case studies in design: how good design supports good research

bringing nonprofit research into focus

IssueLab

Gabriela FitzCo-Director, IssueLab

gabi@issuelab.org

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

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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

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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

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IssueLab Case Studies in Design

Design Heavy Design

Better BallotsBrennan Center for Justice

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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