Visualization of information for increased efficiency : Visualizing an effect mapping report

Abstract: Effect mapping is a method often used by companies in order to try to tie together the business goals with the users and their needs. The results of the effect mapping is often presented in long reports, with an additional effect map attached to it. Unfortunately, few clients tend to read these reports that they later are supposed to base future decisions on. This thesis aims to examine the efficiency in readers' perception of information, specifically the information from effect mapping. It evaluates if the understanding and perception, as well as the participation, could be improved by developing a digital web based version of the information. The objective of this study is to determine if a visualized web version of the effect mapping is more efficient than the original paper report version. The purpose is to help consulting firms improve the communication with their clients, that the clients will take part of and consume the information provided by the effect mappings that are delivered in a more efficient way. The process started out with workshops that were a foundation for a prototype. The prototype was developed based on the theoretical framework of this thesis, and created from a specific example of a traditional effect mapping report. The prototype was tested and evaluated before compared to, and evaluated with, the original paper report version of the effect mapping. The findings are that a web based, visualized presentation of the effect mapping is more efficient than the original paper report version. Not only did the participants of the study find the correct information in a shorter amount of time, but the user experience was also enhanced. The findings in this study are useful for firms that want to present results of effect mapping to customers who do not tend to spend time reading the full reports, but would rather get a quicker overview. This study can be used as a point of departure for future research, by testing it on other reports or firms.