Infographics are a way of visually representing information. They are usually made using descriptive, narrative, or interpretive elements. Using symbols and signs. We want to teach you how to make infographics step by step, without having to be a professional in the area of design.
These visual representations transform complex information into simpler information, capable of being captured by any audience. In general, infographics simultaneously activate the two areas of the brain, the verbal-analytical and the visual-creative.
Advantages of infographics in communication
Time to decipher the information
Information, however complex it may be, can be decoded in less time when looking at an infographic. That is, the point of how to make infographics is knowing how to capture the information.
It is visualizable in the networks
It is capable of expanding and reaching out quickly on social networks. Just think of relevant pages. In addition, those are usually published on social networks.
A good marketing tool
They are considered powerful marketing tools. They even serve to promote the brands of some organizations.
Allows high levels of learning to be achieved
The teaching-learning process, allows one to achieve high-level skills such as representing, analyzing, and evaluating.
What characterizes an infographic?
The center of attention
The main images are placed in the center of the content and to the sides complementary information with images and texts.
Media
It is used in internet pages, newspapers, magazines, brochures, books, documents, and others, as a simple and practical way of disseminating information.
It should be seen as a news article
Like any news, it must answer the what, who, where, when, how, and why using purely visual elements. In addition, it must improve and deepen the information considering its journalistic context.
You must consider some journalistic criteria
The information must be updated, with its entity, that allows the synthesis, without errors or contradictions, is easy to understand, has aesthetics, and presents the text in typographical form.
How to make infographics
First step: Define the objectives of your infographic
The first step in how to make infographics is to define what you will use the infographic for. For example, to explain or visualize a concept, show statistical information, explain a technology, summarize a document, or show the steps of a project.
If what you want is to simplify a flowchart of a complex process, the infographic is the ideal tool, so that the audience can clarify any doubts or confusion about it.
Second step: Identify the source of information and document it
To continue how to make infographics, you should think about where to go to collect information about the objective you set for yourself. This step is important to give veracity to the infographic that you plan to design. To be more objective, carefully review information contrary to yours, or if there are other documents similar to the proposed infographic.
You can review books, specialized magazines, Google, Wikipedia, electronic newspapers, blogs, Slideshare, YouTube, and Twitter, among others. If you consider it necessary, you can also create and apply online or offline surveys. Also, see that the source of information is reliable.
As a recommendation, use academic search engines that allow you to find specialized information. Remember that the Internet is a universe of information, some academic and others daily. Discard those of dubious origin.
Some of the most reliable search engines are Google Scholar, Highbeam Research for research, books, and specialized articles, Chemedia for content books, and Redalyc for Latin American, and Caribbean.
Third step: Organize all the documented information
You can organize a portfolio where you will organize the information by topics of greater or lesser relevance and their respective subtopics. In other words, it classifies the documents according to the value of the information, placing first hand the one with the greatest contributions and that responds to the proposed objectives. Important when thinking about how to make infographics.
It also discards material of little interest to purify and honest the work information. This way you will save time and your ideas will flourish faster.
Fourth step: Design different mockups of the infographic
Having the information well organized and verified, then continue making sketches on the infographic. You can get very creative. What’s more, you can make up to three using the free program Mockflow.com. This way, you can reflect on what you collected. Remember that information is essential when thinking about how to make infographics.
Here you can draw different versions of the infographic in grayscale. For this, you must focus on the central idea and connect them with the secondary one, observing how the information would reach the audience.
Step Five: Design the infographic
Already selected the ideal sketch that meets all the proposed objectives, then design your infographic at once.
For this, you must consider some elements such as color, which gives it the perfect contrast to improve reading. It is recommended to use color.adobe.com to select colors.
The style must be very original, avoiding copying elements from other infographics. Graphic information is essential, while excessive text should be discarded. The latter is called integration.
At Dafont.com, you’ll find the right fonts and font sizes for infographic design. Use your creativity to choose the most suitable ones. Simple images or icons should dominate the design elements. In this way, you will communicate properly. You can visit freepik.com, to find a wide variety of images.
Tools to make infographics
Web tools like Canva allow you to create images and design templates, especially for inexperienced people. Visme. co also brings you free infographics, AdobeSpark covers hot topics for infographics, and Venngage.com is great for non-designers by displaying a large number of free infographics.
Easel.Ly is also a slightly more sophisticated web tool for designing custom infographics, it allows you to drag and drop any number of lines, images, text, and shapes, among others. Similarly, PiktoChart allows you to make attractive infographics with original colors and fonts. However, it is not free.
In case you only need to create varieties of shapes with the selected words in your infographic, then go to Wordclouds.co.uk. They are very useful when thinking about how to make infographics.
Remember that when creating an infographic you must integrate the useful with the aesthetic and that all the elements come into perfect visual harmony to bring the story you want to tell to the reader or audience.