Killer Visual Strategies

Discover the foundation, power, and necessity of visual communication with this essential guide Visual communication has changed. It’s gone from being an optional medium for relaying information to an important method for building connections and increasing understanding. We now use visual storytelling to help us establish and strengthen relationships, engage distracted audiences, and bring clarity to complexity. Killer Visual Strategies examines how visual communication has transformed how brands connect with their customers and colleagues alike. It looks at the growing audience demand for quality visual content and how organizations must meet this demand or risk being left behind. Killer Visual Strategies traces the history of visual communication and explores why it now plays an integral role in our daily lives. As Amy Balliett tells the story of this evolving medium, she naturally incorporates visuals, such as timelines and data visualizations throughout. In addition to providing actionable rules to follow for creating high-impact visual content, Balliett also explores the latest trends, including visual search, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR). Then, she looks forward to what lies ahead in this dynamic field.  The book’s topics can benefit readers in a range of professions where visual content is now vital to sharing a message. Learn best practices for visual communication Gain inspiration from countless visual examples Stay on top of the latest trends in visual communication Understand visual communication for marketing, sales, design, HR, and more Killer Visual Strategies provides a clearer picture of the evolution of visual communication as a fundamental part of how a story is told.

Forward 7 Introduction 11 How To Read This Book 13 The Accidental Agency 17 Part One: Visual Content Is King 25 Chapter 1 Environmental Influences And The Rise Of Visual Content 27 Chapter 2 Visual Content And Human Nature 37 Chapter 3 Quality Visual Content Reigns Supreme 45 Part Two: 8 Rules Of Visual Communication 53 Chapter 4 Rule 1: Always Think About Con-Text 57 Chapter 5 Rule 2: Small Visual Cues Have A Large Impact 63 Chapter 6 Rule 3: There’s No Gold At The End Of That Rainbow  69 Chapter 7 Rule 4: Good Visual Strategists Ask “Wtf?!” 77 Chapter 8 Rule 5: Avoid The Stigma Of Stock 91 Chapter 9 Rule 6: Stand Out At The Cocktail Party 99 Chapter 10 Rule 7: Use Proper Data Viz Throughout 107 Chapter 11 Rule 8: Commit To The Truth And Prove It 123 Chapter 12 Rules Are Meant To Be Broken 135 Part Three: Your Visual Strategy 153 Chapter 13 You Can’t Create Great Content Without A Great Team And Process 157 Chapter 14 Going The Freelance Route 165 Chapter 15 Building An In-House Team 171 Post Script 177 Acknowledgements 181 Appendix A: Terms & Definitions 185 Appendix B: Tools 187 Appendix C: Production Time Estimates 195 Appendix D: A Timeline Of Visual Communication 199 Resources 213 Index 225