The Benefits of Using Healthcare Infographics
There is too much information and not enough time to read through everything.
When I was discussing how OT Graphically uses healthcare infographics to share research on the Mind Your OT Business podcast with Laura Park Figueroa, she said these words, infographics are necessary because “people don’t read stuff!” And she thought that should be my slogan moving forward. Laura, you are correct, people don’t read stuff anymore!
There is so much information out there and not enough time to get through it all for the healthcare workers doing the work. Infographics solve that problem by being a quick snapshot of the information in a clear, understandable way that actually improves learning at the same time. According to this book, we are 6.5 times more likely to remember information three days later that is presented to us in a visual format.
For example, the text I just wrote above can be summarized and expanded upon for a clearer message below. You really did not even need to read the text above to get the picture (pun intended) or understand the answer to the question “Why Infographics?”.
That makes it a little easier to read, right?
The mulit-sensory text and images allow for better understanding by breaking down the information so clients can also read it. This brings me to my next point.
Infographics support health literacy
This research article argues that it is important for healthcare professionals to know more about infographics because it can share an important message clearly about best practices in healthcare to the general public and improve overall public health.
Have you ever gone to a doctor’s appointment and at the end they rush to tell you all the really important information about what you should do at home? Me too, and I never remember any of it and end up having to call them back or I just don’t follow through with the recommendations. Infographics can be a way to solve that problem as well for our OT clients.
Not only that but if you are a business owner or trying to share information with other people to gain more referrals there are so many benefits.
Using infographics can increase the marketing of your self as an OT or your OT business
Have you ever looked up a blog post for a recipe or for an intervention idea and feel like you’re scrolling forever just to find the information you need and not really reading anything? You’re not alone. The more we are online the more our brains have to filter out unimportant information. People react to visuals because it’s easy to remember and lets them get the gist of what the blog post is saying without having to continuously scroll.
Infographics can capture people’s attention and also tell a story. Here’s an example of one I created on Telehealth during the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Infographics are engaging and easily shareable
Infographics increase engagement. Ask anyone who has been in a PowerPoint presentation with only text on the slides. When I start a continuing education course and they only have text on their first slide, I zone out before the first slide change. The combination of text and graphics can really pull people in and support their attention in our busy, fast-paced world.
The format of graphics allows them to be shared easily with others which in turn can amplify your message ten times faster. I’ve noticed when others share my graphics, it reaches a significantly higher audience globally.
If you are looking for additional ways that infographics can improve your healthcare marketing check out this blog post.
Here are some additional examples of really powerful healthcare infographics.
If I didn’t convince you enough here’s a bunch of articles advocating for the benefits of infographics:
https://www.infographicdesignteam.com/blog/why-infographics-are-being-adopted-in-healthcare-sectors/
A 2019 study of LinkedIn and Twitter found that the use of infographics was the most effective way to share information with targeted audiences.
This article states that it’s worth investing in the time to create a good infographic because what is the benefit of science if it is not shared?