Making Your Report Clear, Navigable, and Easy to Use
Design is critical in how your sustainability or impact report is received. The way it looks — and how easily people can navigate it — affects how much they read, remember, and trust. Whether you're creating a more old-school PDF or a digital-first version, your goal is the same: make the information easy to access and understand.
This article walks through how to design your report so it's easy to navigate, readable on any device, and practical for the audience you're trying to reach.
Choose Your Format: PDF or Digital-First?
Before you think about fonts and colors, decide how your audience will access the report.
If creating a PDF:
- Use a print-friendly layout (A4 or US Letter size)
- Include a clickable table of contents and page numbers
- Use bookmarks and internal links for section navigation
- Keep margins and line spacing wide enough to read comfortably
If going digital-first (web-based report):
- Make sure the layout is responsive (mobile-friendly)
- Use menus or section jump links for easy browsing
- Consider interactive features (expandable charts, filters, tooltips)
- Choose a platform that handles accessibility and navigation well
Tip:
Tools like Wordpond are designed for digital sustainability reports and handle many of these features automatically — no coding required.
Use Visuals to Support Your Message
Visuals can help readers grasp complex ideas quickly — but only if used with purpose.
Effective design choices:
- Headings and subheadings that guide the eye
- Bullet points for shortlists
- Tables and charts with labels and context
- Icons to mark key sections (e.g., environment, people, governance)
- Callout boxes for stats, milestones, or quotes
Avoid:
- Long blocks of text without breaks
- Decorative graphics that don't explain anything
- Over-reliance on color alone (especially in charts)
Examples that work:
- A goal-tracking dashboard (e.g., "Net-zero by 2030: 45% complete")
- A simple bar chart showing emissions reduction over 3 years
- A short sidebar showing results from a community project
Keep it simple. Avoid over-styling your graphics or adding visuals that don't help the reader understand the content.
Navigation and Structure
No one reads a report cover-to-cover. People scan, jump around, and look for specifics.
For PDFs:
- Add a clickable table of contents
- Use section headers and page numbers
- Add bookmarks so readers using screen readers or digital navigation can find key topics quickly
For digital reports:
- Use clear menus or a side navigation bar
- Break content into short pages or expandable sections
- Provide links back to key data or definitions when needed
Design for All Types of Readers
People will access your report on phones, laptops, and tablets — and some will rely on screen readers or keyboard navigation. Your design should work for all of them.
Checklist for accessible design:
- Use clear fonts and strong contrast between text and background
- Tag all headings properly in PDFs or use heading styles in web layouts
- Add alt text for all charts, tables, and images
- Don't rely on color alone to explain data — use labels or patterns
- Use large enough font sizes for mobile readability (minimum 10pt in print; 16px for web)
Choosing the Right Tool for the Job
The tool you use will shape how flexible your layout is, how accessible your report becomes, and how much help you'll need from designers or developers.
Wordpond
Best For: Digital/web reports
Strengths: Built for sustainability reports; handles layout, accessibility, and navigation; no code needed
Limitations: Subscription required
InDesign
Best For: Polished, print-ready PDFs
Strengths: Full control over fonts, layout, and spacing; professional output
Limitations: Requires design skill; accessibility tagging must be done manually
Canva
Best For: Simple, quick-turn PDFs
Strengths: Easy templates, no design experience needed
Limitations: Limited layout control; not natively accessible
Figma
Best For: Web-based layouts and prototyping
Strengths: Great for designing custom interfaces and interactive visuals
Limitations: Requires dev handoff; not a reporting platform on its own
Word / Publisher
Best For: Internal or small-scale reports
Strengths: Familiar, fast to update, built-in export
Limitations: Limited formatting; harder to manage lengthy documents cleanly
Tip:
Many teams combine tools — for example, making charts in Excel, designing pages in Canva, and exporting final PDFs for tagging in Acrobat or publishing online.
Tips for Teams Without Designers
You can still create a well-structured, readable report even on a tight budget.
Tips for smaller teams:
- Use clean, free templates (Canva or Microsoft Word)
- Stick to one or two fonts and a limited color palette
- Use your organization's existing brand colors and logo
- Keep spacing generous — don't crowd the page
- Focus on 2–3 visuals that communicate the main message
Final Checklist: Good Report Design
✔️ Do This
- Use headings and short paragraphs
- Provide alt text for every image
- Add clear navigation (TOC, links)
- Choose strong font contrast
- Label all data visuals
- Make it readable on phones
❌ Avoid This
- Cram full pages of dense text
- Leave the chart unlabeled
- Expect people to scroll endlessly
- Use light grey or thin text
- Rely on color alone for meaning
- Assume desktop-only viewing
The takeaway:
A clean, structured, easy-to-use report helps people absorb your message and find what they want. Prioritize readability. Use visuals that clarify, not distract. Make it easy to navigate.
Choose tools that match your team's skill level and goals — not just what looks trendy.
