How to scope a presentation project
(Especially when you don’t know what you need yet)
We get this question a lot:
“I know we need help with this presentation — but I’m not even sure what to ask for.”
That’s not a problem. In fact, that’s a great starting point.
Whether you’re facing a rushed deadline, a complex deck with too many cooks or a big moment like a launch or a board meeting, estimating a PowerPoint project doesn’t have to be overwhelming. At Notion, we help clients like you define the ask — not just fulfill it.
Here’s a quick guide to help you figure out what kind of support you need — and how to communicate that to a design partner (even if that’s us).
1. Start with the “Why”
Before you worry about the number of slides or animations, get clear on the business goal.
Ask yourself:
- Why does this presentation exist?
- What’s the one thing you want your audience to understand or do?
- What’s at stake if this goes well, or doesn’t?
This helps us understand the level of investment, polish and design thinking your deck needs.
EXAMPLE: A product launch with 4 slides may need more strategy and creative effort than a 40-slide internal update.
2. Consider the starting point
Be honest about what you have — and what you don’t.
| What you might have | What that means for scoping |
|---|---|
| A written outline or raw content | Great! We’ll help shape it into a narrative. |
| A past deck you want to reuse | We can evaluate what’s usable vs. what needs updating. |
| Just an idea and a deadline | No problem — we’ll help build the whole thing. |
We get a lot of decks that start as whiteboard photos or half-baked bullets. That’s totally fine. Our job is to make sense of the chaos.
3. Define the audience + use case
Who is this presentation for?
- Internal execs?
- Cross-functional teams?
- External customers or prospects?
- The board? Investors? Analysts?
Each audience has different expectations — and knowing who’s in the room (or on the call) helps shape tone, structure and visual approach.
Also think about how the deck will be used:
- Live presentation with a speaker?
- Self-guided readout?
- PDF leave-behind?
- Editable base for multiple teams?
Different formats need different design strategies (e.g., how much content to put on the slide, animation needs, print-friendly formats, light vs. dark backgrounds, etc.).
4. Think in terms of complexity — not just slide count
Slide count alone doesn’t determine effort. We usually break it down like this:
| Slide type | Estimated effort |
| Simple (text or pre-templatized) | ~5–10 minutes |
| Medium (light formatting, existing content) | ~30 minutes |
| Complex (custom layout, visual thinking needed) | ~1–2 hours |
| Strategic/Conceptual (no clear direction yet) | Varies — we guide and build |
If you’re unsure how complex it is, we can help audit the draft (for free!) and flag where the real work is.
5. Share the timeline (and be honest)
Do you have:
- A hard deadline for a live event?
- An internal milestone you’re working toward?
- “Sometime next month” with a little flexibility?
We work fast — but knowing what’s truly fixed helps us prioritize. It also helps us apply the right level of polish for the time and budget you have.
We can move mountains, especially when we know your brand and content well. That’s part of our secret sauce — long-term relationships where we invest into getting to know you, your company and its products/solutions.
6. Budget awareness helps (even ballpark)
We don’t need a final number, but knowing the range (or constraints) helps us recommend the best approach:
- Tight deadline, fixed budget? We’ll focus on impact slides.
- Flexible timeline, bigger moment? Let’s build something amazing.
- Need quick support now, bigger design system later? Let’s plan both.
We believe in right-sizing the effort to the ask. Not over-designing, not underwhelming.
7. If you’re not sure — just say that
Really. We love when clients come to us early and say:
“I have 3 decks due this quarter, and
I don’t know what I need help with yet.”
That’s the start of a smart partnership.
We can help:
- Prioritize what needs real design
- Recommend where a library or system might help
- Flag opportunities for reuse
- Break the work into phases to manage time and budget
Let’s recap
What to tell a presentation design partner:
Here’s a quick checklist of things to share:
- Why the presentation exists
- Who it’s for (and how they’ll experience it)
- What you have (content, decks, branding)
- Any must-haves or deal breakers (e.g. “no animation” or “must match new brand”)
- Deadline
- Budget ballpark (if known)
Don’t worry if you can’t fill in all the blanks. That’s what we’re here for. (Oh, and creative briefs on projects are wonderful too, but we can always walk you through that.)
