Visual communication can include many different forms. These include posters, advertisements, charts, graphs, television and computer graphics. The Internet also makes use of graphics in order to communicate with it's users.

POSTERS

Posters can be flyers or large billboards. However they all have the same objective of getting across a simple, yet clear message.

Posters are used extensively because:

• They are cheap to produce

• They convey their message immediately

Posters, however are sometimes referred to as junk mail and are often not read.

ADVERTISEMENTS

Adverts are used extensively in magazines, television, newspapers and radio.

Advertisements fall into one of three categories:

1. Informative Adverts. These attempt to inform the potential customer about a product.

2. Persuasive Adverts. These are used with the aim of persuading the potential customer to buy a certain product.

3. Generic Adverts. These are used to promote a common product or service, not a specific product. For example, 'Buy Northern Ireland Products' or 'British Beef is Best'. These adverts are sent out by an industry rather than a particular firm.

CHARTS AND GRAPHS

Charts and graphs are an excellent way of presenting numerical data.

The following table shows the number of pupils in each class who have full attendance from September to December

Graphs can now be created using spreadsheet programs and provide the computer user with a very professional method of visual communication.

Most spreadsheet programs provide the user with a variety of graphs:

• Line graph

• Scatter graph

• Pie chart

• Bar chart