Infographic design and promotion play a key role in social media marketing and online branding. This case study on infographic promotion is presented by Submitinme, one of the largest SEO and social media marketing company based in India. The research credit goes to the research wing for SubmitINme – The SIM Labs. This case study on infographic promotion is free to share.

1. Effectiveness
Of
Infographic
Promotion
based on the infographic design and promotion service
a case study by submitinme.

2. I NTRODUCT ION O VERVIEW
We have published many Infographics over time. However, we are
We had recently detailed the effectiveness of infographic
considering 4 best performers (2 infographics and 4
promotion in one of our recent news posts. In fact we had
quotographics) of all for this case study. The Infographics are
described the strategy as the best for social media marketing,
published in the pages:
SEO, branding and link building in 2012. We had also referenced
an earlier case study on infographic promotion published by
“ Word Stream ” where a company was able to get reference
links from CNN and many other top sites by publishing a couple of Q UOTOGRAPHICS
interesting Infographics. This case study was published in 2010
http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-189.aspx
and since then many factors and trends have changed. So, here
at SIM labs we are presenting a newer case study on Infographic http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-198.aspx
design and promotion.
The promotion strategy was not basically implemented for the I NFOGRAPHICS
sole purpose of doing this case study. The Infographics used http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-191.aspx
within this case study were published purely for sharing
information along with getting us branding as the information is http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-196.aspx
shared. While the Infographics were virally shared, we were able
to see ultimate effectiveness of the concept in getting traffic,
branding, social media exposure and search engine visibility and • All the infographics above are published within our news
rankings. The concept then turned out to be an excellent section of the website, but extra promotion done from our
promotion strategy for us and we started to dig deep into the end of each infographic varies
results obtained with Infographic promotion strategy. Here we • All the information used in the infographics and
present our findings as a detailed case study. quotographics were very well related to our niche (SEO,
social media marketing, Google etc)
A DDITION OF Q UOTOGRAPHICS : • We assume that the information we used within the
You would be familiar with the regular Infographics, but we have a infographic including the statistics are accurate based on
new form of Infographics included in addition to the regular ones the reliable sources from where they are taken from.
in the case study. It is termed as “Quotographics” which are mini
• We had not copied any unique concepts or content except
graphics with quotes and sayings from famous people presented
actual quotes from real people which cannot be reworded.
graphically. See Sample
• Quotes and sayings are used as it is without any changes

3. I NFOGRAPHIC C ONCEPT
As mentioned in the introduction, the topic was not chosen to Q UOTOGRAPHIC C ONCEPT
prove the success of the strategy using a case study. The topic
was chosen for a regular infographic on the most recent “Google
Penguin” algorithm update. The topic was hot and there were Quotographics were based on simpler concepts compared to the
controversial opinions about the algorithm update from the public. traditional infographics. These were purely made of famous sayings
The following assumptions were made while preparing the from the industry experts. Ours being the SEO industry we chose
infographic concept: quotes from Matt Cutts (Head of Google webspam)and his quotes
about the most recent penguin update.
• Assumptions Made
• People love to share the negative information about
something new than its positive side. • Matt Cutts was a very popular figure online (This was for sure)
• People love to hear what others say about something of • People were eager to hear something about the penguin
interest update from official sources
• Everyone always likes to know if other have experienced • The chosen quotes were worth a 500 word explanation about
the same they have the current issue – the penguin update
• There are many who doesn’t like Google and would love • The quote has great news value
anything said against Google
• People get a feeling of satisfaction when they see some
information that makes them understand “they are not
alone”
• Finally the most important part: Top news agencies and
best sites of the niche would provide references to you if
you are publishing controversial public discussions

4. Q UICK N AVIGATION
The Infographic Design & Content
The Quotographic Design & Content
Details About The Infographic Promotion & Statistics
1. An Infographic Based On The Comments By People About The Google Penguin Update ..................................5
2. An Infographic About Recovery A Website After Being Hit By The Google Penguin Update ..............................6
Details About The Quotographics Used In The Case Study
1. A Quotographic By Matt Cutts About Penguin Update................................................................................. 7
2. A Quotographic By Matt Cutts About WhiteHat SEO ................................................................................... 8
Findings
Increase In Overall Site Traffic.................................................................................................................... 9
Referral Traffic......................................................................................................................................... 10
SERPS..................................................................................................................................................... 11
Infographics Vs Quotographics................................................................................................................... 13
Conclusion
Update As On 10th July 2012
Our Answer To The Statement “Google May Discontinue Infographic “LINKS” In Future” .................................15

5. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
The Design And Concept
The Infographic Design & Content
The content and design was mainly focused on carrying a humor touch. The images
used were cartoonistic vectors to maintain the web 2.0 look and feel throughout the
infographic. As the infographic carried large information, the design done was basic.
The Quotographic design & Content
Quotographics come with very simple designs. The content is mainly quotes from
famous people related to the niche and the design would be based on the message in
the quote
Details About The Infographic Promotion &
Statistics
1. An infographic based on the comments by people about the Google Penguin
Update
Published Page: http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-191.aspx
Published Date: 30th April 2012
Type of content: Controversial comments from real people after the Google penguin
update
Promotion Done:
• Shared within our facebook, twitter, Google plus, linkedin page
• Published in our pinterest profile
• NOT published in the 25 top infographic syndication sites
The De s ig n A nd Co nc e pt ● 5

6. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Stats:
• Total views within the page: 3449 Views
HIGHLIGHT
• Syndicated in Google News : Yes
● The infographic was
referred from a news
• Known Pinterest Shares from the published page post at Search Engine
alone : 58 Journal and we got
requests to grand
• Facebook Shares the published page alone: 9 permission to use the
infographic in their
news posts from many
• Known Tweets the published page alone : 7
SEO news sources
(names not disclosed)
• Viral natural syndication to other blogs
1059 views at
http://www.downgraf.com/inspiration/google-penguin-how-did-the-public-react-
infographic/
95 views at http://www.downgraf.com/inspiration/google-penguin-how-did-the-
public-react-infographic/
Note: There are 25+ such syndications with undisclosed view counts and social
shares. They would add up to the total views and the social shares mentioned above
2. An Infographic about recovery a website after being hit by the Google
penguin update
Published Page: http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-196.aspx
Published Date: 10th May 2012
Type of content: Tips on recovering website after Google penguin update
Promotion Done:
• Shared within our facebook, twitter, Google plus, linkedin page
• Published in our pinterest profile
• Published in the 25 top infographic syndication sites
The De s ig n A nd Co nc e pt ● 6

7. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Stats:
HIGHLIGHT
• Total views within the page: 2928 Views ● This infographic was a
success but didn’t go as
viral as the first one
• Syndicated in Google News : Yes
because there were too
many information on the
• Known Pinterest Shares from the published page same topic of news value.
However, after the
alone : 16 infographic was
syndicated manually to
• Known Facebook Shares : 12 the top 25 infographic
sites, the main source url
appeared and stayed on
• Known Tweets the published page alone: 10 the first page of Google
search for the most
competitive target
Apart from the viral natural syndication of the keyword “Google Penguin
infographic, we manually syndicated the same to top 25 Recovery”
infographic sites. We were able to get tons of unique
views and social shares from these infographic
syndication sites:
Eg: http://visual.ly/google-penguin-recovery - 813 Unique Views. There are 24
more such sites with undisclosed number of views.
Note: These 25 syndications are in addition to the natural syndication by the
public
Details About The Quotographics Used In
The Case Study
1. A Quotographic By Matt Cutts about Penguin Update
Published Page: http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-189.aspx
Published Date: 27th May 2012
Type of content: Quote by Matt Cutts (head of Google webspam team) about what
Google penguin update is after
The De s ig n A nd Co nc e pt ● 7

8. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Promotion Done:
• Shared within our facebook, twitter, Google plus, linkedin page
• Published in our pinterest profile
• NOT published in the 25 top infographic syndication sites
Stats:
• Total views within the page: 5084 Views
• Syndicated in Google News: Yes
• Known Facebook Shares : 18
• Facebook comments: 10
• Known Tweets the published page alone: 12
2. A Quotographic By Matt Cutts about WhiteHat SEO
Published Page: http://news.submitinme.com/newsdetails-198.aspx
Published Date: 15th June 2012
Type of content: Quote by Matt Cutts (head of Google webspam team) about
whitehat SEO strategies
Promotion Done:
• Shared within our facebook, twitter, Google plus, linkedin page
• Published in our pinterest profile
• NOT published in the 25 top infographic syndication sites
Stats:
• Total views within the page: 7254 Views
• Syndicated in Google News : Yes
The De s ig n A nd Co nc e pt ● 8

9. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
• Known Facebook Shares : 27
• Facebook comments: 8
• Known Tweets the published page alone: 21
• Viral natural syndication to other blogs
• Mention of Submitinme at - http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/google-
penguin-algorithm/google-penguin-repair/sbwire-142720.htm
• Natural syndication at - http://www.zimbio.com/SEO/articles/3T0rx-
4Jms5/Google+Penguin+Update+Means+No+SEO+Never+White
• Natural Syndication at http://www.gplusmarketing.info/google-penguin-update-
means-no-seo-submitinme.htm
• Natural Syndication at http://internet-marketing-
mantra.blogspot.com/2012/05/google-penguin-update-means-no-seo.html
• Natural Syndication at http://www.marketingnewscentral.com/2012/05/google-
penguin-update-means-no-seo-submitinme/
There are many more to add to the view count and social shares
“After publishing this infographic, the entire website got a 2X boost in traffic from
search engines and referral sites. The very high view count within the published page
and the referrals from the syndicated sites accounted to the increase in traffic”
Findings
Increase in overall site traffic
As you see the statics above, it is evident that infographic promotion plays and
important role in boosting the sites overall traffic.
The De s ig n A nd Co nc e pt ● 9

10. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
The quotographics have the same impact as well. You could clearly see the spikes in
traffic during the dates the infographics and quotographics were published. These
spikes act as pivot points holding the traffic rise during the other days as well. Hence,
publishing infographics regularly will get a 2X boost in traffic to the site within weeks.
You could also see a consistent increase in traffic the whole month when compared to
the previous when we were doing no infographics
Referral Traffic
See the huge spikes in referral traffic because of the infographic being referenced
from top sites in our niche. The referral sites include top spots such as Search Engine
Journal and many top SEO blogs.
The second spike in the referral traffic as mentioned in the image above is a result of
syndicating the infographic to the top 25 syndication sites. In addition to the traffic
from the syndication sites, the infographic gained direct views at the top infographics
sites. For example, the infographic received 813 views (within 3 months) in visual.ly
alone. The combined effect of all 24 sites where the infographic was submitted to
would be astonishing.
Th e D es ig n An d C on ce p t ● 1 0

11. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
SERPS
After syndicating the infographic to the top infographic sites, the source url (our own
website) ranked 6th in the search engine results for the most competitive keyword
“Google Penguin Update”
Th e D es ig n An d C on ce p t ● 1 1

12. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Viral Social Sharing
See the consistent increase in social referrals to our site and noticeable spikes on the
days when the infographics and quotographics were published
Branding
All the infographics carried the logo of SubmitINMe. The brand was spread to all the
top spots of SEO and SMO niche through the infographics and Quotographics. With
the help of the controversial nature of topics chosen, we gained the attention of many
industry leaders as well. This promotion campaign for branding was very much
effective when compared to all the paid online branding options available today.
Link Building (Not from the anchor texts but natural referral links)
After the Google penguin update, natural link building is the key to success in SEO.
Links from the most relevant top authority sites of the same niche, Social media links,
blog links, referrals in formus etc are the most preferred ones. We were able to gain
links NATURALLY from all these spots with no extra promotion of the infographic
except syndicating it to 25 sites by ourselves. The backlinks to our site grew gradually
over time and 100% naturally. This confirms that infographic promotion is an effective
natural link building strategy too.
Th e D es ig n An d C on ce p t ● 1 2

13. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Infographics Vs Quotographics
INFOGRAPHICS QUOTOGRAPHICS
• Concept, Content and Design is • If you are hiring a professional to
very much time consuming and do the Quotographics the costs
costly when compared to would be very much less. In fact
quotographics lesser than what you pay for a PR
to be written
• Very effective in building credibility
to your website by publishing it • A recent study on most shared
within your website or blog content within facebook revealed
that Quotes occupy the 5th spot.
• 5X more natural syndication and So Quotographics play a key role in
backlinking when compared to facebook promotion and overall
other conventional link building social media marketing
startegies
• Quotographs are shared more than
• Gets referred by top industry the infographics within the social
experts and authority sites of your media resulting in 2X more natural
niche due to the uniqueness of link building compared to the
information conventional ones.
• Very effective in driving traffic to • Though quotographs gets you lost
your website of referral traffic, it doesn’t turn
top industry heads towards your
• Branding reach is 10X more when
brand
compared to the other conventional
Branding options available today • Equally good n traffic generation.
• The branding reach of
quotographics is 5X more
compared to other conventional
strategies
Th e D es ig n An d C on ce p t ● 1 3

14. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Conclusion
Both infographics and quotographics are proven to be effective in:
• Ultimate branding
• Overall Safe SEO
• Increase in organic search traffic to the website
• Increase in referral traffic to the website
• Effective social media marketing and exposure
• Brand identity among the industry heads
Quotographics are best for those who are looking for an affordable strategy to
promote their brand and website. Aiming at decent increase in traffic, improved
search engine rankings, good brand exposure and the best social media exposure
Infographics are for those who need to make a huge impact and turn heads of
industry leaders and the entire online crowd of the niche towards the brand. Good
social media exposure and good increase in traffic and search engine rankings is seen.
“According to the trends, search
engine algorithms and social media
activity, Infographic and Quotographic
promotion are the best online marketing
strategies of 2012”
Th e D es ig n An d C on ce p t ● 1 4

15. « TA B LE O F C O N T EN T
Update As On 10th July 2012
Our answer to the statement “Google may discontinue Infographic “LINKS” in
future”
According to reliable news sources, the head of Google Webspam has announced that
they may discount the Infographic links. While the statement is vague enough to
confuse everyone using the infographic promotion strategy, Google is aiming at
discounting only “hidden links” within the embedded infographics. This doesn't mean
that the infographic promotion strategy is about a total hit by Google
Like any other promotion strategy, the concept of infogrpahics are used by the black
hat SEO experts. Anchor text links were generated from infographics and the links
were disguised as legitimate in the eyes of the search engine spiders. For example,
the infographic would be in HTML and an image about soccer would be linked to a
payday loan website. Google has said that they would be discounting such links.
However, if you create a stunning infographic with unique and authentic information
and publish it as an image along with your branding, it will not be considered as black
hat or flagged by Google. The reason is, such infographics are not focused on link
building but natural branding and social shares. It is the real people who decide if the
infographic should be a success or a failure. If people think your infographic is good, it
would spread like a wildfire along with your brand and a referral back to the original
source.
Even if Google discounts the infographic links in future, the effectiveness of good
infographics would be untouched as it is the real people who decide the success to
infographic promotion and not the search engine bots.
Checkout the Infographic design and promotion service
References:
http://news.submitinme.com/
http://www.submitinme.com/infographic-promotion/infographic-design-service.aspx
http://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2010/08/25/infographic-case-study
http://www.google.com/analytics/
Th e D es ig n An d C on ce p t ● 1 5