You’ve heard the stat before… 65% of us are visual learners. Articles that include images receive 94% more total views. It’s a best practice to include strong visuals with your online content.
Enter the infographic.
What is an infographic?
The term infographic is a mash-up of “information” and “graphic.” It is, quite literally, a graphic that conveys information on a topic. Though they exist in real life (think traffic signs), we’ll be talking about the modern digital infographic.
Marketing infographics have become extremely popular for branding and enterprise. That they are useful and widely accepted makes them a great addition to your marketing tool kit/tactics.
Why Marketing Infographics?
A good infographic is designed to encourage learning and sharing.
They help us understand a topic through –
- simplifying stats, studies, and data
- providing easy explanations and how-to steps
- conveying complex ideas through simple graphics
This is important because we are all visual learners.
Listen & watch: TED Talk, David McCandless: The Beauty of Data Visualization
Infographics also help your business or enterprise on the back end. How? Don’t expect your infographic to “go viral,” but they are great for –
- SEO
- branding
- additional content
- establishing influence
Whether you create your own in a simple program like Canva or hire a professional graphic designer, creating an infographic just might be what you need to add to your content options.
Infographics To Learn From
We love a good infographic as well as the next digital expert. Since we are always listening and learning, here are a few favorites that might teach you something!
1. Size Matters
Constant Contact – Social Media Image Size Guide
Constant Contact puts out this infographic every year, and it’s one of the first things I bookmark and download. Yes, you can Google social media image sizes, but this is a much better way to think through the sizes that you’ll need when working on a new campaign.
2. Social Media Stats
Search Engine Journal – The Growth of Social Media v 3.0
If you can find an infographic that is useful AND current, that’s a big win. The stats on this infographic from Search Engine Journal are the most current and comprehensive, all represented in one place to give you a snapshot of social media growth.
3. Integrating Traditional and Digital Marketing
Hubspot – How Online & Offline Marketing Can Work Together
With so much of a shift towards digital marketing, is there still a place for traditional advertising? This is an important question to answer if your company is B2C and relies heavily on advertising to reach the end-user.
4. Visual Content
Canva – 10 Types of Awesome Visual Content Your Brand Should Be Creating Right Now
If you are not already adding more visual content to your online tactics, now is the time. We’ve established that visual content is key! What types of content can you incorporate that you are not using already?
5. How Healthy is Your Brand
Hubspot – There’s a Problem With Brand Identity: What Marketers Really Think About Brand Experience
Branding should be an important part of today’s marketing strategy. This 2016 Brand Experience survey will help you reflect on your own brand promise and customer experience.
6. Trends
PR Daily – 10 Digital Branding and Marketing Trends to Watch for in 2016
Keeping up with trends (which doesn’t mean that you have to jump on their bandwagon) is important in planning your social media tactics.
7. Get Smarter
Grammar Check – 5 Weak Words to Avoid & What to Use Instead
Sometimes an infographic is so helpful, you bookmark it, share it with colleagues, and reference it often. Find one that teaches you something that is useful in both your business life and your personal life, and you’ll visit it again and again.
The Future of Infographics
What does the future hold for infographics? Don’t look for them to go away any time soon. We see them becoming a bit more complex but still highly useful. They are also common across all types of industries…anywhere that you can teach or tell a visual story.
This, however, might be a clue to the future of infographics. Take a look at 13 Reasons Why Your Brain Craves Infographics by NeoMam Studios and see if you are a believer!