The team needs to update last year’s infographic, but the original Illustrator or InDesign file is missing. All that remains is a PDF on the website. Rebuilding it by tracing the visible page may reproduce the appearance while silently breaking the data, citations, reading order, and future editability.
Convertify can bring supported PDF content into Figma as usable layers, including editable text where the source permits it. Treat that conversion as recovery, not proof. The PDF shows what was published; it does not explain the source data or the decisions behind the graphic.
Preserve the published artifact first
Archive the exact PDF, its public URL, publication date, file checksum, and any accessible HTML or transcript. Record who owns the content and whether a new edition is authorised. If several PDFs exist, do not assume the newest filename is the approved version.
Create an inventory of the visible parts:
- title, introduction, and section order;
- charts, diagrams, maps, and icons;
- statistics and denominators;
- footnotes, citations, and methodology;
- logos, disclosures, and copyright lines;
- interactive or linked elements;
- page size and intended reading context.
This is narrower than a general PDF design extraction workflow. An infographic is a chain of claims: visual scale, labels, colour, annotation, and source notes all contribute to meaning.
Recover the sources behind the pixels
Before changing numbers, find the dataset, spreadsheet, report, or research owner behind each claim. Copying 42% from the PDF into an editable text layer does not make it maintainable. Record the measure definition, date range, population, filters, rounding rule, and source link.
Build a claim register with one row per statistic or factual annotation. Include the PDF location, recovered text, authoritative source, update status, reviewer, and citation treatment. Mark claims that cannot be verified. Those should remain unchanged and labelled as legacy, or be removed with editorial approval—not casually refreshed from a different dataset.
If a chart lacks its data, do not estimate values from bar lengths unless the output is explicitly documented as an approximation. A visually accurate trace can still be factually false.
Convert into a quarantine page
Import the PDF with Convertify into a separate Figma page. Keep the original converted layers untouched as a recovery reference. Duplicate the content into a working page only after recording import issues such as outlined text, fragmented lines, missing fonts, masks, flattened charts, or unusual blending.
Classify layers into four groups:
- editable and trustworthy;
- editable but structurally messy;
- visually usable but flattened;
- missing or damaged.
Do not spend hours cleaning every imported group before deciding whether it should survive. Decorative fragments may be faster to rebuild from approved components, while a complex illustration may be safest to retain as a single reference until its owner confirms the intended edit.
Rebuild a system, not another one-off
Create text styles, colour variables, spacing rules, chart components, citation patterns, and reusable content blocks. Name sections by meaning rather than PDF coordinates. Use Auto Layout where it makes future text changes safer, but do not let a new grid distort the original relationships without editorial intent.
For every chart, reconstruct the data mapping explicitly. Verify baseline, scale, category order, units, legend, colour meaning, annotations, and accessible alternative text. For maps or diagrams, check whether position, area, or connection represents data rather than decoration.
The annual report PDF redesign workflow is useful for document governance, but infographic recovery usually concentrates more meaning into fewer visual elements. A small geometry change can alter the claim.
Reconcile the recovered version
Compare the working Figma file with the archived PDF at the original page size. Review:
- every word, number, unit, and citation;
- chart proportions and category order;
- reading sequence and section hierarchy;
- colours that carry meaning;
- icon and image licensing;
- line breaks that change interpretation;
- links and QR codes;
- print bleed or web dimensions;
- accessibility notes and text alternatives.
Use a second reviewer for data. Designers can confirm that the rebuilt bar reaches the same point; a subject owner must confirm that the bar should represent that value at all.
Plan the next edition before exporting
Link each claim to its source in the Figma file or companion register. Add a visible “last verified” field, content owner, and next review date. Separate durable explanatory copy from date-sensitive numbers so future updates do not require rediscovering which elements can change.
Export a proof and test it in the actual destination. Check PDF text selection, web image sharpness, file size, print colour expectations, hyperlinks, and small-screen legibility. Preserve the recovered source, approved working file, and exported release as separate versions.
Convertify can save the mechanical work of bringing the PDF into Figma. It cannot recover missing research logic, identify an authoritative statistic, or decide whether a visual encoding is honest. A publishable recovery pairs editable layers with a traceable claim system, so the next update begins with evidence instead of archaeology.
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