InfoActive is Making Content Marketing Easy

Clint Costa Mar 20, 2013 Tweet

Infographics - they’re interesting, useful, and the most important thing to happen to content marketing since teenagers started making money off their Zelda blogs.

InfoActive, the award-winning* startup of well-traveled, Chicago-based entrepreneur Trina Chiasson, makes it easier to create high-value, mobile-friendly, beautiful and interactive infographics.

Let’s face it, content marketing is to today’s Internet marketer what the Death Star trash compactor was to Luke, Han and Leah in the original Star Wars.  The walls close in a little bit everyday as the marketer faces the challenge of creating new and interesting content.  Infographics provide a way to alleviate this stress.  The downside is that creating inforgraphics requires more resources than the typical blog post, podcast or video.

The typical infographic that costs $1000 requires not only $1000, but research skills to capture the proper data and project management skills to keep tabs on designers and developers.  At the end of the day, the infographic could take weeks to build, and the data represented on it likely has a limited shelf life.

Enter InfoActive.

InfoActive provides an online platform offering a simple interface for users to drop streams of information into gorgeous, data-driven stories.  InfoActive cuts the cost of producing engaging content and makes stressed-out content marketers really happy.  Best of all, InfoActive takes the difficulty out of developing and designing infographics.  In fact, InfoActive’s target client is the person who has no technical or artistic ability whatsoever.

The company is currently in a limited release, allowing only certain core constituencies access to the platform.  During this phase, Trina and her cofounder, Daniel Roberts, are learning as much as possible about how their users interact with the platform.

As a result of this strategy, InfoActive has cultivated an extremely loyal group of early adopters.  InfoActive’s beta users provide valuable data not only through their use of the platform, but also through bi-weekly Skype chats and other means.  How did InfoActive gather such a hearty group of valuable test subjects?  And, how can other startups do the same?  Trina thinks a few factors make sense:

• Aim Small.  Trina and Daniel couldn’t possibly cull useful, in-depth information from hundreds of users.  In this release of the site, they have purposely been selective in keeping the user base small.
• Prove Yourself.  To make sure that potential users will be committed, InfoActive requires them to fill out a long application form and submit to an interview.  This not only provides valuable information about the applicant’s demographics, but it also evidences his or her commitment.
• Competition.  It doesn’t hurt that users are hungry for InfoActive’s product, and the company has few, if any, real competitors.

Hopefully InfoActive will release publicly soon, but until then check out the company here or read the InfoActive blog here.

*For real…InfoActive won its category at the just-concluded SXSW Accelerator 2013.