Infographics: Worth It or Wasted?

[three_fourth_last]The latest craze in understanding information and showing data comes in the form of an infographic. What exactly is an infographic? An infographic is a visual representation of data, they are also categorized as data visualization and information design. Actually, here is an infographic to explain this question:

Now that we have that figured out let’s determine why companies and organizations are using infographics. For this example we will use Mike Bloomberg’s campaign for smaller fountain drink sizes in New York. Suppose you are reading an article describing each size of soda and how many calories and grams of sugar are in each different size. You may have trouble understanding just how much sugar that equates to or how large a 7oz fountain drink it versus a 12oz fountain drink.

Now imagine that this article had an infographic associated with it. The infographic looks like this one actually utilized during his campaign:

Source: Junk Charts

Which would you be more attracted to? Which makes you easily understand the statement that Bloomberg is trying to make? The infographic. Colors and shapes help us to process data easier. The Bloomberg example shows how an infographic puts visual realization to the cause he is trying to promote and therefore has a better chance of converting people into supporters. You can explain processes with the use of arrows, amounts through varying shape sizes, call attention through color, etc. Thus, infographics are definitely worth it.