What Is Visual Content Marketing?
The use of images to convey valuable information in an engaging Visual format
In the Bible, Jesus taught mainly using parables. A parable is a short story that envisions the whole narrative to generate a spiritual message. By using parables, Jesus invited his disciples to apply their minds to interrogate his teachings and comprehend the lessons within. The technique is called “Show, not tell.” Visuals have been proven to get more engagement than text-based content. According to Adobe’s Q4 2013, posts with images result in 65% higher engagement than normal text-based posts. Therefore, just like Jesus’ parables, visual content enables us to apply our minds to understand the gist of the message being conveyed and retain it better.
ADVANTAGES OF VISUAL CONTENT
- It grabs viewers’ attention, especially in this era of quick scroll social media platforms, where your audience gives you less than 3 seconds to impress or get bypassed.
- Visual Content provides additional context to your message, hence the audience can comprehend better.
- Clarifies concepts for visual learners.
TYPES OF VISUAL CONTENT
- IMAGES
Stunning Photography
Prospects can recall 65% of visual content compared to 10% of written content. Professionally done photos can be used for the following:
- Share brand messages on social media
- Add visual interest to written content
- Show off your products or services
- To put a face on your brand
Make sure that your images and photos are of high quality and relate to the topics of your content. If you want to be original, use your own images to add a personal touch to your content. Stock photos are an acceptable solution, but only as long as you make sure that they don’t look like your typical stock photos and are of highest quality. Before publishing content with photos that aren’t yours, double-check if you’re using these images legally.
How many images should you use? According to Content marketers, the optimal ratio is 1 image per 75-100 words.
Too little or too many images can be both a bad thing, so test your audience and optimize your content for greater engagement.
2. INFOGRAPHICS
An infographic is a collection of images, charts, and minimal text that gives an easy-to-understand overview of a topic. Infographics use striking, engaging visuals to communicate information quickly and clearly
Infographics are incredibly useful when it comes to presenting complex data or statistics. They also lend themselves useful in how-to guides or step-by-step instructions
Infographics are therefore a great way of sharing your company’s expertise in a user-friendly way, encouraging shareability like the below image, which most of us have come across at some point in the last 4 months
3. INFLUENCER POSTS
According to Influencer Marketing Hub, 63% of businesses plan to leverage influencer marketing in 2020. It is however important to choose an influencer who fits your brand image for maximum impact.
Use Cases
- To expand the reach of your brand message
- Develop thought leadership
- Make the brand more approachable
- Add credibility to a marketing campaign
- Target niche audience
4. VIDEOS
Wyzowl estimates that 87% of businesses use videos as a marketing tool, up from 63% in 2017. Videos have become an engaging and attractive form of content presentation. Thanks to new technologies, videos can be lighter than ever and just perfect to fit your brand or product.
Use Cases
- Product / Service demos
- Event recordings
- Customer testimonials or “About us” videos
- Live videos
5. INTERACTIVE POSTS
Interactive content generates conversion 70% of the time compared to 36% of passive content.
A brand is said to be strong when what the customers say about it is in line with what they say about themselves. This is an indication that their message has cut across, related with the audience and fulfilled its promise (In terms of product or service).
Interactive posts therefore helps businesses take stock of their customer frustrations or delights so as to act accordingly.
Use Cases
- Live customer polls
- Virtual exhibitions / Tours
- Quizzes and tests
6. MEMES
About 82% of millennial consumers discover brands and retailers on social media.
When memes began to appear, nobody predicted they would amount to anything other than a juvenile style of communication, but they have morphed into a powerful social media sensation.
Use Cases
- Make your brand more relatable
- Add humour to your Posts
- Ride a viral trend to spread brand awareness
CONCLUSION
New forms of visual content are getting birthed daily, so it is important to keep your eyes and ears open to stay ahead of the curve. Before choosing which types to use for your business, understand these 3 things first.
- Your business core values and attributes
- Target Market
- What you are communicating.
We hope that this article helped shed some light to visual content and how it can help your business. Great visual content starts with great photos and videos, and that’s what Picha Images does. See our services here.
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