Adele Sommers
Designing Information to Help People Act Quickly
Today's media-saturated world challenges people to
comprehend and respond quickly to a plethora of visual
messages! Did you know that more than 300,000 new book
titles appear annually, and over 18,000 magazines exist
just in the U.S.? Our colleagues, employees and customers
are all overloaded and attention-limited! The competition
for their attention is fierce, and not likely to subside
any time soon.
For this reason, it's quite possible that our news-based
and "how-to" information -- such as memos, newsletters,
policies, procedures, instructions, user manuals, and
system interfaces -- may just be adding to audience
overwhelm instead of helping people perform.
After all, we also want people to view our persuasive
information, such as advertisements, marketing blasts, and
commercial announcements. Multiply that by the number of
competitors we have who are doing the same exact thing, and
it's easy to see why our materials don't receive attention!
To remedy this situation, we need to "grab people by the
eyeballs" and give them more control over what we submit
for their attention. We must enable our audiences to scan,
skip, and retrieve -- and then act on the information fast,
before the relentless demands on their time force their
attention to shift elsewhere.
The information we design must be "high-impact" to get
attention, but also "low-bandwidth" in terms of the effort
and brain-power required to process it. The easier the
information is to process, the more readily people will:
-- Retain it
-- Retrieve from it memory under the right circumstances,
and
-- Apply it correctly
As part of the solution, this article discusses five
powerful information design techniques that can boost our
audience's ability to interpret and respond.
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First, What Shortcomings Do We Find in Business Information?
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On more than one occasion, you've probably encountered a
puzzling user manual, bewildering procedure, baffling
software interface, or confusing memo. Therefore, you've
probably seen plenty of examples of dense, crowded text;
long-winded, rambling sentences; a convoluted writing
style; and a confusing layout.
Why do these things matter? A poor visual presentation can
delay or even prevent someone from understanding and taking
action! The consequences include:
-- Less interesting and less productive interactions that
rob people's time.
-- More mistakes and errors, while the potential for harm
and dissatisfaction skyrockets.
-- Customers and employees going elsewhere, especially
because there are often plenty of competitors who can do
the job better! But why let this happen when there are
remedies available?
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What Can We Improve Using Effective Information Design?
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Information design principles can come to the rescue by:
-- Easing the burden on the reader's brain through reducing
the information-processing load.
-- Working within the typical limitations of short-term
memory.
-- Using other extensively researched principles of
perception and learning.
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Five Ways that Information Design Techniques Work Their
Magic
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These ways include :
1) classifying,
2) chunking,
3) simplifying,
4) arranging, and
5) illustrating -- all approaches used in what's called
"structured writing."
1) Classifying organizes content into five actionable
types: facts, concepts, processes, procedures, and
principles.
-- Facts are unique, standalone bits of information, e.g.,
"Over 300,000 book titles appear annually."
-- Concepts represent classes of ideas or objects. "Dog,"
"book," and "weather" are all concepts, and each represents
many specific examples.
-- Processes describe how something works from a high-level
point of view.
-- Procedures are clearly defined steps that explain in
detail how to do something.
-- Principles are conditional decision-making rules that
guide people's actions in different situations.
By classifying information into these types, we can create
specific sections to support and complement one another.
For example, readers often need facts and/or concepts
before they can use procedures.
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2) Chunking breaks the content into smaller, more
digestible messages.
Short-term memory is very limited; humans can process only
about 3-4 chunks of information at a time. By "chunking"
material into smaller bites, we can reduce the
information-processing load.
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3) Simplifying uses very direct, "plain talk" to get ideas
across fast.
"Plain talk" uses the active voice and simple words to
communicate ideas. The active voice uses a noun followed by
a verb to show who is taking action: "The technician
removes the tray from the table" (not "The tray is removed
from the table"). Instructions in procedures are short and
direct: "Remove the tray from the table."
Avoid "corporate-speak," "academic-speak," or a meandering
style when you want a fast response!
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4) Arranging text and graphics with visual cues helps
people scan, skip, and retrieve quickly.
Gestalt psychologists studied visual spatial cues and
perception in the 1920s. They learned that the use of
visual cues helps direct attention fast.
Examples of visual cues include bulleted lists, tables,
white space, headers, bolded text, labels, dividers,
hierarchy, grouping, and relative size.
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5) Illustrating reinforces or replaces text with graphic
elements.
Much research shows that prose is less efficient and less
effective than graphic elements. Robert Horn, author of
"Visual Language" (who also developed Information Mapping®,
a widely used structured writing system), is a leading
authority.
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Why Do These Solutions Work?
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1) Structuring, chunking, simplifying, and arranging all
aid comprehension.
Dr. M. David Merrill and Robert Horn have each contributed
a set of ideas and methods that use some or all of these
techniques. These methods have been tested repeatedly and
found to boost reading, retrieval, and learning speeds.
2) Graphic elements further support the retention and
application of information.
Extensive multimedia research by Dr. Richard E. Mayer
illustrates when and how to mix text and graphics or
multimedia. The right blend produces optimal learning,
retention, and application.
3) All methods reduce errors and response time, while
raising response quality.
When you combine these techniques effectively, errors that
occur from reader misinterpretations drop greatly. Response
time also declines when it's clear to people what to do and
how to do it.
In conclusion, consider using information design principles
-- classifying, chunking, simplifying, arranging, and
illustrating -- to help ensure your audience's success.
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Adele Sommers, Ph.D. is the creator of the "Straight Talk
on Boosting Business Performance" success program. To learn
more about her tools and resources and sign up for other
free tips like these, visit her site at
