Transforming Insight Podcast

Episode 26: Painting Insight pictures

Episode Summary

As consumers, we recognise that images are often easier to follow than words. From those IKEA self-assembly instructions, to the colourful infographics in the Sunday newspapers, and the YouTube video guides on how to manage every aspect of our lives. Internal corporate departments have tended to be slower to use visual communications. But, done well, they can be an extremely effective tool for many departments, including our Insight teams. Done badly, they can over-complicate and confuse.

Episode Notes

So why are visuals so important? A few years ago, our colleague Julia Joskey carried out the IMA’s first best practice research on this topic, and she joins me in this 18-minute episode to share her learning.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

Why are visuals so important? (1.36)
Thinking like an Insight designer (3.22)
The designer and the editor (5.50)
The barriers for most Insight teams (8.57)
The best visual to choose (13.20)

Highlights

“We can train ourselves to think like an Insight designer and give some thought to how we can use pictures to help us to solve problems and to present ideas. It doesn’t have to be complicated; we can have huge impact just by using simple shapes like triangles, squares and circles to communicate our ideas.”
“We can marry the talents of the Insight designer to those of the Insight editor and produce charts that enable one key message to stand out. David McCandless, data journalist and author of Information is Beautiful, believes that all Insight professionals have a ‘dormant design literacy’ that gives us the potential to produce effective infographics”
“Moving images are even more compelling than still images, and we should look for ways to incorporate animations and video footage of consumers at every opportunity. The late Hans Rosling, author of Factfulness, was celebrated for his moving bubble charts (see examples on YouTube) and many progressive Insight teams from Unilever to CocaCola make great use of customer vox pops on their Insight portals”

This is episode 26 of the Transforming Insight podcast.

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening.

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources:

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.