Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

For the most part, fake news stories are still relatively crude and unsophisticated, with nothing more than text, a photo grabbed off the internet, and hyper-partisan, attention-grabbing headlines to lure clicks and shares.

But fake news creators might begin to include one thing that journalists and researchers already know works to increase engagement: data visualizations.

Readers Believe Data Visualizations

The mere inclusion of a simple data visualization, like a chart or map, has shown to significantly increase a story’s believability, whether true or not. Researchers from Cornell University tested readers with two articles on a scientific claim, both identical except in one regard. One included a graph and the other did not. While only 68 percent of readers believed the claim in the article without a graph, nearly all –97 percent– of readers believed the same claim with the graph included.

Similar effects were seen when a chemical formula was included, suggesting that the persuasive effects are based on the association of a graph with what the researchers call the “prestige of science.” The researchers conclude that “graphs signal a scientific basis for claims, which grants them greater credibility.” While their conclusions pertain to science stories in particular, it’s just one step to the applicability to news in general to infuse them with an aura of scientific backing....

The best infographics are like good novels: They grab you by the collar, transport you to another world and refuse to let go until the real world steps in and gives you a rude awakening.

This is how I felt when I picked up Gareth Cook’s The Best American Infographics 2015, the third volume in a series of infographic compilations.

Like an avid reader absorbed in a gripping tale, I found myself poring over these visual stories, eager to distill the meaning contained within each of them.

From breath-taking illustrations to ingenious visualizations, these beautiful data worlds introduced me, in each case, to a reality I didn’t know existed. At first glance, they might seem like abstract eye candy, but if you take the time to delve into each of them, they can change your perspective of the world like nothing else can....

We live in an age of Big: Big Computers, Big Data, and Big Lies.

Faced with an unprecedented torrent of information, data scientists have turned to the visual arts to make sense of big data. The result of this unlikely marriage—often called "data visualizations" or "infographics"—has repeatedly provided us with new and insightful perspectives on the world around us.

However, time and time again we have seen that data visualizations can easily be manipulated to lie. By misrepresenting, altering, or faking the data they visualize, data scientists can twist public opinion to their benefit and even profit at our expense.

We have a natural tendency to trust images more than text. As a result, we’re easily fooled by data visualizations. But fortunately, there are three easy steps we can follow to save ourselves from getting duped in the data deluge....

Our goal as savvy email marketers is to look beyond the lure of the one-time conversion and strive to build an ongoing relationship between consumers and our brands. Why is this goal so important? Because it’s been proven through many a marketing study that engaged customers become loyal customers and loyal customers are the most valuable segment in any list or database.

This type of highly engaged, loyal customer typically has higher overall lifetime value than the casual consumer. They’re also more likely to be an evangelist, introducing new customers to your brand in a very personal way and building the next layer of loyal customers.

But, how can you help to build a stronger bond with your customer base? In my last article, I outlined ways to stimulate an unengaged audience by increasing the relevancy of your email creative by including more dynamic content. Sharing relevant content demonstrates to customers that we know them as individuals and are dedicated to providing them with useful information, products or services. Using historical and behavior data is a great way to present content that’s tailored to their individual needs and preferences, but you also need to engage with your audience on an emotional level in order to achieve the goal of creating a true brand-loyal customer....

Let’s explore four creative ways in which email marketers have used data as a platform to build creative that forms a bond between their customers and their brand....

Data presentation should be elegant, detailed and beautiful. There are different ways to show the data that can be a pie charts, tables, histograms, and bar graph. However, to send a clear and effective message to your readers, you just need more than just a simple table or histogram, etc.

There are some data visualization techniques that present your data much better than expected, intelligent, beautiful, original and in an excellent way. We have gathered some of the most attractive and unique ideas of data visualization examples....

The success of infographics has evolved since that time. Just a few years ago, infographics became extremely popular with the eruption of digital marketing and search engine optimization.

With their popularity came several changes in the way they were presented. Only the best of the best were shared on social media, resulting in higher brand awareness and consumer engagement.

As the traditional infographic evolved to keep up with consumers’ changing tastes, it brought the world the interactive infographic, which is becoming the most sought after form of data representation to date, even rendering some static infographics as outdated and irrelevant.

To help you stay ahead of the game with your graphic design and create an infographic with the potential to go viral, take a look at this list of awesome interactive infographics....

The following infographic, created by Zhenia Vasiliev, breaks down the basics of data visualization. It shows how beginners can merge form and function, and design meaningful infographics.

Key highlights:

-  Analyse your data: Analysis is the key. Before we can visualize the data we need to understand it.

-  Come up with a story: Story is finding a single strand of meaning in an endless sea of information. It has a beginning, middle and end.

-  Make it visible: Visualization is a creative act of making. Making the data visually elegant evident and engaging.

-  Entertain to educate: Good data design need to illuminate and inform the viewer, elucidate and illustrate the facts and stats....

This land was not our land.

As late as 1750—some 150 years after Britain established Jamestown and fully 250 years after Europeans first set foot in the continent—[Native Americans] constituted a majority of the population in North America, a fact not adequately reflected in textbooks," Claudio Saunt writes in an accompanying article. "Even a century later, in 1850, they still retained formal possession of much of the western half of the continent."

With Saunt's map, you can watch the shift occur. Each part is clickable, with information on the treaties that were used to negotiate cessions available via links in pop-up boxes. You can also search for a location or any Native American nation, such as Cherokee or Sioux, to see the land they once possessed. Color coding distinguishes between native lands (blue) and reservations (orange). The latter have dwindled significantly since their creation....

Months back we came up with the superb collection of nice, visually appealing infographics (Creative Infographics for Designers and Developers) witnessing which designers and developers would easily relate as each one of them was visual graphics talking about designers and developers.Here is our latest compilation 40 creative infographics for designers and developers. Hit a jump to take the glimpse of each....

I think we’ve looked at the very essentials of data visualization, and the post from DB Friends is going to help you to avoid making common mistakes when it comes to visualizing your data. The tools in this post can definitely attract many opinions, so if you feel like you’ve got something to say – leave a comment and we’ll take it from there.

In my previous article I discussed the importance of ensuring that your data is clean and processed before attempting any form of data visualisation. Here I will share some really awesome tools that (once your data is clean and ready to use) you can have at your disposal to create mind-blowing representations of the facts and figures. Here is a list of tools, some more open and adjustable than others, that add value to your raw data and can be used as a source of inspiration and design when approaching the visualisation process....