{"id":20036,"date":"2022-10-24T14:25:59","date_gmt":"2022-10-24T12:25:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/explainvisually.co\/?p=20036"},"modified":"2025-04-07T17:01:10","modified_gmt":"2025-04-07T15:01:10","slug":"visual-thinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/explainvisually.co\/en\/visual-thinking\/","title":{"rendered":"Visual thinking in business – what it is, how it works and how it can help"},"content":{"rendered":"

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You don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on. When you get in the car, it turns out that the GPS does not switch on, and instead of signs on the road, there are black and white plates with detailed slogans: turn left in 400 meters, stop right in front of this sign, do not cross the continuous line in front of you, slow down to 20 km\/h, look around if you see any danger. The world would look like in the picture on the left if we stopped using visual thinking.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"visual<\/p>\n

On the Polish website\u00a0mysleniewizualne.pl<\/a>\u00a0we can read that visual thinking \u201cis thinking with images, using visualization in thinking. It results from the fact that people encode information in two channels: verbal and visual\u201d.<\/p>\n

The verbal channel is words and the visual channel is images. When a message is received in both these channels, we understand and remember it better.<\/p>\n

Example: instructions for assembling furniture. Only using an audio version, it would be difficult to understand. Using images alone could also lead to confusion. Combining both channels turns out to be the most effective way. I write more about this further in the article on Pavio\u2019s dual encoding theory.<\/p>\n

\"visual<\/p>\n

Visual thinking is the skillful combination of texts and images<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

We all use visual thinking every day.<\/strong>\u00a0It helps us visualize space (road signs, maps), time (calendar, planner, timeline) and facilitates everyday functioning (e.g. through symbols, icons, e.g. when using a smartphone). It also helps in business (Gantt chart, tables, presentations, diagrams, and infographics).<\/p>\n

\"Tube<\/p>\n

A map is also a manifestation of visual thinking. Here: a map of the London Underground. Source:<\/em>\u00a0link<\/a><\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

We can all benefit from visual thinking<\/h2>\n

Visual thinking is not taught in school in a structured and formalized way such as reading and writing.<\/p>\n

Yet we use it just as often as the cited skills, if not more often. We just do it unconsciously.<\/p>\n

In the case of simple concepts, we do it automatically. When we hear \u201cpink tie,\u201d an image of a \u201cpink tie\u201d easily appears in our mind. There are two systems at work, verbal and non-verbal. Visual thinkers tend to process information more efficiently through images and diagrams.<\/p>\n

With more abstract phrases like \u201crestructuring\u201d we usually would not have an image appear. Therefore, it is easier to lose the thread and not remember the message.<\/p>\n

This is explained by\u00a0Professor Allan Pavio\u2019s dual coding theory<\/strong>. According to this theory, we understand messages in two systems \u2013 verbal and visual.<\/p>\n

Both systems are independent of each other, but there can be an exchange between them, i.e. words can turn into images in our mind and vice versa. Some individuals are particularly adept at creating vivid mental images to represent complex concepts.<\/p>\n

Why is this important? According to Pavio, when both systems receive stimuli, connections between them occur more easily. When we remember a piece of information using two systems, it is easier for us to recall it later.[1]<\/p>\n

If we provide our audience with a visualization of \u201crestructuring\u201d on a slide, it will be easier for them to follow our presentation. In other words \u2013 they will use both systems at the same time. This approach enhances visual clarity and improves understanding.<\/p>\n

Animation on the Santander way of working<\/h2>\n

Santander Bank has introduced a standard internal process for developing services and products. It combines a service design approach with agile and internal processes in the bank.<\/p>\n

However, the bank\u2019s employees are many, so training everyone on the new method and its advantages was a challenge. That\u2019s why the Service Design Team asked us to prepare materials based on visual thinking, which would be an effective tool in training employees.<\/p>\n

We prepared a 3-minute animation that Santander has been using since.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot of talk in marketing about how important the visual side of advertising is. There are entire articles about the placement and color of buttons, the size of individual elements, and the direction of a character\u2019s gaze. Ads are designed to quickly and visually represent often complex product features.<\/p>\n

If it\u2019s so important for ads aimed at customers, doesn\u2019t visual thinking have broader applications in business? This is a rhetorical question \u2013 of course it does!<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what this article is about.<\/p>\n

    \n
  • First, we\u2019ll look at how visual thinking can help in business.<\/li>\n
  • Then, in which departments and in which situations it can be applied.<\/li>\n
  • Finally, what forms it can take.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    And rounded off with numerous examples.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Books on using visual thinking and visualization in business<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

    How does visual thinking help in business?<\/h2>\n

    1. It makes the subject easier to understand<\/h3>\n

    To understand something, we often need to see it. It\u2019s easier for us to remember a route when we look at a map than when someone gives us instructions.<\/p>\n

    In the same way, it is easier for us to understand instructions, company strategy or guidelines when we see them.<\/p>\n

    Visualization is especially useful with complex and abstract topics.<\/p>\n

    When we want to explain to employees a new process for running projects in the company, we can show it with the example of a road through which they are guided by successive signs and guidelines.<\/p>\n

    When conveying the advantages of our offer to customers, we can illustrate it on the example of a labyrinth, leading them through winding alleys, avoiding obstacles, and visualizing the benefits.<\/p>\n

    Everything can be presented using images.<\/p>\n

    Visualizations make it easier to understand the topic.<\/p>\n

    For example, two years ago we were approached by the company Akademia SkuteczneRaporty.pl. Its owner, Bartosz Czapiewski, wanted to show HR departments that the Academy\u2019s training in PowerQuery was a good investment. He wanted them to see what value they could get from the course.<\/p>\n

    So we created a 2-minute animation, which simply and non-technically told about the advantages of the course. The result? Potential customers understood what the course was about and what they could gain from taking the course.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Tesla business plan presented visually<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

    Skillful use of visual thinking allows to reach the target group more effectively<\/h2>\n

    Jeff Hawkins is the creator of PalmPilot, founder of Handspring, and an author of books on the brain and intelligence. He leads many discussions and lectures on the functioning of the brain.<\/p>\n

    Depending on the target group, his lectures are slightly different. And not in terms of what he says \u2013 that remains the same. What differs is the visual aspect.<\/p>\n

    When he presents the topic to experts, the drawing showing how the brain works is elaborate. But when his audience are laypeople \u00a0without specialized knowledge of neurology, the picture is simplified.<\/p>\n

    This ensures that each target group understands the lecture and gets more out of it.[2]<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Different drawings for presentations on brain function, depending on the target group. Source: Dan Roam, \u201cDraw Your Thoughts,\u201d One Press, 2008<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

    2. Visual thinking makes it easier to remember<\/h3>\n

    If you open any book on memorization and learning to learn effectively, you will see that\u00a0most mnemonic techniques are based on visual thinking<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

    For example, associating numbers with objects\/persons\/places and making up stories about them so that you can later remember complex mathematical formulas.<\/p>\n

    Conduct an experiment. Read the following 10 nouns, then close your eyes and try to recall them.<\/p>\n

    1) Pen 2) Card 3) Building 4) Phone 5) Podium 6) Safe 7) TV 8) Table 9) Tiger 10) Arrow<\/p>\n

    Now do the same with these adjectives:<\/p>\n

    1) Positive 2) Equal 3) Relative 4) Transparent 5) Clumsy 6) Unpredictable 7) Transparent 8) Specific 9) Urgent 10) Confusing<\/p>\n

    It\u2019s easier with nouns because they immediately appear in our minds as images.<\/p>\n

    And this is where visual thinking is useful. It allows you to represent pictorially what is difficult to imagine right away. Yes, even adjectives. Therefore, it makes it easier to remember and understand even very intricate and complicated topics. While verbal thinkers may prefer written or spoken information, visual representations can benefit all learning styles.<\/p>\n

    \"visual<\/p>\n

    Adjectives shown visually<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

    An experiment by Professor Richard Wiseman<\/h3>\n

    One of the manifestations of visual thinking is animation. There is more and more talk about the effectiveness of whiteboard animation in transferring knowledge. Professor Richard Wiseman, a renowned psychologist, decided to check its truth. In 2012, he recorded a video in which he explains one of the theories of philosopher William James. He then created a simple whiteboard animation in which he used an audio recording from his video. He showed it to a group of 2,000 people.<\/p>\n

    Viewers who watched the whiteboard animation gave the correct answers 15 percent more times compared to those who watched the video. Moreover, with the animation, there was a 66% increase in the number of people willing to share it further.[3]<\/p>\n

    \n

    Anyone involved in education or research knows that this is a colossal difference. Normally, one has to work very hard to get a 5, maybe 10 percent increase in any variable in behavior. The animation alone produced a 15 percent increase. “It’s staggering,” Wiseman said. [4]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    According to the professor, this is because\u00a0whiteboard animation engages the audience more and has an element of fun.<\/strong><\/p>\n