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Today, we’re seeing a move away from dense text documents and lengthy spreadsheets. We’re seeking ways to communicate with people that take advantage of the technologies everyone has at their disposal, like responsive websites, faster browsers, and broader bandwidth. At the same time, we want to produce stories that engage people with images and turn dry statistics into memorable messages.
Infographics can grab a viewer’s attention and communicate complex information in a way that anyone can understand. Governments have a particular need to use infographics, because they have to serve all their citizens, including those who lack the time, interest, or language skills to tackle a written report.
The government has great stories to tell
The types of information governments have to share, the reasons they need to share them, and the channels through which they deliver them are particularly well served by infographics.
Large data sets are hard to read and remember, but a visual representation of their highlights can make an impact; even if people don’t remember the actual numbers, they’ll remember the message. The government needs powerful calls to action to motivate their audiences; an infographic can use design to influence action.
Government are being encouraged to use social media to further their objectives, and the reason infographics are so popular today is their suitability for social media.
The power of pictures
Data is impartial. That is the beauty of scientific evidence; it has no slant. But content does have a slant. Without one, content has no reason to exist; if there is no message, there is no point. Layout, palette, font, and other elements of design influence how the consumer engages with the story.
A content creator’s job is to find the message in the evidence and craft it into a call to action. But a call to action is a tricky thing. Insert it too soon and trust is eroded. Insert it too late and it loses impact. Think of the entire infographic as a call to action, one that starts with a headline that draws in a viewer and then combines logic and emotion to construct a position that culminates in one unavoidable conclusion.
And throughout, the content has to mirror the audience.
Viewers want to see themselves and their interests in the content they consume. A successful infographic allows individuals to recognize themselves in the data. That’s where the power of the infographic lies—in its ability to turn streams of numbers into a story that motivates people.
The intersection of art and data
An infographic is part storyteller, part motivator, and part data interpreter. It can transform complex data that has a high degree of significance to an agency into a fluent narrative that can be approached and consumed as a story. Whether the goal is to encourage people to rally to a cause or change a behavior, the message will be more persuasive when numbers are used to convince, and images are used to stir emotions.
Jerry Silverman is the principal solutions consultant at Adobe Systems
This article originally appeared on Adobe’s Public Sector Blog
