Optimizing Infographics for Medium: A Guide
Written by  Daisie Team
Published on 6 min read

Contents

  1. What are Infographics?
  2. Why Use Infographics on Medium?
  3. How to Design Infographics for Medium
  4. Optimization Techniques for Infographics
  5. Measuring the Success of Your Infographics
  6. Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
  7. Best Practices for Using Infographics on Medium

Ever wondered how to make your Medium posts more engaging and visually appealing? Infographics could be the answer you're looking for. In this guide, we'll explore how to optimize infographics for Medium, turning your content into a visual treat that's not just easy to digest, but also ranks high in search results. Let's get started.

What are Infographics?

Think of infographics as a visual sandwich of information. They are creative illustrations that present data, facts, or knowledge in an easy-to-understand format. Infographics are an effective way to break down complex information into manageable, bite-sized pieces. They can transform a whole heap of text into a colorful, engaging, and memorable visual. Here's why they are so great:

  • Easy to understand: Infographics use visuals to simplify complex information, making it easier for you to grasp the main points at a glance.
  • Engaging: With the right combination of colors, graphics, and text, infographics can capture your attention and keep you hooked.
  • Memorable: Humans are visual creatures. We remember images better than text, which makes infographics a powerful tool for conveying information in a way that sticks.
  • Shareable: Infographics are perfect for sharing on social media, blogs, and — you guessed it — Medium!

Now that you know what infographics are, let's explore why they work so well on Medium and how to optimize infographics for Medium to boost engagement and visibility.

Why Use Infographics on Medium?

Medium is a platform where writers share their thoughts, ideas, and expertise with the world, and readers come for content that's insightful, relatable, and easy to digest. That's where infographics come in. Here's why they are a perfect match for Medium:

  • Visual Appeal: In a sea of text, an infographic stands out. It's like a breath of fresh air for readers scrolling through their Medium feed, making your post more likely to be clicked on.
  • Storytelling: Infographics are not just about data; they're about telling a story in a visually engaging way. And we all know how much Medium readers love a good story, right?
  • Expanding Reach: Good infographics get shared. If your Medium post has an engaging infographic, chances are readers will share it, helping you reach a larger audience.
  • SEO Benefits: Wondering how to optimize infographics for Medium to improve SEO? When properly optimized, infographics can boost your Medium post's visibility in search results. We'll explore this in more detail later in the guide.

So, ready to give your Medium posts a visual boost? Let's dive into how to design infographics for Medium that your readers will love.

How to Design Infographics for Medium

Now that you understand why using infographics on Medium is a good idea, let's discuss how to design them efficiently. This is not as daunting as it may seem if you follow these simple steps:

  1. Understand Your Audience: The first step in designing an effective infographic is understanding who it's for. Are your readers tech-savvy millennials, busy parents, or seasoned professionals in your field? Knowing this will help guide your design choices.
  2. Choose Your Data Wisely: An infographic is only as good as the data it presents. Make sure to choose data that is not only reliable and relevant, but also tells a compelling story that resonates with your audience.
  3. Keep It Simple: The beauty of infographics lies in their simplicity. Avoid the urge to cram too much information into your infographic. Instead, focus on a single topic and present it in a visually appealing and easy-to-understand manner.
  4. Use The Right Tools: You don't need to be a professional designer to create an engaging infographic. There are plenty of online tools, like Canva or Piktochart, that offer pre-made templates and easy-to-use design features.

Designing an infographic that captures attention and conveys your message effectively is a key step in learning how to optimize infographics for Medium. But design is just part of the equation. Next, we will look at the specific optimization techniques that can make your infographic truly shine.

Optimization Techniques for Infographics

Once you've created a well-designed infographic, it's time to optimize. This step is key to making sure your infographic gets seen and shared. Here's how:

  1. Include Keywords: Just like with any other online content, keywords are vital. Think carefully about what your audience is likely to search for, and include these phrases in your infographic's title, description, and alt text.
  2. Optimize Image Size: Speed is critical on the web. If your infographic loads slowly, your audience might lose patience and click away. Keep file sizes small without compromising quality. This is one of the most effective ways on how to optimize infographics for Medium.
  3. Mobile-Friendly Design: Over half of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices. That means your infographic must look good and load fast on smaller screens. This might mean rethinking your design or layout to ensure it works well on mobile.
  4. Add Shareable Links: Make it easy for readers to share your infographic. Include share buttons for different social media platforms, and consider adding a short, catchy description that will appear when the infographic is shared.

Implementing these optimization techniques will help ensure that your infographic reaches the widest possible audience. But how can you tell if your efforts are successful? That's where measurement comes in, our next topic of discussion.

Measuring the Success of Your Infographics

Even with the best design and optimization efforts, you can’t know how successful your infographics are without measuring their performance. But how do you measure success? Let's look at some simple and practical ways:

  1. Track Views: One of the simplest measures of success is how many people view your infographic. If you're getting a lot of views, you're doing something right.
  2. Monitor Shares: Shares are also a great indicator of success. If people are sharing your infographic, it means they find it valuable and want others to see it too.
  3. Measure Engagement: Beyond views and shares, it's important to look at how people are interacting with your infographic. Are they clicking on links? Leaving comments? These are signs of engagement, which is a more meaningful measure of success than views alone.
  4. Track Conversions: Finally, don't forget to track conversions. If the goal of your infographic is to drive people to a certain action — like signing up for a newsletter or buying a product — then you'll want to track how many people do that action after viewing your infographic.

These are just a few methods to measure the success of your infographics. Remember, the key goal is to communicate information effectively and visually. If you're doing that, you're well on your way to success!

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Creating and optimizing infographics for Medium isn't always a walk in the park. Here are some common pitfalls you might encounter, along with some tips on how to sidestep these issues:

  1. Overloading with Information: Infographics are visual tools meant to simplify complex data. If you cram too much information into one infographic, you'll defeat its purpose. Stick to one main idea and a few supporting points. Remember, less is often more.
  2. Poor Design: Your infographic could have the most exciting data, but if it's poorly designed, people won't stick around to decipher it. Invest time in ensuring your infographic is visually appealing and easy to understand.
  3. Not Optimizing for Medium: Medium is a unique platform with its own set of guidelines. If you're not optimizing your infographics specifically for Medium, you might not see the results you want. Make sure you're familiar with Medium's best practices to ensure your infographic shines.
  4. Ignoring SEO: SEO isn't just for text content. You need to optimize your infographic too. This means using relevant keywords, including alt text for images, and having a clear, descriptive title.

Avoiding these common mistakes can put you on the path to infographic success. Always remember, the goal is to make complex information easily digestible and visually engaging.

Best Practices for Using Infographics on Medium

Now that we've tackled the most common mistakes, let's move on to some best practices when using infographics on Medium. These tips will help you create infographics that not only look good, but also perform well.

  1. Design with the Audience in Mind: Medium's audience appreciates high-quality, thought-provoking content. Design your infographics to match this tone. Use clear, concise language, and choose colors and fonts that are easy on the eyes.
  2. Use a Mix of Text and Visuals: While visuals are the star of the infographic, don't forget about the power of well-written text. Use a mix of both to create a more compelling narrative.
  3. Optimize for Mobile: A significant portion of Medium's audience reads content on mobile devices. Make sure your infographic is designed to look great on both desktop and mobile screens.
  4. Include a Clear Call to Action: What do you want readers to do after they've viewed your infographic? Whether it's to read more of your content, share the infographic, or visit your website, make sure your call to action is clear and compelling.

By implementing these best practices, you're much more likely to create infographics that resonate with Medium's audience and help you achieve your content goals. Remember, the key to success is to keep experimenting, learning, and refining your approach.

If you're looking to optimize your infographics for Medium and want to learn more about managing your social media content, check out Carolyn Edge's workshop, 'Batch Create and Manage Your Social Media Content.' This workshop will not only help you create engaging infographics but also provide you with the tools to manage your content effectively across different platforms.