{"id":440,"date":"2015-05-01T09:30:55","date_gmt":"2015-05-01T09:30:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=440"},"modified":"2018-08-11T09:27:47","modified_gmt":"2018-08-11T08:27:47","slug":"infographic-or-data-visualisation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/visualagency.com\/?p=440","title":{"rendered":"Infographic or Data Visualisation?"},"content":{"rendered":"

So as designer, when do you know when the right outcome for your project is an infographic or data visualisation? Sometimes a client will come to you with a vague sense of want they want but with no clear direction on how they want their information displayed. They might provide you with some raw data and suggest they want something \u201cinfographic-y\u201d when in-fact a data visualisation may be more appropriate.<\/p>\n

To start, I think it would be good to look at the difference between the two.<\/p>\n

What are the differences?<\/h2>\n

To know whether to choose an infographic or data visualisation, first you need to be able to distinguish between the two concepts.<\/p>\n

Data Visualisation is the creation and the practice of the visual representation of data. It is used to give visual form to numbers and other abstract concepts, with the function of re-presenting that information in order to communicate it more effectively. Common examples of data visualisation techniques are: bar charts, pie charts, scatter plots and bubble graphs like the one below. A spreadsheet full of numbers is harder to read or detect patterns from then a graph is, therefore a chart is far more effective way to communicate that information.<\/p>\n

\"info-graphics\"
Gap minder World Map 2010, from Gap Minder<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Infographics on the other hand, are more contextual in their approach and therefore have visuals or aesthetics that vary depending on the intended audience.\u00a0 Infographics are being increasingly created for marketing or news stories and therefore tend to present themselves as a visual story, in order to make it more engaging.\u00a0 Because of this, infographics are usually more graphic design heavy and make more use of illustrations, typography and colour to tell their story effectively.\u00a0 You can see this in the example below:<\/p>\n

\"fishing<\/p>\n

The above infographic (click to see full size) we created for Greenpeace UK exposes the environmental impacts that large-scale fishing companies have, ending with a call-to-action to protect the smaller fishing fleets and promote sustainable fishing. \u00a0By using \u00a0a narrative constructed out\u00a0of text, charts and illustrations, this infographic argues how small, local fishing fleets are a far better alternative to the large, commercial fishing ships. \u00a0To-scale illustrations of the two kinds of ship are used to give readers a sense of proportion between the two vessels. \u00a0In terms of colour, blue is heavily used to relate to the sea.<\/p>\n

Overall, the difference between an infographic or data visualisation, is that infographics tend to have more subjective elements to them (a style, illustrations and arranged story) and can contain a number or data visualisation pieces within them.\u00a0 However, a data visualisation is more objective and usually focuses on one group of data in order to analyse it.\u00a0 Data visualisation relies primarily on the data to tell the story, while infographics are more fragmented and will use a number of elements to tell a planned story.<\/p>\n

How to decide?<\/h2>\n

Choosing what to deliver to a client depends on what the objectives of the project are.\u00a0 If you want a more, in-depth analysis of a data set and to communicate as clearly it as possible, then a piece of data visualisation would be suited.\u00a0 Other reasons for solely using data visualisation are:<\/p>\n