Consumer research has long proven that “the appeal of product packaging has the potential to trigger impulsive buying even for consumers with no intention of making a purchase”. In other words, using visuals effectively is a proven method to drive sales. The same holds true in e-commerce settings, especially on marketplaces such as Amazon, where shoppers tend to compare different products and carefully weigh their options before making a purchase.
Retailers are more likely to convince shoppers by using product infographics instead of just plain photos. Product infographics are product photos that are enhanced with appealing and attention-grabbing icons, visuals and illustrations to help shoppers understand product specifications, dimensions and features.
In this article, we will explore how data visualisation can be used effectively in product infographics. We will discuss the benefits and provide tips on how data visualisation can be best implemented.
Data visualisation is essential for making complex information easier to understand and communicate. When used in product infographics, data visualisation can be a powerful way to convey your product’s message in a concise and visually-appealing format. By using data visualisation, you can quickly present what would otherwise be confusing technical details in a way that is easy to grasp for a layperson.
While it is important to create product infographics that stand out from the crowd, you also want to ensure that all your infographics follow consistent guidelines. Using creative design elements such as bold typography, non-stock photo imagery, brand-specific illustrations, icons and colour palettes will create a unique yet recognisable look that will grab people’s attention and build brand awareness.
Brand awareness is particularly important on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon. Product detail pages are highly uniform and look very similar, making it particularly challenging for brands to express their unique DNA. Creating a unique infographic style is one of the few options retailers have to break through the clutter and stand out.
Besides the apparent benefits of simplifying complex technical details, building brand equity and facilitating product comparisons, one of the main benefits of data visualisation is scalability. In his book “Beautiful Evidence” (2006), Edward Tufte wrote: “The fundamental principles of analytical design apply broadly, and are indifferent to language or culture or century or the technology of information display”.
This is a key concern for many of our clients: it would be costly to create new infographics and data visualisations for every marketplace across multiple countries. In addition, best practices that boost conversion rates and sales on one specific marketplace will typically also perform strongest on other platforms. This phenomenon is well-known in advertising: your strongest creative works best for all audiences. For this reason at Impala we use scalable solutions and can easily provide global infographics that differ only slightly (i.e., use of imperial vs metric units).
Data visualisation is a complex field. To achieve this, we generally consider the following elements when layering data points into infographics: space, proportion, hierarchy and emphasis.
Space: Being aware of how infographics and data visualisations are displayed is key. Designers often create artwork using large screens. Most consumers however will likely look at the final infographic on a small mobile phone screen. Thus using the space available effectively is vital.
Proportions: Proportion refers to using different fonts and colours, using objects vs copy, etc. Infographics should not aim to convey too much information all at once, or to look too “busy.”
Hierarchy: Information hierarchy is critical. We reference eye-tracking studies to determine which information goes where. Attention spans are short, particularly in e-commerce environments, and consumers who can’t find what they are looking for may end up buying your competitor’s product.
Emphasis: Finding the right emphasis can be difficult, especially for data visualisation. When dealing with technically complex products, it can be hard to decide what matters most and should be emphasised. Our approach at Impala is to leverage keyword search data, customer reviews and the Q&A section of e-commerce platforms to learn what consumers really care about the most.
We create e-commerce-ready infographics for many global retailers. We are also proud to be working with the Amazon Basics brand and supporting their rollout of enhanced product infographics across multiple Amazon marketplaces. Did you know that we also support Amazon on product detail page copywriting? Here is our take on how to create keyword-optimised Amazon product titles and how to leverage Amazon SEO to optimise Product detail pages. Below are examples of Amazon Basics product infographics created by Impala Services:
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