Visual Communication

Drawings or diagrams

• Pros: Drawings or diagrams can be used when photographs do not show exactly what the speaker wants to show or explain. It could also be used when a photograph is too detailed. For example, a drawing or diagram of the circulatory system throughout the body is a lot more effective than a picture of a cadaver showing the circulatory system.
• Cons:If not drawn correctly a drawing can look sloppy and be ineffective. This type of drawing will appear unprofessional.

Projections

Projections, either transparencies or slides, allow audiences to see graphics or photographs easily, especially when audiences are large or spread out in a large   room. Since slides and transparencies look more professional than posters or flip charts, business speakers often prefer them.

• Pros: Easy to  prepare, update and  maintain and locate.
• Cons:Hold speaker captive to the machine.

Power Point presentations can be an extremely useful visual aid, especially for longer presentations. For five- to ten-minute presentations, it is probably not worth the time or effort to put together a Power Point. For longer presentations, however, Power Points can be a great way to keep the audience engaged and keep the speaker on track.

• Pros:If you need to add a slide to the program, you can insert new material quickly and easily, and you can even change a slide during your presentation.It creates professional appearance with colour, art, graphics, and font options.

• Cons:A potential drawback of using a Power Point is that it usually takes a lot of time and energy to put together. There is also the possibility of a computer malfunction, which can mess up the flow of a presentation.

Advantages of visual communication

Now-a-days, most of the business organizations are using visual techniques to present the information. It is becoming very popular day by day. Visual presentation is beneficial for many reasons. Some of them are as follows:

1. Effective for illiterate receiver: If the receivers are illiterate, the visual communication will be more effective to exchange information. They can easily understand the information that is presented visually.
2. Helps in oral communication: Visual techniques can be used with oral communication. Oral communication becomes more meaningful if graphs, pictures and diagrams are used with it.
3. Easy explanation: Everyone can explain the meaning of it very easily. Easy explanation has made the visual techniques more popular.
4. Simple presentation: Complex information, data and figures can be easily presented very simply on graphs, pictures and diagrams.
5. Prevents wastage of time: Visual techniques help to prevent the wastage of time. Written and oral communication takes much time to exchange information. But number of receivers can be communicated at a time through visual methods.
6. Helps in quick decision: Visual communication helps to take quick decision. So management prefers visual techniques to communicate with others.
7. Popular: Visual communication is very much popular because people do not like much speech and long explanation rather than a chart of a diagram.
8. Others: Artful presentation, Ads impact to the information, quicker understanding.

Disadvantages of visual communication

There are some limitations of visual communication as follows:

1. Costly: The visual methods of communication are more costly than those of other methods. To draw maps, charts, diagram is costly. That is why only large company or organization can use this technique.
2. Complex presentation: Sometimes visual presentation of information becomes complex. The receivers cannot understand the meaning of the presentation.
3. Incomplete method: This technique is considered as an incomplete method. Visual presentation is not sufficient to communicate effectively and clearly but also it can be successfully used with oral communication.
4. Wastage of time: Sometimes visual techniques take much time to communicate. Whereas oral communication takes no time to exchange information.
5. Difficult to understand: Difficult to understand and requires a lot of repetitions in visual communication. Since it uses gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, touch etc. for communicating with others which may not be understandable for the simple and foolish people.
6. Problem for general readers: General people are not prefers to communicate through visual communication with others. Sometimes it cannot create an impression upon people or listeners. It is less influential and cannot be used everywhere.
7. Others: Ambiguity, situational problem, delays in taking decision.