{"id":43223,"date":"2021-03-17T16:40:38","date_gmt":"2021-03-17T20:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/?p=43223"},"modified":"2025-11-06T11:42:29","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T16:42:29","slug":"data-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-design\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Reasons Why You Should Use Infographics Instead of Data Design"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43921 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Infographics_Instead_of_Data_Design_Blog_Header.png\" alt=\"Infographics_Instead_of_Data_Design_Blog_Header\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>A divide has developed between infographics and data design as businesses, government agencies, educators, marketers and organizations of all stripes continue to embrace the use of visual tools in their communications.<\/p>\n<p>While both infographics and data design are outstanding options and have their place in the visual communications landscape, there are many reasons why nine times out of 10, the better option between the two is an infographic.<\/p>\n<p>What should you know about the differences between these two methods of information design, and what are some ways in which infographics are the superior option to data design?<\/p>\n<p><strong>In this post, I&#8217;ll show you how using infographics for data design is a better way to present data and engage your audience in a business setting.<\/strong> I&#8217;ll also deliver templates you can make your own right now and customize using Venngage&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Infographic Maker<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>START CREATING FOR FREE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<h2>NEW! Introducing: Marketing Statistics Report 2022<\/h2>\n<p>It&#8217;s 2022 already. Marketers, are you still using data from pre-COVID times?<\/p>\n<p>Don&#8217;t make decisions based on outdated data that no longer applies. It&#8217;s time you keep yourself informed of the latest marketing statistics and trends during the past two years, and learn how COVID-19 has affected marketing efforts in different industries \u2014 <b>with this FREE marketing statistics report put together by Venngage and <a href=\"https:\/\/hubspot.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HubSpot<\/a>.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The report uses data gathered from over 100,000 customers of HubSpot CRM. In addition to that, you&#8217;ll also know about the trends in using visuals in content marketing and the impacts of the pandemic on visual content, from 200+ marketers all over the world interviewed by Venngage.<\/p>\n<p>Grab your copy now \u2014 it&#8217;s not like any other marketing reports out there, plus it&#8217;s 100% free!<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/offers.hubspot.com\/marketing-statistics-report?utm_source=hscm-venngage-ebook-2022-blg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-50398\" style=\"box-shadow: 0 1px 4px 0 rgb(0 0 0 \/ 10%), 0 0 6px 0 rgb(0 0 0 \/ 10%), 0 2px 2px -2px rgb(0 0 0 \/ 15%);\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Marketing-Statistics-Report-Thumbnail.png\" alt=\"marketing statistics report 2022 Venngage Hubspot\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/offers.hubspot.com\/marketing-statistics-report?utm_source=hscm-venngage-ebook-2022-blg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> <button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>GET YOUR FREE COPY<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Click to jump ahead:<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#1\">Difference between data design and infographics<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#2\">How to tell data design and infographics apart<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#3\">What makes infographics better than data design<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"1\"><\/div>\n<h2>What\u2019s the difference between data design and infographics?<\/h2>\n<p><b>Infographics and data design are not one and the same<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and it\u2019s often possible to have your cake and eat it, too.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That\u2019s because while both are methods of visual storytelling, many infographics contain data design, which is also known as data visualization.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Charts, maps and graphs are all common forms of data visualization, and they are right at home in just about any infographic.<\/p>\n<p><strong>New to infographics? This video\u00a0will walk you through what you need to know.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uQXf_d5Mgjg\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here is an example of an infographic that kicks off its story with data visualization. In this case, a bar graph\u00a0compares the relative market share of major computer companies.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/computer-market-shares-and-sales-infographic-2a5e306e-5b32-4582-981d-7a8b28bcdfb8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43330\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-vs-Infographic-Example-Computer-Market-Share-Template.png\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Example Computer Market Share Template\" width=\"600\" height=\"776\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/computer-market-shares-and-sales-infographic-2a5e306e-5b32-4582-981d-7a8b28bcdfb8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>CREATE THIS INFOGRAPHIC TEMPLATE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<div id=\"2\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>Related<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-visualization\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">What Is Data Visualization? (Definition, Examples, Best Practices)<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>How can you tell\u00a0data design and infographics\u00a0apart (and does it matter)?<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To the first part of that question, <\/span><b>if you\u2019re looking at a visual representation of a single set of data, it probably is not an infographic<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That\u2019s because one of the hallmarks of standalone data design is that, well, it stands on its own.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/reports\/year-in-review-spread-43ccec87-da49-4598-b803-a8b6b7c03618\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43263\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Year-in-Review-Report-Template.png\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Example Year in Review Report Template.\" width=\"600\" height=\"464\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/reports\/year-in-review-spread-43ccec87-da49-4598-b803-a8b6b7c03618\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>CREATE THIS REPORT TEMPLATE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As an example, check out this <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2015\/07\/08\/us\/census-race-map.html?_r=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">expansive interactive map<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the New York Times published in 2015 that takes a massive set of data and allows users to explore it at their own pace.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The data set is from the U.S. Census Bureau.\u00a0It covers population by racial or ethnic group with each dot indicating which group is the largest in a given area. Users are able to learn more about racial segregation in major U.S. cities by exploring the map.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We can <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/archive.nytimes.com\/www.nytimes.com\/imagepages\/2011\/09\/04\/opinion\/04reich-graphic.html?pagewanted=all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">revisit the Times<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for an example of an infographic that includes data design. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This\u00a0infographic used multiple methods of data visualization (line charts, bar charts and pie charts) to tell a multi-part story and illustrate an article about the U.S. economy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archive.nytimes.com\/www.nytimes.com\/imagepages\/2011\/09\/04\/opinion\/04reich-graphic.html?pagewanted=all\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43331\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-vs-Infographic-Example-NY-Times.jpeg\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Example NY Times Income Inequality Infographic.\" width=\"600\" height=\"1152\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the infographic as a whole can stand alone, <\/span><b>multiple sets of data are used<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to support the positions taken in the column. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are also <\/span><b>several types of information design<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> at play in crafting that narrative, and, crucially, <\/span><b>explanatory text that provides nuance and analysis<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All of these elements are <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/good-infographic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hallmarks of good infographic design<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and they are absent in the Times\u2019 interactive map.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now, to the second part of that question, does the difference between data design and infographic matter? It\u2019s important to understand the differences so that you can decide the best option for telling your story.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Related<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-storytelling\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">How to Tell a Story With Data (A Guide For Beginners)<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are times when standalone data visualization is the best option, but infographics usually have the advantage, and in the rest of this post, we\u2019ll explain the ways in which <\/span><b>infographics are the better alternative to data design<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"3\"><\/div>\n<h2><b>What makes infographics better than data design?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The short answer to this is that infographics\u00a0use more storytelling methods than data visualization, but there are many reasons to default to infographics even when you have a <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">data-driven story<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to tell.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>This isn\u2019t an exhaustive list, and your mileage may vary, but these are the biggest factors that play into making infographics the superior choice compared to data design:<\/b><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Infographics can help tell just about any story<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Emotional connection<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Context<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pairing different types of content and data<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Calls to action<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Doing the math<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Branding<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3><b>1. Infographics can help tell just about any story<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not a bold statement to say that infographics haven\u2019t met many stories they can\u2019t tell, and their flexibility is the single biggest reason to make sure they\u2019re part of your visual arsenal. The list of infographics that can be created using Venngage is incredibly diverse.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Not every story <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">should<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> be told through infographics, but there aren\u2019t many other modern storytelling methods that are as flexible or have such broad applications for <\/span><b>virtually all industries and use cases<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Data design, on the other hand, is vast but largely unchanging. When was the last time someone invented a completely new way to visualize data? In fact, the basic principles of data design can be <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithsonianmag.com\/history\/surprising-history-infographic-180959563\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">traced back centuries<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithsonianmag.com\/history\/surprising-history-infographic-180959563\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43332\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-vs-Infographic-History.jpeg\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic History 1614 Longitudinal Chart\" width=\"600\" height=\"152\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This line graph from 1614 representing all the known (at the time) longitudinal differences between Rome and Toledo (in Italy, not Ohio) is believed to be the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dundas.com\/resources\/blogs\/introduction-to-business-intelligence\/brief-history-data-visualization#:~:text=In%201644%2C%20Michael%20Florent%20Van,visual%20representation%20of%20statistical%20data.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">oldest surviving example<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of data design.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But necessity is the mother of invention, and the need for executives, journalists, researchers, marketers, HR, trainers and others to reinvent the infographic form to reach their audience means that infographics will continue to evolve.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>2. Emotional connection: Data design can be cold and voiceless<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On its own, <\/span><b>data visualization often doesn\u2019t tell people <\/b><b><i>why<\/i><\/b><b> they should be interested<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the information being presented. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The act of curating the story that\u2019s being told in an infographic requires the infographic maker to think about the audience at every step, whether that&#8217;s a potential client, internal stakeholders or a company&#8217;s audience, and engage them in the topic.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even though it\u2019s excellent overall, the New York Times\u2019 interactive map we looked at earlier does this to some extent. If a reader encountered it without any narrative structure, they may not make an emotional connection to the story.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Infographics using data can combine serious topics with well-curated information to make an immediate emotional connection in a way that data design by itself simply cannot do.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/world-without-water-0fa452b4-749d-4150-8f88-415c80265fe4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43333\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-vs-Infographic-Example-Water-Pollution-Template.png\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Example Water Pollution Template\" width=\"600\" height=\"1838\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/world-without-water-0fa452b4-749d-4150-8f88-415c80265fe4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>CREATE THIS INFOGRAPHIC TEMPLATE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<h3><b>3. Context: Infographics let you weave information into a clear picture\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By their nature, infographics require you to include at least some text that gives readers crucial details about the story that\u2019s being told. It\u2019s good practice to include as little as necessary, but that content is crucial for adding context.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As has been said in the realm of religion and politics, <\/span><b>text without context is pretext<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. With standalone information design, you have little way of controlling or even predicting how the audience will interpret or use your data.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For evidence of the dangers of this, we need only look at the nightmare year that was 2020. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The COVID-19 pandemic created the perfect storm for bad data design. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/5798168\/coronavirus-mortality-rate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This Time magazine article<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, for example, includes a data visualization that looks terrible in hindsight.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/5798168\/coronavirus-mortality-rate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43334\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-Time-Magazine-COVID-19-Data-Visualization.png\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Example Time Magazine COVID-19 Data Visualization\" width=\"600\" height=\"383\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On its own, the biggest takeaway from this data design is that people should have been much more concerned with MERS and SARS than COVID-19. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Telling your story through infographics and data can ensure you\u2019re able to <\/span><b>add the details that prevent misinterpretation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Related<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/misleading-graphs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">5 Ways Writers Use Graphs to Mislead You<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><b>4. Infographics make it\u00a0easy to pair different\u00a0types of content and data<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While you should avoid cherry-picking, or excluding information that doesn\u2019t support your hypothesis, infographics make it easy to select the most relevant or interesting bits to include, and they let you layer in many types of content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In telling your story through data-heavy infographics or <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/informational\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">informational infographics<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, you can bring together <strong>many\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><b>types of content to create a single, cohesive narrative<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. And you can be as narrow or broad in your storytelling as you like, whether you&#8217;re presenting a report to stakeholders or creating an infographic for\u00a0social media or your\u00a0website.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This data-heavy infographic about racial inequality in the U.S. is layered with many types of numbers and analysis from a slew of sources, and it culminates in an empowering set of tips.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/racial-inequality-in-the-us-statistical-infographic-4ae1e8f2-c0cf-430c-a587-cdf785d98994\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43335\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-vs-Infographic-Racial-Inequality-US-Template.png\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Racial Inequality US Template\" width=\"600\" height=\"3529\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/racial-inequality-in-the-us-statistical-infographic-4ae1e8f2-c0cf-430c-a587-cdf785d98994\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>CREATE THIS INFOGRAPHIC TEMPLATE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<h3><b>5. Calls to action: Data design often leads to \u2018so what?\u2019 moments<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When it lives on its own or is shared without any original context or articles, data design can often lead to a reaction from users of \u201cOK. And&#8230;?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Users may not fully understand why they\u2019re looking at the data or what they\u2019re meant to get out of it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Infographics resolve that problem by including <\/span><b>clear calls to action<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or conclusions that are often stated unequivocally. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The racial equity infographic above is a perfect example of this, ending with a strong call to action.\u00a0A non-profit could use this infographic to convince their audience to take the step of donating to the Black Lives Matter movement. Or you could convince stakeholders of a certain business initiative or convince your audience why your product or service is the best fit for their needs.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>6. Doing the math: Infographics simplify stories<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Think back to the New York Times\u2019 interactive map; getting the most out of it means doing some investigative work yourself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sure, you can compare neighborhoods manually, but efficiently analyzing that map is beyond the capabilities of mere mortals. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The data covers nearly 5,000 Census tracts in New York City (and a bunch of other big U.S. cities, which each have thousands of tracts).\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Infographic data that effectively incorporate data visualization does the math for the reader. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What is given up from the expansiveness of data design is more than made up for by <\/span><b>highlighting specific findings and analysis<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that will be of interest to most people.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This infographic uses data that could easily become overwhelming if applied to every country in the world through one <a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/big-data\/\">big data<\/a> design. But by highlighting the specific findings the average audience member will find useful, the result is a clear\u00a0and powerful message.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/pandemics-impact-on-co2-map-infographic-template-33756301-d045-4c7d-b873-e73acd623704\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-43336\" style=\"border: 2px solid #ddd;\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Data-Design-vs-Infographic-Example-Pandemic-CO2-Impact-Template.png\" alt=\"Data Design vs Infographic Example Pandemic CO2 Impact Template\" width=\"600\" height=\"1186\" data-darkreader-inline-border-top=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-right=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-bottom=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-border-left=\"\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/templates\/infographics\/pandemics-impact-on-co2-map-infographic-template-33756301-d045-4c7d-b873-e73acd623704\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>CREATE THIS INFOGRAPHIC TEMPLATE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<h3><b>7. Infographics help reinforce\u00a0a company&#8217;s brand with\u00a0its\u00a0audience<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When used for marketing purposes, infographics can help <\/span><b>reinforce and elevate a brand or corporate culture<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> since a company\u2019s logo\u00a0and\u00a0brand identity travel right along with the infographic every time it\u2019s shared.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And when companies use infographics for internal purposes like annual reports, tutorials or guides, they can inspire and educate team members by enhancing traditional methods of corporate communication. Learn more about branding for business in this helpful video tutorial:<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ZxZxE0xaK5E\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Venngage&#8217;s<a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/my-brand-kit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> My Brand Kit<\/a> lets companies apply their branding to any template with one click. Add your company fonts, colors and logo and\u00a0apply them without any design know-how. My Brand Kit is part of <a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/venngage-for-business\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Venngage for Business<\/a>, which includes exclusive templates and team features such as real-time collaboration.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/venngage-for-business\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-41998\" src=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Collab-small.gif\" alt=\"data design collaboration example\" width=\"500\" height=\"354\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/venngage-for-business\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>LEARN MORE ABOUT VENNGAGE FOR BUSINESS<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n<h2><strong>In summary: Infographics are a more powerful way to\u00a0design data for business<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Data visualizations gain their power from big data sets. Infographics are a better way for most people to present the data they have in\u00a0ways that are\u00a0easily understandable and engaging.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Infographics are also a perfect way for businesses to convince their audiences of a certain call to action, which can be applied anywhere from marketing to sales to training to human resources to management. They&#8217;re a versatile way to tell a story while also presenting hard data to an audience.<\/p>\n<p><b>Start creating your own infographic today\u00a0using Venngage&#8217;s simple online editor and easy-to-edit templates. <\/b>It&#8217;s free to get started. Once you&#8217;re finished customizing your work, upgrade to download (<a href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/pricing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">see pricing plans<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"https:\/\/infograph.venngage.com\/register\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n<button class=\"btn-cta\" data-darkreader-inline-color=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-boxshadow=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgimage=\"\" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor=\"\"><b>START CREATING FOR FREE<\/b><\/button><\/a><\/center><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A divide has developed between infographics and data design as businesses, government agencies, educators, marketers and organizations of all stripes continue to embrace the use of visual tools in their communications. While both infographics and data design are outstanding options and have their place in the visual communications landscape, there are many reasons why nine [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":106,"featured_media":43921,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[95,607],"tags":[243],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v17.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how infographics are the better alternative to data design, especially when it comes to presenting data and engaging your audience.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-design\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"7 Reasons to Use Infographics for Data Design - Venngage\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn how infographics are the better alternative to data design, especially when it comes to presenting data and engaging your audience.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-design\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Venngage\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Venngage\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-03-17T20:40:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-11-06T16:42:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Infographics_Instead_of_Data_Design_Blog_Header.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@venngage\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@venngage\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jennifer Gaskin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Venngage\",\"description\":\"Learn to Communicate with Data\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-design\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Infographics_Instead_of_Data_Design_Blog_Header.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/venngage-wordpress.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Infographics_Instead_of_Data_Design_Blog_Header.png\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":576,\"caption\":\"Infographics_Instead_of_Data_Design_Blog_Header\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-design\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/venngage.com\/blog\/data-design\/\",\"name\":\"7 Reasons to Use Infographics for Data Design - 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