Why Infographics Matter to Us
When was the last time you read a whole book? Not just Dr. Suess’s “Cat in the Hat”. (Although that is a fabulous book). I’m talking about Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows type thick. A book that captured your attention for more than 5 minutes and kept you engaged. Ironically, I’m going to share a quote from a book on this thought.
“I began to notice that the Net (Internet) was exerting a much stronger and broader influence over me than my old stand-alone PC ever had. It wasn’t just that I was spending so much time staring into a computer screen. It wasn’t just that so many of my habits and routines were changing as I became more accustomed to and dependent on the sites and services of the Net. The very way my brain worked seemed to be changing as I became more accustomed to and dependent on the sites and services of the Net. ”
In Nicholas Carr’s book “The Shallows: What The Internet is Doing to Our Brains”, he explains how our memory and attention spans have shrunk the more technology has given us access to information. We have no need to be patient in our search for knowledge when we can get it in 2 seconds or less.
You might be wondering why I would bring up such a dismal topic as our ever decreasing attention span. I’d like to suggest to you that our understanding of how humans consume information will be the key to effective communication. Our world is always changing and it’s important to be aware of those hurdles to adapt and react appropriately. Those who don’t, will become obsolete. Even with blogging, it has to be less than 500 words or people move on.
Okay. I told Debbie Downer to stop typing.
So what’s the solution? What is going to be the key to sharing information? Infographics!
Think about it, simple, clean iconography, graphs or pictures that capture what you want to convey. It’s organized, and in easy bite-sized chunks that readers can grab and go. Colorful, beautiful creations that cause a reaction, a call to action or a solution will change how we communicate moving forward.
You’re probably thinking “but where do I even start?” Check out this article on how to write content for infographics to start. There are a lot of great articles on that very subject. Then, once you’ve got that ready, contact me to help your infographic dreams become a reality. ;)