Randy Krum's Blog, page 42

Equal Population Mapper

Ben Blatt has created the Equal Population Mapper infographic. The interactive version at Slate.com allows you to choose New York City, Los Angeles County, Wyoming, New Jersey, Texas, or the Coastal regions as the target population. Then you select anywhere else on the map and a red circle will appear to show how big of an area you would have to select to have an equal population to your selection.

If you throw in New York City’s other four boroughs, the Big Apple’s total population is just greater than 8 million. That’s about the same number of people who live in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and the western half of Minnesota combined.

But don’t let my New York City–centric comparisons hinder your imagination. The interactive at Slate.com lets you visualize how different parts of the country compare in population density.

Click the button at the bottom of the interactive to select Los Angeles County, for instance, and then click anywhere on the map to generate a (roughly) circular region of (roughly) equal population. The population data come from the 2010 census, and the square mileage was calculated by summing each highlighted county’s total area. You can also use New Jersey (the most densely populated state), Wyoming (the least densely populated state outside of Alaska), Texas, the coasts (the group of all counties that come within 35 miles of either the Atlantic or Pacific oceans), and, yes, New York City as the baseline for your population comparison.

Cool interactive map!

Found on Flowingdata!

The Key to Infographic Marketing: The Psychology of the Picture Superiority Effect

In Ancient times, Cicero considered memory training to not just be a method, but a form of art. He felt strongly that training your memory was one of the most valuable things you could do to improve your capabilities as a speaker, and a citizen.  Even in ancient times, Cicero knew that remembering images was superior to remembering text alone.

People remember pictures better than words, especially over longer periods of time. This phenomenon as we know it today, is called the Picture Superiority Effect*. It refers to the notion that concepts that are learned by viewing pictures are more easily and frequently recalled than are concepts that are learned by reading their written word form counterparts.

What had been known to the Ancients throughout the centuries, has been quantified scientifically in our modern times. In my book, I included this quote from John Medina’s Brain Rules, to help explain the value of the Picture Superiority Effect. However, to make it visual I created this simple data visualization to help readers remember the power of visual information.

“Based on research into the Picture Superiority Effect, when we read text alone, we are likely to remember only 10 percent of the information 3 days later. If that information is presented to us as text combined with a relevant image, we are likely to remember 65 percent of the information 3 days later.” - John Medina, Brain Rules, 2008

via: coolinfographics.com/book

Advertisers have known this for years. Whether it’s been a simple application like the Yellow Pages (ads with pictures got more business) or giant billboards in New York’s Times Square. To see a real world example of how the Picture Superiority Effect works, check out this excellent coverage area map ad campaign from Verizon:

These maps show Verizon’s 4G LTE network coverage area, compared to the coverage area of their competitors. If you were only to get the text version, imagine how much of this paragraph explaining their coverage area you would remember 3 days after reading it:

“Among the four major wireless carriers, only Verizon’s 4G network is 100% 4G LTE the gold standard of wireless technology. Available in over 500 cities, Verizon 4G LTE covers almost 97% of the U.S. population. Experience the speed and power in more places.”

Now, take a look at the maps again. How much easier it is to see how the four major wireless carriers stack up against each other? It’s obvious Verizon covers the most area. Verizon takes it a step further, and has a link to a PDF highlighting their coverage in Alaska and an interactive map to view different parts of the country. All complete with map visualizations, of course.

However, there is another very important aspect of the Picture Superiority Effect that must be understood: It’s not just any image. It needs to be an image relevant to the content, which reinforces the message from your data. This works across all mediums of advertising, and of course, infographics.

In infographic design, the Picture Superiority Effect is extended to include charts, graphs, and data visualizations. Infographic designers use data visualizations and illustrations as the visual component of a design to trigger the Picture Superiority Effect, which can have incredible success getting the audience to remember the information presented.

Here is an great example from Dan Roam, author of the book, The Back of the Napkin, Solving Problems and Selling Ideas With Pictures, of how using images and text can help a designer understand which type of visualization is appropriate to use when communicating different types of information. Easy to understand, easy to remember.

via: DanRoam.com

Infographics work so well because using text and images together helps people to retain the information. Remember, if it’s just words, people will only remember 10% of the information they read. But, if you combine the text with a relevant image, they are likely remember 65% of the information! While others may choose to work harder by crafting a perfectly written article or advertisement, it would be a smarter choice to use text and relevant images together.

Remember to “Make It Visual” if you want your audience to remember the information about your company’s products or services. You don’t have to be a professional designer either. You can make your content visual using a wide range of tools like the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, Microsoft PowerPoint, OmniGraffle, or online design tools like Visme.co or Tableau Public.

 

Sources:
*Nelson, D.L., Reed, U.S., & Walling, J.R. (1976). Pictorial superiority effect. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning & Memory, 2, 523-528.

The Future of Rare Earth Elements

Rare Earth Elements make up a large portion of our high tech equipment and the demand for the elements is only increasing. This infographic, published by Buy Metal Online, has that examines the situation and the troubling shortages in our future.

Here we have an infographic that takes a look at rare earth elements (REE) including information about what they are, what we use them for, who’s producing the World’s REEs and more.

Good topic with clear visualizations and attractive illustrations.  They have a lot of valuable information packed into this design. However, in my opinion, there’s way too much text included, with multiple paragraphs explaining each section. In my experience, if readers see this much text in an infographic, they are likely to perceive it as too complicated and detailed. They’ll probably move on without ever reading it. Infographics are supposed to be simple explanations that are quick and easy to understand.

Thanks to Dave for sending in the link!

Starbucks Espresso Infographic Advertising

 

 

NOW AT STARBUCKS! The newest addition to the Starbucks menu is the Flat White. But what is the difference between The Flat white and the rest of Starbuck’s menu?

Starbucks sent this cool infographic as a content marketing piece in an email to all of their customers introducing The Flat White to their menu. The infographic visualizes the recipes for the 6 Espresso Classics. Currently available for view in most Starbucks stores around the country is an infographic that explains the differences between the styles of drinks on the menu.

The graphics in the email are actually the 3 separate images you see above, and I assume they could be changed for different people receiving the email. For example, someone else might receive an email about the Cappuccino or a different coffee flavor ad at the bottom. Good for flexibility in the emails, but bad for sharing in social media.

A product of simplicity, crafted into artistry, our baristas know that balance is key to the perfect Flat White. An extra ristretto shot ensures that it’s bolder than a latte, yet steamed milk keeps it smoother than a cappuccino. But perfection doesn’t end there—the technique for steaming and pouring the milk requires close attention as well. Steamed milk is folded into itself creating a velvety microfoam that gives the Flat White its silky texture and signature white dot.

Love the cafe-style chalkboard look, and the layered drink r recipe visualization design!

Using this infographic in an email campaign is brilliant, but I wish it had been designed to also stand on its own so it could be shared online in social media easier.

They use this design style throughout their entire espresso menu of drinks.

Thanks to Starbucks for sending the infographic to it’s customers! I put the separate pieces together below to make sharing easier!

World Map for Power Plug Types

When traveling abroad, it is best to be prepared. However, does your check list include power plugs? The World Map for Power Plug Type infographic from Easy Smart, maps out the location and types of each plug throughout the world. Never go on vacation unprepared again!

Helpful, information visualizations are fantastic topics for infographics. Not a fan of the color scheme. Just a thought, but this would be even better if it was printed on small cards for travelers to carry!

Found on Life Hacker

Iconic Movie Glasses

Most of the fashion trends for eyewear come from characters in movies and at Yates and Suddell, eyewear is a big deal. The Iconic Movie Glasses infographic has 12 of the most memorable pieces of eye wear to hit the big screen all on one page! 

We’re all about eyewear here at Yates & Suddell. Whether a stylish pair of spectacles or a sharp set of shades, the right glasses can really complete your look. Just ask the costume designers to the stars, who have long relied on a pair of specs to lend their subjects a certain “je ne sais quoi”. These glasses often become iconic aspects of the movies in which they appear, and can end up influencing frame fashion for years to come.

Check out our new infographic to see 12 of the most iconic pairs of glasses to ever grace the silver screen. How many do you recognise?

Of course, most of these frames are now many years old, so you’ll be very lucky to track down a pair of originals. However, you’ll find that many of today’s frames are based on the same iconic shapes as the most popular of these glasses, making it easy to recreate the style of the star you love the most!

Fantastic topic idea for an online retailer of eyewear. The design is eye-catching, with minimal text and the illustrations are easily recognizable.

The footer should include the URL to the infographic landing page, so when people find this infographic on other sites, they can easily find the full-size original. 

Thanks to Matt for sending in the link!

Infogr.am Acquires Infographics Blog Visualoop

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Big news in the world of infographics. In December, the online design site Infogr.am closed a deal to acquire the infographics blog and news site Visualoop.

December 3, Riga. – Infogr.am, the company behind the popular infographic creator, has acquired Visualoop, one of the leading data visualisation news sites from Brazil. The website covers infographics and data visualisation in English and Portuguese languages.

“Our ambition is the make Visualoop the leading data visualisation blog in the World,” says Uldis Leiterts, co-founder and CEO of Infogr.am: “It would strengthen our presence in Brazil, it would also support the social mission of Infogr.am to educate and raise the overall interest in data visualization” Along with acquisition Infogr.am reveals a Portuguese version it’s web-based infographic creator.

I included Infogr.am in the Cool Infographics book chapter covering design tools, but it’s great to see them expanding their capabilities with this acquisition and other new endeavors like increasing global data literacy with Infogram.org.

Congratulations to Tiago Veloso, the Founder and Editor of Visualoop! Tiago has been a long-time friend of Cool Infographics, and supporter of the infographics design community as a whole. I asked Tiago for a brief comment about the acquisition…

“As you imagine, Randy, this is a very special moment for Visualoop, and for me personally. The deal with Infogr.am allows me to dedicate myself full time to both websites (English and Portuguese), and that without having to deal with all those concerns websmasters usually face, (you know what I mean, right?). And it also made me revisit old projects and ideas that go way beyond that notion of ‘blog’ that people are perhaps used to, when hearing the name Visualoop - so, who knows what will come out of all this! :).”

I hope we see some new and exciting things out of the partnership between Visualoop and Infogr.am!

SEO Rank Correlations and Ranking Factors 2014

The SEO world is constantly changing. The SEO Rank Correlations and Ranking Factors 2014 infographic is your guide to good rankings! The infographic was created by Search Metrics, and they determined that the most important factors to optimal SEO is high quality!

We made it and just in time for this fall’s season. So download Ranking Factors 2014 on your tablet or smartphone because this study will be your best SEO read yet. Last year’s Ranking Factor study placed positive emphasis on good content, onpage technology and social signals that correlate with better positioned websites.

Get the latest and greatest SEO Ranking Factors and Rank Correlations 2014 – Google U.S. and get an in depth definition and evaluation of the factors that have a high rank correlation with organic search results.

A great way to summarize the top level findings from a longer report. This is a detailed infographic, but the information is incredible valuable.

I wish more of the numbers and statistics were visualized. Big fonts are not data visualizations!

Found on Business2community.com

The Graphic Continuum - Desktop Version

Jon Schwabish and Severino Ribecca have released a full-color, double-sided, laminated 8.5”x11” desktop version of The Graphic Continuum, available for only $10 until the end of the year when the price will go up to $13. This is a smaller version of The Graphic Continuum poster they released earlier this year.

Nearly 90 graphic types grouped into 6 categories on a laminated 8.5”x11” sheet. It does not include every type of graphic, nor does it display every type of link between visualization, but it serves as a thought-starter. Use it to develop ideas, consider different options, or simply as a piece of art.

A fantastic reference of data visualization methods to give you some ideas for ways you can visualize your data differently.

The Shapes of Snowflakes

The Shapes of Snowflakes is a fascinating categorization of crystal structures from Compound Interest, a chemistry site run by Andy Brunning in the UK. The site has a huge selection of chemistry and science related infographics.

In the Northern Hemisphere at least, the idealised vision of Christmas involves snow. Whilst no one snowflake is exactly the same as another, at least on a molecular level, scientists have none-the-less devised a system of classification for the many types of crystals that snow can form. This graphic shows the shapes and names of some of the groups of this classification.

The number of categories snow crystals can be categorised into has been steadily increasing over the years. In early studies in the 1930s, they were classified into 21 different shape-based categories; in the 1950s, this was expanded into 42 categories, in the 1960s to 80 categories, and most recently in 2013 to a staggering 121 categories.

Science meets Christmas!

You can also download a high-resolution PDF version.