Images and Infographics

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Images

Great images make content stand out. Picking the right image will also reinforce the messages in your text, so images really matter.

Take time to select the right image, and be sure that you:

Get sufficient resolution: poor quality images make your content feel less credible
Ensure that you have rights to use the image: image libraries are far better value than facing a copyright case for using one without permission

Graphs and Diagrams

Take time to make your graphs and diagrams clear. It's always worth paying a professional designer to help: exporting a PowerPoint slide as a JPEG won't make your content stand out from the crowd.

Management consultants are experts in creating graphs and charts that communicate messages clearly: try viewing these 20 graphs from McKinsey to see how simpler is often better.

If you are redrawing technical diagrams, always get them checked by someone who understands the technology. Even small changes can make things like circuit diagrams confusing, misleading or wrong.

Infographics

Infographics are not new: in fact, Florence Nightingale used an infographic that she called a “coxcomb”, now referred to as a “rose” diagram, to illustrate how soldiers were dying unnecessarily of infection during the Crimean War.

Infographics remain a great way to present data. There are many online tools to help you create simple infographics, but often the best ones are custom designs produced by a team that includes subject matter experts, marketing professionals and designers.