Infographics – An Overview

An infographic can combine the power of data visualization and design to present even complex information in an easy-to-understand form. 

You find them everywhere these days. Brands share it on social media, in their banner ads to quickly grab a customer’s attention, or even in flyers and brochures to flaunt their milestones or achievements. 

Did you know that nearly 65% of marketers already use this visual format in their marketing strategy? 

And that’s because a well-designed infographic helps a campaign gain traction on social media. We would like to stress the “well-designed” part a little strongly here. Do you think an infographic like the one below will solve its purpose? 

There is nothing technically wrong with the design per se. While this may be true, good design is mostly about the user experience and not just the aesthetics. And this one definitely is not the best you can give in terms of user experience. 

If the mere thought of putting together concrete information in a likable and shareable design sounds daunting, we’re here to break it down for you. We’ll give you some easy and effective infographics design tips to use in your marketing. 

But Do You Really Need Infographics in Your Marketing Strategy? 

Before we talk about the infographic designs in detail, let’s also talk about why you need an infographic in the first place. 

The concept of using infographics to convey information is not new. As a matter of fact, infographics have a long history in the world of marketing. 

The goal of the infographic and the message conveyed might all be different in different cases. But they all have the same purpose. And that will be – sharing information that adds value to customers. Information that customers will find to be worth sharing. 

They help increase your website traffic by nearly 12%. When you provide credible information, you are proving yourself as an expert in your field. And when people look up to you for information, they start trusting your brand and this is good for your business. 

Nail your branding in your infographic design. This way, when people share the information they are also advocating your brand indirectly. 

We’ll give you one more reason to include infographics in your marketing. We know that content creators spend a lot of time and effort in creating content. But not all content consumers read the whole content from start to end. They are 30% more likely to read an infographic fully than they read an article or blog post.

That establishes the fact that infographics are important. But how do you design one that actually helps your brand? Here are some useful design tips to transform your infographic marketing. 

Infographic Designs – Tips To Create an Impactful Design

1. Getting to the basics 

Once you have drafted the outline for your infographics, choose a suitable layout for it depending on the dimensions of the infographic. And, be mindful of the platform where you wish to share the infographic 

Obviously vertical infographics that run longer than a page are the most common ones. However, when you want to use them on social media, you can pick other dimensions as well. For example, square ones for the regular posts and landscape orientation for the cover image on YouTube and Facebook.

2. How much is too much when it comes to fonts?

Without a doubt, infographic designs have multiple sections. There might be a heading to highlight and several subheads and numbers that need to stand out. Considering all this, if you think picking different typefaces or font styles for your infographic will be the best way to show differences where required, think again! 

Picking the right typeface and font style that resonates with your branding is one thing. The other is deciding on the right number of font styles for the design. Which is even more important! 

An infographic should not cause a strain on the reader’s eyes at any point. Remember that most readers pay attention to every little detail in the infographic. As they go from one section in the infographic to another, they should be able to tell the difference without missing out on the connection between each piece of information presented. 

There is one way to achieve this – work with a limited font combination. Try using two or three different fonts at the most. Take a look at the below example. 

In the above infographic, you don’t see too many typefaces. Yet, the design manages to convey the information, clearly and effectively. Bold font for the heading and uppercase letters for the subheads or sectional dividers creates the segregation required without compromising on the legibility. 

Kimp Tip: The first thing to remember is that fonts that look good on their own might not necessarily look good when combined with other beautiful fonts. Therefore, creating a harmonious combination of fonts is as important as picking out the individual font styles or typefaces for your infographic. 

Struggling to find the right fonts to reflect your brand’s style in infographic design? The Kimp team is here to help. 

3. The color conundrum 

Because you cannot change the fonts too much, color is the next aspect of design you can play with. Then again, less is more! Too many colors make your design look less professional in some cases. And other times, the color palette ends up deviating too much from your brand’s visual style. Both these can be bad for your brand. 

Like fonts, even when you choose colors stick with just two or three. The colors you choose depend on:

• Your brand
• The message being conveyed 

Shortly, the easiest way to choose colors will be to stick with your brand’s primary or secondary color palette. Another idea is to choose colors that reflect the mood of the message. For example a combination of orange, green, and red for food-related infographics. Or a combination of blue, gray, and black for business-related information. 

If you want to make an impact, using your brand’s primary color on a black background works too. 

4. Be mindful of the negative spaces 

Everything from the margin spacing to the defined spaces between visual elements can affect the aesthetics. These details can also make two or more elements in your infographic look connected or disconnected. That’s why you cannot ignore negative spaces in your design. 

If you look at the above design, the right use of negative space ensures that all eyes are on the pie chart. That’s how you intuitively direct attention to a key section in the infographic design. 

5. Aesthetic elements only where you need them 

Do not forget that form follows function. Even though the aesthetic appeal of your infographic is important, you cannot let aesthetics interfere with the purpose of the infographic or the message it carries. 

Of course, there are places where adding decorative finishes might feel like the right thing to do, like the below design for example. This might also be essential to strengthen the theme. 

In all other cases, minimalism is your best bet. Trim down all the unwanted elements and let all attention be on the key information. 

6. A clearly defined hierarchy 

An infographic often presents a lot of information to the reader. In this case, how do you make sure that they pay attention to all the details and that too in the right order of priority? By ensuring visual hierarchy. 

In the above design, the descending number of ovals coupled with the arrow ensures that readers look at the design from the intended perspective. 

As can be seen in the given example, hierarchy in design removes ambiguity. And when designed aptly, it can also direct the readers toward the CTA.

7. The power of illustrations 

Design elements like symbols or icons are used mainly to make the infographic more interactive. And custom illustrations magnify this advantage. The illustration can be anything from an object to a human character. 

As you can see in the above infographic, illustrations can be used to convey emotions. They also make it easier to convey the point. Sometimes these illustrations are handy in drawing attention to specific regions within the infographic. 

Or you can use your illustration to tell a story. Because conveying your information in the form of an interactive story is one of the best ways to keep readers hooked. The below infographic is a good example of visual storytelling through illustrations in an infographic. 

Kimp Tip: When you have a custom illustrated character or mascot for your brand, you can use this as the center of attraction in the design. You can use this mascot to emphasize points or direct a reader’s focus towards a specific element of priority. 

Looking for custom mascot designs for your brand? With a Kimp Graphics subscription, it is easy to get one for your brand.

8. Step out of your comfort zone 

Have you felt that following the rules just does not suit your brand? Maybe your brand is about edgy fashion or about a funky out-of-the-box concept. In such cases, the traditional approach of using data visualization, charts and more might sound too uninspiring and out of perspective. But you can still create infographics without these conventional elements. Like the below example. 

From the illustration to the font and the overall layout, everything about the design looks unique. But still, it manages to convey the information and looks professional too. And that’s precisely what it takes for an infographic to make an impact. 

With these simple design tips, you can create an infographic that gets people talking about your brand. But then where can you use this stunning infographic? Let’s find out. 

Places Where Infographics Add Value 

Well, the truth is infographics look good everywhere from traditional print advertising to digital ads. After all, good marketing is all about providing value to your customers. And an infographic does just that. 

So, if you are wondering how to use infographics to enhance your marketing visuals, below are a few ideas. 

1. Make your emails more interactive 

Telling it with proof will be the best way to make an impact through your marketing emails. And infographics can be of great help there. To make your emails informative and interactive too, you can add an infographic that captures the message in a concise form. Better clicks and better click-through rates are just a few benefits that a well-designed infographic brings to your email marketing. 

2. Print advertising with a twist 

Brochures, flyers, posters, and a whole lot of other print advertising ideas are still relevant. That’s why even big brands around the world incorporate them as a part of their marketing plan. One way to give a new twist to these conventional marketing media will be to use infographics in them. 

In designs like brochures where it is important to convey information that adds value, what’s equally important is to keep the information easy to consume. And for this infographics can be of great help. What’s more, interesting visuals like these will help bridge the gap between traditional and digital media for advertising, 

Want to give your flyer design a makeover? Try adding infographics to it. Take a look at the below flyer design to see what we mean. 

With designs like flyers, marketers strive to figure out ways to ensure that a maximum number of people actually hold on to the flyer than tossing it away. With this purpose in mind, adding crisp infographic designs can help. 

3. Information for the distracted social media users 

Getting heard on social media is a struggle. We get it. That’s why we recommend creating content that users will love to interact with; content they would love to share with their network. 

Sharing content is just a click away irrespective of the platform. So, you will not want users to share a weak version of your brand. So, pay special attention to the images and other graphic elements you use especially in infographics designed for social media. The relevance of the visuals and the quality are both important. 

4. Presentations that make an impact 

Having a great idea to present is not enough. You also need to have a great strategy to present the idea. 

When you have to introduce your business to your investors or customers or when you have to present your ideas for a particular campaign within your team, business presentations are useful. In such cases, backing up the information with relevant data and historic observations will be a good idea. And for this, an infographic can be of huge help.

Kimp Tip: Maintaining visual consistency and an overall hierarchy are both essential for a good presentation. This helps the audience understand the connection between slides. So, when you create an infographic for your presentation, try to use the same colors and font styles to make it look coherent rather than appear like some random graphic plugged in. 

Designing professional presentations can be intimidating. We understand. Leave it to the design team at Kimp and you will have presentations that are on-brand. 

Making The Most of Infographic Designs With Kimp

Infographics are fun and interactive visuals that can grab the attention of new customers and keep your existing customers engaged. So, are you ready to tap into the potential of infographic design in marketing? Infographic design service is part of your Kimp Graphic subscription.

Register for a free trial and experience the merits of unlimited graphic design for your brand.