Six design tips to elevate your annual report
It’s annual report time and quarter four is nearly a wrap. This year more than ever, your annual report will be critical reading for investors and set the tone for the year ahead. Time to think about your message and how you will present it.
Despite the unexpected turn of events and economic slowdown, there is no excuse for an ill-conceived annual report. Design solves a lot of problems and is an effective tool to elevate your message and reinforce your brand in the eyes of your stakeholders.
In this blog, our designers discuss six design tips to consider when preparing this year’s report.
Clockwise from left: Annual reports for Longtable Group, Local Government Super and Independent Brewers Associations.
1. DO MORE THAN REPORT, BUILD YOUR BRAND
In these unsettled times, investors need to know your company is in safe hands. Your annual report is your platform to speak directly to investors. Use it to reinforce your brand vision, values and strengthen investor's trust in you.
2. THINK ONLINE AND OFFLINE
We can’t deny we love the feel of a freshly printed annual report. But digital annual reports are important. Not only for the convenience and cost savings but to help you reach more people. Consider publishing your annual report on your website and promoting it on socials to reach potential investors and prospective employees.
If you do publish online, talk to your designer about how to use page navigation, dynamic text and subtle movement to enhance the reading experience.
3. DATA IS MORE VALUABLE TO READERS WHEN IT’S VISUALISED
Important numbers need simple graphics to make them stand out. Effective data visualisation is a crucial first step in annual report design. It makes it easier to process complex information and highlight insights and key messages. Making the data more valuable to your reader and resulting in a report that is easier to read and digest.
From left: Sylvanvale, Pengana Capital Group and New Payments Platform document design.
4. BRING PEOPLE INTO YOUR ANNUAL REPORT
All data and no people make for a dull, forgettable report. Bringing people into the design has a few great benefits. Use your annual report to recognise your people, their achievements and contribution to your business. It shows readers what kind of company you are and what you value.
People respond to people. Faces draw our attention. We connect with them instinctively. Using people in the design gives a personal touch that annual reports and data often lack, and creates a more engaging and positive reading experience.
5. USE DESIGN TO DRAW READERS INTO THE DETAIL
Financial reports don't need to be boring. The numbers and insights are seldom dull but the way they're presented often is.
Think type, illustration and white space. Colour and contrast. Pull quotes. Knowing how to combine these design elements can pace a report and pare down complex information into digestible chunks. Bold graphics help to grab people's attention and draw them into reading the detail.
6. KEEP TO EVERYDAY ENGLISH WHENEVER POSSIBLE
The words you use in your annual report will shape people’s perception of your brand. Too many annual reports hide behind an official style of writing that can be confusing or ambiguous. Investors need a clear message. Say what you mean in the simplest way.
This doesn't mean only using simple words – just words that are appropriate to your reader in the simplest terms.
It's our job as designers to use design to elevate your message, reinforce your brand and make your annual report a thoroughly engaging experience.
Talk to us today about how we can help.