What are the most effective ways to present and visualize research findings?

2 Choose the right format and style

Depending on your purpose and audience, you may choose different formats and styles to present and visualize your research findings. For example, you may use a report, a slide deck, a poster, a dashboard, a video, or an infographic. Each format has its own advantages and disadvantages, depending on the amount, complexity, and type of information you want to convey. Similarly, you may use different styles to make your presentation or visualization more appealing, engaging, and memorable. For example, you may use colors, fonts, icons, images, animations, or interactivity. However, you should always prioritize clarity, accuracy, and consistency over aesthetics, and avoid any elements that may distract, confuse, or mislead your audience.

3 Use appropriate data visualization techniques

Data visualization is a powerful technique to display and communicate quantitative information in a visual form. It can help you highlight patterns, trends, relationships, or outliers in your data, and make your findings more understandable and compelling. However, not all data visualization techniques are suitable for every type of data or message. You need to choose the right chart, graph, map, or diagram that best represents your data and supports your argument. You also need to follow some best practices to ensure that your data visualization is clear, accurate, and honest. For example, you should use appropriate scales, labels, legends, colors, and shapes, and avoid any distortions, manipulations, or exaggerations of your data.

4 Tell a story with your data

One of the most effective ways to present and visualize your research findings is to tell a story with your data. A story is a narrative that connects your data points into a meaningful and coherent whole. It can help you capture the attention, interest, and emotions of your audience, and persuade them to take action or change their perspective. To tell a story with your data, you need to follow some basic steps. First, you need to define the main characters, plot, and conflict of your story. Who are the people or entities involved in your research? What is the problem or opportunity that your research addresses? What are the challenges or obstacles that your research overcomes? Second, you need to structure your story into a beginning, a middle, and an end. How do you introduce your topic and context? How do you present your data and findings? How do you conclude your story and provide a call to action or a recommendation? Third, you need to use effective storytelling techniques to make your story more engaging and memorable. How do you use language, tone, and voice to convey your message? How do you use visuals, sounds, or emotions to enhance your story? How do you use contrast, repetition, or surprise to create impact?

5 Seek feedback and refine your presentation or visualization

Finally, one of the most important steps to present and visualize your research findings effectively is to seek feedback and refine your presentation or visualization. Feedback can help you identify and correct any errors, gaps, or inconsistencies in your presentation or visualization, and improve its quality, clarity, and relevance. You should seek feedback from different sources, such as your peers, mentors, experts, or potential users of your research. You should also seek feedback at different stages of your presentation or visualization development, such as the planning, drafting, and finalizing stages. You should be open, respectful, and constructive when receiving and giving feedback, and use it to make changes and improvements to your presentation or visualization.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?