Infographics are visually appealing representations of data that otherwise may go unnoticed by a viewer. They are increasingly popular among website and blog owners because of their proven effectiveness at drawing a viewer’s attention and explaining a concept quickly. However, this type of design work is unlike other more traditional design projects and requires special talent. You need to contract the services of a specialized infographics design agency, which is a daunting task. To help with the process, we have listed three aspects you should address before making your final decision.
Find the Talent
Look for a designer who can offer great infographics work. While there are graphic designers who have wonderful portfolios, this doesn’t mean they can create outstanding infographics. Additionally, there are designers who offer a specific design style to all of their infographics work, which is adequate if you are purchasing one or two infographic designs. But, you don’t want all the designs to look too similar otherwise they will stop drawing the attention of your readers.
The Design Process
Examine the delivery method used by the design agency. Will they conduct the research for you? Will they help you brainstorm the idea? Do you have to supply the images and the data? These are questions you should ask any agency you might consider using.
Likewise, you need to find out how the agency will deliver the product. Ideally, you should get the layered source file as well as the last.JPG image. This layered file is the original PSD file, one that you can alter and change as needed.
When you are talking about the design and delivery process, you should also ask about the number of edits you are entitled to. In many cases, a design may not turn out the way you had hoped, so you should have a certain number of edits the agency allows for. This way you can tweak the graphics and data work to meet your needs.
During this conversation you should also discuss delivery time frame. You may assume the project will only take a day or two, but the agency may have another time frame in mind. Discuss this aspect of the development process, so you are both satisfied with the outcome of the infograph project.
Expense
Although most people say you shouldn’t focus on the price, and you should instead pay attention to the overall quality of the job, price is an important factor. You don’t want to pay an excessive amount of money for an infograph you are unsatisfied with.
Review the work of two or three infographic designers to see if the price being offered is competitive and adequate for the type of work you need. In spite of your need to focus on the price, you certainly don’t want to sacrifice quality for cost.
Bottom Line
As with any other marketing and design project, infographic work takes time, experience and talent. The key to using infographics effectively lies in first finding a qualified designer who can represent the data in an aesthetically pleasing and effective way. Inferior infographic work doesn’t help your campaign, regardless of how inexpensive it is.