Digital design considerations

Striking the right balance

Digital stories are a combination of many elements, which all need to be considered separately for their unique communicative function, as well as together for how they contribute to the overall message.

In every aspect, you should aim to tell a story with a balanced structure where all the elements work together. Put yourself in the position of your audience and critique your work for that balance. If possible, it is also helpful to show your digital story to others and specifically ask them for feedback on the balance of these elements.

Designing a digital story requires a fine balance between big, overarching ideas, and carefully selected details. The details need to support the ideas, so they are usually found throughout, while the big ideas form the structure of a given section.

You also need to be careful not to convey too many ideas at once. Digital media are usually consumed at a faster pace than traditional written narratives. Therefore, it is important to consider people’s capacity to absorb information and avoid overloading your audience.

Text and visuals and other media should work together to express your ideas cohesively. When you are selecting or creating visuals, make sure they contribute to your communicative intent. In other words, make sure they say something, and are not just there to look nice.

Stories also need to be visually engaging without being overwhelming. There should also be adequate white space left between images and text, so that the screen does not look overcrowded.

If you are creating a voice-over, be conscious of how fast you are speaking. Aim for a pace that keeps your audience interested, without overloading them with too much information at once.

Additionally, aim for a balance between foreground and background sounds. Music and sound effects need to complement the story, not overtake it or distract from your message.

Ensuring accessibility

For digital stories to communicate effectively, they must be accessible to a wide audience.

Some of the most well-known ways to improve digital accessibility include captioning multimedia content, providing alternative text for images, avoiding flickering visuals, and not communicating meaning solely through the use of colours.

As many digital stories are internet-based, guidelines developed for web accessibility are an extremely useful resource for ensuring accessible content design for digital stories.

More information about copyright

There is more copyright information for students on the Monash Copyright Intranet. The Copyright free and Creative Commons resources Library Guide also has more resources and information about images and media.

If you have any queries about copyright, please contact the Monash University Copyright Office.

Selecting your media and tools

It can be challenging to choose the specific media format to tell your story in, and to select from the available digital tools and software that you will use when creating your digital story.

Don’t forget to check your assessed task instructions first, in case there are specific requirements set by your unit. If you do have the freedom to choose, you may be able to pick a format based on your personal preference as long as it will suit your story and your audience needs.

If you’re not sure, or you don’t know where to start, the following checklist can help you decide:

  • Which digital media will best help me tell my story?
  • Which digital media will best help my target audience understand and connect with my story?
  • What software programs and online platforms do I have access to?
  • Would my story be better communicated using a variety of media? If so, which parts/aspects of my story are best suited to which combination of media?
  • What is unique about the media and tools I have chosen and how can those unique features enhance the communication of my story?
  • Do I have the digital skills needed to create my story in my chosen media? If not, do I have enough time to upskill? Or should I reconsider my choice?

Your story format will have a big influence on your choice of media and tools. For example, if you are writing a blog, this will have completely different requirements to a podcast. Each format is unique and has different limitations and features.

Some choices may be more logical than others depending on your format, and some formats may even require certain elements based on their limitations and features. However, there is no need to feel constrained. All digital storytelling formats have the ability to combine media, so this is a good opportunity to be creative.

Using a variety of media and tools can be fun and rewarding. If time allows, challenge yourself to learn new skills while creating your digital story.

Taking it further