Communication Challenges and Solutions
Lesson 3 from: Data Storytelling: Deliver Insights via Compelling StoriesBill Shander
Communication Challenges and Solutions
Lesson 3 from: Data Storytelling: Deliver Insights via Compelling StoriesBill Shander
Lessons
Introduction
1Class Introduction
03:29 2Do The Exercises
00:37 3Communication Challenges and Solutions
05:20 4Exercise: 4X4 Model
04:31 5Exercise Solution: 4X4 Model
03:25 6Introduction - Quiz
Thinking Like a Communicator
The Power of Story
06:48 8Six Ways to Tap Into Your Inner Storyteller
12:32 9The Importance of Understanding Your Audience
03:42 10How to Understand Your Audience
04:35 11How to Embrace Emotion (to review)
04:38 12How to Tap Into Your Inherent Creativity
05:55 13Exercise: An Emotional Story
01:29 14Exercise Solution: An Emotional Story
01:12 15Thinking Like a Communicator - Quiz
Telling Data Stories
16Basic Data Analytics Tactics
08:54 17Basic Journalism Tactics
04:56 18Defining Your Story
05:37 19Sketching and Storyboarding
07:05 20Use Your Words
04:20 21Telling Data Stories - Quiz
Essential Design Principles
22The Power of Visuals
07:44 23How to Pick the Right Chart for Your Data
05:19 24Exercise: Chart Selection
06:27 25Exercise: Visualization
02:59 26Basic Chart Designs Principles
08:21 27Research Driven Design Principles
06:27 28Exercise: A Data Story
03:50 29Essential Design Principles - Quiz
And Now What?
30Great Data Stories for Your Inspiration
05:53 31Tips and Tricks
03:53 32How to Sell Data Storytelling Services
03:56 33A Conversation Guide for Talking to Prospects About Data Storytelling Projects
05:30 34Course Summary
02:48Final Quiz
35Final Quiz
Lesson Info
Communication Challenges and Solutions
it's a hard time to be a communicator. Your audience is distracted, they're multitasking, they don't even really want to hear from you in many cases, even when they do want to hear from you, they're very impatient, you better give them good stuff fast or they're gonna leave your page, drop your report, scroll on to the next item in their feed, given everything, pulling out their attention, how can you create content that cuts through and gets and keeps people's attention? I've developed a very simple framework that I call the four x 4 model for knowledge content. It's a very simple idea but offers a vocabulary and way of thinking about it. That is a very effective method for solving this challenge and I think it's a fundamental idea that will help you with all of the work you do in this course and your career, which is why I'm introducing it here. The basic idea is that you have to deliver content to people in layers in order to get the right people to the right content at the right ti...
me. The four layers of content are what I call the water cooler, the cafe, the research library and the lab. Water cooler moments are short, attention grabbing chunks that allow your audience to decide if what you're offering is worth their time. Just look at the water cooler in the office if the topic being discussed is interesting and I want to engage further, I'll go to the cafe with you to have a longer conversation over a cup of coffee. Cafe content is the 750 word blog, post a 3 to 5 minute video, something that's a small investment of time, but still not a complete slog. Okay, once again, if the conversation is really interesting at the cafe and I'm not overwhelmed by or bored by the topic, I may be ready to move on to the research library. This is where I'll devote serious time investigating a topic. I'll read 100 page pdf, I'll watch a 60 minute video if I'm still not done, I may want to explore the underlying data myself. That's the lab experience, which is where you expose the raw data, the underlying research, the source content. So your audience can have an interactive data experience. This is where the editorial voice may be supplanted by raw materials, where your audience is exploring and investigating. This is a very committed audience. The point of the four x 4 is not to say you're always going to create lab experiences or research library content, but when you do, you have to create water cooler moments to attract people in, then you have to create cafe content to warm them up and allow them to self select in or out based on their interest in the topic. If you plop 100 page PDF on someone's desk, even if they are naturally inclined to like your content, they're not going to pick it up and read it. They need to be seduced of it. They need to be guided along the way. So when they get to that deep stuff, they're warmed up and ready to consume it. The other really important thing about the Four by Four model is that water cooler moments are very special bits of content that need to be used within the other content types. 100 page pdf has to have headlines, subheds, images, charts, and graphs, etcetera, Because remember you're impatient audience, even the most committed consumer of your content wants to scan within that content even here. She really only cares about like 14 of your 100 pages. So those water cooler moments allow him or her to scan the document and find just the most compelling stuff within it. Just remember it's all about getting the right people to the right content at the right time. The second four in the four by Four is about the four key components. You need all of your content at all of the levels. You need to make things as visual, interactive, story oriented, and shareable as possible. These attributes will help you reach distracted impatient audiences with the type of media that they want to consume and where they want to consume it. Data stories like all content should carefully hew to this thinking, create great water cooler moments, make sure you're cognizant of whether your final product is cafe content, research library or lab experience and be sure to create cafe content that leads to your research library content if you have it or your lab experience, don't skip the cafe content and make sure your deeper content has water cooler moments built into it to make it scannable. By the way this four by four model applies to all communications. Think about having a conversation with your spouse or parents about, let's say buying a new car. You don't start the conversation cold by jumping right in as soon as they answer the phone saying the 2.5 liter four cylinder engine gets mpg, right context. First of all you might start with hi how are you? There's a whole layer of communications about politeness and etiquette, right? But after that your water cooler would be I'm buying a new car but I need your help. And then the cafe content might be a 10 minute conversation explaining the three makes and the four models you've narrowed it down to and a comparison of the pros and cons including talking about the durability and performance and energy efficiency and price etc. And if it was your father you were talking to who's super dedicated and into cars. He'll be so excited that you included him in the conversation. He'll dive headfirst into the research library doing three hours of research on kelley blue book and consumer reports and Edmonds to really help you figure things out. The four by four model is an optimal model for communicating everything. So keep it in mind at all times. But especially when you're creating your content for your A. D. H. D. Distracted smartphone, addicted media oversaturated audience.
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