How Using Iconography Can Help Planners Sell Work
Best Practices for Using Iconography when Designing Decks
Design is all about communication through visualization. The information you want to present will never be retained or understood if it does not capture the interest of your audience. In fact, the viewer may skim through a video, website, deck or presentation, to see if there are any elements that will capture their interest — before they even decides to read it.
So how do we fix it? The elements that capture the interest of the viewer most — icons.
The main purpose of using icons is to assist the user in efficiently grasping the information that is being displayed. There are a few ways in which this is done. First, is the use of white space. A tremendous amount of whitespace is used when deciding to place icons within your content. Next, is the ability to use icons that do not distract from the content but in turn support what the content is saying. Icons give content more substance and allows for the same level of communication to happen even without it having to be so copy heavy.
SIX KEY USES OF ICONS
- Icons are “a simple, effective way” to draw viewers and capture their interest in the information you are presenting
- Icons visually break up content, to make it less intimidating
- Icons can bridge recognition where it may be hard for the verbal language to do so
- Icons enhance user experience
- Icons are recognizable resources that you can use to build a connection with a global audience
- Icons are “obvious, timeless and approachable” through their “consistency, clarity, one-dimensional, minimalistic” presence
BEST PRACTICES FOR USING ICONOGRAPHY
1. USE ICONS TO SPICE UP LISTS
- Creating a list is a practical way of marketing information. However, lists can be standard and boring. Use icons to make your list more engaging.
2. USE ICONS TO SUBSTITUTE COPY
- If you find that there is repetition in some of your content, use icons to replace the duplicate copy. Create a guide for the icon(s) and what they represent in an introduction slide. Then for slides following, just represent the icon.
3. USE ICONS TO LIST YOUR SERVICES AND INCREASE READABILITY
- Understand the content you are trying to express and use an icon that you feel would best represent it. Icons have to be relevant to the content presented in order to be effective. Icons should be able to symbolize all visuals, content and ideas that are presented.
4. USE ICONS TO ENGAGE READERS AND BREAK UP EXTRA LONG CONTENT
- Use an icon that summaries the points you are trying to make verbally
5. USE ICONS TO OFFSET HEADINGS AND SECTIONS
- Use icons as separation dividers between certain sections and headings
Even if you may not be a designer of icons — there are sources that can help.
Remember, you do not have to reinvent the wheel. There are sources like, Lingo and Noun Project that allow you to search and download icons — as well as create a library of icons for you and your team to utilize. Having similarity in the icons you use will bring consistency and uniformity to the look and feel of how decks are designed and shared with third parties.
Let’s use these best practices of iconography to better represent content across all mediums!
