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February 2023
Communicating in Pictures
Infographics are taking control of the data stage. So can you.
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Infographics are Taking Control of the Data Stage. So Can You
“The loudest voice in the data room is visual.”
Once upon a time, educators believed that people take in information best when it is in their preferred style. Do you like to see information in pictures and visuals, or do you prefer an auditory format? Do you remember information better if you read and/or write it, or must you touch and feel it (kinesthetic)?
All these styles anchor information in a way that “just the facts” do not, that is, emotionally. But today, thanks to social media and the sheer volume of data we interact with daily, the loudest voice in the data room is visual.
Enter the often-playful infographic and its serious big sister, data visualization. They are here to stay. Indeed, online searches specifically for infographics increased more than 50% in March 2020 compared to March 2019, according to the Content Marketing Institute.
As a practice owner or manager, it behooves you to get on the visual bandwagon. Not only can you increase the reach of your data (infographics are saved in a single file and easily shareable), you can positively impact your brand and ensure attention.
Who’s On First: The Visual Data Players
As the term implies, an infographic is a visual representation of information. It tells a story, with text, graphics, illustrations, icons, and/or interactivity. Those stories can include, for example, a new customer service process you want to share with your staff. It can also include a wellness checklist for your customers.
Data visualizations are often folded into an infographic. (Think pie charts, flow charts, and maps like the ones you peruse on your favorite news site.) Developed by unbiased sources such as a government agency or a university, they translate complex and voluminous amounts of data into visuals. They also provide a level of credibility to the infographics you create and support “the story” you’re telling in your infographic.
An infographic is a visual representation of information. It tells a story, with text, graphics, illustrations, icons, and/or interactivity.
Contexts for Infographics Use
Infographics can be used in several contexts. One context is with employees and other in-house staff and stakeholders. This includes using infographics as part of:
- Staff presentations, such as slide visuals that summarize key points
- Employee processes, such as introducing a new staff protocol
- Product information or instructions, with illustrations
Another context is in marketing and sales information, with customers, potential customers, and the general public. These types of infographics can be used with:
- Your website, including your blog and articles
- Sales material and sales decks
- Informational brochures about your services
- Practice news to share via social media and with local journalists and media
Keep in mind the value of visuals.Visual data rises to the top of the data pile, for journalists, customers, and the general public. And that translates to more attention for your practice.
Types of Infographics
There are three types of infographics. Static infographics showcase information that doesn’t change. That can include the posters you display in your practice from your local veterinary medicine supplier or a university. It can also include the infographics you create from your blogs to share on social media.
Motion graphics come under the heading “animation.” They bring a graph, information, or design elements to life using movement and sound effects, such as narration. Examples include an illustration of a dog with “hot spots” that light up or animate as the narrator talks.
Interactive infographics allow the viewer to interact with the information. An example would be an interactive pie chart that, when the user scrolls over different pieces of the pie, new information about that particular pie piece pops up.
How to Create an Infographic
Printable Handout
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The most effective infographics are strategically designed. They not only speak to the target audience in a language they understand, but they also tell a story with a predetermined conclusion. That story and its conclusion is supported by very specific data (and data visualizations) and graphic design, often emerging from the research.
The predetermined story you design has two potential outcomes. One outcome is to enable the viewers to derive meaning from the infographic, such as a new way to look at the rise in pet ownership. Another outcome is to encourage the viewer to take action, such as to schedule an appointment.
Planning and executing an infographic are relatively easy once you understand the formula.
Step 1: Identify the context.
There are two general contexts for using infographics:
- In-house with stakeholder audiences such as clinic staff, vendors, and other clinics and industry organizations
- In marketing and sales, whose audiences include current and future clients, as well as the general public
Step 2: Identify your goal.
Infographics have different goals such as:
- To boost your brand in the marketplace via social media shares
- To enable your practice’s news to get noticed by local journalists and media
- To soft-sell a product or service by providing data that points to its value
- To introduce processes and other “how to” information to staff
- To visually remind staff of key points in a new process or procedure
Goals are unique to the practice and can include more than those listed above. Identify this upfront and it will drive the execution of your infographic.
Step 3: Identify the audience.
With each audience type, it’s helpful to identify:
- The level of knowledge the audience has about your clinic and industry
- Their demographic profile, that is, age, income, and education level
- What their values, priorities, and lifestyles are
- Their desired “style,” in fonts, language, and art or images
Step 4: Gather data that will support the goal.
If your infographic includes data and data visualizations, look to sources that are not only reliable but also unbiased and timely. Ideally, with research data, the more current it is, the more value it has.
Reliable sources include government agencies as well as universities, both of which produce research studies and related data visualizations. Research-based associations are also a great resource, such as the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and AAHA.
Step 5: Outline the story.
Infographic Templates
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The story, complete with key points supported by the data, if that is part of your infographic, leads the viewer to a predetermined conclusion. That conclusion is the goal you identified at the outset. Goals ask the viewer to make meaning out of what is presented and/or take action.
For instance, a staff development infographic may outline the stages of a performance review. The conclusion or goal is to manage employee expectations related to performance reviews.
A marketing infographic may have a goal of boosting pet food sales. Key points might include data-driven health outcomes of more nutritious food. The story would lead the viewer to act, that is, buy more nutritious food and/or schedule a visit to assess a pet’s needs.
Step 6: Draft a rough concept.
Draft the high-level template or outline by hand or digitally. Include ideas and direction for art, design, and interactivity (if that is envisioned). Also include information placeholders such as the number of steps in a process and key words for those steps.
Common types of infographic templates include:
- Process infographic
- Comparison infographic
- Timeline infographic
- Informational infographic
- List infographic
Free and for-fee templates are available for common types of infographics. You can also create an original infographic design, but bear in mind that the cost may be prohibitive.
Additionally, depending on the type of information you’re working with, it’s helpful to prioritize the information and/or create a hierarchy to it. This enables you to identify what to stress/highlight with graphic elements.
Step 7: Identify the level of interactivity.
As noted above, infographics come in three levels of interactivity:
- Static
- Motion graphic
- Interactive
Should you decide to create an infographic that is interactive or has motion graphics, record directions for your designer on your rough draft.
Also, keep in mind that static infographics are the least time and budget intensive to create. Conversely, interactive infographics are the most time and budget intensive to create.
Data visualizations translate complex and voluminous amounts of data into visuals.
Step 8: Execute the concept.
At this stage, you’re ready to bring your design to life. It’s critical that you do so with a high level of design skill and writing. There is nothing that can damage your brand faster than unprofessional graphics and misspelled words.
Execution checklist:
- Does the infographic achieve the goal you intended?
- Do all the elements communicate information that supports the goal?
- Does the infographic speak in the target audience’s language?
- Will your audience find the infographic interesting and of value?
- Do you guide the viewer through a predetermined story to a conclusion?
- Do you enable the viewer to make meaning and/or take action?
- Are data and data visualization sources noted?
- Is the design quality and writing professional and attractive?
- Does your logo and contact information appear?
| Sources for this article and related infographic include: Infographics: The Power of Storytelling by Lankow, Ritchie and Crook; “How to Create an Infographic and other Visual Projects in 5 Minutes,” Piktochart.com; and The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics by Dona M. Wong. |
Step 9: Proof, publish, and share.
Double- and triple-check your work before you print and/or share it, ideally with a second set of eyes. Once it is final, produce it.
If sharing on social media or with the press, encourage its distribution. Tell viewers to feel free to share, download, and print your infographic. The more they do, the higher the chance that the infographic will meet its original goal.
M. Carolyn Miller thinks in pictures, and infographics are her language—for the board games she designs, the articles she writes, and the interactive treatments she creates. Cultureshape.com |
Photo credits: ©AAHA/Alison Silverman