Great Infographics Need Great Stories. Here’s How To Get It Right.
By: Tekla Szymanski, Content, Design, Llc, New York
Tags: Infographics, Data Visualization

Infographic by Florence Nightingale, 1855

In the 1850s, famed nurse Florence Nightingale was the first person to use and compare statistics by creating elaborate infographics, diagrams and color-coded flowcharts for her presentations to persuade hospitals of the need for change.

To this day, infographics are an important and effective tool to digest and make sense of the vast amounts of data we gather. They clearly and visually break down the information and offer an easy-to-understand overview or quick explanation of a complex topic or process.

And they are the perfect fusion of content + design.

Nonprofits engage in storytelling to communicate and create effective outreach, awareness and donation campaigns for a cause. Infographics are especially suited for them to highlight their mission, tell their stories, visualize complex data, explain research findings and show trends in their case studies. A good infographic shows why prospective donors should care and how their engagement can make an impact.

Great infographics, however, need good stories and a compelling narrative to make the infographic informative and persuasive enough to engage. And the stories behind the numbers must be stories that readers can relate to.

The steps involved in creating an effective infographic

Pick one issue, or one story, or one objective

Pick your target audience

Pick one call-to-action

Research, gather and verify the data, using different sources (see below for a list of databases you can use)

Decide, which of the 5 common kinds of infographics best fits your data display (illustrative, proportional, timeline, map, list. More on each below.)

Design and create the infographic. Canva offers a free infographic maker, as does Google Charts, among many other online tools. Try Cartograph for maps.

The five kinds of infographics that visualize your data

Illustrative: One number and one picture. Best for highlighting a single fact or statistic.

Proportional: Fact, data, or stats visualization. Best for numerical comparison to show highs, lows, average and provide context.

Timeline: Changes over time (history flow), a path, process, or projections.

Map: Highlights geographic patterns and good for telling global stories. Use sparingly because a map might skew proportionality.

List: Best for rankings and simple categorizations.

To create effective infographics you need to…

have a clear target audience in mind and know what you want it to take away.

use strong characters to relate to or to learn from.

showcase a conflict with no obvious outcome. You need a real issue and relatability that draws others in.

find something unexpected; a plot twist. Find stories that readers won’t experience in their everyday life; something exciting, or emotional involvement.

create a scene-setting, a journey, or a direction.

share a point or a killer fact.

use humor that doesn’t undermine credibility.

find an aesthetically pleasing clear design; the right brand feel, colors, fonts and visuals (icons, symbols, images, drawings).

And make sure you…

don’t miss offering a clear point, direction, or message.

don’t create too confusing, or too cluttered a visual.

don’t miss the storyline or create too many stories at once.

don’t mix opposing facts.

don’t offer opposing messages.

don’t show confusing, wrong, or random visual cues or images.

don’t miss to reveal your data sources, or forget to include essential sources.

don’t forget to be mindful of the differentiation between perception, projection and reality.

Share your infographic with me!

Data Sources

ABOUT CONTENT DESIGN LLC

Hi, I am Tekla Szymanski, founder of Content Design LLC, your one-stop shop for content strategy and web development for content-rich nonprofit and personal websites.

Do you have a small team and even less time? I hear you. And since your website deserves an editor, writer and web designer who understands how to leverage your unique content and then adapt the right design to it, I can help you.

You have a story to tell, a mission to share or a service to offer, and we will find the right platform to build a website around your unique content needs that converts your site visitors into loyal donors, paying clients or new members.

What sets me apart?

Most web designers and developers don’t come from a content-creating background. I do.

Copyright © 2020 Tekla Szymanski | Content Design LLC. All rights reserved. Please share/quote with attribution.