Contrast, Alignment, Repetition, Proximity

CARP vs CRAP

When it’s not used C.A.R.P. results in CRAP, it truly does.  It’s no fun for anyone when the reader struggles to make sense of what you are trying to communicate because the either can’t see the elements on the page or they don’t make sense of them in a way that’s easy to grasp.   Yet slide after slide, and often websites as well, try to put too much on a page or their focus is on impressing with information, which usually just leads to confusion.

One of the first lessons in design is to think carefully about what you are putting out there.  Even working in Higher Ed I still feel like far too many presentations are the speakers talking points bulleted on the page for those in the audience to read, or maybe it’s actually their presentation notes in disguise.  In any case the beauty behind CARP is that when it’s principles are applied to the design of a Power Point slide deck, website, or any medium that is intended to communicate information, the result is a visual aid that communicates well and is much more powerful that it’s bulleted counterpoint.

Contrast:  The idea of making your colors pop without popping the reader’s eyes right out of their head.  Colors that are too bold or stark are hard to read so straight up selecting complimentary colors isn’t always the trick.  Look at your creation, is it easy to read and easy on the eyes?  Do the most important elements and sections stand out with use of larger text?

Alignment: Information all over the page is just plain confusing. Place items on the page to create order and provide your reader with a logical path to follow.  Large chunks of text should be left or right aligned.  Leave the center alignment to sparsely populated pages where the word is the main point and leave fully justified text at home.  If your message must contain a random look, leave the reader a path to follow. Think of Candy Land and make it easy to find their way around your document.

Repetition: Repetition creates a consistent feel, order, and cohesion for the reader.  The use of repeating colors, text style, or similar visual elements draws the design together and brings a sense of peace and understanding of expectation for the reader.

Proximity:  There is nothing worse than looking all over a page to try to make sense of what is happening on it.  Most readers, myself included, will give it a quick try then hop off to something else, something less cumbersome to navigate.  Putting text and graphics that relate to one another closer together and organizing them on the page helps the reader easily recognize what belongs together and how to most effectively process the information presented.

Which one is most important when designing slides for a webinar?  Well I don’t know that you can really single one out.  The most effective designs I have seen may appear to have more of a focus on one element than another, but most often I feel that when the designer has made that choice it has more to do with the content being presented.   You can’t go wrong with concise language, visuals that relate or help group items together, and colors that coexist in a way that makes it easy for the reader to see.  If I had to choose I’d say contrast.  Many people stare at a screen all day and having a page that’s easy to read and easy on the eyes wins for me!

Images from pixabay.com

Clothespins Image by analogicus from Pixabay

Repetition Image by Ralf Kunze from Pixabay