Why is map design important? Why is a map’s appearance so important? After all,

Why is map design important?
Why is a map’s appearance so important? After all,

Why is map design important?
Why is a map’s appearance so important? After all, you could argue that a poorly put together map of New Zealand is still (at the end of the day) a map of New Zealand. However, a well-designed map is going to be more useful than a poorly designed one—but why? Why are things such as the choice of colors, lettering, and placement of items on the map critical to the usefulness of a map? Consider what kind of effect a poorly designed map might have, and what sort of impact bad design could make on the usefulness of, say, a map of a local county fair, a real estate map of a new subdivision, a promotional map showing the location of a small business, or a map of a proposed new urban development readied for promotional purposes. How can the design of a map influence the way the map’s information is perceived by its readers?