The Power of Visual Communication

Is a picture really worth a thousand words? In this age of multimedia and mass communication, it often seems so. Recent research supports the idea that visual communication can be more powerful than verbal communication, suggesting in many instances that people learn and retain information that is presented to them visually much better than that which is only provided verbally. These are welcome findings to anyone whose work involves using visual presentations to persuade or instruct others. Even more welcome is the news that today, presenters have more resources than ever available to them for creating and displaying the most visually rich programs possible.

Communicating Effectively In The Visual Age
Visual communication is everywhere today, from electronic media like Web pages and television screens to environmental contexts such as road signs and retail displays. As the National Education Association has pointed out, ”Western civilization has become more dependent than ever on visual culture, visual artifacts, and visual communication as a mode of discourse and a means of developing a social and cultural identity.” 1 That’s an interesting observation, but what’s even more intriguing is that there is evidence to suggest that people not only communicate visually more than ever, they also communicate better when they communicate visually. This is an important revelation to those who create presentations for work or education and who want to make those presentations as compelling and effective as possible. This paper is designed to help presenters make the most of this information by describing the evidence for the power of visual communication, identifying the key components of effective visual presentations and discussing the technologies that make it possible to use these components to craft more successful presentations.