case studies in design: how good design supports good research
DESCRIPTION
Case studies in research report design, based on nonprofit reports archived in the IssueLab collection.TRANSCRIPT
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab
Gabriela FitzCo-Director, IssueLab
Case Studies in DesignHow good design can support good research
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Independent of the subject, the purpose (of information visualization) should always
be centered on explanation & unveiling, which in turn leads to discovery and insight.
- The Information Visualization Manifesto
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Regardless of how much money or time your organization has, good design builds on the basic principles of good communications.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
1. Who is your audience?
2. How will they be consuming this information, online, in print, or both?
3. What question are you answering with this report?
4. What findings are most relevant to answering those questions?
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
1) Get people to click on it and read it.
2) Make the content more understandable.
3) Establish the organization’s legitimacy.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Does the cover make me want to click on it or pick it up?
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Is the report easy to read?
Consider your use of fonts, consider the age of your audience, consider whether you are laying something out for print or web navigation.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Is the report easy to navigate?
Can I find what I am looking for and can I move through the information easily?
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Does the design confuse the information or elucidate
it?
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Focusing the reader:Call outs, Sidebars, Key Points
Presenting the data:Charts, Graphs, Maps, Tables
Supporting the content:Pictures, Illustrations, Font Treatments
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Common mistakes:
Too many pages of introductory text
Key findings or summaries that are way too long
Tables that don't easily communicate findings
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Basic Design
Help Wanted: Research BriefPhiladelphia Workforce Investment Board
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.4) Headers in plain English that ask
questions which the content itself answers.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.8) Some very basic data visualization
that allows the reader to skim for key points.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.13) Here we see a mix of all three approaches on this page:
1. clear header2. pull quote to reinforce key
point3. chart that helps us
understand data points
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.12) These are paired with more
comprehensive tables, showing that you don’t
have to sacrifice detail for clarity.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Basic Design
ReGeneration: Young People Shaping the Environmental Justice MovementMovement Strategy Center
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.17) One of the real strengths of this layout is how clearly the findings are presented and each supported by a quote. This is something any of us can do, with or without pictures.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.57) Includes re-purposable pages such as the do's and don’ts of a national strategy. This shows the organization’s knowledge about both who their audience is and what that audience might need as a take away.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.58) The very next page speaks to the fact that most reports have multiple audiences which may require multiple pieces of content. The organization doesn’t shy away from this reality – they simply provide folks with what they need in a clearly titled and digestible
format.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Interactive Design
6 Questions, 2340 Answers McKnight Foundationhttp://www.mcknight.org/cost_culture/survey_2.htm
Superfund 365 http://turbulence.org/Works/superfund/sites.php
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
Design Heavy Design
Better BallotsBrennan Center for Justice
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.8) Exemplary key findings section.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.16) Elements you can repurpose, like the checklist.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
(p.20) Clear illustration that relies on simplicity, supported by data in an easy to read format, and accompanied by a pull quote that reinforces the point with a first
person story.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab Case Studies in Design
> Make your key findings key.
>Click through the report as a PDF, don’t just look at it in print form.
> Show us don’t just tell us.
>Remember that graphics and layout are there to make your research more intelligible not prettier.
bringing nonprofit research into focus
IssueLab
All reports showcased in this presentation
(plus many many more) can be found at www.issuelab.org