From the SMX West Conference in San Jose, California, March 1-3, 2016. SESSION: Getting Images Right In Paid Search. PRESENTATION: Visual Thinking and Practical Design Principles - Given by Dustin W. Stout, @dustinwstout - Weal Media Corporation, CMO. #SMX #31B

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With as little designer mumbo-jumbo as possible.
VISUAL THINKING &
PRACTICAL DESIGN
PRINCIPLES

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Just look at any social network.
FACT 1:
The Internet is becoming more and more
visual every day.

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The first website ever created. Stunning, isn’t it?

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Mashable.com

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Pinterest

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Fogg, B., Soohoo, C., Danielson, D., Marable, L., Standord, J., & Tauber, E. (2003)
FACT 2:
Human beings have evolved to judge their
environment based on visual cues.

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Stout, Dustin W. (2015)
VISUAL TRUST:
When something looks professional, we
generally assume that it is professional.

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▪ Balance
▪ Framing
▪ Contrast
▪ Color
▪ Typography
▪ Quality
▪ Consistency
Visual Trust Indicators
dustn.tv/visual-content-design

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Plain and simple. Don’t screw that up.
BEFORE ALL ELSE:
The purpose of good visual design is to
effectively communicate a message.

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Very small area in which to communicate a message.
WHAT WE’RE WORKING WITH

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Four primary components to a good display ad.

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Our brains are programmed to see symmetry as beauty.
BALANCE:
Clearly structured with visual “weight”
evenly distributed throughout the canvas.

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Maybe animals do too, I don’t know-- let’s try to stay on topic.

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Determine the subject and counter balance it.

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Position your text in a way that makes sense.

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Also known as white space or negative space.
FRAMING:
Creating even clearance around the
edges of your visual piece.

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Also known as white space or negative space.
FRAMING:
This is an example of really bad framing. Please do not
subject your audience to text that goes all the way to the
edge of the canvas.

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Bad contrast on top, good contrast on bottom.

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Bad contrast on top, good contrast on bottom.

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See what I did there?
When you frame your message, it directs
people’s eyes better than a thousand
tacky-looking arrows ever would.

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Probably the hardest thing to explain, so let me show you...
CONTRAST:
Visual distinction between background
and subject matter.

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Bad contrast on top, good contrast on bottom.

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Witty commentary here.
COLOR:
Using the right combinations can set an
emotional and psychological tone.

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Start paying attention to opening credits in movies.
COLOR TIP 1:
White text on dark (or high contrast
background) works best.

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Start paying attention to opening credits in movies.
COLOR TIP 2:
Forget all those “studies” about what color
to make your CTA. Just make sure it
passes the Squint Test.

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Squint test 1: PASS

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Squint test 2: FAIL

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Squint test 3: PASS

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Squint test 3: PASS

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Start paying attention to opening credits in movies.
COLOR TIP 3:
Stick to 3 colors or less, with your CTA
being the brightest.

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Resist the urge to give a lecture on the difference between “typefaces” and “fonts”.
TYPOGRAPHY:
Or in other words-- choosing the right
“fonts” for the job.

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Visual Consistency at play.

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Visual Consistency at play.

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Visual Consistency at play.

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Plain and simple. Don’t screw that up.
BEFORE ALL ELSE:
The purpose of good visual design is to
effectively communicate a message.

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SEE YOU AT THE NEXT #SMX
THANK YOU!