A documents or Web site's success depends as much on how it looks as on what it says. Effective design projects a positive image of yourself and your company and helps readers find information faster. Effectively designed documents and Web sites have visual appeal and are logically organized, clear, and accessible.

Tools for Designing

Three basic design tools are computer hardware, computer software, and printers and scanners. Most word processing programs include desktop publishing features for producing well-designed print documents. Specialized page layout software includes even more design functions. Predesigned templates offer numerous page layout formats for reports, newsletters, brochures, and other business documents. Graphics programs provide drawing tools, icons, clip art, and stock photos and art.

The ABCs of Print Document Design

The basic features of print document design are page layout, typography, and graphics. The proper arrangement and balance of type, white space, and graphics requires as much thought and preparation as the researching, drafting, and revising of the written portion of your document. White space on the page attracts readers attention, assures readers that the information is presented logically, and helps readers organize information visually. Margins frame your document with white space. A comfortable line length10 to 14 words, or 50 to 70 charactersis essential for easy reading. Multiple columns are useful for documents that intersperse visuals and text, such as newsletters.

Select a typeface that is attractive, functional, and appropriate for your message and complements accompanying graphics. Sans serif fonts are recommended for heads and subheads but not for the main text. In general, use 10- or 12-point type with 2-point leading for the body of your document. Subheads should be 2 to 4 points larger than the main text, and main heads 2 to 4 points larger than subheads. All headings should be concise and grammatically parallel and follow a hierarchy of points within the text. Use lists to help readers divide, organize, and rank information. Lists can be numbered, lettered, or bulleted. Use captions to explain or highlight visuals.

Using Color

Color can be used to tie important ideas together, set moods, and cause reactions. Color helps sell ideas 85% more effectively than black and white communications. Light colors make objects look darker; dark colors make objects look smaller. Keep it simpleuse no more than two or three colors on a page. Too many bright colors overwhelm the eye, so use them sparingly. Use cool colors for backgrounds.

The Purpose of Visuals

Visuals perform a number of important functions:

• They arouse readers immediate interest. Visuals catch a readers eye by setting important information apart and breaking up sentences and paragraphs.
• They increase readers understanding by simplifying concepts. Visuals are especially helpful for explaining technical information to a general audience.
• They especially help ESL readers. Visuals speak a universal language and so can be readily understood by a global audience.
• They emphasize key relationships. Visuals quickly show contrasts, similarities, growth rates, movements, and so on.
• They condense and summarize lots of information succinctly. A visual can present data in much less space than words alone.
• They are highly persuasive. Readers are far more likely to recall a visual than a verbal description or summary.

Follow these guidelines for choosing effective visuals:

• Use visuals only when they are relevant for your purpose and audience. A visual should contribute to your text, not be redundant.
• Use visuals in conjunction with your written work, not in place of it. Visuals are not a substitute for written work.
• Use a visual when it would be more difficult to rely on words alone. A verbal description is sometimes more difficult to follow than a visual presentation.
• Experiment with several visuals before you select one. The first visual you try may not always be the best choice.
• Be prepared to revise and edit your visuals. Just as you expect to draft and revise written work, you must expect to create several versions of a visual before you achieve the best result.
• Always use high-quality visuals. Make sure your visuals are clear and readable.
• Consider how visuals will look on the page. Visuals should add to the overall appearance of your work, not detract from it.

You need to do more than just insert visuals in your text; you must identify and interpret them for the reader. Always mention in the text when you are including a visual. Each visual should have a number and a caption that indicates what the visual illustrates. Tables and figures should be numbered separately throughout the text. If you use a visual that is not your own, cite the source. Place visuals as close as possible to your first mention of them in the text, and never introduce a visual before discussing it. Never collect all your visuals and place them in an appendix. Refer to each visual by its number and, if necessary, the title as well.

Avoid visuals that include more details than you discuss in the text, and never use a visual that contradicts what youve written. Avoid visuals that might be misunderstood or regarded as offensive in other cultures.

Two Categories of Visuals

Visuals can be divided into two categoriestables and figures. A table arranges information in columns or rows for easy reference. Any visual that is not a table is categorized as a figure. What types of visuals you should use depends on your audience.

Line graphs transform numbers into pictures. They vividly portray changes: cycles, trends, distributions. They are widely used in business for describing past performance and forecasting trends. Charts are preferable when communicating with a consumer audience. Circle (pie) charts and bar charts are widely used for this purpose. Bar charts are more fluid and dynamic than circle charts and can be used to show trends. Organizational charts picture the hierarchy in an organization, such as a business. Flow charts illustrate the order of events in a process. They often flow from left to right and back again, or else from top to bottom. A pictograph is similar to a bar chart but uses series of small symbols to represent data, instead of bars. Photographs can show what an object looks like, how to perform a certain procedure, before and after views, and relative sizes and shapes of several different objects. Drawings can show where an object is located, how a tool or machine is put together, or what signals or steps are taken in a particular situation. A cutaway drawing shows internal parts normally concealed from view. An exploded drawing blows an object up and apart to show how the internal parts are arranged.

Designing a Web Site

Web sites can be personal, corporate, informational, or issue oriented. Whatever its purpose, a Web site must attract readers' interest. 

Four Web Design Elements

You will not be concerned with technical matters of Web site construction but rather only with the design of a web page. The following four Web site elements play a crucial role in any design decisions.

Links. Follow these guidelines to supply helpful links for Web readers:

• Identify links with consistent words or icons.
• Make sure all your pages are linked and that the links work.
• Make your links easy to find.
• Dont use too many links by loading a text paragraph with five or six of them.

Text Paragraphs. Web readers are less likely to read through your entire Web site. Because they may not keep scrolling to find key points, get to your main point quickly. Prepare on-line text so that readers can scan it easily and quickly

Color. Use color on a Web site for borders, images, and background. Since color is probably the most difficult design element to control, always discuss it with your companys graphic designer.

Images. Effective use of images can make your business documents look striking and professional while poor images undermine the communication of your message. The Web depends on images to convey its message.