/ Opening
“I like it” is not a critique Useful feedback identifies what the communication is trying to do, where comprehension or response breaks, and which design or language choice is causing it.
INTENT → EFFECT → CAUSE → REVISION
TAKEAWAY Critique should explain function and consequence—not personal taste alone.
/ Friction Hunt
What makes this hard to understand? The problem may be visual, verbal, structural, or accessible. Name the cause rather than only the feeling.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT OUR NEW SERVICE We are thrilled and excited to announce an innovative and comprehensive solution designed to help all customers achieve better outcomes across a variety of situations...
LEARN MORE NEW FAST TRUSTED FLEXIBLE POWERFUL START TODAY TERMS APPLY
TAKEAWAY “Hard to use” becomes actionable only when the team can identify what creates the friction.
/ Visual Literacy
Six lenses for visual communication Visual choices shape what is noticed, understood, trusted, and acted on.
HIERARCHY What is noticed first, second, and third?
CONTRAST Can important differences be perceived?
SPACING Are ideas grouped and separated clearly?
LEGIBILITY Can the content be read at the actual size and distance?
COMPOSITION Does placement guide the eye and support meaning?
ACCESSIBILITY Can more people perceive, understand, and operate it?
TAKEAWAY Visual design is not decoration. It controls attention, comprehension, usability, and perceived credibility.
/ Copy Literacy
Strong copy makes the point easier to understand and act on Word choice, order, specificity, and tone can reduce or create friction.
POINT Is the main idea clear and early?
SPECIFICITY Do the words carry concrete meaning?
VOICE Does the language sound appropriate for the audience and brand?
STRUCTURE Does each sentence build the next understanding?
CTA Is the action clear, relevant, and earned?
ECONOMY Can unnecessary language be removed without losing meaning?
TAKEAWAY Good copy is not merely short or clever. It is clear about what matters and what should happen next.
/ Team Challenge
Critique the work with evidence Teams receive one deliberately flawed communication. Identify three functional problems and recommend the smallest revisions that solve them.
COMMUNICATION GOAL Get employees to enroll in a new retirement-plan webinar.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR ALL EMPLOYEES Financial Wellness Webinar Opportunity In an effort to continue to provide ongoing resources, we are offering an informative session related to retirement planning and financial wellness.
CLICK HERE Thursday 3:00 PM · registration required · space is limited · details available on intranet HIERARCHY CLARITY LEGIBILITY TONE CTA ACCESSIBILITY
TAKEAWAY Connect every criticism to the intended audience response and every revision to a diagnosed problem.
/ Pressure Test
Is the critique useful enough to act on? Strong feedback answers four questions.
1. What is the communication trying to make happen?
2. Where does the audience struggle or misread?
3. Which specific design or language choice causes it?
4. What revision would improve the intended response?
TAKEAWAY Critique becomes useful when it connects a specific choice to an audience consequence and a practical revision.
/ Example
Before: “Financial Wellness Webinar Opportunity” The original makes the topic sound generic and hides the useful outcome, time, and action.
BEFORE Financial Wellness Webinar Opportunity In an effort to continue to provide ongoing resources...
CLICK HERE AFTER Know whether you are saving enough for retirement. Join a 30-minute live session Thursday at 3:00 PM. Bring your current contribution percentage.
RESERVE YOUR SEAT TAKEAWAY The revision improves hierarchy and clarity because it leads with the employee’s question, makes the event concrete, and names the action.
/ Close
Describe what the work does—not how it makes you feel Use shared language to evaluate hierarchy, clarity, legibility, tone, composition, accessibility, and action.
OBSERVE What the audience encounters
DIAGNOSE Where and why it breaks
REVISE The smallest change that improves function
TAKEAWAY “I like it” can begin a reaction. It cannot be the end of professional feedback.