Why Most Textual Information Goes Unnoticed Or Misunderstood
A picture is worth a lot more than one thousand words. With all the data that companies generate on a daily basis, analyzing, explaining and sharing this raw data is very time-consuming. This is where data visualisation becomes one of the biggest advantages of presenting information.
Why Seeing Data Is Easier To Understand
Think about analyzing data from those ever-long and complex Excel files. It could take hours. But when you see it visually, on the other hand, it becomes uncomplicated. Visualizing data is about transforming numbers and text into a pictorial or graphical format and representing them: points, bars, curves, maps, etc. A simple, engaging presentation brings more clarity to the data and saves a lot of time.
Patterns, trends, and relationships can be difficult to identify in text-based data. However, when you visualize, it becomes easy to identify. It’s not just graphs and charts, or items you see in Excel and PowerPoint, but we can use more sophisticated methods like infographics, dials and gauges, and geographic maps. Pictorial images offer an audience more interactive possibilities, and also makes it possible to manipulate the data and issue queries for better analysis.
Making Information More Compelling For Your Audience
Visual data adopts the simple concepts of Gestalt’s theory. This is a psychology term that explains the ability for humans to construct visual components into groups. This capability makes it easier to recognize shapes through color codes and other visual processes.
When it comes to images, the brain absorbs 80 percent of the information better. If you interpret data with graphs and various charts and use color codes for an audience, then it is immediately easier to understand. When you use this method to process huge amounts of data, visually the highlighted or colored important information is filtered and stands out, while unimportant data gets glanced over.
Visualization is one of the reasons companies use this approach when using Excel presentations. Interpreting data this type of data is often tedious and exhausting, but pies, bars, and charts are a huge time saver. The data is quickly accessible, more accurate and processed faster. Also, company data is often spread across multiple volumes, making dissemination and analysis even more complex. With visual data, it’s summarized and displayed with meaningful graphics.
The Processing Of Data From Eyes To Brain
Experts say we are visual beings. Seeing is more than just translating optical signals into nerve impulses. The brain analyzes visual information, arranges it piece by piece and then understands it. A process that involves around 60 percent of the cerebral cortex. Why is this important? Because almost half of our brain is directly or indirectly linked to image processing. With visual data, we don’t need complex logical reconstruction.
When reading textual information, the brain tries to put itself in the writer’s shoes to allow an understanding of what is written. With images, our brains only require a tenth of a second to process and understand. Experts point out that graphics are especially effective when you want to present information and complex ideas to your audience, and at the same time, gets their attention and interest.
