Page 41 - Graphic Design and Print Production Fundamentals

Graphic Design 29
with something usable, because it keeps you thinking longer and with greater concentration.
When I asked you to “Restate the question five ways,” that was an example of an arbitrary quota.
There’s nothing magical about five restatements. In fact, five is low. Ten, or even a hundred, would
be far better.
5. Knock your questions. Whatever questions you’ve asked, assume they’re wrong-headed, or that you
haven’t taken them far enough.
You might ask, “Why do we need an 25% increase at all? Why not a 5% increase? A 500% increase?
A 5,000% increase? What other things in the business might need to change that would be as
important as revenue?”
6. Decide upon your new problem-solving question. Based on the thinking you’ve already done, this
step may not even be necessary. Often, when you look at your situation from enough angles, solutions
pop up without much more effort.

However, if you still need to pick a single question that summarizes your problem, and none seems perfect,
force yourself to choose one that’s at least serviceable. Going forward is better than standing still.

Now you can start brainstorming.

Concept Mapping

A good way to begin the process of research and problem definition is to write down everything that you
already know about your subject. This brainstorming can be done in a linear way by developing lists, or
in a non-linear way, popular with designers, called concept mapping. Concept mapping is a non-linear
approach that allows a designer to see what is known and what still needs to be researched. Concept
mapping is also used to generate concepts and to create associations and themes.

W5 + 1

The first step is to take a sheet of paper and write a central title or topic in the centre. Then surround this
central idea with information gathered by answering the following questions, based on the 5 Ws (who,
what, where, why, and when), plus one more, how:

• What are you trying to communicate? (the problem)

• Why must communication occur? (what is its purpose?)
• Who is the target audience?

• Where will communication take place? (in what medium and location?)
• When will communication take place?

• How will you implement the concept?
• What if? (what would be ideal?)

Once you’ve added all the information you have at hand, you will see any assumptions and gaps in that
information, and you can begin specific directed research to create a larger, more objective picture.

Here is an example of a concept map (See Figure 2.2). To see a concept map that details the scope of
visual communication.