We’ve all seen them in our social media newsfeeds: the random image, quote or infographic from a page that you’ve liked which has no context or connection to the business. Content like this is annoying and doesn’t build trust with the audience. In order to drive real engagement and inspire people to share and like your content, you need to create original content that adds value. That's what we like to call 'smart content' here at Apexhub.

A fantastic example of smart content is infographics and we have created a wide range of them over the years for dental practices. Dental infographics can range from topics about specific treatments, particular dental trends and statistics on oral health, or provide visual tools for patients to better understand their oral health.

Conveying the key message

We were recently asked to create an  infographic for dental charity, Bridge2Aid. The infographic was to act as supporting marketing material to the animated video they had recently commissioned. The aim was to raise awareness of the long-term impact that the organisation's work has on the communities where they operate, but to do so in a visually appealing and simple manner.

Planning for time and place

The infographic had to be available digitally and also print ready. In this case Bridge2Aid had it printed full size to line parts of their exhibition booth at the Dentistry Show.

As with most projects, we had to use our time wisely. Our goal was to convey Bridge2Aid’s core values in one glance, inspire people to connect with the cause and for the organisation to come across as an authentic and a worthy cause. A major advantage with creating this infographic was that we had access to all the design files that were used in the animation. This meant we had a wealth of existing assets to work with, which allowed us to weave a good story through the content.

One thing that I find works really well when designing an infographic, is to use a theme. Whether it be through a limited colour palette, using shapes, objects or patterns found in the client branding and logo, a theme will help the design elements to reinforce the messaging. In this example, we used a circle as a central shape, which acted as subtle repetition of the logo.

We also applied this to the sections that contained statistics. We used the circle shape again to visually represent and amplify the numerical values. By simply seeing a visualisation of the amount of people treated and trained, the impact becomes more real.

Finish your infographic strong

The final element for a successful infographic is the call to action. What is the point of this piece of content? Are we directing the client to a specific page? Telephone number? Make sure it is short, clear and simple. “GO HERE AND DO THIS TO DONATE”

Scroll down to see the full Bridge2Aid infographic.

Dan Toomes

Dan has worked as a Graphic Designer 5+ years.

Doting Father of 2 felines : Frank & Poppy

Some of his previous work has included ‘Andrew Lloyd Webber Musicals Sing and Dance (Nintendo Wii)’ and ‘Kylie Sing and Dance (Nintendo Wii)’.

Outside of work Dan is known to cobble together music, play guitar, devour podcasts by the dozen, photography, video edit & attend airshows to name a few.