Infographics are powerful marketing and sales tools. They can turn statistics and complex ideas into attractive and memorable images.
According to Cognition, people will remember 65% of the visual information they see and just 10% of the information they hear out loud. Not only that, but infographics can increase website traffic by up to 12%.
In this article, we explore the benefits of using infographics, when to use one, and how to create one.
What is an Infographic?
An infographic blends visuals, data, and text to tell a story. An infographic clearly presents information so it’s easily understood.
You might include the following elements in an infographic:
- Charts
- Graphs
- Illustrations
- Bold text
- Statistics
- Subheadings
At its core, an infographic takes a complex data set and turns it into a compelling, easy-to-read story.
Benefits of Infographics
Infographics – especially with colourful visuals that increase sales by up to 80% – offer a whole raft of benefits to your marketing.
Visual Understanding
Infographics make complex information easier to understand. The data will be structured and organised in a linear way.
Engagement
Infographics can help grab your viewer’s attention. They can also increase the time visitors spend on a website page.
Shareable
Images and infographics are shareable content. People like and share infographics three times more than other social media content – including videos. This helps increase your reach.
SEO
Infographics are high-quality content that will encourage your website visitors to linger longer. Studies have found that pages with a lower bounce rate are more likely to be on the first page of Google. Providing quality information may also encourage more backlinks to your site, which is a good SEO boost, too.
When to Use Infographics
You can use infographics wherever you have complex or interesting information or data to share. Here are a few ideas for when and how to use infographics.
- Bar charts for survey results
- Graphs for industry trends
- Step-by-step guides
- Company timelines
- Charts and sliders for product comparison
- Maps for market analysis
- Flow charts for team structures
- Cycle infographics to show business processes
- Visual graphics to summarise long-form content
- Venn diagrams to highlight similarities and differences
You can use infographics in pitch decks, on your website, on social channels, and in your marketing collateral.
How to Make an Impactful Infographic
According to Xerox, 65% of brands are using infographics in their marketing. Creating an infographic might be additional work, but you’ll see rewards in your efforts.
Not all infographics are created equal. To make one that is shareable, easy to understand, and engaging, you should consider the layout, colours, fonts, and overall design.
1. Understand your data
Firstly, you need to understand and organise your data. Make sure you have a clear idea of the story you want to tell with the information. Now is the time to decide how best to present it. Does it need graphs, maps, or charts? Do you need to create icons or unique imagery?
2. Consider visual hierarchy
Now you have your data organised, you can establish a visual hierarchy. You can do this through size, colour, positioning, and typography.
– Size
Large elements will appear more important and attract attention first. Make key points in your graphic bigger.
– Colour
Bright and contrasting colours will help the information stand out. Try bold colours for important points and lighter shades for other information.
– Positioning
People naturally read top to bottom, left to right. Add key information along the reading path.
– Typography
Bold, large or unique fonts can help information stand out. Use a smaller, readable font for supporting information.
3. Think about colours
Colours in your infographic should fit with your brand. They should also stand out when needed. We suggest following the 60-30-10 rule. This involves choosing three harmonising colours. Your primary colour should take up 60% of the graphic, the secondary 30%, and the remaining colour should cover the final 10%. You can also use tints and shades of these colours to add contrast.
Consider colour psychology and your business when creating infographics, too. For example, red creates feelings of urgency, while green signals growth and nature. Read more about colour psychology in our blog.
4. Embrace white space
White space helps highlight key information. It also follows the ‘less is more’ mentality, making the information easier to read and process.
5. Try out fonts
Fonts should match your branding and be easy to read. You might use a different font for headlines and body copy; just make sure they are easy to read and complement each other.
6. Share your content
Once you have designed and proofread your infographic, it’s time to share it. Decide whether you will create a few smaller infographics to share easily on socials and link back to the main one on your website. You might need to resize your graphic for different social platforms.
Infographics in Digital Marketing
Infographics are highly shareable and digestible images. Incorporating them into your digital marketing and content strategy can help increase your reach, boost website visits, and even make presentations 43% more persuasive.
While they may take time and effort to create, their value is clear.
You can use infographics throughout marketing campaigns. You can use them to educate your customers about new products, boost your social media engagement, showcase survey results, or as an explainer.
Infographics are also useful for internal use, too. They can help investors and employees understand how the business works.
To help design eye-catching infographics, contact the designers at FullSphere. We know the colours, fonts and visual elements you’ll need to draw people to your story.
