Giving a presentation to senior management or an executive team can be a little daunting. You need to create just the right design to appeal to a C-suite group.

This includes everything from color choice to typography to messaging. When it all comes together, you need a polished presentation deck to make a good impression.

Here, we’ve got some templates and tips to help you create just the right presentation, to help you get your message across in a stylish and professional way.

Use a Simple Color Palette

A presentation for senior management or executives is not the place to go wild with color or other design choices. You want the content to steal the show, not the color.

Design your presentation with a muted or neutral palette. Use one or two accent colors. If you are working on a presentation for an existing brand, use the color palette according to those brand guidelines.

White, light, or neutral backgrounds are best. This isn’t the place to experiment with dark mode or trendy colors unless you are certain it is appropriate for your direct audience.

Template to try: Executive Real Estate Presentation Template

Keep Content Direct

Management and executives are busy people. Don’t drag out your presentation with content that isn’t to the point.

Use direct messaging and language with calls to action that show your audience exactly what you are trying to say. Don’t get caught up with using animations, long videos, or other design tricks. Create a presentation that is simple, direct, and focuses on the content therein.

Template to try: Companhia Business Keynote Template

Use Charts and Graphs Where Necessary

Charts, infographics, and numbers can help support certain types of presentations. Use these supporting elements where necessary to help make a strong case for what you are communicating.

As with other design elements, use supporting graphics in a way that emphasizes your message and keep them are direct and simple as possible.

This is where a presentation design template can really come in handy. Look for one that presents information in the way you want to communicate it to the audience to help create your slide deck quickly.

Template to try: Accounting Finance in Business PowerPoint Template

Order Slides in a Logical Order

As with other storytelling methods, a strong presentation has a beginning, middle, and end. Order your slides in a logical order that tells your story in this way.

Start with an introduction, mission, vision, or goals. Use a table of contents if your presentation is exceptionally long or will be viewed without you (such as an emailed presentation).

Then get to the heart of what you want to say. Make statements that you can follow up with supporting evidence. This is where charts, images, or graphics can come in handy to help better tell the story.

Finally, wrap up with outcomes or what should happen next. Provide an opportunity for questions or feedback. Don’t forget the call to action: What are the managers or executives you were presenting to supposed to do next? Give them an easy opportunity to take that action.

Template to try: Buzz Consultant PowerPoint Template

Use Easy to Read Typefaces

A presentation for senior management or executives is not the place to start experimenting with wild typefaces. Keep it simple. Readability here is vital.

For the most part, you’ll probably need two typefaces: A display typeface for titles and headers and a body typeface for everything else (you might need this one to include bold or italic options).

Simple sans serif typefaces are the preferred option in most cases. They are easy to read and won’t get in the way of your message. Serif typefaces are also acceptable. Stay away from scripts, novelty fonts, or blackletter for the most part.

Template to try: Centric Corporate PowerPoint Presentation

Don’t Use Too Many Slides

A good presentation should have a strong message. Communicate it in as few slides as possible.

This will help you be respectful of the time of the people you are presenting to, help capture more of their attention, and provide a strong focus for what you are trying to say.

There’s no exact formula for number of slides. There are a few guidelines to help you think through how many you need:

• One thought/idea per slide
• Keep text to a minimum for in-person presentations
• Design for hierarchy and scanning so it is easy to read each slide quickly
• Plan for a cadence of one to two slides per minute

Template to try: Gratus Business Keynote Template

Use Blocks of Content

Think about presentation content in chunks or blocks that help the audience easily digest information. One popular way to do this is with a split-screen design that divides content into two parts – maybe an image and text or two columns of text.

People naturally read from left to right and this can help direct visual flow and make content easier to understand.

This type of design is also organized, visually elegant, and can help you create a design that will appeal to your C-suite audience. It can also work for almost any type of content.

Template to try: Lampu Innovative Google Slides Template

Conclusion

A strong presentation for senior management and executives is simple, direct, and has visual flair without being overwhelming. Refine your message and slide deck to maximize impact in the most concise amount of time possible.

And don’t forget to finish with your ask. Why were you presenting in the first place? Provide a reminder at the end of the presentation with a call to action.