Communicating information visually
An effective report depends not only on clear language, but also on professional presentation. A report that is visually well designed, including formatting, style and page layout, will contribute to your credibility as a writer and your report’s credibility. Often you will be able to work within a prescribed template that sets a lot of the formatting for you; other times, you will need to do establish your own look and feel for the report. In such cases, you should keep it simple. Too much formatting is a distraction.
Apart from the page design of your work, reports can be greatly enhanced by an intelligent use of visual information. This type of presentation includes diagrams, tables (especially for figures and statistics), graphs, illustrations and maps. They can be invaluable aids for your audience because they condense text, clarify relationships and highlight patterns.
The danger is that when visual information is not presented properly, it can actually detract from the quality of the report. This part of the module assumes you are working without the support of specially trained staff to help design and produce visual information, so the advice here focuses on how to take advantage of visual elements in a report without the need of expert knowledge in graphic design.