In this presentation deck, created for a talk by Column Five CEO, Jason Lankow, we start out with some fundamentals from our book, Infographics: The Power of Visual Storytelling, and then discuss three important trends defining the future of infographics. These slides were talking points for the most part, but there are some really helpful examples and we would also be happy to walk through this content with you anytime if you would like to understand the details at a more granular level and to discuss ways these trends impact your organization.

1. Jason Lankow | @jasonlankow
bit.ly/infographicsbook
Column Five
columnfivemedia.com | @columnfive
Designers + Geeks
@DesignersGeeks
THE FUTURE OF INFOGRAPHICS (#dplusg)

2. ABOUT ME
JASON LANKOW
Co-founder and CEO of
Column Five Media
Co-author of
Infographics: The Power of Visual
Storytelling (Wiley 2012):
Column Five is a creative agency based in
Newport Beach, California, specializing in
information design and data visualization.
Instructor of Visualization of Information
at Columbia University.

3. CLIENTS

4. VALUE OF DATA VISUALIZATION

5. INFOGRAPHICS PROVIDE
Appeal
Comprehension
Retention
They are visually stimulating, attractive,
and sleek. This piques interest before any
information is synthesized.
Our brains are pre-wired to automatically
interpret visual cues, allowing for almost
instant comprehension with minimal
effort.
Visualizations trigger us to pull
information from our long-term memory,
allowing for rapid connections to already
stored information, which cement the
concept in the brain.

6. VITRUVIAN PRINCIPLES
Design, shape, form (Is the graphic attractive? Does it appeal
to the viewer aesthetically?)
Messaging, story, relevancy (How useful is the visualization?
Does it benefit viewers by clarifying a complex concept?)
Research, data, visualization (Is the graphic format befitting of
the content? Does it display the information accurately?)
Utility
Beauty
Soundness
Characteristics of a good infographic:

7. OUR PROCESS
Effective data visualization requires collaboration between various roles, including writers,
researchers, designers, PR, etc. The major phases include:
The Creative Brief
Ideation
Research and Data Analysis
Content Creation
Design and Data Visualization Best Practices
Distribution

8. To identify your objective, ask yourself the following :
What is the desired outcome
you hope to achieve from
the graphic?
How do you hope to
affect your audience?
How will you measure
your success?
What purpose do you
want this graphic to serve?
IDENTIFYING YOUR OBJECTIVES
Is this information intended
to be shared with others?
If so, how should it be shared?
1 3 5
42

9. 1
2
3
Is your audience broad or targeted?
What is their level of knowledge?
Is your audience already familiar
with certain types of content?
4 How do you want them to respond?
IDENTIFYING YOUR AUDIENCE

10. THE VISUAL STORYTELLING SPECTRUM
Editorial
Brand
BroadTargeted

11. EDITORIAL GRAPHIC FOR BROAD AUDIENCE

12. EDITORIAL GRAPHIC FOR TARGETED AUDIENCE

13. BRAND-CENTRIC GRAPHIC FOR BROAD AUDIENCE

14. BRAND-CENTRIC GRAPHIC FOR TARGETED AUDIENCE

15. EXPLORATIVE TO NARRATIVE SPECTRUM
There are two approaches that can be taken to an infographic:
E X P L O R A T I V E N A R R A T I V E
C H A R A C T E R I S T I C S
A P P L I C A T I O N S
ILLUSTRATIVE
PUBLICATIONS
MINIMALIST
ACADEMIC RESEARCH
BLOGS
ONLY INCLUDES ELEMENTS THAT REPRESENT DATA
SCIENCE
DESIGN-FOCUSED
CONTENT MARKETING
SEEKS TO COMMUNICATE INFORMATION
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE
DATA ANALYSIS
SEEKS TO APPEAL TO VIEWER WITH ENGAGING VISUALS
SALES AND MARKETING MATERIALS
IN THE MOST CLEAR, CONCISE MANNER INFORMS AND ENTERTAINS

16. NARRATIVE
GRAPHIC

17. EXPLORATIVE
GRAPHIC

18. EXPLORATIVE
GRAPHIC

19. DESIGN TOOLS: ILLUSTRATION

20. DESIGN TOOLS: PHOTOGRAPHY

21. DESIGN TOOLS: ICONOGRAPHY

22. DESIGN TOOLS: TYPOGRAPHY

23. DESIGN TOOLS: DATA VISUALIZATION

24. THE FUTURE OF INFOGRAPHICS

26. Democratization of creation tools
Socially generative visualizations
Real problem-solving

27. DEMOCRATIZATION OF
CREATION TOOLS

28. USA TODAY
VISUAL LANGUAGE

29. ADVANTAGES
Everyone can create
Less time designing allows for
more time researching
Increased familiarity leads to
better understanding and critique

33. USE ACCURATE VISUALIZATIONS
6%
96%
SPRINKLES
MAPLE BAR
16%JAM FILLED
48%
34%
OLD FASHIONED
BEAR CLAW
24%
20%
32%
SPRINKLES
JAM FILLED
MAPLE BAR
8%
16%
O LD FASHIONED
BEAR CLAW

35. CONCERNS
Diminished quality
Saturation can tire audiences
Decreased potency of the medium

36. UNDERSTANDING LITERACY HIGHER STANDARDS

37. AUTOMATION SPEED ACCURACY

38. SOCIALLY GENERATIVE
VISUALIZATIONS

39. Audience becomes the content
Real-time visualization
Unique experience
Living

40. VISUAL NEWS “SGV: MONEY”

41. MASHABLE “MEDIA LITERACY” SGV

42. MASHABLE “MEDIA LITERACY” SGV

44. REAL PROBLEM-SOLVING

46. Align with goals
Functional
Clear call to action
Answer the “So what?” and
“Now what?” questions

49. Look for opportunities to automate.
Use socially generative visualization to make your
audience part of real-time, living content.
Identify your organization’s biggest communication
problems (and opportunities).
Make sure your visual content is aligned to your goals.
HOW CONTENT CREATORS CAN TAKE
ADVANTAGE OF THESE TRENDS:
1
2
3
4

50. Jason Lankow | @jasonlankow
bit.ly/infographicsbook
Column Five
columnfivemedia.com | @columnfive
Designers + Geeks
@DesignersGeeks
THE FUTURE OF INFOGRAPHICS (#dplusg)