Got my Feltron 2014 report!
I don’t have the complete collection, but it’s a nice final addition.
Feltron 2014 – 10th & Final
Categories: Showing Data, Visual Thinking.
Category Archives: Visual Thinking
Nancy Duarte’s Latest “Illuminate” is Available for Pre-Order
Nancy Duarte’s latest, Illuminate, with co-author Patti Sanchez, is available for pre-order. I’m a huge fan of Nancy’s, and if you care at all about presentation, you should be too.
Can’t wait!
Categories: Visual Thinking.
Different Audiences, Different Process Graphics
I came across a simple, but excellent example of process graphics in Michael Bierut’s new book, How To. Above are two pages from the printed brand guidelines for the design of United Airline’s once low cost sub-brand called TED.
As part of the design and branding work, Michael’s firm Pentagram wanted to show how the different divisions of United Airlines all fit together. Instead of a single visual (“process graphic”), they created two: one for internal audiences (on the left) and one for external audiences (on the right.)
This is a great reminder for me that one story does not always mean one single graphic. Think about your audience, think about their level of knowledge, think about what you want them to take away from your graphic.
Below is the full page from Michael’s new book.
Michael Bierut’s How To
Just sitting here reading, watching and playing with 3 wonderful new things:
- My new puppy, Banksy
- The 2nd Season of Fargo
- Michael Bierut’s How To
I had the great fortune of working with Michael for a short period on a joint pitch, and he’s as about down to earth as his work is at the vanguard of contemporary graphic design.
Michael has written a great deal over the years including a touching tribute to his mentor Massimo Vignelli, this collection of essays on design and much more. But this is his first monograph, and it’s an excellent look into the work and way of working of one of the world’s top graphic designers. It definitely belongs on every designer’s shelf.
Cole, your new book is up next…
Categories: Visual Thinking.
Turn Tables into Visuals with Excel Heatmapping
My fellow PowerPoint MVP, Glenna Shaw has written a great tutorial on how to create Excel table heat maps.
Generally, we think of “heat maps” as geographical, shading in countries, states or other regions to indicate relative values. But heat maps can actually much more easily be applied to Excel tables through conditional formatting—rendering a “referanceable” table into a “glanceable” visualization.
When Simple = Juvenile = Effective
Yesterday I had a structural carpenter come out to our house to look at a small issue we needed taking care of. This guy came highly recommended, and I couldn’t have been more impressed. He’s apparently the go-to guy in this area for this type of work, and it was clear he knew what he was talking about.
Then he handed me his card, and I was taken aback by the seemingly juvenile stick figure drawing. I’m used to seeing poorly designed business cards and in this day and age, and I actually I think they are far less important then they used to. (For the community in which this guy works, I think his Facebook page probably gets him far more work than his business card.) But still, I kept thinking that this guy needs a better calling card. Literally.
Then I showed it to my wife (who knows a thing or two about design and marketing), and this was her response:
“Doesn’t it tell you exactly what he does?”
I had no argument. And instantly, this juvenile stick figure drawing (maybe it actually was drawn by his kid which would be adorable) on the business card of a very successful expert has become one of my favorite examples of effective simplicity.
In just a few pen strokes, here’s a visual story that says: “I reinforce and make houses structurally sound.”
But it probably wouldn’t be a good card for a professional illustrator…
Upcoming Speaking and Training Events
Webinar for American Management Association – March 19
This will be my first of a number of upcoming projects and trainings with the AMA. “Creating Visual Presentations” will be a regularly offered 90 minute webinar, and the first session is March 19th. Every webinar includes plenty of Q&A, so if you can’t register for this one, keep checking AMA’s site for future times.
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Mirren Live New Business Conference – May 5-6
On May 6th, I’ll be returning to speak at this annual conference dedicated solely to agency new business. Each year Mirren brings together top names from the biggest creative agencies in the country for two days of sessions that cover everything from prospecting to creative execution to compensation with a whole lot of case studies and endless networking thrown in.
In my session, 5 Principles for Transforming Your Pitch Deck, I’ll again discuss how agencies can make their pitches more effective and more visual.
The conference always sells out, so register now and save $300 before April 3rd.
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Presentation Summit – September 27-30
My favorite event of the year will now be in one of my favorite cities in the country! For those of you who always remain undecided, this is the year to attend. The only conference dedicated to presentation in the world, the Summit gathers together the top people in the business. If your business involves presentation and PowerPoint, this is your conference. And did I mention New Orleans?
Register early and use the code NH75 for a special discount for my readers.
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PresentationXpert – October 21
Stay tuned for more information on my next completely free webinar for PresentationXpert on October 21st…
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The above are just my public appearances and trainings, of course. My calendar is already filling up for the year with speaking and training engagments in Colorado, California, Minnesota, Illinois, New York and Massachusetts. If your organization is interested in customized presentation, data visualization and speech coach training, drop me a line!
Update on 2015-03-13 18:42 by Nolan Haims
Receive a discount off registration for MirrenLive with this code: “NolanHaims@Mirren”
Categories: Presenting Live, Visual Thinking.
Enhanced SOTU 2015
Many of you know that I’m a big fan of a little-noticed addition our President has made to the age-old tradition of the State of the Union address. The White House has recognized the visual, media-hungry, short attention span society we have become and has responded by adding slides to the President’s annual address of Congress and the nation.
No, there are no screens behind the President, and if you watch on TV, you won’t see the slides. But if you watch online in real-time or afterward, you can view the Enhanced State of the Union that includes composite video of the President and a sidebar of vertical visuals (slides) that hit key points of the President’s speech.
As usual, not every slide is perfect (really, they have got to lose the red text over blue backgrounds…), but I have noticed the visuals getting better each year. And what I noticed most of all this time was an increased use of imagery. The slides continue to become simpler and more effective for communicating their message in fractions of a second.
And if you just want to view the slides, they are on SlideShare.
18 Best Infographics of 2014
Redesigning Sony’s Leaked Slides
When bad slides leak and become news, presentation designers can’t help themselves from redesigning them. And that’s a good thing.
My friends at SlideRabbit took on Sony’s recently leaked slides.
