Page Design and
Elements
Visuals to Aid Comprehension
M. Reber
© 6/27/2016
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
2
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
3
Page Design







Helps readers understand information
Indicates hierarchy of ideas and concepts
Helps readers locate information
Emphasizes the most important content
Encourages readers to feel good about a
communication and its subject matter
Appeals to right-brained user’s
Invites the eye
4
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
5
Design Principles







Consider your reader and purpose
Align related visual elements with one another
Use contrast to establish hierarchy and focus
Use proximity to group related elements
Use repetition to unify your communication
visually
Select font types that are easy to read
Design for ease of use and attractiveness
6
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
7
Design Elements
Elements
Refers to
Headings and titles
Labels for sections of your communication
Text
Paragraphs, sentences, lists, steps
White space
Blank areas
Visual aids
Drawings, graphs, tables…
Headers and footers
Page number, author name…
Physical features of paper
Shape, size and bindings
8
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
9
Headings








Are the titles and subtitles you insert into the text
to indicate the topic and purpose of the
paragraphs
Provide an overview of the document/section
Indicate the logic of the documents
Indicate the topic of the upcoming section
Enable readers to read selectively
Provide breaks and white space in dense text
Keep readers focused
Keep the writer focused and organized
10
Designing Headings











Use no more than four levels of headings
Make headings bold and avoid all caps
Consistently distinguish heading level by proportionate point
size, indentation, font type (italics), capitalization, and other
graphic elements
Use sans serif fonts such as Helvetica, Optima, or Arial
Make the phrasing of headings accurate and descriptive
Make headings grammatically parallel
Use an appropriate number of headings
Use task-oriented headings in instructions
Avoid lone headings or stacked headings
Do not use headings as lead-ins to lists, figures, or tables
Adjust paragraph spacing above and below headings
11
Sample: Headings
Level 1
Heading
Level 2
Heading
12
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
13
General Guidelines for Text






Generally use 9-11 point size for body text,
depending on the dimensions and purpose of
your document (for user’s guides around 9 pt)
Use serif fonts such as Times New Roman,
Garamond, or Palatino
Single space body text
Indent text line to create a column of white
space on the right-hand side
Adjust paragraph spacing above and below
paragraphs and text elements
Do not shift text margins with heading margins
14
Lists: Bulleted and Numbered





Bulleted lists emphasize two or more items
where order is not crucial
Some bullet lists have labels with a term in
bold followed by a description or definition
Numbered lists have items that are in a
required order, chronological process, or that
must be referred to by number
Numbered lists usually indicate a step-by-step
process that must be completed in a specific,
sequential order
Lists add emphasis, increase readability, and
add white space
15
Sample: Bulleted and Numbered Lists
Bulleted
List
Numbered
List
16
Guidelines for Lists












Use the right type of list (number or bullet)
Include a lead-in sentence ending with a colon
Check the grammatical connection between list items and lead-ins
Avoid using too many lists or creating lists with too many items
Don’t use lists with only one item
Use standard punctuation and capitalization on list items
Adjust spacing between list items for readability
Make the phrasing of list items parallel
Avoid lead articles on list items
Correctly align list items and nested list items
Include a bullet list at the end of the Overview or Introduction that
lists and explains all your H1s in your guide
If additional information/definitions follow the item, add a period after
the item in bold, and add the extra text in unbold on the same line
17
Steps




Begin each step with a verb in command form
(omit “you”)
Bold the command sentence
Put additional information, notes, explanation
about each step is in unbold text on the same
line or on the very next line
Include only one action per step (unless two
actions must be completed simultaneously)
18
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
19
White Space



Is defined as any space on the page where
there is no text
Adds visual clarity to the document
Is created by defining the space along the:
 margins, between lines, paragraphs, indentation,
lead-ins & bullet text, bullets and the adjoining
bulleted-text, etc.

Is created through the Styles and Formatting
option in the Format Menu of MS-Word
20
White Space
Heading &
Paragraph
Text Spacing
Left Margin
Spacing
Right Margin
Spacing
Lead-in & Bullet
Text Spacing
Bullet Spacing
Bullet and Bullet
Text Spacing
Paragraph
Spacing
21
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
22
Notes, Warnings, and Tips








Notices are special emphasis techniques for text
Search the text for situations that match the situations for your
notices
Place notices with the text to which they apply
Present high-severity notices at the beginning of a document
Align notices with the text to which they apply
Consolidate multiple notices when possible
Use notice types consistently
The types of notices are:




Danger: for situations where serious injury or fatality could occur
Warning: for situations where minor injury could occur
Caution: for situations where damage to equipment or data could occur
Note: for situations where information needs to be emphasized, for exceptions,
special points, hints, and tips
23
Guidelines for Notices
While writing warnings and danger notices,
consider including:




Conditions
Actions to avoid or to take
Consequences
Recovery
24
Sample: Tips Box
25
Tables, Graphs, and Charts





Tables are rows and columns of numbers,
words, or symbols
Graphs show changes in data over time
Charts are graphical representation of data in
the form of bar and pie charts, in general
Use lists, charts, flowcharts, tables, diagrams,
and graphics to clarify and organize information
Always introduce bullet lists and graphics with a
sentence followed by a colon (:)
26
Types of Illustrations




Photographs
Drawings
Flowcharts and other conceptual drawings
Diagrams and schematics
27
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
28
Headers and Footers



Include a footer on all pages except the cover
page and table of contents page
Footers should be of the same font type you use
for your headings
Footer usually consists of three items: your
name, the title of your guide, and the date
29
Header
Footer
30
Overview









Page Design
Design Principles
Design Elements
Headings
Text
White Space
Graphics and Visual Aids
Headers and Footers
Physical Features of Paper
31
Physical Features of Paper





Readers usually prefer manuals that are
compact and manageable, such as 7 x 9
Use a paper that is thick enough so that text and
graphics do not bleed through when you print on
both sides
A paper with a slight gloss can look very
professional
For binding, use coil, saddle stitch, or staples
covered carefully by high quality tape
See course reader for specifics on paper and
production of the guide
32