Module 18: Using Visual To Tell Stories

Question 1

Why Use Visuals?

Answer 1

Appropriate, attractive visuals create immediate stories: audiences understand them quickly and remember them easily.

Question 2

Tables

Answer 2

are numbers or words arranged in rows and columns

Question 3

Figures

Answer 3

Everything else

Question 4

What Are Stories, and How Do I Find Them?

Answer 4

Stories interpret or frame situations in ways that resonate for readers. Look for relationships and/or patterns that are significant to your audiences.

Question 5

The best stories

Answer 5

Support a hunch you have

Surprise or challenge so-called common knowledge

Show trends or changes you didn’t know existed

Have commercial, cultural, or social significance

Provide information needed for action

Have personal relevance to you and the audience

Question 6

You can find stories in three ways:

Answer 6

Focus on a topic (starting salaries, alternative music choices, Twitter demographics).

Simplify the data on that topic and convert the numbers to simple, easy-to-understand units.

Look for relationships and changes;

Question 7

For optimum information impact, tell—show—tell.

Answer 7

First, tell your readers or listeners what they are about to see.

Next, show your audience what you promised to show them.

Finally, tell them the significance of the visual.

And, of course, use the visual to depict exactly what you said it would.

Question 8

Does It Matter What Kind of Visual I Use?

Answer 8

The visual should emphasize and expand the story.

Question 9

Use software to make

Answer 9

infographics, charts, graphs, tables, and figures, and use a digital camera to capture vignettes.

Question 10

Tables

Answer 10

Use tables only when you want the audience to focus on specific numbers.

Question 11

Pie Graphs

Answer 11

Use graphs to make comparisons memorable.

Question 12

Bar Graphs

Answer 12

Bar graphs are easy to interpret, because they ask people to compare distance along a common scale, which most people judge accurately

Question 13

Line Graphs

Answer 13

Line graphs are also easy to interpret. Use line graphs to compare items over time, to show frequency or distribution, and to show correlations.

Question 14

What Design Conventions Do I Follow?

Answer 14

Tell your story effectively and ethically. Provide the context. Cite your sources.

Question 15

Visuals appeal to both ____ and. ______

Answer 15

Logic and emotion

Question 16

Grouped bar graphs

Answer 16

Allow you to compare several aspects of each item or several items over time

Question 17

Segmented, subdivided, or stacked bars

Answer 17

Sun the components of an item

Question 18

Deviation bar graphs

Answer 18

Identity positive and negative values, or winners and losers

Question 19

Paired bar graphs

Answer 19

Show the correlation between two items

Question 20

Histograms or pictographs

Answer 20

Use images to create the bars

Question 21

Plan your visuals to achieve a purpose and meet your audience needs

Answer 21

1) use clear, simple, and relevant images
2) use metaphors and pictures that make connections and patterns obvious
3) put people in the picture: show people are using and enjoying the product, service, or idea you are selling

Question 22

Every visual should have

Answer 22

1) have a title that tells the story the visual shows
2) clearly indicates the data
3) clearly label units
4) provide labels or legends identifying axes, colour, symbols, etc
5) give the source of the data
6 five the source of the visual

Question 23

Should I use colour?

Answer 23

Carefully!

It makes 2 problems, first, people try to interpret the color (which may not be accurate)

Second, meaning assigned to colors differ depending on the audiences culture and profession

Question 24

Chartjunk

Answer 24

The encoded legends, the meaningless colour, the logo type branding