Using Infographics for HIV Communication

If a picture’s worth a thousand words, how many words is an infographic worth?

Chances are you’ve come across an infographic in either print or digital communication, but if you’re not quite sure: an infographic is a form of data visualization that pairs design, text, and data into one eye-catching visual. Here’s an example that also explains the components of a good infographic. Although infographics have been used for several years, they’re still a relatively new method of communicating information.

Why use Infographics for HIV Communication?

As we’ve mentioned previously, digital trends show that people prefer images (and video) to text. Social media platforms that favor images, like Instagram and Snapchat, are becoming more popular. The rise in images may be due to information overload: studies have found that we receive 5x more information today than we did in 1986 and we consume 100,000 plus words outside of work every day. In addition, we’re visual creatures: researchers note that color visuals help increase the willingness to read by 80%.

By using infographics, you can harness the popularity of visuals and guide your audience through content, including complex or scientific information, in an engaging way. Whether an infographic is placed on your landing page, included in slideshows, displayed on social media, or sent in your email campaigns, there are many opportunities to deliver content in a visual way.

For inspiration, we’ve rounded up some examples from our partners in the HIV community:

• CDC Infographics and Posters
• UNAIDS Infographics
• The Body HIV Vaccines Infographic
• Doctors Without Borders Infographic: The Need For HIV and TB Treatment in Myanmar
• AIDSinfo Infographic
• World Health Organization HIV/AIDS Infographic
• AIDSVu HIV Infographics
• American Public Health Association HIV/AIDS Public Health Infographic

How can you create great infographics?

You don’t need to be a seasoned graphic designer to create eye-catching infographics. When it comes to creating your first infographic, here are some tips:

• Keep it simple
• Keep it focused
• Make it easy to view
• Add white space
• Create a memorable headline

Tools

There are many free and low-cost design tools to choose from when creating your infographic; some examples include Canva, Venngage, and Piktochart. All three offer free basic accounts. These user-friendly tools are pretty easy to learn—meaning you won’t have to spend too much time creating your graphics.

What trends should you watch for?

Just like social media, design trends often fade in and out. Looking for what’s hot now? We learned a lot from this roundup:

• Louder and brighter colors
• Bold typography
• Google fonts
• Authentic photos
• Hand-drawn graphics and icons
• Minimalism
• Useful GIFs
• Vibrant duotones

Want more information?

Check out our previous blog post on infographics. Interested in more of our tips, tricks, and insights into social media and digital communication? Make sure to sign up for our email updates to get our Digital Tools blog posts delivered straight to your inbox!

*This post was originally published on November 14, 2017, on HIV.gov and was authored by Jessica Holli, Consultant, JSI.