The Art of Infographics for biz dev

It’s no secret that images help to enhance your blog content. But infographics will take this further, by combining content and images into one neat, shareable package.

Not only are infographics shareable, but they can take complex information and simplify it, as well as attracting the attention of those who don’t have the patience to read a long form blog article to get the same information. They are also more likely to go viral, which is another huge plus.

But the problem is that too many people have seen the power of the infographic. Infact, this article about 9 reasons to include infographics in your marketing strategy shows that searches for infographics on Google increased by 800% between 2010 and 2012. So now everyone is trying to pump them out in the hopes that their content will go viral or their website will see massive traffic growth. This means it’s getting to the point that simply creating an inforgraphic isn’t enough. You need to take a controlled and thought out approach in order to capture interest and maintain it.

If we look at this from a blogging perspective we can highlight some ways to make your infographic stand out amongst the crowd.

When you look at a blog post, you’re drawn in by the headline. Something in those few words has sparked your interest, enough to get you to react, and read what the author has to say. Infographics are no different. I remember a time where I would look at any infographic I found, regardless of subject matter, simply because it was visually appealing, and I often learnt something from it. Now I don’t. Now if I look at an infographic it’s highly likely the headline has caught my attention. This means that considering the title/headline for your infographic is important. Give your audience a reason to want to look at it, and you will see more success.

After the headline, comes the content. When blogging each sentence must keep your reader engaged, so that they move onto the next one, until they eventually consume your entire message. They want to find the value that was promised to them in the headline. Infographics have a similar principle. Yes, the content must be relevant and provide them with the value that was promised. But, it must also be readable. Your layout, your colour scheme and the way you adapt your information must all be considered. Without considering these factors. Your infographic will lose potency, readers will drop off and all the benefits you envisioned when you begun creating it, will be lost.

These are simple principles that can be applied when creating infographics that will help your content to stand out. Because if you don’t, you risk being overlooked, because you simply blend in with the crowd.

Want some more considerations? Here’s an Infographic that outlines considerations for making an infographic.

So, you’ve decided to go ahead and make an infographic

If you’re still here and think that you’ll be able to create an effective infographic, then the next consideration is how you will do it. There are two options here, do it yourself, or pay a designer.

Now doing it yourself may seem a bit daunting, especially for those with limited artistic talents. But there are a range of tools that can be used to create a thing of beauty. Here’s SEOmoz’s list of 10 tools for creating Infographics. Going through this list, you should find something that will suit your skill level and needs.

The alternative is to hire a designer. While this will cost you more, you will get greater flexibility in how it’s designed and looks. You can use sites such as eLance to find freelance designers from all over the world, that can help you to create an awesome infographic for your company.