What is an Infographic and Why Use Them?

The place where data meets design.

An infographic is a powerful communication aid which helps readers digest complex information through an engaging combination of text, images and design. Infographics rely on carefully chosen imagery to help illustrate data or content and make information more marketable for a wider range of platforms.

So why use infographics? According to Quick Sprout, “content with relevant images gets 94% more views than content without relevant images”, so it’s important to keep in mind that it’s not just about what you to say, but how you want to say it.

Infographics come in many different shapes, sizes and forms. Companies, brands and individuals use infographics to display data for various reasons, such as displaying global statistics or providing step-by-step instructions. There are endless styles and ways to create infographics; however, we’ve explained our favourites below.

Statistical infographics

Statistical infographics use typography, charts and graphics to illustrate data in a more visually appealing manner. This helps the data to be more digestible, easier to scan over, and less text-heavy.

Informational infographics

These types of infographics use a mixture of graphic design and text to simplify and condense topics, usually presented in a step-by-step list. Informational infographics are useful for tutorials, ‘how-tos’ and walk-through topics.

Process infographics

Usually defined by their use of flowcharts, diagrams or timelines, these step-by-step infographics help to simplify information in a handy guide. Process infographics help you to understand steps with visual instructions quickly.

Timeline infographics

If you have information you think would lend itself best to being displayed in a chronological order, a timeline infographic is a perfect way of displaying it. They are simple, visually pleasing and easy to follow.

Comparison infographics

Used by many major brands on websites such as Apple. Comparison infographics help you to view information side by side in order to compare objects, products or brands. Similarities and differences are highlighted to

help aid the decision-making process.

Location infographics

Location or map-based information can be displayed in a location infographic to easily display local or global data statistics such as GDP per capita or hours of sunlight.

Visual CV infographics

As a way to stand out, many applicants may choose to display their CV information in an infographic design, as opposed to a standard word document. Visualising skills, interests and experiences, the mix of graphic design and colour may help to catch the employers eye.

Your information is only as good as your ability to share it.

Appeal to visual learners with engaging content

Why are infographics so effective? Approximately 65% of the population are visual learners which means almost 5 billion people process visual information better than any other format.

Data can often be complex or uninteresting, and although you may understand the importance of a stat, a visual learner may just scroll past. Infographics breathe new life into data, and visualising facts and figures using engaging imagery and iconography will attract a whole new audience.

Create visuals in line with how the human brain works

The human brain is pre-wired to interpret information and visualise relationships and it has been reported by Search Engine Journal that humans process visuals 60,000 times faster than any other format.

To help the brain make these instantaneous connections, you can use infographics as they utilise variations in colour, size and orientation to keep the brain stimulated. Users of today simply don’t have the time to sit around and read lengthy articles so using an infographic is a great way to get your message across, fast.

Infographics are shareable and extend overall reach

Infographics are colourful, easy to digest, interesting and compelling, so it is no surprise that they are so popular and shareable.

Eye-catching designs make great social content, and the more people that share it, the more people you can connect to with your message.

Infographics make your content more memorable

Experts at Georgia State University have found that imagery can improve memory and reduce false memories. To reach this conclusion, they conducted a study which determined how images affected each participant’s ability to recall words. When commenting on the results of the study, lead author, Merrin Oliver states, “creating images improved participants’ memories and helped them commit fewer errors”.

For marketers, this provides huge benefits if you are using infographics as an educational tool. As well as the obvious brand benefits this provides, the knowledge and authoritativeness of the content is also enhanced.

Infographics are a great tool for SEO

There are several reasons why infographics work as a great support for your overall SEO strategy. If you create an engaging a graphic that people will want to share across social platforms, your content could potentially go viral sending lots of relevant traffic to your website and its pages.

An infographic also creates numerous inbound marketing opportunities, including expanding your link profile. If you have an engaging infographic it means other websites and brands are more likely to link to it. Having a large number of high quality links to your pages is a key contributing factor to a higher overall domain and page authority. A strong domain and page authority is one of the most important elements of how Google and other search engines rank a page, so this will help you become more visible in search for the key terms you want to appear for.

A good infographic is worth a thousand words.

Before you can reap the benefits of an infographic, you have to know how to create one successfully. There are lots of tools you can use to create infographics, including Piktochart, Venngage and our personal favourite, Canva.

Whether you choose to edit a ready-made template or be adventurous and start from scratch, there are a great selection of designs to choose or be inspired from.

Top Tips for Creating an Infographic

• Keep your message concise. If you want to appeal to users who prefer a visual content style, words have to be kept to a minimum. According to Buzzsumo, “the most frequently shared infographics have an average of 396 words”.
• Make sure your brand is prominent. You can do this by placing your logo and a link to your website at the top or bottom of the infographic. The majority of infographics also have an identifiable colour scheme which can also be tied to your brand and its colour usage.
• Create a click-inducing headline. Like with a blog post, headlines have to be catchy and engaging for infographics to grab readers’ attention. The headline has to give a clear indication of the infographic’s content and have a little mystery to pique the reader’s curiosity.
• Keep infographics simple. A busy infographic has the same negative impact as pages and pages of content – it’s off-putting for readers. Use lots of white (negative) space in your infographic to highlight different sections of the infographic and create a coherent structure and layout that is easy to digest and follow.

Want to discover more ways to contact and engage with your audience? Check out our blog for industry insights from our in-house experts or contact us with your digital queries and see how we can help you