Information is critical for businesses and as far as the internet is concerned, there’s no truer statement.
Today, millions of small and medium enterprises are using the internet in their daily business activities. Most businesses are creating their own websites to market their products and services. The website has to be well designed and it should have the best of content and information to get the desired results.
However, merely having text content may not fetch the best of results. We are today moving into the world of infographics and hence there is a need for businesses to make effective infographics.
What exactly is an information graphic or infographic? It’s a visual way by which information or data is represented.
To go further into it, an infographic is a collection of charts, imagery and other visual forms of information and data. The usage of text is normally minimal, only mentioning key statistics.
This is considered a good way to reach out to prospective customers and information seekers. Prospective customers always like to go through information and data that is easy to understand rather than spend quite a bit of time reading lengthy and boring content.
By the end of this article, you should know exactly how to make an effective infographic. But in general, you need to create infographics that use professional high quality design, with a focus on your charts, colors and fonts. You should also try to highlight some data or some unique focal point that makes your infographic stand out from the others on the internet. To make your infographic effective, it needs to be interpreted by anyone who may find it – not just those that are tech savvy!
Why Are Infographics So Popular?
There is a growing demand for infographics and they are being widely used by organizations, enterprises, and businesses quite regularly. They’re becoming popular both in the print and digital forms.
There are many reasons for the growing popularity. They are extremely effective, clear and also an artistic way by which information can be presented to the right audience. They help the viewer to understand the information without losing attention.
We need to bear in mind that today’s information seekers are mostly busy professionals and the younger generation, so naturally, they’re impatient.
They prefer information in the form of graphs, pictures and other visuals rather than reading long and boring passages of text.
Furthermore, the average internet user is flooded with tons of information and therefore the onus lies on firms and other stakeholders to ensure that their attention span is kept as positive as possible in a highly competitive scenario.
Why Your Infographics Should Stand Out
There are obviously a number of advantages to making an effective infographic and this is the reason they’re now commonly used. From customer education, to simply bringing more traffic to your website, infographics are a good investment for any business.
Almost all online buyers, sellers and information providers are using them to engage with potential clients. Hence, if you want your message to reach out easily and correctly, you must be in a position to answer the question as to how to make an effective infographic.
We thought it would be a good idea to list down some of the most important points that could perhaps answer the above question properly. The information below will be helpful in designing websites and also making content that is meaningful, relevant and interesting to readers and also prospective customers.
There are a few proven tips that one must remember when designing infographics, whether it is in the print or digital form.
Be Simple: Any effective infographic should be simple both in terms of looks and presentation. The design at the end of the day should help the viewer to navigate easily through the piece of information. There should be continuity and there must not be any room for confusion. The old proverb “Less is More” is quite relevant as far as quality infographics are concerned. You must try and limit the use of text content and color by using designs that allow the eye to easily identify information and take it to the brain.
Be Original: It could be about a new product launch or even a political issue. It also could be some marketing content, sales reports, and other such things. The infographics in question must be original in order to be effective. Originality not only is about data and information. It should also encompass the kind of color combinations that are being used, the design structure and the fonts that are being used and so on.
Be Universal: The design of an infographic must be universal so that there is uniformity. The content, design, color, and structure should not look like something from outer space. This could easily put viewers off and the effectiveness of the infographic could get lost. You must always be under the assumption that only professional internet users understand complicated icons. Hence, the design, content and the infographics, in general, must have a universal appeal and must be understood by users who may not have adequate knowledge about the internet.
The above points are general tips, and that should be always kept in mind. However, apart from the above, we’re also sharing a few more suggestions below that could perhaps answer the question of how to make your infographics stand out.
Your Infographics Must Be Well Targeted
Keeping in mind the target audience is really important.
Without this, it is quite possible that your infographic content could get lost in the sea of information available online. In some cases, it could turn off your potential audience and the relationships could be damaged irretrievably.
Your main objective should be to come out with effective infographic content that reaches out to your target audience and not for the entire world. Stay away from elements that might look populous because it will not reach the targeted audience and the whole purpose would be defeated.
This calls for some research and understanding of what exactly your targeted audience is looking for. It might take some time to come up with the right infographic but it is worth it because of the obvious advantages associated with it.
Let The Focal Point Stand Out
The main purpose of infographics is to ensure that the information provider is able to express complex information in a lucid and simple way.
The information must be easy to perceive and the receiver must be able to effectively consume and make use of it without facing any problem. Cluttering your infographics with too much information might lead to the focal point being missed.
The crucial factor here is that the main subject matter and focus of your infographics should stand out in each and every page of the website. A good infographic presentation is one that can be read at a glance because the focal point always stands out prominently.
The Importance Of Visual Story
The layout is extremely crucial as far as your infographics are concerned.
Good layout improves readability and also increases its attractiveness quite a bit. The main objective of any good infographic content should be to facilitate easy and rapid reading. It must be able to tell the story in an instant.
You would do better to stay away from too much content. However, simple things like using a timeline or bullet points could prove quite effective in catching the attention span of the readers. You could add a few relevant images, pictures and perhaps even videos to ensure that it really becomes quite attractive for the readers.
However, while uploading videos be sure that it does not lead to over usage of memory and other hardware requirements.
Make Use Of Contrasting Colors
Contrasting colors are always a better option.
This is because they appear on the opposites sides of the entire color wheel. Similar colors in the background and foreground make readability quite tough.
Furthermore, when you have different content and images it would always be better to use contrasting colors so that readers can differentiate between the same. Contrasting colors can also make infographics more appealing, attractive and effective.
However, care should be taken to avoid use of too many colors because that could be distracting and look repulsive.
Make Intelligent Use Of Chart Types
Representing figures and numbers with intelligent use of a chart is always extremely effective.
However, you must be aware of the right types of charts that relates to data and information that is being represented. Comparisons of sales growth over a period of time are perhaps best done using bar graphs.
On the other hand, if you are trying to represent the percentage contribution of different products to the total kitty, pie charts are the best choice.
Line charts could be wonderful when you are conveying facts and figures over a period of time.
There are many tools and assistance available on the internet and you could make use of those to good effect.
The Infographics Should Complement The Medium
There could be infographics that are suited only for print media.
Using the same for digital purposes may not give desired results. The fonts that are used in print information could be small in size and using them for digital upload could be the worst thing that one could think of.
Therefore, it would always be better to have two different sets of infographics for print and digital use.
Make Use Of Digital Infographic Tools
There are many resources available on the internet that could help you to come out with right infographic solutions keeping in mind your specific needs, requirements and target audiences.
You must spend some time checking out the right infographic tools and make the best possible use of them. Employ a professional if you are not comfortable with it, but never compromise on quality.
The Final Word
There is no doubt that we are living in a world of infographics.
Though written content still continues to be relevant, representing information in graphic and visual form makes a big difference.
If you follow the tips in this guide, you should know how to make an effective infographic. By now you should have the answer to the question of how to make your infographics stand out.
