What are visual notes?
Visual notes are drawings that use a combination of text and imagery to convey key points from presentations, meetings, class lectures, or anything, really. As visual note-takers, we're not only expert illustrators–we're expert listeners.
Having a visual note-taker at your event means that while you’re talking, we’re drawing. The result is a visual summarizing the key takeaways of your discussion.
Virtual Visual Notes
Ink Factory’s artists aren’t limited to paper and markers. We can take visual notes digitally, and stream them anywhere in the world–wherever your audience is.
Just like traditional visual notes, drawing in meetings will help you maximize participant engagement, clarify complex concepts, generate more high-quality ideas, and keep the momentum going from your meeting for longer.
Visual notes have powerful benefits
Engaging
Visuals engage the emotional centers of our brains.
Clarifying
Seeing information drawn helps you understand it more clearly.
Memorable
Pairing text with visuals helps you remember information.
Accessible
Visuals make it simple and easy for everyone to get aligned.
Learn how to take your own visual notes
The universal language of visuals helps people think and communicate. 65% of people learn better visually, so we create workshops that work for everyone–from students to seasoned professionals. In our workshop, you'll rethink how you take notes and learn the basics of:
- Listening & filtering ideas
- Organizing ideas visually
- How to draw visual metaphors
- Typography and handwriting
- Using color in notes
- Much more!
Visual notes case studies
See how everyone from nonprofits to Fortune 100 companies use visual notes.
Drive Engagement
“The boards were a great way to bring the conference theme to life. We had tons of people taking selfies with the wall.”
Peter Olson, Intacct
Inspire attendees
“Having you at our meeting was a true highlight. I cannot tell you how many attendees commented on how inspirational your work was.”
Cristina Marion, Dairy Management, Inc.
Spark conversation
“We have the final images hanging throughout our building, inspiring ongoing conversation well past the actual conference. Well worth the investment!”
Susan Cusick, Chicago Theological Seminary
How can visual notes support you?
Every event is a seamless experience
BEFORE
Planning Consultation
We'll plan on how to best incorporate our services into your event.
DURING
Dedicated Team
A dedicated project manager and artist will work closely with you.
AFTER
Digital Copies
Along with the original notes, you’ll get digital copies you can print and share.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need the presentation ahead of time?
It is helpful, but not necessary. Our artists are skilled in the art of active listening, synthesizing, and visualizing your content in real-time. Receiving a presentation ahead of time is helpful for your artist to understand complex jargon, acronyms, or statistics. Your dedicated Ink Factory project manager will be able to work with you to set your artist(s) up for success.
Is visual note-taking distracting to those in the room?
Visual notes are a super engaging tool because your content is being synthesized and visualized in real-time. We process visuals 60,000 times faster than text and we remember 80% of what we see but only 20% of what we hear. If anyone in the room is focused on our hand-drawn visuals, they are still connected with the content.
Do you teach workshops?
Would digital visual notes or analog visual notes be better for my event?
It depends on the look and feel you’re going for and the capabilities of your meeting space. With both options, your artist is drawing live and real-time.
Digital visual notes are great for events with big audiences because your AV team can project them large enough for everyone to experience. Final visuals also have the ability to be shared digitally almost instantly with your audience. Digital visual notes are also useful for smaller brainstorming sessions with a lot of ideation and evolving thoughts, or for events where you’ll want your artist to be more mobile between groups or rooms.
Analog visual notes are ideal when you want a more tangible experience–nothing beats seeing one of our artists draw what your audience is hearing, or interacting with the final display of artist boards after the sessions. Analog visual notes work best at the front near the speaker(s) so participants can see what’s being drawn, and are perfect for strategy sessions, brainstorming, and any other event where attendees can learn, react and build upon ideas.
Our team will work with you to select the best option for your event. Sometimes, it’s both!
you talk. we draw. it’s awesome.
Book an artist today to bring visual note-taking to your next meeting, conference, presentation, trade show booth, and more.