Inserting Containers and Callouts

Sometimes, you might want to combine two or more elements of the diagram together. You can use containers to group shapes that are dependent on each other. Callouts help in inserting more text outside the shape. Callouts are always connected to the shape and move along with it.

Inserting a Container

First group the shapes together by selecting Group in the Arrange section of the Home tab.

To insert a container, go to the Insert tab on the Ribbon and click the Container dropdown menu in the Diagram Parts section. You will see that there are many designs to choose from for the container.

Once you select a design, you can drag the container around the grouped shapes. Release the mouse to lock the container. The container also contains an area for typing text. Double-click the heading area to type the text. In the following example, we have labelled the container as ‘End Process’.

Whenever you drag the container, the contents of the container move together.

Inserting a Callout

Select the shape for which you want to use the callout. To insert a callout, go to the Insert tab on the Ribbon and click the Callout dropdown menu in the Diagram Parts section. You will see that there are many designs to choose from for the callout.

Select a design appropriate for the callout. The callout will appear connected to the selected shape.

In this example, we have added a callout for the Back to Research process called Extensive Research. The callout is linked to the shape and can be moved about anywhere in the drawing, however it will always stay connected to the shape.

Visio will zoom in when you click the callout to enable typing and will zoom out when clicked outside the callout.