As a technical communicator, you make choices. In every situation, you must decide how to best communicate meaning to your intended audiences. It is a process of deliberation that involves calculated choices, strategies, and moves. And, nowadays, writing isn’t just putting words onto paper anymore.

There are five modes or ways of communicating:

1. Linguistic / Alphabetic – written and spoken words
2. Visual – images (moving or still)
3. Aural – sound, music
4. Gestural – movement, expression, body language
5. Spatial – position, physical arrangement, proximity

Many technical documents are multimodal texts, as they combine words and images. However, it’s useful to consciously consider all modes and consciously choose those you think will be most effective in conveying your information to your audience, given the purpose of the technical communication.

Linguistic/Alphabetic Mode

The linguistic/alphabetic mode includes written and spoken words, word choice, vocabulary, grammar, structure, and organization of sentences and paragraphs. This mode is the most widely used, a form that most people are familiar with, since it can be delivered through print and audio (e.g., the words you hear in pre-recorded telephone messages).

Visual Mode

The visual mode includes images, video, color, visual layout, design, font, size, formatting, symbols, visual data (charts, graphs), and animation (gifs). The visual mode helps writers communicate meaning in a way that can be seen by the audience. For example, the textbook in the photo uses labels, headings, color, and other visual features to help the reader more easily understand the information. This textbook is considered multi-modal since it combines linguistic and visual modes of communication.

Sometimes people must see to believe and, in addition to being helpful, visuals can also be persuasive. For example, if you want to showcase how climate change has devastated the arctic ecosystem, you might include a video that shows real-world footage, like National Geographic’s Starving Polar Bear on Iceless Land. This video is considered a multimodal text since words, visuals, and audio are used together for a stronger effect.

Aural Mode

The aural mode includes spoken words, sound, music, volume, rhythm, speed of delivery, pitch, tone, and voice. Sound catches people’s attention, and writers use the aural mode to bring their words to life. For example, have you ever listened to a sports game on the radio? Listen to the way the sportscasters help the audience experience the game through sound. A sportscast is considered a multimodal text since the authors combine words (linguistic/alphabetic mode) with sound (aural mode).

Gestural Mode

The gestural mode includes movement, speed, expression, body language, facial expression, physical proximity, and interactions between people. The gestural mode of communication allows writers to communicate meaning through movement. Traditionally, this mode was used primarily in face-to-face interaction; however, modern technology allows writers to show movement virtually in their work, through video. The gestural mode is often used in combination with other modes, such as linguistic/alphabetic (written/spoken), spatial (physical arrangement), and aural (sound) to provide an enhanced sensory experience for the audience.

For example, view the following video, especially noting characteristics that comprise the gestural mode. What do these characteristics add to your understanding of the situation as a viewer?

Spatial Mode

The spatial mode includes physical arrangement such as spacing, position, organization, proximity, direction, and distance of elements in a text. Writers use the spatial mode of communication in the physical layout and organization of a text. For example, this trifold pamphlet, printed and folded on paper, presents information spatially on six panels. Physical arrangement impacts the way the audience can interact with your work.

Websites also rely heavily on the spatial mode to communicate meaning. Writers make strategic rhetorical decisions about how to arrange digital information in a user-friendly way within a mobile space. Features such as menus, headers, physical layout, and navigation tools (such as links) help the audience interact with the site spatially. Websites are considered multimodal texts since multiple modes are used in combination to communicate with the audience.

Take a few minutes to browse the website at www.esc.edu. As you explore, pay attention to how the authors arrange the information within the digital space. What does this communicate to the reader? How does the spatial arrangement enhance or hinder the user experience? How do changing images contribute to meaning, and what meaning do they convey? These kinds of questions highlight important decisions made by authors of multimodal texts.

Considering Modes

As you plan a technical communication and consider your purpose, audience, and the context surrounding the communication task, you can start to consider which mode or combination of modes might be most effective for your purpose and audience. Which modes can add value to your work? Be careful not to add modes just because you think you should. Each mode you use should add meaning to the text and value to your audience.

Modality affects how the audience will interact with and generate meaning from your work. Considering the five modes can help you make decisions that result in more effective technical communication, especially as so much communication is now digital, in platforms that can support multiple modes.

Example of Multimodal Web Site

National Public Radio (NPR) at npr.org is a good example of a multimodal website. They offer stories in print, podcasts, a live radio stream, and “picture shows” that use series of photographs to add meaning to written text, such as A Long Standing Love Affair with Myanmar. Additionally, different modes are easy to find and the site is easy to use. Creating and maintaining such a complex, multi-faceted, multimodal site takes a lot of technical writing expertise.