Organizations tend to extremes when it comes to the presentation aspect of marketing communications. Some obsess on it to the point of overlooking other important needs—like having something compelling to present. But many others seem to believe, like the woman who went to an executive job interview in flip-flops (true story), that people will dig for the diamond beneath the rough. That sounds nice and egalitarian—substance over style and all; trouble is, it’s delusional.

Presentation is one of the key components of credibility (and thus, one of 10 factors we analyze for the Thinkshift Credibility Quotient™). Ample research with website users, for example, shows that people make snap judgments about a company’s credibility based on its site’s design and usability. Note “usability”; people often get caught up in how something looks, but that’s only one aspect of presentation. A credible communication gets all these things right:

• An aesthetic that’s appropriate for your industry and market.
• Accessible information. If I’m looking for information about sustainability, or about a particular product’s qualities, can I find it easily?
• Appropriate materials. If the communication is making sustainability claims, does it use appropriate materials? Any print collateral, for example, should use the lowest-impact materials and processes possible. This applies to packaging, too. Excess or high-impact packaging on a sustainable product undermines the product.
• Writing quality. Overall, is the communication clear? Do individual statements make sense? Was it proofread? (Yes, I do need to make this point; see “flip-flops” above.)

Sloppy presentation communicates a sloppy approach overall; strong presentation lays a foundation for trust.

I played hooky earlier this week to visit the California Academy of Sciences’ new building in Golden Gate Park. It’s a beautiful, airy construction, a model of sustainable architecture from the lower level “water planet” of aquariums teeming with amazing sealife to the undulating 2.5-acre green roof of native plants. Critics are justifiably gushing. (See Nicolai Ouroussof’s review in the New York Times and the extensive coverage in Metropolis magazine, which examines all the sustainability aspects of Renzo Piano’s creation.) It’s expected to be the largest building to receive LEED Platinum status.

But the building and its exhibits aren’t the only things that amaze me. I love the clarity and simplicity of the academy’s communications. Language is plain and direct—it’s like a person is talking to you. Concepts aren’t dumbed down, they’re just distilled. (In the case of the video explaining climate change, it’s practically poetry.) It makes science accessible and fun.

This conversational style is an integral part of everything they do, from the exhibit signage and museum map to their website and member publication—it’s even reflected in their mission statement, “to explore, explain and protect the natural world.” It matches the spare, inviting visual design (by the creative folks at Pentagram).

The Academy of Sciences is taking its communications seriously—and having fun with it. It’s a great example of how words can deliver a brand—and fulfill a mission to simply explain.