Exploring the Distinction: Visual Facilitation vs. Sketchnoting

written by Mandy Johnson

🧩 Visual Facilitation: Think Process, Not Just Pictures

Visual facilitation is about using visuals to support group communication and collaboration. Think meetings, workshops, or strategic planning sessions. The focus here is on helping people work together, solve problems, and make decisions — and visuals just happen to be the secret sauce that makes it all flow better.

A visual facilitator might use tools like live illustration, mind mapping, or graphic recording to capture ideas in real time. It’s not just about what ends up on the page — it’s about how the visuals shape the conversation in the room.

✅ Supports live discussion

✅ Encourages participation

✅ Helps make sense of complexity

The end result isn’t always polished — and that’s the point. The value is in the process, not just the pretty picture.

✏️ Sketchnoting: The Fly-on-the-Wall with a Pen

Sketchnoting, on the other hand, is like having a visual notetaker quietly capturing the heart of

Becky sketchnoting on her iPad

an event. It’s often more reflective than interactive — the sketchnoter listens in, processes what they hear, and distils it into a visually rich summary.

You’ll usually find sketchnotes at conferences, talks, meetings, or lectures — anywhere ideas are flying and someone wants a creative way to capture them.

✅ Captures key points

✅ Helps people remember & engage

✅ Beautiful final outputs to share post-event

Sketchnoting doesn’t influence the conversation in the room the way visual facilitation does. It’s more like a creative record of what happened, crafted to be shared and referred back to long after the chairs are stacked.

So… Which One Do You Need?

It depends on what you’re aiming for:

• Want to spark discussion and drive decisions in real time? → Go for visual facilitation

• Want a visual record that brings your event or session to life afterwards? → Book a sketchnoter.

  
  

Both practices sit under the umbrella of live illustration and both turn ideas into visuals — but their purpose, process, and people they serve are different.

Visual facilitation helps everyone in the room think more clearly together. Sketchnoting helps anyone (in the room or not) reflect, understand, and remember what was said.

Why Not Both?

At Sketchnotes UK, we often blend the two — facilitating where needed, while still creating visual takeaways that live on long after the event ends. Because in our view, combining words, pictures, and people is where the real magic happens.

Whether you're planning a strategy day, a conference, or just want to bring more colour and clarity to your work, we’d love to help you pick the right approach.

🖍️ Visuals aren’t just for decoration — they’re a tool for thinking, feeling, and making sense of the world.

An A4 sketchnote on paper explaining what sketchnoting is. Created in 2020 by Mandy Johnson.