233 TIPS ON GRAPHICS AND VISUAL DESIGN Effective storyboarding can really help gain buy-in from stakeholders. Storyboarding brings ideas to life that might be harder to explain verbally. Salicia Pultz, OpEx Now Create three versions for difficult stakeholders. Design the first iteration. Create two different versions that are to the “left” and “right” of the first example. Then they can provide input on the extremes and may choose the middle ground. Lawrence Kevin, Ruckus Wireless Use focus groups to determine what learners take away from your graphics and message. Sharon Doughten, Cuyahoga Community College Stakeholder buy-in is a common concern for learning developers, particularly when innovative concepts are being introduced. We find it critical to involve stakeholders at a very early stage in the design process, even at the brainstorming stage. We have found that traditional brainstorming around a table often results in dominant characters articulating their ideas better than others and hence securing their ideas for a learning project. To counter this, we use more creative processes for brainstorming, such as 6-3-5 Brainwriting. Techniques such as this ensure that all levels in the organization contribute and have their ideas considered on a level playing field. Target learners can also be involved in this process—if stakeholders hear their passion for a potential solution, the stakeholders are more likely to support it. So use more creative ways to start your learning projects to be confident about their potential success. Richard Hyde, Learning Pool Asset production for learning material requires resources, and often, stakeholders need persuading that it is an expense worth paying for. One approach I now take is to sell the idea that digital learning assets can be repurposed to also help sell the product (course, workshop, etc.). For example, an interactive digital asset will contain many individual graphics that could be used for shout-outs on social media or for inclusion in business presentations. As a manager, I find it is very much my role to help stakeholders grasp the benefits of investing in the development of excellent-quality visuals and graphics, by understanding that they are always considering the bottom line. Michelle Boardman, University of Derby Online Learning Insist on a single point of contact for client approvals. Working only with a committee and syncing the conflicting feedback would take much more time and make billing and scheduling more difficult. Mike Beaulieu, GP Strategies When pitching a concept or idea to clients, use words that the clients used in the kickoff to show them you listened and to reinforce the decisions made. Doug Belding, SweetRush 53 www.eLearningGuild.com