The concept of the infographic is incredibly simple, but it is actually one of the handfuls of innovations on the World Wide Web that has radically changed how businesses market products and services.
It is incredibly powerful because it is able to present hard data in a manner that a broad spectrum of readers on the Web can easily pick up.
Why It Works
Infographics work because they already visualize information like statistics for people. It is not spoon-feeding, but a way for the communicator to guide the reader to specific conclusions about the information being presented.
You can highlight things easily with an infographic. You can show the most important aspects of the message while maintaining the integrity of the original source (e.g. a blog post or article like this one).
Infographics are so effective that large knowledge houses and research hubs use it to communicate to the public the results of scientific research, international surveys, historic data, and even chunks of big data over the years.
Infographics and Marketing
Studies show that humans are primarily visual learners. There is a spectrum called VAKOG that illustrates all the ways that a person can use representational systems to understand the world. Visual, auditory, kinesthetic, olfactory, and gustatory. Visual takes the lead every time. There are auditory learners, too, but they are fewer than people who are dominantly visual in their aspect of learning.
In marketing, infographics can easily stimulate people simply because they are not boring. You can use different images and fonts to prove a point. You can add elements that are normally not associated with statistics. If you like playing online casinos for example, you can even get the best infographics about online slots and improve your chances of winning jackpots in online casinos. Infographics are actually used extensively in the iGaming sector with operators and affiliates using them for a number of different reason. Operators try build awareness by plastering infographics of the games they have all over their social profiles such as Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Affiliates use them as link bait to get links to their sites so they can rank for competitive terms such as no deposit bonuses, online casinos, casinos games and a thousand more.
It’s the code that matters
Infographics can easily teach an audience a code that is especially understood within the context of a specific message. For example: if a business was selling cheap computer parts, it can highlight easily how much people will save by trying out custom-built personal computers compared to branded and pre-assembled personal computers from different brands. The business can compare, two, three, five, or even ten different brands and contrast the information with how much a custom build costs.
As a result, people will completely understand that they can save hundreds of dollars by buying individual parts like the motherboard, video card, sound card, and having these assembled manually, than buying a branded personal computer with all the parts pre-determined by the manufacturer.
During the United States presidential elections, many news outlets used infographics featuring the different states and the election preferences of each one.
With such a vast amount of data to contain in each infographic, how did they do it? Easy: by color-coding states. People could then easily see the results in a glance, and the news presentation was effective as can be.
Creating the Perfect Infographic
Do you want to create an infographic for your business or brand? The first thing that you need would be the correct data that matches your central message. There has to be a central message that you want to communicate to your market.
Without data, without clear information, you will not be able to create a good infographic. Numbers and figures impress people easily, and with the right persuasion tactics, statistics can convince a large number of people quickly.
The next step is to visualize the data. Think of a way to present the data visually, with emphasis on letting people absorb it as if they were drinking water. No muss, no fuss, no difficulties. The visualization of data should be as easy on the eyes and easy to understand as possible.
The third step is to align the infographic with the branding of the website or business. The colors, images, font type – all of these elements or variables have to be consistent with what already exists in the branding. On the other hand, you can also use infographics to present to a market a shift in the branding efforts of a business.
The fourth step is to simplify what you have. The simpler the presentation of hard data, the better it is. Why? Because we use infographics to market products and services so customers can make decisions more quickly. A marketing infographic is informative, but emphasizes people to take action, to buy something from a brand.
The fifth and final step is matching the infographic with the communication channel that the business is using. Infographics can take a variety of forms and sizes, and it should match where the marketer chose to channel it.
In conclusion, whether the infographic is headed for Twitter, Facebook, or a website, the size of the graphic as well as the presentation of elements should be appropriate.
Formats and Channels
Firstly, an infographic with dozens of elements and tiny text would look awkward when coursed through Twitter. Unless every reader is on a PC or Mac, they will not be able to read the tiny text on the infographic.
Next, if you want to present a larger infographic with more complex details, then use a website or downloadable PDF file instead. People expect to see graphics that are easy to read when browsing social media. Offer more complex infographics in other formats. Do not rely on just one format.
Consequently, you should offer only the summation of your data on social media, and invite the readers to read more or “dig deeper” into the data by leading them to your blog or data. It is like funneling potential customers and leading them with the right information. Infographics can help you convince and keep new customers easily.
Finally, never lose sight of your main goal when using infographics. While it is good to offer free information, nothing should ever be completely free: offer free information but only to benefit what you are promoting to your market.