Effective & ethical use of visuals [compatibility mode]

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES After studying this chapter, you will be able to do the following: 1. Explain the power of business images, discuss six principles of graphic design that help ensure effective visuals, and explain how to avoid ethical lapses when using visuals 2. Explain how to choose which points in your message to illustrate 3. Describe the most common options for presenting data in a visual format 4. Describe the most common options for presenting information, concepts, and ideas 5. Explain how to integrate visuals with text and list three criteria to review in order to verify the quality of your visuals

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Although written messages are the primary focus of this course, visual communication has become an important skill in today's workplace. This chapter helps you appreciate the power of images and the evolution of visuals in business communication. It then explains how to identify points in your messages to illustrate, how to select the best visual for each of those points, and how to create effective visuals in any medium, from memos to reports to web pages to electronic presentations.

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Well-designed visual elements can enhance the communication power of textual messages, and in some instances, even replace them. Visuals can convey some complex message points more effectively and efficiently than words. Generally speaking, therefore, well-designed images can convey much more information than text.

Visuals attract and hold people’s attention, and attractive visuals can draw readers deeper into your reports and presentations. Pictures are also an effective way to communicate with the diverse audiences that are common in today’s business environment.

In addition to their direct information value, a significant part of the power—and risk—of visual elements derives from their connotative meanings. Many colors, shapes, and other design elements have visual symbolism, and their symbolic, connotative meaning can evolve over time and mean different things in different cultures. Being aware of these symbolic meanings and using them to your advantage are important aspects of effective communication.

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The process of creating and working with visual elements used to be the domain of experts with complex and expensive tools. However, digital technology has changed this situation dramatically.

While technology has placed visual design and production in the hands of everyday business communicators in recent years, audience skills and expectations have been evolving as well. U.S. government research indicates that only half of the adult population in the U.S. now has the reading skills necessary for success in today’s workplace. Visuals could play a vital role in communicating with audiences who may have trouble understanding written messages. In addition, since people are living in a more visual, media-saturated environment, audiences may expect messages to be more visual.

As a result of these changes, visual literacy (the ability to create and interpret visual images) has become a key business skill. Therefore, knowing how to help your audience see what you see will help you to become a more effective communicator.

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Creating effective visuals requires the use of six fundamental principles:

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Creating effective visuals requires the use of six fundamental principles: Consistency. Audiences view a series of visuals as a whole and assume that design elements will be consistent from one page to the next. You can achieve visual parallelism through the consistent use of color, shape, size, texture, position, scale, or typeface.

Contrast. Readers expect visual distinctions to match verbal ones. To emphasize differences, depict items in contrasting colors. To emphasize similarities, use more subtle colors.

Balance. Images that appear to be out of balance can be unsettling. Balance can be formal, in which the elements in the images are arranged symmetrically around a central point or axis. Balance can be informal, in which stronger and weaker elements are arranged in such a way that achieves an overall balance.

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Emphasis. Make sure that the visually dominant element really does represent the most important information, and visually downplay less important items.

Convention. Visual communication is guided by generally accepted rules or conventions, just as written communication is guided by spelling, grammar, punctuation, and usage conventions.

Simplicity. Keep business communication visuals simple. Remember that you are conveying information, not creating artwork. Furthermore, avoid chart junk; i.e., decorative elements that clutter documents without adding any relevant information.

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The potential power of visuals places an ethical burden on business communicators.

You can work to avoid ethical lapses in your visuals by following these guidelines: Consider all possible interpretations—and misinterpretations. Try to view your visuals from your audience’s perspective.

Provide context. Even when they are accurate, visuals show only a partial view of reality. Provide background information to help the audience interpret them correctly.

Do not hide or minimize negative information that runs counter to your argument. Help the audience make fully informed decisions regarding your content.

Do not exaggerate information that supports your argument. Resist the temptation to alter or enhance photographs and other images in ways that support your arguments.

Do not oversimplify complex situations. Take care not to mislead an audience by hiding complications that are important to their understanding of the situation.

Do not imply cause-and-effect relationships without providing proof that they exist. Claim a causal relationship only when you can isolate the factor that can account for the result in question.

Avoid emotional manipulation or other forms of coercion. Visuals can be used persuasively in emotional appeals, but do not overstep into unethical manipulation.

Be careful with the way you aggregate data. Creating visuals involves decisions about aggregating, or grouping, data. The decisions you make can have a profound effect on the message your audience receives.

This concludes our discussion of the following elements of Understanding Visual

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Communication: the power of images, the visual evolution in business communication, visual design principles, and visual communication ethics. The next section will cover Identifying Points to Illustrate.

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The potential power of visuals places an ethical burden on business communicators.

You can work to avoid ethical lapses in your visuals by following these guidelines: Consider all possible interpretations—and misinterpretations. Try to view your visuals from your audience’s perspective.

Provide context. Even when they are accurate, visuals show only a partial view of reality. Provide background information to help the audience interpret them correctly.

Do not hide or minimize negative information that runs counter to your argument. Help the audience make fully informed decisions regarding your content.

Do not exaggerate information that supports your argument. Resist the temptation to alter or enhance photographs and other images in ways that support your arguments.

Do not oversimplify complex situations. Take care not to mislead an audience by hiding complications that are important to their understanding of the situation.

Do not imply cause-and-effect relationships without providing proof that they exist. Claim a causal relationship only when you can isolate the factor that can account for the result in question.

Avoid emotional manipulation or other forms of coercion. Visuals can be used persuasively in emotional appeals, but do not overstep into unethical manipulation.

Be careful with the way you aggregate data. Creating visuals involves decisions about aggregating, or grouping, data. The decisions you make can have a profound effect on the message your audience receives.

This concludes our discussion of the following elements of Understanding Visual

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Communication: the power of images, the visual evolution in business communication, visual design principles, and visual communication ethics. The next section will cover Identifying Points to Illustrate.

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Provide context. Even when they are accurate, visuals show only a partial view of reality. Provide background information to help the audience interpret them correctly.

Do not hide or minimize negative information that runs counter to your argument. Help the audience make fully informed decisions regarding your content.

Do not exaggerate information that supports your argument. Resist the temptation to alter or enhance photographs and other images in ways that support your arguments.

Do not oversimplify complex situations. Take care not to mislead an audience by hiding complications that are important to their understanding of the situation.

Do not imply cause-and-effect relationships without providing proof that they exist. Claim a causal relationship only when you can isolate the factor that can account for the result in question.

Avoid emotional manipulation or other forms of coercion. Visuals can be used persuasively in emotional appeals, but do not overstep into unethical manipulation.

Be careful with the way you aggregate data. Creating visuals involves decisions about aggregating, or grouping, data. The decisions you make can have a profound effect on the message your audience receives.

This concludes our discussion of the following elements of Understanding Visual Communication: the power of images, the visual evolution in business communication, visual design principles, and visual communication ethics. The next section will cover Identifying Points to Illustrate.

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To help identify which parts of your message can benefit from visual support, consider your message from the audience’s point of view. Which parts of the message are likely to seem complex, open to misinterpretation, or even just a little bit dull? Are there any connections between ideas that might not be obvious if they are addressed only in text? Is there a lot of numeric data or other discrete factual content that would be difficult to read if presented in paragraph form? Is there a chance that the main idea won’t “jump off the page,” if it’s covered only in text?

If you answer yes to any of these questions, you probably need one or more visuals.

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When you are deciding which points to present visually, think of the 5 C’s: Clear. The human mind is adept at processing visual information. If you are having difficultly conveying an idea in words, take a minute to brainstorm some visual possibilities.

Complete. Visuals often provide the supporting details for key ideas or recommendations. A visual can provide these details without getting in the way of your main message.

Concise. You have probably heard the phrase, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” If a particular section of your message seems to require extensive descriptions or explanations, see whether there is a way to convey this information visually.

Connected. A key purpose of many business messages is showing connections of some sort—similarities or differences, cause-and-effect relationships, and so on.

When you want readers to see such a connection, try using a chart, diagram, or other illustration.

Compelling. Your readers live in a highly visual world. Even so, avoid inserting visuals simply for decorative purposes; however, if a particular point can be expressed equally well via text or visuals, consider adding the visual in order to make your report or presentation more compelling.

This concludes our discussion of Identifying Points to Illustrate. The next section will cover Selecting Visuals for Presenting Data.

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Once you've identified which points would benefit most from being presented visually, your next decision is choosing which type of visual to use for each message point. The visuals used most commonly to present data include tables; line charts and surface charts; bar charts, pictograms, and Gantt charts; scatter and bubble diagrams; and pie charts.

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When you have to present detailed, specific information, choose a table, a systematic arrangement of data in columns and rows. Tables are ideal when the audience needs the information that would be either difficult or tedious to handle in the main text.

Many tables are strictly numerical. When preparing such tables, observe the following guidelines: •Use common, understandable units, and clearly identify them (such as dollars, percentages, price per ton) •Express all items in a column in the same unit, and round off for simplicity •Label column headings clearly, and use a subhead if necessary •Separate columns or rows with lines or extra space to make the table easy to follow •Provide totals or averages of columns when relevant •Document the source of the data using the same format as a text footnote

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Line charts are commonly used to show trends over time or the relationship of two or more variables. In line charts showing trends, the vertical (y-axis) shows the amount, and the horizontal (x-axis) shows the time or other quantity against which the amount is being measured. You can plot just a single line. If you need to compare two or more sets of data, however, you can plot them on the same chart for instant visual comparison. Two or three lines on a single chart are usually easy to read, but beyond that, things can get confusing, particularly if the lines cross.

A surface chart is a form of line chart with a cumulative effect; all of the lines add up to the top line, which represents the total.

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A bar chart portrays numbers by the height or length of its rectangular bars, making a series of numbers easy to read or understand. Bar charts are particularly valuable when you want to: •Compare the size of several items at one time •Show changes in one item over time •Indicate the composition of several items over time •Show the relative size of components of a whole You can be creative with bar charts in many ways. You might align the bars either vertically or horizontally, or you might even use bar charts to show both positive and negative quantities. Keep all the bars in the chart the same width. In addition, space the bars evenly and place them in a logical order, such as chronological or alphabetical.

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A chart that portrays data as symbols instead of words or numbers is known as a pictogram. The chief value of pictograms is their novelty and ability to convey a more literal, visual message, but they can be more difficult to read if they are not designed with care and can convey a less professional tone than a straightforward bar chart.

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Closely related to the bar chart is the time line chart, which shows how much time is needed to complete each task in a given project. When you want to track progress toward completing a project, you can use a type of time line chart known as a Gantt chart.

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A pie chart is a commonly used tool for showing how the parts of a whole are distributed. Although pie charts are popular and can quickly highlight the dominant parts of a whole, they are often not as effective as bar charts or tables. For example, comparing percentages accurately is often difficult with a pie chart but can be fairly easy with a bar chart. Making pie charts easier to read with accuracy can require labeling each slice with data values, in which case a table might serve the purpose more effectively.

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A pie chart is a commonly used tool for showing how the parts of a whole are distributed. Although pie charts are popular and can quickly highlight the dominant parts of a whole, they are often not as effective as bar charts or tables. For example, comparing percentages accurately is often difficult with a pie chart but can be fairly easy with a bar chart. Making pie charts easier to read with accuracy can require labeling each slice with data values, in which case a table might serve the purpose more effectively.

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Conventional charts and graphs are limited in several ways: Most types can show only a limited number of data points, they often can’t show complex relationships among data points, and they can represent only numeric data. A diverse class of display capabilities known as data visualization can overcome all these drawbacks.

Unlike charts and graphs, data visualization is less about clarifying individual data points and more about extracting broad meaning from masses of data or putting the data in context.

In addition to displaying large data sets, other kinds of visualization tools combine data with textual information to communicate complex or dynamic data faster than conventional presentations. For example, a tag cloud shows the relative frequency of terms or tags in an article, a blog, a website, survey data, or another collection of text.

This concludes our discussion of the following topics as they apply to Selecting Visuals for Presenting Data: tables; line and surface charts; bar charts, Gantt charts, and pictograms; scatter and bubble diagrams; pie charts; and data visualization. The next section will cover Selecting Visuals for Presenting Information, Concepts, and Ideas.

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In addition to facts and figures, you’ll need to present other types of information, from spatial relationships to abstract ideas. The most common types of visuals for these applications include flowcharts and organization charts; maps; drawings, diagrams, and photographs;

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In addition to facts and figures, you’ll need to present other types of information, from spatial relationships to abstract ideas. The most common types of visuals for these applications include flowcharts and organization charts; maps; drawings, diagrams, and photographs; infographics; and animation and video.

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If you need to show physical or conceptual relationships rather than numeric ones, you might want to use a flowchart or organization chart.

A flowchart illustrates a sequence of events from start to finish. It is an effective tool for illustrating processes, sequential relationships, and procedures.

There is a formal flowchart “language,” in which each shape has a specific meaning. If you’re communicating with computer programmers and others who are accustomed to formal flowcharting, use the correct symbols in each case to avoid confusion.

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An organization chart illustrates the positions, units, or functions in an organization and the ways in which they interrelate. Organization charts can be used to portray almost any hierarchy, such as the topics, subtopics, and supporting points needed to organize a report.

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Maps are useful for showing territories, routes, and locations. Simple maps are available via clip art libraries, but more powerful uses (e.g., generating color-coded maps based on data inputs) usually require the specialized capabilities of geographic information systems.

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Drawings can show an endless variety of business concepts, such as the network of suppliers in an industry or the process for completing payroll each week.

Complex diagrams can convey technical topics such as the design, function, and operation of a machine or system. Diagrams that contain enough visual and textual information to function as independent documents are sometimes called infographics.

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Photographs offer both functional and decorative value, and nothing can top a photograph when you need to show exact appearances. However, in some situations, a photograph can show too much detail, which is one reason repair manuals frequently use drawings instead of photos. Because audiences expect photographs to show literal visual truths, take care when using image-processing tools. To use photographs successfully, keep the following in mind: consider whether a diagram would be more effective, learn how to use basic image processing functions, be sure the photographs have communication value, and respect copyrights and model permissions.

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Now that you understand the communication power of visuals and have chosen the best visuals to illustrate key points in your report, website, or presentation, it’s time to get creative. This section offers advice on creating visuals, integrating them with your text, and verifying the quality of your visual elements.

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Whether you’re using the charting functions offered in a spreadsheet or the design features of a specialized graphics program, take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the software. For important visuals, try to have a professional designer set up a template for the various types of visuals you and your colleagues need to create. In addition to helping ensure an effective design, using templates saves you the time of making numerous design decisions every time you create a chart or graphic.

No matter which tools you may be using, take care to match the style and quality of your visuals with the subject matter and the situation at hand. The style of your visuals communicates a subtle message about your relationship with the audience. A simple sketch might be fine for a working meeting but inappropriate for a formal presentation or report. On the other hand, elaborate, full-color visuals may be viewed as extravagant for an informal report but may be entirely appropriate for a message to top management or influential outsiders.

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Provide context. Even when they are accurate, visuals show only a partial view of reality. Provide background information to help the audience interpret them correctly.

Do not hide or minimize negative information that runs counter to your argument. Help the audience make fully informed decisions regarding your content.

Do not exaggerate information that supports your argument. Resist the temptation to alter or enhance photographs and other images in ways that support your arguments.

Do not oversimplify complex situations. Take care not to mislead an audience by hiding complications that are important to their understanding of the situation.

Do not imply cause-and-effect relationships without providing proof that they exist. Claim a causal relationship only when you can isolate the factor that can account for the result in question.

Avoid emotional manipulation or other forms of coercion. Visuals can be used persuasively in emotional appeals, but do not overstep into unethical manipulation.

Be careful with the way you aggregate data. Creating visuals involves decisions about aggregating, or grouping, data. The decisions you make can have a profound effect on the message your audience receives.

This concludes our discussion of the following elements of Understanding Visual Communication: the power of images, the visual evolution in business communication, visual design principles, and visual communication ethics. The next section will cover Identifying Points to Illustrate.

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In most business documents, visuals must be tightly integrated with the text. This involves four decisions: balancing visuals and text, referring to visuals in the text, placing the visuals in the document, and writing titles and other descriptions.

Strong visuals enhance the descriptive and persuasive power of your writing, but too many visuals can distract your readers. Furthermore, the space occupied by visuals can disrupt the flow of text on the page or screen. Therefore, it is important to balance visual and textual elements throughout a document. As always, take your readers’ specific needs into account.

Visuals should be clearly referred to by number in the text of your report. Some report writers refer to all visuals as “exhibits” and number them consecutively; others number tables and figures separately.

Help readers understand your visuals by introducing the visuals before they encounter them in the document or on the screen. Ideally, it is best to place each visual within, beside, or immediately after the paragraph it illustrates so that readers can consult the explanation and the visual at the same time.

Titles, legends, and captions provide more opportunities to connect your visual and textual messages. A title is similar to a subheading, providing a short description that identifies the content and purpose of the visual. A caption usually offers additional discussion of the visual’s content and can be several sentences long if appropriate. A legend helps readers “decode” the visual by explaining what various colors, symbols, or other design choices mean.

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Visuals have a particularly strong impact on your readers and on their perceptions of you and your work, so you must verify their quality. Take a few extra minutes to make sure that your visuals are accurate, documented, and honest.

Is the visual accurate? Be sure to check visuals for mistakes, such as typographical errors, inconsistent color treatment, confusing or undocumented symbols, and misaligned elements. Also verify that the information shown in the visuals coincides with the information in the text.

Is the visual properly documented? As with the text elements in reports and presentations, visuals based on other people’s research, information, and ideas require full citation.

Is the visual honest? Make sure that your visuals do not hide information the audience needs, imply conclusions that your information does not support, or play on audience emotions in manipulative or coercive ways.

This concludes our discussion of creating visuals, integrating visuals with text, and verifying visual quality as those topics relate to Producing and Integrating Visuals.

Our presentation will close with a review of this chapter’s learning objectives.

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This concludes the PowerPoint presentation on Chapter 12, “Designing Visual Communication.� During this presentation, we have accomplished the following learning objectives: 1. Explained the power of business images, discussed six principles of graphic design that help ensure effective visuals, and explained how to avoid ethical lapses when using visuals 2. Explained how to choose which points in your message to illustrate 3. Described the most common options for presenting data in a visual format 4. Described the most common options for presenting information, concepts, and ideas 5. Explained how to integrate visuals with text and listed three criteria to review in order to verify the quality of your visuals For more information about these topics, refer to Chapter 12 in Business Communication Today.

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