creating compelling infographics
TRANSCRIPT
Creating Compelling
Infographics
Digital Scholar Training Series, Workshop 2, Spring 2015
Katja Reuter, PhD
Director of Digital Strategy and the electronic Home (eHome)
Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute (SC CTSI)
University of Southern California, Children's Hospital Los Angeles
The Challenge
1 Collect data
3 Select most important data points
4 Develop a story
Analyze data2
5 Develop your infographic
Defining Information Graphics,
aka Infographics
Graphic visual representations of information,
data or knowledge intended to present complex
information quickly and clearly.
Doug Newsom and Jim Haynes (2004). Public Relations Writing: Form and Style. p.236.;
Mark Smiciklas (2012). The Power of Infographics: Using Pictures to Communicate and
Connect with Your Audience.
Why Infographics?
They “can be more precise and revealing than
conventional statistical computations.”
Tufte, Edward (1983). The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. Cheshire,
Connecticut: Graphics Press. ISBN 0961392142
Make information easier to understand, digest, and recall80% of what we see and do vs. 20% of what we read and 10% of what we hear - Lester, P. M.
(2006). Syntactic Theory of Visual Communication
http://neomam.com/infographics/13reasons
Why Infographics?
More persuasive67% of the audience were persuaded by verbal presentations + accompanying visuals vs.
50% by purely verbal presentations – Wharton School of Business. Effectiveness of Visual Language
http://neomam.com/infographics/13reasons
Why Infographics?
Characteristics of Successful Infographics
Makes a point, and makes it clearly without overwhelming the target audience (e.g., clear takeaway message, call-to-action)
Highlights reliable, interesting data but avoids oversimplifying and distorting what the data have to say
Highlights relationships between facts, context, connections that make information meaningful; encourages the eye to compare different pieces of data
Visualizes data and information creatively
Uses visuals and colors effectively that fit with the subject area
Serves a clear purpose: description, exploration, tabulation or decoration; provides value
Cites sources Adapted from: Tufte, Edward (1983). The Visual Display of Quantitative Information. Cheshire,
Connecticut: Graphics Press; David McCandless (2009). The Visual Miscellaneum: A Colorful
Guide to the World's Most Consequential Trivia; Hubspot:
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/28436/10-Traits-of-Amazingly-Awesome-
Infographics.aspx
What’s your verdict?
A Visual Definition of Disability Adjusted
Life Year
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disability-adjusted_life_year
Worldbank,
http://media.creativebloq.futurecdn.net/sites/creativebl
oq.com/files/images/2012/08/infographic45a.jpg
Consequences of Current Trajectory and
Benefits of Green Technologies
Developing an Infographic
An Example
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC), Ebola, and Twitter
Collect and Analyze the Data
Symlur: http://www.symplur.com/
Define the Target Audience
The leadership at the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC).
Their goal is to “protect America from health, safety and
security threats, both foreign and in the U.S.”
Define the Communication Goals
After reading the infographic, we want CDC leadership to:
Invest in a robust Social Media Outreach Program
at the CDC.
Understand the value, effectiveness, and efficiency
of tailored social media outreach using a tweet chat, and
Define the Story You Want to Tell
Develop content outline of the main and sub
content themes
Include the key findings/data points that support
the communication goals of the infographic
Draw a Sketch
Design: Using Easel.ly
Demo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VHyKgdbUhU
Please See the Digital Scholar Page for
More Information and Helpsheets
Workshop 2: http://sc-ctsi.org/digital-scholar/#spring-2015
Let’s develop your
infographics…
Group Work
Katja Reuter, PhDDirector of the electronic Home (eHome) program
and Digital Strategies
Southern California Clinical and Translational
Science Institute (SC CTSI)
University of Southern California, Children's
Hospital Los Angeles
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @dmsci #DigiScholar14
Questions
For more support,
request a free
consultation on
www.sc-ctsi.org
Contact SC CTSI
SC CTSI | www.sc-ctsi.org Phone: (323) 442-4032 Email: [email protected] Twitter: @SoCalCTSI