{"id":1091,"date":"2011-05-23T07:22:19","date_gmt":"2011-05-23T11:22:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/meetcontent.com\/?p=1091"},"modified":"2017-04-20T00:04:48","modified_gmt":"2017-04-20T04:04:48","slug":"visualizing-content-using-infographics-for-clear-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/meetcontent.com\/blog\/visualizing-content-using-infographics-for-clear-communication\/","title":{"rendered":"Visualizing Content: Using Infographics For Clear Communication"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Visualize... this blog post<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If you follow the web marketing world, you\u2019ve likely seen an increasing number of infographics linked around. They\u2019ve become a very hip content type: vertical images jam-packed with iconography and statistics explaining anything from the growth of mobile to storytelling<\/a> to, well, infographics<\/a>. Forget viral videos — we need a viral infographic!<\/p>\n

Closely tied to the rise of infographics is the prevalence of data visualization, as we become more adept at shaping raw data into more easily understood visual stories. Right now, visual is big.<\/p>\n

Back in March, Karine Joly blogged about infographics<\/a> and asked why we weren\u2019t seeing more of them in higher ed. \u201cKnowledge, expertise, research data and study results are aplenty in colleges and universities,\u201d she wrote. \u201cWhile graphics skills might not be as widespread, they can be identified inside or outside the institution as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

The good news is, not only are there plenty of opportunities and reasons to add infographics and other visualizations into your content repertoire, but they may be easier to produce than you think.<\/p>\n

The Power of Visual Information<\/h2>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s something almost quite magical about visual information,\u201d said writer and designer David McCandless in a 2010 TED talk<\/a>. \u201cIf you\u2019re navigating a dense informational jungle, coming across a beautiful graphic or a lovely data visualization is a relief. It\u2019s like coming across a clearing in the jungle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quality design can make information more meaningful by helping people understand it more easily, more quickly and perhaps more deeply. If you think about it, infographics are a kind of markup language for content.<\/p>\n

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Great design has the ability to make good content great, bad content mediocre and great content amazing – Ian Alexander, Eat Media<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cGreat design has the ability to make good content great, bad content mediocre and great content amazing,\u201d said Eat Media principal Ian Alexander in his presentation at Confab<\/a> earlier this month. \u201cInfographics are a particularly great example of this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Infographics are great tools for storytelling, as storytelling advocate Lou Hoffman illustrated in this post last June about a popular vuvuzela infographic<\/a>. After winning Google\u2019s $5000 challenge<\/a> to create a visualization of how the government spends our tax dollars, Anil Kandangath explained his approach to Nieman Lab<\/a> by saying, \u201cPeople remember stories.\u201d Nieman Lab\u2019s Megan Garber elaborated:<\/p>\n

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They may not recall individual facts; but when you can craft those facts together in a compelling arc, those facts become part of something more than the sum of their parts: a memorable tale. Even when it\u2019s not rendered in text alone.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

Creating Effective Visualizations<\/h2>\n

Not everyone is a fan of visualizations. Back in April, Andy Shaindlin, Associate VP for Advancement at Carnegie Mellon University, tweeted<\/a>, \u201cEveryone loves infographics, but [the] majority are a product of over-caffeinated graphic designers — not sources of insight.\u201d He has a point. Some of them tend to border on garish. In addition, he added<\/a>, \u201cthe majority seem like random collection of data — not focused enough for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andrew Gossen responded<\/a>: \u201cThat sounds like a problem with execution, not form.\u201d <\/p>\n

I think Gossen is spot on. As with any content type, infographics should not be pursued for the sake of novelty. Always consider the user — is this a way to better convey a complex message? Does this help us understand numbers, trends or relationships more effectively? <\/p>\n

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A good infographic makes patterns arise, discovers trends, condenses enormous amounts of information in a very small space.– Alberto Cairo<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cA good infographic makes patterns arise, discovers trends, condenses enormous amounts of information in a very small space,\u201d journalist Alberto Cairo told the Online Journalism Review in 2007. \u201cInfographics, like any other form of journalism storytelling rely on solid, accurate content… If your content is weak, the presentation will be weak.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here are are some possible applications of infographics on a higher ed website:<\/p>\n