This week I thought I would pass along an example of a nicely composed visual summary as a way to summarize my June tips on the topic. It was created by the organization called Big Duck out of Brooklyn, New York, which specializes in communications work for nonprofits.
The project highlights the 10 Things everyone should know about New York City charter schools. I think it does a nice job of integrating different graphics along with text to convey its key message.
A couple tips from this example that you can directly apply to your own work:
- Uses data to back up each main point, but go beyond the standard bar, line and pie charts (although one pie chart is used in the summary). I think this makes the data more interesting.
- Although there are multiple layers of information in this summary, stick to a simple color scheme that will not overwhelm the viewer. This will also make the use of orange or a warm color particularly effective in attracting attention to key items on the page.
You may also want to check out the blog article that this project was posted in called a picture’s worth 1,000 words: Information graphics for nonprofits.