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Data & Infographics
Nicole Branch, Social Sciences LibrarianSanta Clara University Library
Image courtesy of Flickr user Niels Heidenreich.
Today we will…
• Find data about the topic of your brief
• Practice making data charts
• Create an infographic about your topic
Why Data?
• Can help understand social/community issues
• Can help explore your topic and prepare your brief
• Can support understanding needs and concerns related to your topic
• It’s important
Finding Data & Statistics
Think about WHO might collect the data you are interested and WHO might publish the results.
Government agenciesNon-government organizationsAcademic institutionsPrivate sector
Some Data Consideration
Think about if the data/statistics you are looking for will be made readily available.
Controversial/harmful dataNot broadly applicable dataLag time for data disseminationAbsence of data
Critiquing Data & Data Sources
Who is the source of the data?Does the source of the data have a bias/interest
in the data and how might this impact how the data was collected or analyzed?
What is the sample size and how was the data collected?
What is the larger context of the data?Correlations are not causations.
Finding Data & Statistics
There are many different places to find data:
Recommended resourcesGoogle (data/statistics + topic)
Your task is to find an interesting piece of data about your topic.
Making Charts In Excel/Google Sheets
Infographics
• Visually represent data
• Quick and compelling way to engage others with data
Infographics
Less is More
• Focus on one compelling thing you would like your audience to feel/learn
Adapted from Grasshopper Marketing, Infographics Best Practices, http://grasshoppermarketing.com/infographics-best-practices/
Topic is Everything
• Pick a timely but not played out topic
Adapted from Grasshopper Marketing, Infographics Best Practices, http://grasshoppermarketing.com/infographics-best-practices/
Data is King
• Use credible/authoritative data
• Let the data drive the design
Adapted from Grasshopper Marketing, Infographics Best Practices, http://grasshoppermarketing.com/infographics-best-practices/
Color is Queen
• Think about a color palette
• Thoughtful, cohesive selection of colors
• Not too many
Adapted from Grasshopper Marketing, Infographics Best Practices, http://grasshoppermarketing.com/infographics-best-practices/
Simple Design
• Not too crowded
• Not too many elements
Adapted from Grasshopper Marketing, Infographics Best Practices, http://grasshoppermarketing.com/infographics-best-practices/
Begin with the end
• Determine the main take-away, and let that guide your design and data selection
Adapted from Grasshopper Marketing, Infographics Best Practices, http://grasshoppermarketing.com/infographics-best-practices/
Example
Infographic courtesy of Fast Company.
Example
Infographic courtesy of Joshua Chavers.
Begin with the end
• Take a minute to determine the main take-away.
• Then we’ll share.
Create your Infographic
• Using one of the recommended design software products, create an infographic for your main-takeaway
