How To Achieve Higher Engagement With Visual Marketing

Anyone on a social network will have noticed something: visual content gets passed around like crazy. Photos overlaid with text, videos, infographics, cute little images, sad images, angry images, visual representations of quotes. They are all over the place, and they are shared out to the point where a single photo can become well known all over the world within a couple of days.

Whatever the platform, visual media is a primary focus for many marketers today. The average internet user expects something to look at, and will be more likely to respond to an image than a wall of text. If you are looking to engage more effectively with your demographic, here are some reasons to incorporate visuals into your campaign.

• A picture is worth a thousand words. That’s right, the cliché has a real basis for fact. According to a study in visual content, 90% of all information transmitted to the brain is completely visual. This gives us an immediate impression, and since we are made to respond to these visuals they will stick with us. They will even elicit a more intense reaction. You will be making a more lasting impact with a visual than you will a text based explanation.
• Social media is everywhere. Did you know more than a billion people use Facebook. A billion. But that is only a single network. It doesn’t account for the many others, such as Quora, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube…it is a dominating force on the internet to be reckoned with. But that kind of sharing is punchy and quick, and visuals are better suited for that kind of communication. It is also highly shareable, which is one of the main reasons social networks exist: to share.
• Videos get more links. According to SEOMoz, a single video can get up to three times the inbound links of text posts. Three times! That is quite the result, and if you think of how often a video goes viral then it won’t be a hard figure to believe. People really like videos, and they are going to get a lot more attention than the average dryly written article.

How To Incorporate Visual Media Into Your Marketing

Alright, so now you know why you should be adding in visuals. But what about how? In the end, it comes down to rather simple additions to your existing campaign.

• Use various media forms. Being well rounded in the type of visuals you use is always a good way to begin. For example, post regular images with text onto your social media pages. Make high quality videos or slideshows. Create infographics that are informative and attractive. These are all easy ways to inject more visuals into your content.

• Bring your photos offline: Printing your visuals out to offer your loyal community as the powerful free incentive to remember you is easier than ever. There are some really easy and affordable solutions like this one.

• Take advantage of memes… the right way! There is nothing more cringe inducing than seeing someone using a visual meme incorrectly. But if you can create an engaging, relevant piece of content that utilizes a trending meme, you can easily strike a cord with users who are familiar with that meme. Just do your research first to understand the origin and way it is used.

• Use Pinterest. It might not be the largest social network on the web, but it is still very popular and growing by the day. Plus, the average Pinterest user will also have a Facebook and Twitter account, often syncing them up. Images also go viral very easily on Pinterest, since there is only a single kind of content, narrowing the focus.

Do you have tips for achieving higher engagement with visual marketing? Let us know in the comments.