What Is Visual Communication? (and Why It’s a Big Deal)

Landlines, letters to your pen pal, newspapers in your postbox, set TV schedules – warm, cosy memories of what communication used to look like.

And while there’s nothing wrong with the occasional trip down nostalgia lane, if you’re hellbent on levelling up your business, you can’t afford to still be stuck in a text-heavy haze.

We’re visual creatures by nature and you simply have to open your phone (which you probably do first thing every morning) to see proof of this.

Even though we’re exposed to an influx of Instagram reels, memes and YouTube videos every day, we still somehow slip out of this mindset in a business setting.

When our brains are wired to consume exciting, colourful media, why are we still relying on outdated forms of communication to get our point across?

The importance of visual communication cannot be understated and if you’re not going to make the switch, get ready to lose your audience to what’s lurking on their phones during your next presentation.

Let’s take a deeper dive.

• Key Takeaways
• Visual Communication Explained
• Transcending Language: Why Visual Communication Matters
• Poor Business Communication Habits You Need to Ditch
• Making an Impact Through Visual Communication
• Pairing Your Visuals with a Killer Delivery
• Wrapping Up
• FAQs

• Visual communication leverages our natural wiring. Humans are inherently visual creatures. From cave paintings to digital content, visuals make information more engaging, accessible, and memorable, compared to text alone.
• Visuals boost retention, engagement, and persuasion. Research shows that people retain up to 65% of information when it’s presented visually, versus only 10% via text.
• Certain business communication habits should be dropped. Death by text, overused stock images or cliché clipart, and neglecting the needs of your actual audience can dilute impact and engagement.
• Simplicity, consistency, relevance, and quality matter. Effective visual communication relies on a few core principles: keep it simple to cut clutter, maintain a consistent style, choose visuals that resonate with your audience, and invest in standout, authentic media to make your message memorable.
• Pair visuals with a compelling delivery. Even the best visuals fall flat without a confident, energetic delivery. The magic happens when visuals support a dynamic story, combined with good eye contact and genuine connection.

Let’s start with a little textbook definition of visual communication before we delve into the good stuff.

Visual communication has been around for as long as man has and cave paintings are proof of this. However, today, it’s quite a different beast.

From digital marketing and social media to education, business presentations, and public signage, visual communication examples are everywhere. From the moment you open your eyes – BOOM, there it is.

The idea with visual communication is to convey information, ideas and messages through visual elements rather than relying solely on text or spoken words.

Think of a silent movie? You can still follow along with what’s going on as Charlie Chaplin shuffles around right?

Fast forward to a more modern setting, visual communication means using images, graphics, colours, symbols, videos and other visual aids to make information more accessible, engaging and memorable.

Sounds simple enough, but there’s a little more to it.

There’s a reason why 86% of global business leaders favour data visualisation when creating plans and presentations – visuals don’t beat around the proverbial bush. Visuals get the job done, sometimes even better than words ever could.

If we look at just a handful of the studies that have been conducted on the different types of visual communication versus a traditional text-based approach, it’s clear that media makes a noticeable difference.

Without being ironic and boring you with stats, here is a little of what some of this research reveals.

For one, 85% of people are more likely to purchase a product or service after watching a video.

Studies also show that after three days, people are still able to remember up to 65% of information if it is presented in a visual format versus 10% if it is text-based.

Even a simple post on X (RIP Twitter) receives 35% more engagement if it’s paired with an image.

In essence, humans are designed to take in and remember visuals!

If you’re anything like me, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by how much information is available out there. Trying to perform a simple online search returns hundreds of pages of information – enough to make you abandon ship.

Visuals help cut through this noise.

More often than not (and depending on the type of information that’s required), someone would much rather scroll through an infographic or watch a short video to find the information they need.

It’s this change in how we prefer to engage with and process information that has totally revolutionised business communication.

Do you want to add to the brain freeze that countless emails, Google searches and boring how-to guides produce or do you want to get your point across in a way that gets your audience to sit up and pay attention to what you have to say?

At some point or another, you’ve looked at a photo or watched a video that tugged at your heartstrings. Sure, you can get emotional reading a page in a book, but there’s something about seeing it before your eyes that really evokes an emotional response.

This is because you process imagery directly through your visual cortex, which can instantly trigger emotions and associations. Even the colour and composition of an image can activate specific memories and feelings.

Brands that can connect with people on an emotional level are far more likely to stand out and resonate with their audience.

This is one benefit of visual communication that isn’t as obvious. With visuals, you can convey a message or tell an entire story without having to speak someone’s native language at all.

I mean, consider how many indigenous cultures have recorded their stories in pictures. There’s no way we would have as much insight into certain historical periods, cultures and traditions without these picture books.

How many potential customers are you potentially isolating by relying on text communication alone? Visuals transcend language!

It’s easy to think you’ve nailed your visual aids for communication because you left a conference or client meeting feeling on top of the world, but, alas, there are a few ways you could be going horribly wrong without even knowing it.

If you’ve seen one text-filled slideshow, you’ve seen them all. You might as well revert back to using an old projector in a classroom.

If you’re still cramming text into countless slides to the point that it might as well look like a Word document, you’ve already lost your audience. Your audience doesn’t want to read more than they already do, not unless it’s for please – they want to listen to what you have to say.

We all love a stat, but overdo it and your message is going to get lost in the noise. There’s nothing wrong with a graph, but this is the time to rethink how you’re presenting important data.

Unless you’re presenting a complex scientific study that could save the planet from an asteroid, data doesn’t need to be complicated or boring.

There are so many platforms you can use to find relevant, eye-catching images for your presentations and business communication material. Using the same Shutterstock photo of a team having a meeting in a traditional boardroom whilst smiling like crazy clowns is a surefire way to cause a glazed-over look.

Using outdated and distracting clipart in your presentation is like rocking up to a meeting in acid-wash jeans and a bum bag—nostalgic, sure, but not exactly the impression you want to leave. However, if that’s the image you’re going for then by all means.

The point I am trying to make is that if you choose to use clipart in your presentation, you need to take a good look in the mirror. Do you place that little value on what your audience is experiencing?  The same applies to images being so outdated and out of touch with your audience that you leave people to drift into daydreams.

From building your visual communication to delivering it, your audience should always be a priority. If you’re too wrapped up in what you have to say, word by word,  you can totally miss the mark in terms of ensuring your communication resonates with your audience.

Always remember to look up, no matter how great your slides are!

It’s all good and well to plan out a few videos, infographics or exciting presentations, but this doesn’t mean your visual communication methods will hit the mark.

If you really want to get tongues wagging after you’ve said your piece, there are a few boxes you need to tick.

There is always a time and place for impressive visuals and graphics, but in most instances, simple and clear is what’s going to have the greatest impact. There’s a reason why it’s one of the core principles of visual communication.

“Less is more” might be an age-old saying, but it’s still very relevant.

By avoiding clutter, you ensure your audience can focus on the most essential information. God knows we all need a little help focusing.

Instead of going crazy and overstuffing with visuals, rather ask yourself whether there’s one visual that will give your core message some backbone.

As a creative myself, even I find it difficult to not go overboard sometimes when the ideas start flowing so I am never going to tell you to kill your creativity – just make sure your underlying message is always clear.

Imagine sitting through a presentation that included images of people in real-life settings, clip art, blueprints, cartoon animations and old sketches. It can easily come across as chaotic and unprofessional.

Consistency = professional. Being all over the place comes across as more crazy cat lady (or man).

You should also already know how you want to position your brand, regardless of whether this is your personal brand or a business. Make this a keypart of picking out any visuals.

As much as you want your visuals to perfectly represent your brand, they should also resonate with your audience. Including a clip from Happy Days is going to fall a little short with an audience of 20-year-olds.

Instead of haphazardly picking images, memes and videos for your business communication, ask yourself whether your audience would ‘get it’.

Taking the time to understand what makes your audience tick will help you refine your ideas and ensure they resonate on a deeper level.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve encountered the same old stock images and videos. The ones with everyone smiling like they are on happy gas, perfectly groomed and pointing at a computer.

Trust me, people notice, and you’re hardly going to stand out with visuals like this. Would you bring a VHS to a streaming event?

If you want your visual communication to get the job done, invest in unique media – I can’t stress this enough.

Whether this is ensuring you have access to unique photos and videos or hiring a photographer, videographer or animator, give your audience something to remember.

Even if you’re on a tight budget, platforms such as Pexels and Unsplash have some excellent image and video options.

Chances are, you tell a story at least once a day – it’s how we communicate. Perhaps you complained to your partner about Karen at work or you’re telling your child about their great-grandmother’s strange cake recipe, stories are an innate part of being human.

Storytelling is the approach you want to take with your business communication too and visuals are at the heart of this.

Think about your child’s favourite books, the visuals tend to do the heavy lifting and you add the finishing touches through words.

Stories are a potent form of communication because they encourage the listener to use their imagination and even picture themselves in a particular scenario.

There are thousands of ways to work storytelling into your visual communication and no, it doesn’t need to be a fantastical tale either. It’s simply perfecting the art of painting a picture.

Now that you’ve nailed the visual side of things, you need to make sure your message doesn’t fall short. Even the best visuals won’t save a dull delivery.

Pairing dynamic visuals with a confident, engaging delivery is where the magic happens. Think of it like your favourite TV duo—Sherlock and Watson, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, fries and milkshakes. One without the other? Still good. Together? Iconic.

Here’s the secret sauce: It’s all about bringing your visuals to life through energy, storytelling and genuine connection. Your visuals shouldn’t be the show; they should support your story. They’re the cool sidekick, not the main character.

Great visuals should feel like catnip for your audience—pulling them in, keeping them hooked, and making your message unforgettable.

Think about listening to a speaker who grabs you with a thought-provoking opening, maintains good eye contact, isn’t afraid to engage with the audience and has the visuals to back it all up – pure presentation perfection!

Gone are the days when you could rely solely on written communication. Of course, there is always going to be a time and place for long-form content. There is so much joy in getting glost in a book and you woudldn’t create an infographic of a Royal Commission report as the detail is important!

However, when you’re speaking to a group of people and have a lot of information to convey in a short amount of time, a visual format is where it’s at.

Don’t be the person who is met with a sea of people staring out the window or down at their phones because you’re about to take them through yet another text-heavy slide.

Mastering the art of visual communication is what’s going to completely alter your audience experience and keep them coming back for more.

Image Attributes:

1. Header Photo by Jason Rosewell on Unsplash
2. Photo by freestocks on Unsplash
3. Photo by Max Chen on Unsplash
4. Simon Banks (that’s me!)
5. Caju Gomes on Unsplash