Evelyn McCormackMack Digital CommunicationsNYSPRA 2016

Infographics and Other Cool Tools

› If you’re still posting mostly text, you’re not going to get views› Having at least one image in a post leads to more than double the

shares on Facebook and Twitter› Using an image on Twitter increases retweets by 28% and favorites

by 36% › Engagement-grabbing social media images are like a magic wand

on social media. Social media users are looking for photos, videos and graphics

› Plenty of mostly free (or low-cost) options for creating graphics and infographics that work well on social media sites

Social Media is Visual

› Keep it simple! Don’t try to do too much in one picture.› Research your facts and statistics.› It’s a visual essay: ensure your arguments work and are

relevant.› Remember that it’s all about quickly conveying the meaning

behind complex data.› Viewer should be able to draw conclusions.› Reference your facts in the infographic.› Include a URL so people can be sure who made it and where

the info came from.

Infographics

• In 2007, there were 750 online graphics

• In 2011, 2 million online graphics

• Provide more variety to the content we’re digesting daily

• Infographics give us more content, links and web traffic.

• Infographics tend to go viral

› Timelines› Annotated maps› Graphs› Venn diagrams› Size and other types of comparisons› Viisual article› Numbers, numbers, numbers

Infographic Types

Visual Article

› Lots of numbers and a little visualization to aid comprehension. The figures themselves need to be impressive and the design must be engaging (noone wants to look at a spreadsheet)

Numerical

Flow Chart

NSPRA infographic based on results of a membership survey regarding social media use.

Attribution and website at the bottom

NSPRA infographic on mobile app use based on Electronic Communication Survey.

Examples

Sophisticated marketing infographic by Blackboard, Fix the Disconnect.

Comparison infographic – Pinterest vs. FacebookProduced by whiteglovesocialmedia.com, which used as its source Bizrate study of 2012.

A simple explanatory infographic from a social studies teacher.A bit more engaging than two pages of written text, no?

› Canva (free and paid versions)› Infogram (free)› Piktochart (free and paid version)› Assorted mobile apps I love

Social Media Graphics Tools

About Canva

• Two versions • Free version is free, except whe/if you want to

purchase individual graphics to dress up your design• Can download your own photos• You can purchase individual graphics or backgrounds

for $1 each. All paid graphics are labeled with $1• Canva for Work offers more options. Free for 2 months,

then $9.95 a month if you pay annually, $12.95 per month if you pay month to month.

Facebook Posts with Canva

Twitter Posts and Just Plain Graphics

› Go to Canva.com› Create a FREE account. You’ll need your email

address and a password.› Follow along with me once you’re there.

Let’s Use Canva!

› Free desktop version› Works a lot like Canva, but more limited› You can install a Chrome extension to use whenever

you see cool stuff on the web› Sizes graphics for use on Instagram, Pinterest,

Facebook and Twitter› 50,000 images available, copyright-free

Pablo

https://buffer.com/pablo

› Allows you to upload a group of photos and create a collage

› Desktop and mobile versions› Ability to add frames, filters

and text› Limited, but great for

creating collages and saving them to your hard drive for use on social media channels.

› FREE› https://pixlr.com/

Pixlr

› Allows users to create infographics using range of templates.

› Uses HTML publishing capabilities to generate search engine readable infographics and user clickable elements.

› Free version limited to 11 templates for users to choose from. Pro users have access to 100+ templates designed by professionals and uploaded monthly. $40 a year for individual education accounts.

› Free version = Piktochart watermark at the bottom of all infographics

Piktochart

Mobile Apps I Love• Over – allows you to

superimpose text on any photo.

• You can then automatically post the photo to Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

• I often email these to myself so I can use on websites or print materials.

• FREE

› Fontcandy: › Perfect for beginners › Search for their

copyright-free images or choose your own image.

› Easily edit photo, add text with fun fonts or choose pre-made sayings and quotes.

› Basic version is free but will include watermark

› Full version is $2.99 - worth it for all extra artwork and fonts.

› Canva tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nShmwzh879g

› Canva for beginners: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VMhwlCnMbg

› Piktochart Education pricing:› http://piktochart.com/pricing/education/› Piktochart video tutorial:› https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzI9RzvnwZA› Using Pablo:› http://

www.pageonepower.com/linkarati/pablo-creating-social-images

Resources and Video Tutorials