comes to creating captivating and professional presentations, MS PowerPoint stands out as versatile and feature-rich software. Its array of tools and functionalities enables users to bring their imagination and ideas to life. Moreover, it also helps engage their audience effectively .    

From slide templates to multimedia integration, there are various Features of PowerPoint ; let's discuss some of them below.

1) Slide Templates : PowerPoint provides a collection of pre-designed templates that make it easy to create visually appealing slides.   

2)  Slide Master : The Slide Master feature allows users to define the overall layout, font styles, and colour scheme for the entire presentation .   

3)  Animations and transitions : PowerPoint offers various animation effects and slide transitions to add visual interest and captivate the audience .   

4)  Multimedia integration : Users can embed images, videos, and audio files directly into their presentations, enhancing the overall impact .   

5)   Collaboration tools : MS PowerPoint allows multiple users to work on a presentation simultaneously, making it ideal for team projects and remote collaboration .   

6) Presenter View : The Presenter View feature gives presenters access to speaker notes, a timer, and a preview of upcoming slides, enabling a seamless presentation experience .   

These features collectively contribute to PowerPoint's versatility and make it a powerful tool for developing engaging and impactful presentations.  

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How to use PowerPoint to create a presentation?   

Creating a presentation in PowerPoint is a straightforward process. Whether it's simple animations or explainer videos learning H ow to use PowerPoint is an extremely valuable skill. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to create a presentation:   

1)  Launch PowerPoint and choose a template or start with a blank slide. 

2)  Add slides by clicking "New Slide" or using the shortcut key (Ctrl + M). 

3) Customise slide content by entering text and inserting visuals.  

4)  Rearrange slides for a logical flow by dragging them in the slide navigation pane.  

5)  Apply slide transitions for visual effects in the "Transitions" tab.  

6)  Add animations to objects in the "Animations" tab.  

7)  Preview your presentation by clicking "Slide Show".   

8)  Save your presentation and choose a format (.pptx or .pdf).  

9)  Share your presentation via email, cloud storage, or collaboration tools.   

By following these steps, you can create a well-structured and visually appealing presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint. Remember to keep your content concise, use engaging visuals, and practice your presentation skills to deliver an impactful presentation .   

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Benefits of PowerPoint   

PowerPoint is a very popular presentation software and for a good reason. It offers numerous benefits for users, from easy collaboration to ease of use. These are some of the key benefits of PowerPoint.

1) Visual appeal : Microsoft PowerPoint allows you to create visually appealing presentations with its wide range of design tools and features. You can use templates, themes, and customisable layouts to make your slides visually engaging and professional .   

2)  Easy to use : PowerPoint has a user-friendly interface, making it accessible to users of all levels. The intuitive tools and straightforward navigation make it easy to create, edit, and deliver presentations efficiently .   

3)   Flexibility : PowerPoint provides flexibility in terms of content creation. You can include various types of content, such as text, images, charts, graphs, videos, and audio files, to enhance your message and engage your audience effectively.   

4)   Organisation and structure : PowerPoint offers features to help you organise and structure your content. You can create multiple slides, use slide masters for consistent formatting, and arrange the sequence of slides to create a logical flow .   

5)  Presenter tools : PowerPoint includes built-in presenter tools that aid in delivering presentations smoothly. You can use presenter view to see your notes and upcoming slides while your audience sees only the presentation. Additionally, features like slide transitions and animations add visual interest and help you control the flow of information .   

Land the job with ease! Learn how to ace your PowerPoint interview with tips to create slides that leave a lasting impression!

6)  Collaboration and sharing : PowerPoint allows for easy collaboration and sharing of presentations. Several users can simultaneously work on the same presentation, making it convenient for team projects. You can also share your presentations via email, cloud storage, or online platforms, ensuring easy access for viewers .   

7)   Integration with other tools : PowerPoint can seamlessly integrate with other Microsoft Office applications, such as Word and Excel. You can import data and charts from Excel or copy and paste content between different Office applications, saving time and effort .  

8)   Presenter-audience interaction : PowerPoint provides features that facilitate interaction between the presenter and the audience. You can include interactive elements like hyperlinks, buttons, and quizzes to engage your audience and make your presentations more dynamic.   

9)   Portable and accessible : PowerPoint presentations can be saved in various formats, such as .pptx or .pdf, making them easily accessible on different devices. This portability allows you to deliver presentations on laptops, tablets, or even projectors without compatibility issues .   

10)  Time and effort savings : PowerPoint simplifies the process of creating presentations, saving you time and effort. The pre-designed templates, slide layouts, and formatting options enable you to create professional-looking presentations efficiently .   

Keynote vs. PowerPoint : Discover which tool is best for your presentations! Click to compare features and make the right choice!

Tips for Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations   

PowerPoint presentations can be powerful tools for communicating information and engaging an audience. Consider the following PowerPoint Tips to create effective presentations .

1) Simplicity is key : Keep your slides clean and uncluttered. Use concise bullet points and simple visuals to convey your message effectively .   

2)  Visuals matter : Incorporate relevant, high-quality visuals such as images, charts, and diagrams to enhance understanding and engagement .   

3)  Limit text : Avoid overwhelming your audience with excessive text on slides. Use brief phrases or keywords to communicate key points .   

4)  Choose legible fonts : Opt for clear and readable fonts that are easy to read, even from a distance. Maintain consistency in font styles throughout your presentation .   

5)  Consistent design : Maintain a consistent design theme, including colours, fonts, and layout, to create a visually appealing and professional presentation.   

6)  Emphasise important points : Use visual hierarchy techniques, such as font size, colour, and formatting, to draw attention to essential information .   

7)  Use transitions and animations sparingly : Incorporate slide transitions and animations thoughtfully, focusing on enhancing content and transitions without distracting the audience .   

8)  S lide notes for guidance : Utilise the slide notes feature to include additional details, explanations, or reminders for a well-prepared and confident presentation.   

9)  Practice and time yourself : Rehearse your presentation to ensure smooth delivery and stay within the allocated time. Practice helps you refine your content and delivery.   

10)  Engage the audience : Encourage audience participation through interactive elements, questions, or discussions to foster engagement and make your presentation more memorable.   

By implementing these tips, you can create effective MS PowerPoint presentations that capture attention, communicate information clearly, and engage your audience effectively.  

Google Slides vs. PowerPoint : Which is best for you? Click to compare features and choose the right tool for your next presentation!

Alternatives to PowerPoint  

Most of you are used to using PowerPoint for your presentation needs since it was the first option available to us through our academics. However, if you wish to check out alternative options to Powerpoint know if they work better for you, here are ten options that is worth a short: 

5) Slidebean

6) Zoho Show 

7) Google Slide 

9) Beautiful.ai

10) Microsoft Sway

Conclusion     

This blog walked you through What is PowerPoint and how it can aid you in curating compelling visual representations of the message you wish to get across. We discussed it features and the process of how you can create presentations on PowerPoint. Now take what you know and run with it explore your options with your templates and building new ones, let your creativity take its course. 

Learn how to create customised slide shows in MS PowerPoint with our Microsoft PowerPoint MO300 Training .  

Frequently Asked Questions

Well, making a presentation can be tricky business. Here are some of the common mistakes people make:

1) Adding too much text! The presentation needs to have brief and simple points you elaborate on in person. 

2) Bad colour schemes for template and font colour. Sometimes the clash of colour may make the text illegible. 

3) Too many elements! Crowding of elements may lose your audience’s attention.   

Yes, you most definitely can! You can use PowerPoint online with a Microsoft Office 360 plug in that allows you to use all Microsoft applications on your browser. 

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Look up a word, learn it forever.

Other forms: briefing; briefs; briefed; briefest; briefer

Something brief is short and to the point. If you make a brief visit, you don't stay long. If you make a brief statement, you use few words. If you wear brief shorts, you are showing a little too much leg.

As a noun, a brief is a condensed summary or abstract, especially a legal summary of a case. Lawyers submit pretrial briefs to the court outlining the witnesses for the prosecution or defense. As a verb, brief means to give essential information to someone — like the President gets briefed on important matters.

• adjective of short duration or distance “a brief stay in the country” synonyms: short primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
• adjective concise and succinct “covered the matter in a brief statement” synonyms: breviloquent , concise expressing much in few words
• adjective (of clothing) very short synonyms: abbreviated short (primarily spatial sense) having little length or lacking in length
• verb give essential information to someone “The reporters were briefed about the President's plan to invade” see more see less type of: apprise , apprize , instruct make aware of
• noun a condensed written summary or abstract see more see less type of: abstract , outline , precis , synopsis a sketchy summary of the main points of an argument or theory
• noun a document stating the facts and points of law of a client's case synonyms: legal brief see more see less types: amicus curiae brief a brief presented by someone interested in influencing the outcome of a lawsuit but who is not a party to it type of: instrument , legal document , legal instrument , official document (law) a document that states some contractual relationship or grants some right

Vocabulary lists containing brief

A thorough survey of various textbooks, assignments, content area standards, and examinations yields the following list of words compiled by Jim Burke . You cannot expect to succeed on assignments if you do not understand the directions.

In this poignant short story set on Venus, Ray Bradbury explores isolation and bullying. Here are links to our lists for short stories by the award-winning author: A Sound of Thunder , All Summer in a Day , August 2026 , Marionettes, Inc. , The Black Ferris , The Drummer Boy of Shiloh , The Flying Machine , The Pedestrian , The Veldt

Here are links to our lists for the play: Act I , Act II , Act III , Act IV , Act V Here are links to other plays by William Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet , The Tempest , Hamlet , King Lear , The Tragedy of Macbeth , Julius Caesar , Much Ado About Nothing , Twelfth Night , Measure for Measure , Othello , A Midsummer Night's Dream

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Presentation vs Brief - What's the difference?

As nouns the difference between presentation and brief, as an adjective brief is, as a verb brief is, as an adverb brief is, presentation, alternative forms, derived terms, related terms, external links.

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Power definitions of Brief presentation

Meaning via related definitions.

A brokerage account of someone who sells short (sells securities he does not own)

A pitch thrown without any of the normal setup routine to try and catch a batter off guard (baseball)

A brief and simple sales pitch; a short summary of a business plan, process, or product, and its selling point and value proposition

Plural of elevator pitch

A writ summoning one to answer; an official letter or mandate (law)

The act of presenting, or something presented

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briefing vs presentation

• Thread starter JoyBee
• Start date Jul 25, 2020
• Jul 25, 2020

Hello, everyone. I would like to know the exact differences between briefing and presentation. Does briefing sound more informal than presentation? Is the length of briefing is much shorter than presentation? Is the word briefing used when you report to only a few people in your company, but the word presentation is used when you report to more people outside your company or in a public occasion?  

Senior Member

None of your suggested differences is actually the case. They are equally formal and the numbers of people involved can vary in both cases They have similarities, but you can also differentiate between them. briefing – one person explains the situation and tells the others what will happen next or what they have to do. presentation – one person presents or displays an idea/plan to a group of people (sometimes for their approval; sometimes just for their information).  

A briefing is when you want to brief people about something. It has a very specific purpose. "Presentation" has a far wider use, and can include a briefing. There is no difference in formality, duration or audience. [Cross-posted]  

Do you agree with the reply I found here ?  

JoyBee said: Do you agree with the reply I found here ? Click to expand...

(1) "Briefing" To [brief] someone is to casually explain or go over information in about 1 to 8 minutes. This information is quick and usually said all at once to maybe 1 to 4 people in a group. • "I had to hurry to my next class so I quickly briefed my group members about the information we all collected on the research." (2) "Presentation" To [present] is to talk in front of a group of people for 5-30 minutes (sometimes longer) and give diagrams, charts, etc about information collected on a topic thats been assigned. • "I had a presentation that I had to do in front of the whole class and it was suppose to be about the worlds views on apples." Click to expand...

Uncle Jack said: A briefing is when you want to brief people about something. It has a very specific purpose. Click to expand...

Andygc said: We should not need to follow a link to understand your question I'd say that attempt at differentiation is nonsense. I'd disagree with Chez in that a briefing does not imply a single speaker. I used to go to morning briefings on a flying station. Sqn Ldr Ops briefed about operational matters, the met man would brief the weather, somebody from air traffic would brief NOTAMs and other airspace matters, OC Flying or the Station Commander might have something to say. That took anything between 15 and 30 minutes and there would be some 50 people in the room. The briefing for a major exercise might take over an hour, and be given to an audience of 100 or more. Click to expand...

JulianStuart

JoyBee said: Hello, Andygc, After reading your reply, I have the feeling that briefing and presentation are not only interchangeable but also equivalent. Click to expand...

According to Cambridge Dictionary, briefing is "information that is given to someone just before they do something , or a meeting where this happens," while presentation is "a talk giving information about something." I want to know if you guys regard them almost the same in daily life.  

JoyBee said: According to Cambridge Dictionary, briefing is "information that is given to someone just before they do something , or a meeting where this happens," while presentation is "a talk giving information about something." I want to know if you guys regard them almost the same in daily life. Click to expand...

Uncle Jack said: A briefing is when you want to brief people about something. It has a very specific purpose. "Presentation" has a far wider use, and can include a briefing. Click to expand...

JoyBee said: I want to know if you guys regard them almost the same in daily life. Click to expand...

A briefing is about events that are currently happening in some way and includes specific information given by someone in authority. They are giving that information to an audience that needs or wants to know that information about those events. As was said above, a briefing would be held by commanders before a military mission to tell the troops taking part in that mission what their assigned duties are and details of the mission they need to know. A briefing might be held during a crisis like a natural disaster. If there is a big forest fire approaching a town, the leaders of the town might hold a briefing to give the townspeople and the reporters the latest news about what is happening and what they should do. On the other hand, if I give a report to my classmates about the Roman Empire after I have studied about it, that is not a briefing, that is a presentation. I am not in a position of authority and I'm not giving my classmates information about a current event that they need to know. I am giving them information from books about things that happened thousands of years ago.  

Andygc said: Again no. To brief "to prepare or instruct by giving a summary of relevant facts" (Collins). I can brief you on tonight's bombing mission, or on the arrangements for going to London next week to see the Trooping of the Colour. I can give you a presentation on the historical background to the Battle of Hastings, the path of the lingual nerve*, the role of the police pension authority's selected medical practitioner, or the pointlessness of butter knives. None of those would be briefings. * The lingual nerve it took a swerve around the hyoglossus, "Well I'll be f****d", said Wharton's Duct, "the bastard's double crossed us!" Click to expand...

JoyBee said: There is always someone briefing them on something important or confidential to do. But when we visit a historic spot, there may be someone giving us a presentation about its history. Click to expand...

Although, please don't get the idea that a presentation is only about things that happened a long time ago. If the health commissioner of a city goes on television and gives information about the latest number of COVID-19 cases in the city and what the city is doing to fight it and where you can go to get tested, that is a briefing. If I am a student and I stand up in front of my class and tell them about COVID-19 virus and where it came from and what symptoms it causes and other information about it, that is a presentation, not a briefing. As a student, I am not in a position of authority. I don't have responsibility for the health of the citizens and I can't make any decisions about what the city does.