Techniques for Highlighting Key Points

In #datastorytelling, you often want a specific point to stand out or “POP” in each data scene in your data stories. I’ve developed a 💥POP💥 method that you can apply to these situations: 💥 P: Prioritize – Establish which data point is most important. 💥 O: Overstate – Use visual emphasis like color and size as a contrast.   💥 P: Point – Guide the audience to the focal point of your chart. The accompanying illustration shows the progressive steps I’ve taken to make Product A’s Q3 $6M sales bump stand out. Step 1️⃣: Add headline. One of the first things the audience will attempt to do is read the title. A descriptive chart title like “Products by quarterly sales” is too general and offers no focal point. I replaced it with an explanatory headline emphasizing the increase in Product A sales in Q3. The audience is now directed to find this data point in the chart. Step 2️⃣: Adjust color/thickness I want the audience to focus on Product A, not Product B or Product C. The other products are still useful for context but are not the main emphasis. I kept Product A’s original bold color but thickened its line. I lightened the colors of the two other products to reduce their prominence. Step 3️⃣: Add label/marker I added a marker highlighting the $6M and bolded the label font. You’ll notice I added a marker and label for the proceeding quarter. I wanted to make it easy for the audience to note the dramatic shift between the two quarters. Step 4️⃣: Add annotation You don’t always need to add annotations to every key data point, but it can be a great way to draw more attention to particular points. It also allows you to provide more context to help explain the ‘why’ or ‘so what’ behind different results. Step 5️⃣: Add graphical cue (arrow) I added a graphical cue (arrow) to emphasize the massive increase in sales between the two quarters. You can use other objects, such as reference lines, circles, or boxes, to draw attention to key features of the chart. In terms of the POP method, these steps align in the following way: 💥 Prioritize – Step 1 💥 Overstate – Step 2-3 💥 Point – Step 4-5 Because data stories are explanatory rather than exploratory, you need to be more directive with your visuals. If you don’t design your data scenes to guide the audience through your key points, they may not follow your conclusions and become confused. Using the POP method, you ensure that your key points stand out and resonate with your audience, making your data stories more than just informative but memorable, engaging, and persuasive. So next time you craft a data story, ensure your data scenes POP—and watch your insights take center stage! What other techniques do you use to make your key data points POP? 🔽 🔽 🔽 🔽 🔽 Craving more of my data storytelling, analytics, and data culture content? Sign up for my newsletter today: https://lnkd.in/gRNMYJQ7

Highlight benefits, not features. Your customers will thank you. Imagine this: You're browsing online for a new backpack. You come across two listings. One says, "Made from high-quality nylon, 30L capacity, multiple compartments." The other says, "Keeps your essentials organized, lightweight for comfortable daily use, and durable enough to withstand any adventure." Which one grabs your attention? Here's why benefits matter more than features: 1️⃣ Customer Connection: People buy solutions to their problems. By highlighting benefits, you're directly addressing their pain points. For instance, instead of saying "waterproof jacket," say "stay dry and comfortable in any weather." 2️⃣ Visual Impact: Show, don't tell. If you're selling a portable blender, don't just list "500W motor." Show it crushing ice for a smoothie in seconds. Visual proof builds trust and makes the benefit tangible. 3️⃣ Emotional Appeal: Benefits resonate on an emotional level. A feature might be "contains omega-3," but the benefit is "supports heart health and boosts your mood." Customers are more likely to connect with the latter. 4️⃣ Reduced Returns: Clear benefits help set accurate expectations. If a customer knows exactly how a product will improve their life, they're less likely to be disappointed and return it. For example, a size reference image can show how a piece of furniture fits in a room, reducing the guesswork and potential for returns. Think about your listings. How can you visualize your product's main benefits? Here are some practical ways to do it: - Before and After Images: These are powerful. If your product solves a problem, show the transformation. For a back brace, a before-and-after image showcasing improved posture can be a game-changer. - Customer Testimonials: Real customer stories can illustrate benefits better than any product description. Use quotes and images of satisfied customers to show the positive impact of your product. - Real-Life Scenarios: Demonstrate your product in action. If you're selling a long charging cable, show it being used comfortably across a living room. This visual context makes the benefit clear. Remember, nobody buys a product for its technical specs alone. They buy it for the difference it will make in their lives. Highlight those benefits, and you'll create stronger connections, reduce returns, and build trust with your customers. What's your strategy for highlighting benefits over features? Have you seen a difference in customer engagement? #Marketing #Ecommerce #CustomerExperience

The best product pages don’t say more. They say it better (here's how) If you have long content sections on your PDP, you're making it harder to: • reach key CTAs • understand important information • purchase from your site Overall hurting your conversion rate and revenue. Here are 8 ways you can highlight essential information prominently, overall making your PDP easier to scroll and convert from. 1. Move the product name above the product image along with reviews+price. That way, the space between the images and the add-to-cart CTA is reduced, increasing chances of adding to cart.     2. Use a primary product image that highlight key USPs. This would help the user to quickly understand why to buy this product and why from you.     3. Add product image thumbnails. More important if product requires education. Thumbnails help shoppers understand what's in the image. Increasing engagement.     4. Consider adding 3 short bullets or USPs about the product before the add to cart CTA. This way, they are educated about the product before they consciously think about adding it to cart.     5. Motivate users to add more quantity, increasing the AOV. Do this by highlighting savings when they buy in bulk or highlighting the cost per item if they buy a bundle.     6. Optimize the area around the add-to-cart CTA. Highlight the estimated delivery time, free shipping threshold and return policy.     7. Highlight key USPs to differentiate your product and brand from the others.     8. Add accordions that the user can click on to read more. This way they can find the answers to their questions quickly. Other 3 CRO changes I did: • Re-iterated price near the pack selection so the user doesn't have to scroll back up to see the price. • Changed "Packs" to "Select Packs". Asking them to take an action. • Added a "best seller" badge to help with decision making Found this useful? Let me know in the comments! #conversionrateoptimization #uxdesign

🧠 Serial Position Effect 🧠 A psychological phenomenon where we tend to recall the first and last items in a series best, and the middle items worst. It underscores the influence of item positioning on memory and recall. --- This effect involves two components: the Primacy Effect, where early items are remembered better because we have more time to commit them to long-term memory, and the Recency Effect, where recent items are recalled more easily because they are still in our short-term memory. The roots of the Serial Position Effect stretch back to the work of Hermann Ebbinghaus, a German psychologist who laid the groundwork for memory research in the late 1800s. His experiments revealed a pattern: the position of information in a series influenced how well it was remembered, thus uncovering the Serial Position Effect. These studies have shed light on the mechanisms of short-term and long-term memory. This research offers insights into how we encode, store, and retrieve information. --- We can use the Serial Position Effect to our advantage when it comes to communications and important meetings There are several ways we can optimize meetings and communication within teams and especially with stakeholders. When presenting or sending emails, highlight key points at both the beginning and end. This strategy makes sure important details stand out, allowing follow-up discussions to become more focused. Who doesn’t love a good TL;DR? Kicking off meetings with the most pressing objectives or challenges and wrapping up with key takeaways or next steps can make the items covered more memorable and actionable for the team. --- 🎯 Here are some key takeaways 1️⃣ Start and end with what matters most. By placing essential information at the beginning and end of a sequence, you can significantly increase the likelihood of it being remembered. 2️⃣ Break information into digestible chunks. To combat the tendency for middle items to be forgotten, organize information into smaller, more manageable segments. This way, key points are evenly distributed and highlighted. 3️⃣ Utilize the Primacy Effect for foundational knowledge. Introduce key concepts early and give them ample focus. This can aid in their transfer to long-term memory and form a strong foundation for further understanding. 4️⃣ Harness the Recency Effect for immediate impact. For information or actions that require immediate attention, position them at the end of the content. This will make them more prominent and actionable. 5️⃣ Foster collaborative recall and action. End discussions with a collective recap of decisions and next steps. This can enhance group memory and commitment and helps ensure that all team members are aligned and motivated to act. --- To dig into more details about this effect check out the Cognition Catalog: https://lnkd.in/gEQ4DQjg #UXdesign #cognitiveBias

Next time you revise a first draft, try this exercise. 1. Highlight key words and sentences that advance your main point. 2. Bold the first paragraph and the first sentence of each subsequent paragraph. Now, compare. The highlighted words show your key ideas; the bolded sections show where readers focus. If key ideas aren’t appearing in bolded areas, they are buried and hard to find. The first paragraph and first sentences are the most important parts of your writing. That’s where readers focus, so that’s where your key ideas need to be.