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By definition, an infographic is a visual image such as a chart or diagram used to represent information or data. Infographics are a very popular design tool used to help people understand data in a quick, easy-to-read, visual format. From my experience, the toughest part about creating an infographic can be making it easy to read but still professional-looking.
I was recently assigned to create an infographic by one of my clients. Admittedly, they aren’t my favorite to design. Sometimes I have a tough time visualizing how to turn the data provided into a helpful picture. Luckily, this time around the client had a rough sketch of what they’d like to see on the page. They had all the data collected and it was up to me to make it come to life. Most designers don’t get that lucky when creating an infographic. Typically, there’s a lot of back and forth between the client and designer to get both parties to agree on how they want to tell the visual story.
In some cases, you’re given too much data and have to scale it down, otherwise it becomes difficult to interpret. Or the opposite happens and you are given too little data and you’re unable to tell a complete story. “The goal of a graphic is not to make numbers ‘interesting,’ but to transform those numbers (or other phenomena) into visual shapes from which the human brain can extract meaning,” says infographics and visualization professor Alberto Cairo. (link to http://marketingland.com/8-experts-talk-about-making-great-infographics-34958)
If you’re stumped on what to do with your infographic—where to start, or what you need to have on the page—check out this helpful article on Creative Market, “Infographic Design: How to Visualize Data Like a Pro.” (link to https://creativemarket.com/blog/2016/04/28/infographic-design-how-to-visualize-data-like-a-pro)
According to the author, there a few things to you need to keep in mind before creating your infographic:
- An infographic’s true purpose. “An infographic is born when numbers are needed to back up a story, but there’s too much of it, or it’s too difficult to interpret.”
- Gathering data. Once there’s a rough concept, collecting the data is the next step or it’s sometimes the first. Sometimes people come across data before they know what to do with it.
- Telling the story. Determine whether the data actually support the story you want to tell.
- Creating the design. Do you pretty up the data with charts and graphs or use illustrations and metaphors?
- The aftermath. “Even after an infographic’s published, that’s often not the end.” It can provide ideas for future designs.
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Johanna Daproza is the Director of Creative Services at EEI Communications. To read more about Johanna, click here.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
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