BECOMING A VISUAL COMPANY

Whether you have already tested the waters and implemented infographic thinking in your organization, or this is all new to you, it is important to solidify the goals and metrics you will use to assess how effective your information design efforts are. Keep in mind that it’s also important to experiment; it can help you realize unique opportunities for producing engaging, original content. As Nathan Yau suggests,

“When you think of visualization as a medium rather than a monolithic tool, it’s something much more flexible that can be used for a lot of things. It’s also more exciting. You can tell stories with data through analysis, journalism, or art.” “Visualization can be fun or serious; it can be beautiful and emotional or barebones and to the point. In the end, it’s still all about the data, and visualization lets you see what you might not find in a table. There are stories in the numbers, and visualization can help you find or tell them.”

As we have discussed, there is room at the table for the data analysts and the storytellers, and there are valid situations for applying both perspectives.

So, what is the key to transforming our communication through visualization that has the ability to provide meaningful insights and engage viewers? Our ability to further develop and utilize tools that will aid in the processing and display of vast amounts of information, coupled with the human creativity essential to making the message both relevant and appealing. ...

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