Functions of Design - How design helps you to save time

Function of Graphic Design

When designing websites, icons for apps, presentations, blog posts, and other graphic visual narratives, it is important to consider navigation design. By creating clear and intuitive information pathways, you and your clients, can easily navigate through large amounts of data and reach your desired information quickly and efficiently. This will help you save time and ensure a smooth user experience.

Signage Design

In signage design, you have a powerful tool at your disposal for understanding complex information quickly and efficiently. Just like how road signs help you navigate through unfamiliar streets, signage in data visualization can assist you in making sense of intricate information. When well-designed, signage can offer crucial context, direct your attention to key points, and aid in understanding the relationships between different pieces of data.

Visual cues 

The use of visual cues can enhance intuitive navigation through data. Just as road signs use arrows and icons to provide direction, data signage can use visual cues such as charts, graphs, and icons to help users understand relationships and trends within the data. For example, a line graph can show the trend of sales figures over time, while a pie chart can visually represent the distribution of different product categories.

Below is an example used in the website of Clover Architects Inc.  A Healthcare Architecture firm based in Ottawa, Canada. It is an illustration of the McLeamy Curve in the context of project management.

Hierarchy and Structure

Just as road signs use size and placement to indicate the importance of different pieces of information, data signage should use hierarchy and structure to guide your attention to the most important data points. For example, placing the most important data points at the top of a visualization or using larger fonts to highlight key insights can help users quickly identify the most relevant information.

Digital Age Information sharing

Since, in our world today, a lot of information is accessed in the digital realm, interactive elements in data visualization can greatly enhance intuitive navigation. Just as GPS systems allow us to zoom in and out of maps or search for specific locations, interactive data visualizations can allow users to explore data in a more dynamic and personalized way. Features such as filters, tooltips, and drill-down capabilities can help you and your customers focus on specific areas of interest and gain deeper insights into the data.  

So next time you find yourself overwhelmed by a sea of data, remember the importance of intuitive navigation and consider how signage design principles can help you make sense of it all.