What Are Visual Meeting Minutes (and Why Should You Use Them)?

Visual meeting minutes are a fresh, engaging alternative to traditional written notes. They use hand-drawn imagery, symbols, and structured layouts to record what’s being said – as it’s happening – in real-time. This practice, often called visual note taking or graphic note taking, is ideal for team meetings, strategy days, workshops, and consultations.

Unlike conventional minutes, visual meeting minutes are easier to digest and more engaging to revisit. By combining visuals with keywords and ideas, they offer a big-picture summary without losing key detail. Visual minutes help participants recall content more clearly, connect ideas more easily, and stay more engaged throughout the meeting.

For meetings involving multiple voices or complex topics – such as co-production workshops, public consultations, or interdisciplinary team discussions – visual note taking helps map out emerging connections. It validates everyone’s contributions and creates an instant shared memory of the conversation.

Graphic note taking also has accessibility benefits. Some people absorb visuals more effectively than words alone. A wall of text might lose people, but a well-designed visual minute makes ideas more memorable and inclusive.

After the session, your visual meeting minutes become a valuable legacy. They can be shared in reports, used in funding bids, or displayed to keep team goals visible. For universities, councils, charities or social enterprises, they’re a great way to show transparent decision-making and keep stakeholders engaged.

Whether you call them graphic notes, visual minutes, or sketchnotes – they’re more than just pretty pictures. They’re an impactful, inclusive way to document important work.

If you’re planning a workshop, strategy day or co-production session and want to explore visual meeting minutes, get in touch at hello@illuscribe.co.uk. I’d be happy to help you visualise your thinking and create an engaging record of your work.