Visuals are not decoration. They are communication tools. Provide three strategic reasons why visuals are essential to effective web content.
For each reason:
• Clearly explain the concept
• Provide a real-world example (not generic statements)
Marks are awarded for depth, not surface-level answers. (6 Marks)
3 Strategic Reasons:
- Communicates A Message Faster:
Nowadays the majority of people of all ages are phone or internet users. According to “The Power of Visuals (W26)” by Scott Briscoe page 4, about 65% of the population are visual learners which means they process and learn information more effectively when it’s presented visually instead of through text alone.
This is very important when it comes to creating effective web content. The majority of users don’t usually read web content but scan through them and visual infographics or pictures are a perfect way to grab their attention. As discussed in class, the human brain processes visual content faster than text and it takes people milliseconds to understand an image especially if the message requires too much reading.
A real world example of this can be seen directly in the DoorDash app. When users search for a restaurant or go on their menu options, they’re usually shown visuals next to the meals so they get a visual image of the meal. Having those images beside the meals influences their decision and this is true because it’s how I order food from restaurants I’m not familiar with. For example, when users search Church’s Chicken on Doordash and see their high-quality Chipotle Onion Crunch Sandwich picture. It communicates its crunchy taste, and they can instantly see the sandwich’s crunchy appeal and it can influence them to take action. However if Doordash were to remove the picture option and only relied on their written description, most users would lose interest and leave the restaurant unless they were regulars.
- Catches Attention When Scrolling
Visuals are very important to utilize in web content because if you choose the right visual element like a picture or video, it will stop users from scrolling and be curious enough to interact with your content. Today people are exposed to a lot of information to the point it’s becoming an information overload. As shown in class, only about 28% of people actually read the text on a webpage, the majority of the time they scan it. Platforms like Instagram or TikTok are heavily visual oriented so the human brain has adapted to process an image quicker based on the elements it has. Visuals can be used as a first impression starter to catch users attention to make them question if your content is worth engaging with.
A real life example is Spotify, when you open the app there’s usually a popup of the latest album asking you to listen to it. However, the app is a visual page with minimal text. The colorful, creative album covers that stand out influences listeners to check out the music. The visuals along with the text adds curiosity and guide users to listen to the music to the point most users don’t even know that spotify albums and playlist comes with mini descriptions. Spotify brings users simplicity with minimal words.
- Improves Memory, Understanding and Decision-Making
Visuals helps users comprehend information quicker without needing words. They are known to influence users buying decisions on ecommerce websites. With the statistics being that about 28% of people read text based content while 65% of people process information quicker when they’re visual. This is because text information without visuals makes people leave a pager faster and they tend to forget what they read. Whereas visuals can quickly communicate a message using an image or video that emotionally connects with users it sticks with them, causing them to remember the visual content and sometimes have them take the needed action.
For example the Ikea instruction manuals, Ikea use minimal written instructions but use pictures to guide users step-by-step how to put together their furniture. The pictures are meant to be clear so it doesn’t cause any confusion and those with no skills in building furniture will feel confident to follow the instructions which improves their customer experience and trust. Ikea demonstrates that visual instructions are just as effective as written instructions, in fact it’s better because the visuals walk users through the instructions in a clearer way than a written text would.
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