5 Data-Backed Tips for Creating Highly Engaging Infographics for Pinterest

In today‘s crowded social media landscape, it‘s harder than ever to capture your audience‘s attention. With so much content vying for limited eyeballs and short attention spans, marketers need to leverage engaging visual formats to stand out.

One content type that continues to outperform is infographics. Research shows that infographics are liked and shared on social media 3x more than other any other type of content. On visual platforms like Pinterest, infographics are especially popular for their ability to convey information in a concise, creative and memorable way.

But with 1000s of infographics being shared on Pinterest daily, how do you make yours get noticed and rack up the repins and likes? Venngage, an infographic design platform, set out to answer this question by analyzing over 200 of the most popular infographics on Pinterest.

Through both quantitative and qualitative analysis, they identified a number of trends and characteristics that the highest-performing Pinterest infographics had in common. Based on their research, here are the top 5 data-backed tips for creating infographics that engage and convert on Pinterest:

1. Focus on high-engaging topics like travel, food and marketing

The topic and subject matter of your infographic has a big impact on its Pinterest popularity. Venngage‘s analysis found that infographics related to travel, food and marketing significantly outperformed all other topic areas.

This makes sense when you consider Pinterest‘s audience demographics and user intentions. Many people come to Pinterest to find travel inspiration, recipes, and social media marketing tips. By creating infographics that cater to these popular content categories, you can meet the existing demands and interests of Pinterest users.

Some specific topic ideas to consider for your next infographic:

• Travel bucket lists, packing tips, budget guides, etc.
• Recipe roundups, cooking hacks, nutrition tips, etc.
• Social media strategy, content marketing tips, web design best practices, etc.

2. Strike an emotional chord through humor, inspiration or practicality

The best infographics don‘t just present interesting information – they also leave a lasting emotional impact. Venngage evaluated the sample infographics based on the primary emotional reaction they elicited. The analysis revealed that infographics sparking feelings of humor, inspiration or practicality generated the most Pinterest engagement.

Think about ways to give your infographic an emotional hook, such as:

• Humorous and entertaining copywriting, images or examples
• Inspirational quotes, stories and takeaways
• Practical tips, tricks, tutorials and resources

Avoid dry or generic infographics that simply state facts and figures without any emotional pull. Connect to your audience by stirring their emotions and fulfilling their desire to be amused, motivated or educated.

3. Keep visuals clean and simple with 2-3 colors

One of the biggest misconceptions about infographics is that they need to be complex or data-heavy to be effective. Venngage‘s research shows the opposite – simple, text-focused infographics with clean layouts and a limited color palette actually perform best on Pinterest.

The analysis found that infographics featuring 2-3 colors significantly outperformed more colorful designs, and minimal text-based infographics were the most popular format. While it may be tempting to cram your infographic with lots of data visualizations, sometimes less is more.

Instead of overcomplicating your infographic design:

• Stick to 2-3 primary colors for a cohesive and uncluttered look
• Incorporate a single accent color to highlight key information
• Focus on typography using bold fonts and text hierarchy
• Balance text with ample negative space for visual breathing room
• Use simple flat vector icons and illustrations vs detailed images

4. Aim for a longform length-to-width ratio

When it comes to infographic dimensions, longer is usually better for commanding attention on Pinterest. Venngage compared the length-to-width ratio of the sample infographics and found that those with a ratio of 5:1 to 9:1 generated the most engagement.

This means the ideal Pinterest infographic length is about 5-9x greater than its width. For example, if your infographic is 736 pixels wide (the maximum width for Pinterest), then its length should fall between 3680-6624 pixels for optimal performance. This long, vertical format makes your infographic look like a substantial and valuable piece of content while allowing users to easily scroll through on mobile.

However, be careful not to go overboard – engagement drops back off for infographics exceeding a 9:1 length ratio. Aim for providing in-depth information without overwhelming your audience. If you have a lot of content to visualize, consider breaking it up into a series of shorter infographics instead of creating one very long infographic.

5. Invest time in promotion and outreach

Creating an amazing, share-worthy infographic is only half the battle. To really amplify your infographic‘s reach and generate engagement, you need a solid Pinterest promotion plan. Posting your infographic and hoping it goes viral won‘t cut it, especially for brands without an established Pinterest presence.

Venngage emphasized the importance of manual outreach in their analysis, suggesting that marketers should:

• Directly contact relevant bloggers and influencers and ask them to share the infographic with their audience
• Submit the infographic to social bookmarking sites and online communities in your niche
• Republish the infographic as a blog post for extra mileage and SEO benefits
• Share on your other social media channels and encourage followers to save to Pinterest
• Leverage Pinterest advertising to target users based on interests and keywords

Think of outreach as the necessary legwork required to get your infographic in front of the right eyes. Start by connecting with micro-influencers and working your way up as you build more brand authority on Pinterest.

Bonus Tips & Best Practices

In addition to the data-backed insights above, here are a few more tips to keep in mind when creating infographics for Pinterest:

• Make it easy to share by adding Pinterest hover buttons and pre-populated descriptions
• Include your logo and website URL on the infographic for consistent branding
• Optimize your Pinterest description with relevant keywords for search visibility
• Experiment with formats like animated infographics to stand out in the feed
• Use Pinterest templates and tools to easily create attractive infographic designs

Measuring Infographic Success

To gauge the effectiveness of your Pinterest infographics over time, keep an eye on key engagement metrics such as:

• Impressions – how many times your infographic appears in users‘ feeds
• Closeups – how many times users click to expand your infographic
• Saves – how many times users save your infographic to boards
• Pin clicks – how many times users click through to your website from the pin
• Virality score – your number of repins relative to total views

Use Pinterest Analytics to track these metrics and see which infographics resonate most with your audience. As you identify top performers, try to replicate those characteristics in future infographics while also iterating with new design elements and topics.

Conclusion

Infographics are a proven way to capture attention and drive engagement on Pinterest. By focusing on popular topics, evoking emotional reactions, keeping designs clean and lengthening your infographics, you can create scroll-stopping content that users can‘t help but save and share.

Most importantly, commit time and effort to strategic infographic promotion rather than simply posting and praying. With targeted outreach to key influencers and communities, you can expand your infographic‘s reach and generate a surge of Pinterest activity that drives traffic back to your site.

Start putting these tips into practice and see how your Pinterest infographics perform. Analyze what works, tweak your approach and continue refining your infographic strategy for maximum ROI. With compelling infographics in your content mix, you can become a go-to visual resource in your industry and reap the benefits of Pinterest‘s engaged audience.