Visual content is a powerful way to connect with users. Blogs and articles are good for developing an idea and exploring in great depth, but they are also time consuming to create. Beautiful visuals can be created in a relatively short time and drive your brand image with eye-catching details. Visuals allow your business to maximise its social media impact by using the Pinterest and Instagram channels, and not simply rely on Twitter and Facebook to promote your site and business.
High-quality stock photography
Stock photography has a bad name and the tacky smiling-business-people-in-a-row shots are not high-quality. There are many free sources of stock photography available, but for the truly interesting and valuable examples, you usually have to hand over a few dollars. Depending on the size of your marketing budget, this is money well spent when you uncover a shot that hasn’t been used a thousand times before and captures your brand perfectly.
Infographics
Ideal for explaining complex ideas in an easy-to-follow way, infographics are one of social media’s biggest visual successes. People love to learn and an image is easier to digest than a page of writing, hence the infographic was born. More complex than a meme, they are great for showing stats and correlations, explaining and highlighting features, and just about anything you want to convey in a vibrant way.
Candid photographs
Supporting and loyal to a business relies on it feeling like a part of your life. People love seeing the unguarded moments of celebrities and businesses can leverage this voyeuristic tendency by showing their customers behind the curtain and into the processes and experience of running the company. Team shots and work in progress photos will allow your audience a glimpse and personalise the experience, making your brand more relatable.
Quote graphics
The motivational posters of the day, quote images or memes focus on presenting your brand ideals. By choosing quotes that you feel reflect your brand’s outlook and personality, you can connect with like-minded people and build engagement and trust. The image the quote sits upon is equally important and should provide a related backdrop that doesn’t distract from the words.
Original designs
Branding your images is vital when sending them out into the social media world. It will help you develop your brand’s identity and style, with the ultimate goal being instant recognition. It doesn’t need to be a logo in the corner; instead you could develop your own Instagram-style filter and colour palette, associating your business with a certain aesthetic from the start. Taking ownership of your images in this manner will also ensure that they are not reused by other people or companies, and they are instantly identifiable as yours.
Embrace visual content for a complete strategy
A content strategy cannot survive on words alone. And vice versa. As ever, a complete approach is required to truly see the results your business and brand desire. Images can be used to promote written content, as well as accompany it, and equally an image, especially an original photograph, can benefit with the context words can provide. Experiment with different methods and combinations, measure your results, and work out the best strategy for your brand and ambitions.
This article has been supplied by SIXGUN, our digital marketing partner in Australia.