Comments on: Color-Coding to Make Dense Information Feel Less Complicated

By: Ann K. Emery

Ann K. Emery — Mon, 02 Apr 2018 11:50:08 +0000

Hi Craig,
Yeah, this wouldn’t work in, say, a bar chart. I don’t recommend using different colors for each bar.
I’ve also used categorical color-coding in client reports, like this one (http://annkemery.com/impact-report/), where the three main topics have their own colors and icons throughout the entire report and accompanying dashboard.
I haven’t even heard of the technique you mentioned! I might have to try it. Looks very promising.
Thanks,
Ann

By: Craig Hadden (@RemotePoss)

Craig Hadden (@RemotePoss) — Mon, 02 Apr 2018 07:37:03 +0000

What a great compliment to receive about your slide design! I’ve not thought of using colour-coding this way before. I must admit, my 1st thought was that this reminds me of using colour as a categorical differentiator in a chart. And I know that many people (e.g. Cole Knaflic) advise against doing that. Here though, I suppose it’s binding together slides, diagrams and headings over several pages – rather than having multiple colours all on the same chart. For your handout, have you ever made a PDF from your PowerPoint notes pages instead of just from your slides? I’m thinking you could even use a hidden slide for the handout’s contents page, and print that slide (rather than its notes page) separately, as the cover for your handouts. A big benefit is that then everything’s in 1 file, and all changes to your content will automatically make it into your handout.

By: Ann K. Emery | Behind the Scenes: TechnoServe’s 2016 Impact Report

Ann K. Emery | Behind the Scenes: TechnoServe’s 2016 Impact Report — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 17:58:53 +0000

[…] These colors come from TechnoServe’s style guide, but they do more than just reinforce the organization’s branding. Colors are used intentionally to guide new readers through their terminology so that the content doesn’t feel overwhelming. […]

By: Ann K. Emery | Behind the Scenes: TechnoServe’s Results Portal

Ann K. Emery | Behind the Scenes: TechnoServe’s Results Portal — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 17:58:21 +0000

[…] like color-coding by category within a single document. I love color-coding across multiple documents and […]

By: Ann K. Emery | How to Visualize Statistically Significant P-Values with Squares

Wed, 21 Feb 2018 15:04:35 +0000

[…] And at the very least, we need to apply color strategically. You should use your own organization’s colors so that your table (and the rest of your publication) will reinforce your brand. Throughout the report, we talked about the differences between the three countries, so we color-coded by country. In our tables, charts, and maps, Country 1 was always blue, Country 2 was always purple, and Country 3 was always turquoise. I’ve got another example of color-coding by category here. […]