Infographic marketing is the creation and promotion of data-driven visual content — graphs, diagrams, flowcharts, or illustrated data stories — to communicate complex information quickly and generate social shares, backlinks, and organic traffic. Infographics that present unique, compelling data visually are highly shareable (audiences share visual content more readily than text) and frequently linked to by publishers who embed or reference them. The SEO value comes from backlinks earned when other sites link to or embed your infographic with attribution.
The infographic marketing landscape has changed significantly since the peak of the format in 2013-2016. Generic infographics reproducing commonly known information no longer earn significant links — publishers have seen thousands and are selective. Data-driven infographics presenting genuinely original research, counterintuitive findings, or proprietary data earn links consistently because they provide something publishers cannot access elsewhere.
Creating infographics that earn links and shares
- Use original data — survey your clients or audience; analyse proprietary datasets; create unique visualisations of public data combined in a novel way
- Focus on counterintuitive findings — data that challenges conventional wisdom earns more coverage than data confirming what everyone already knows
- Target specific publications — identify publishers likely to cover your topic; design the infographic to fit their editorial angle
- Provide embed code — make it easy for publishers to embed your infographic with automatic attribution backlinks
- Create an accompanying article — publish the full research article alongside the infographic; the article earns long-tail keyword traffic while the infographic earns shares
- Promote actively — send personalised outreach to publications most likely to cover the topic
- Keep it focused — a single clear insight visualised well outperforms a complex multi-topic infographic
Yes — but only if they present genuinely original, valuable data. Generic infographics summarising widely known information no longer earn significant editorial links. Data-driven infographics presenting exclusive survey results, original analysis, or proprietary insights earn consistent editorial coverage and backlinks from relevant publications. The production cost is higher (requires original research and professional design), but the link-building outcome is proportionally stronger and more durable than most other content formats.
Outreach is the primary distribution mechanism for infographic link building. Identify publications that: cover your topic area regularly, have a track record of embedding infographics, and have editorial contacts reachable via email or Twitter/X. Personalise outreach — explain why your infographic is relevant to their specific audience, what the key finding is, and provide a direct link to the infographic with embed code. Follow up once after 5-7 days if there is no response. A well-targeted infographic outreach campaign to 50 relevant publications typically results in five to fifteen placements.