An infographic is an excellent way of visually displaying multiple layers of data. When we create an impactful infographic, we have a checklist to work through with the client:

1. Have a plan
   Before we start, we decide the key points or information your need viewers to understand, and does your story need to be broken down into sections? What’s your audience? This is essential in helping to identify how much detail should be included, but also in deciding the creative concept or theme.
2. Make it data-driven
   Infographics can cover any range of subjects, including serious issues, but make sure the data you use is credible and relevant sources are referenced. A principal aim when producing infographics is to create something people want to share; by using compelling data, you increase the chance of it being re-posted on social media sites.
3. Powerful graphics
   We mentioned earlier about identifying a creative concept that suits your audience, but your graphics need to be powerful and engaging.

Some graphic tips include:

• Keep them simple – don’t get too sophisticated and overcomplicate imagery.
• If you are telling your story in sections, make sure they flow.
• Don’t use too many colours – agree on a colour palette and stick to it. Ideally, this should suit your brand identity.
• Make it readable and relevant to your audience – don’t use jargon if your audience won’t understand it.
• Don’t be too repetitive – be concise.

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What makes an interactive infographic useful?

The concept of ‘kinetic learning’ suggests we are better able to retain information from completing a physical activity. So, it figures that adding interactivity to your infographic will make content more memorable and effective. Interactivity can help the viewer make sense of the information, allowing them to dig deeper if they need to understand specific elements. By incorporating animations, visually, their imagination can be captured in ways that a static graphic can’t.

Unique features of interactive infographics include:

1. Responsiveness
   Interactive infographics are designed to be responsive so they will work well on desktop, tablet and mobile devices. Many people view content exclusively on their mobiles, so it’s essential they have an immersive experience without having to zoom into a static graphic.
2. Animation
   Animations bring an infographic to life and help explain a process or fact. This can be as simple as numbers counting up or down or be more complex such as key elements moving on and off-screen.
3. Buttons and rollovers
   Hiding certain pieces of information and inviting the viewer to click for more detail not only encourages the user’s sense of curiosity and exploration. This also allows the option to skip topics that are not of interest to the viewer.
4. Image quality-assured
   Without getting too technical, because the icons, illustrations and animations used in infographics are SVGs, they retain their sharpness at any scale.
5. Editable
   As the interactive infographic is digital the facts and figures can be updated regularly to ensure the latest information is available.
6. Data
   Links to websites can offer web-traffic benefits which also allow evaluation of campaign success, particularly if you’re sharing your infographic through social media or as part of a digital campaign.

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Example Interactive Infographics

We created an animation and two interactive infographics for the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s Disease Outbreaks in Low and Middle-Income Countries course for people working in or studying global health.

The course defines what outbreaks are, explains what happens at the country and global level when an outbreak occurs and describes how outbreaks can impact countries.

The infographics concisely conveyed information on Which interventions are used in a disease outbreak response? and Who is involved in controlling disease outbreaks?

People taking the Future Learn course commented…

Adejoke Akano: “I love the infographic, it is very informative.”
Luiza Rosado: “This infographic is very interesting and well done, congratulations!”
Maimuna Sa’id Ahmed: “The illustrations help my make understanding easier.”
Neven Girgis: “Amazing infographic.”
Tina Radojcic: “Great way to explain.”

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine infographics