What is a visual communication strategy and why does your organisation need one?
I recently had the pleasure of teaching storytelling skills to a group of young managers aged 23-27 years old who work for Bupa. We talked a lot about storytelling principles, structure and we focused on verbal and visual stories. We didn’t spend too much time on the written word because, and I joked their ‘generation didn’t spend that much reading‘, which was met with laughter and an acknowledgment that what I was saying was true.
The idea of having a visual communication strategy can be traced back to the 15th century and particularly the Medici, who understood the influence of imagery and commissioned countless artists to sculpt, mould and paint works of art that ultimately demonstrated the Medici’s power.
Today’s organisations need visual communication strategies simply because the next generation of leaders and customers don’t have time for reading vast amounts of text – and why should they when visual communication is so much more effective?
Visual Communication is more effective than text
Here are four great reasons why you should be thinking about your communication in terms of a visual comms strategy.
Faster Processing and Understanding
- The brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than text – literally within milliseconds. Stakeholders can quickly understand your message without wading through paragraphs of text.
Better Information Retention
- Visual communication improves retention rates; people recall 80% of what they see versus just 20% of what they read.
Increased Engagement
- Audiences are naturally drawn to visual content because it can stimulate an emotional response in ways that text cannot – they want to explore and engage with the image(s). Text can feel overwhelming, monotonous and boring.
Achieves Cut-Through
- Stakeholders are bombarded by emails, reports, and documents every day. Visual communication, for all the reasons stated above, cuts through the noise and delivers key insights succinctly and quickly.
By strategically leveraging the power of visuals, such as photography, you not only make their communication more engaging but have a greater chance of building better relationships and connections with their internal and external stakeholders.
It all starts with a visual communication strategy.
Creating a visual communication strategy
A visual communication strategy is simply a plan for effectively conveying messages and information using visual elements, such as photography, graphics, and videos. The objectives can include engaging the audience, to motivate them, to improve understanding, to reinforce key messages, to demonstrate progress, to document something as evidence – all through the power of visuals.
Every organisation has endless communication needs and often has multiple stakeholders to satisfy, and this is where a visual communication strategy can help you succeed and deliver better ROI than copy alone.
Objectives – what’s the purpose of the communication what do you want the audience to know, feel and do?
Audience – who are they? What do they already know? What kind of tone needs to be adopted? What would they respond to?
Visual components – photography captures the real world and has the power to move people, but you might need to graphically represent a concept or use video.
Medium – what’s the best channel through which to communicate with your audience(s)?
Storytelling – whichever visual elements you choose, create a compelling visual narrative that is easy to interpret and takes the audience on a journey – it might be 4 photographs or 10.
A strong visual communication strategy makes complex messages easy to understand, more memorable, and engaging. A well-thought-out visual communication strategy helps you to connect with stakeholders in a way that leaves a lasting impression, which can help you achieve your other strategic goals. Employees are more engaged, customers are clearer about what you offer, investors know what you stand for, the community understands how you deliver social value.
All this can be achieved through great visuals that can be understood in seconds – making photography one of the most effective ways to communicate.
If you want to discuss how to develop a visual communication then please get in touch here.
Read my article published by Construction UK Magazine here, called: How to better communicate the impact of sustainable practices.
