Since the latest Star Wars movie grossed $220 million in its first weekend, it’s clear nothing can beat powerful visuals when it comes to reaching audiences.
With AdWeek’s prediction that 84 percent of all marketing communications would be visual by 2018, choosing the best images for your content is vital to ensuring you present the right message to the right people in a way that resonates with them.
Choosing the Appropriate Image
Unlike Jedi knights, however, your images don’t have to be invincible—they just have to be appropriate. If you’re accustomed to grabbing stock photos and slapping them onto content, perhaps it’s time to step back and develop a more scientific approach.
Images don’t have to all be high resolution photographs, either. Infographics have come into their own for delivering complex facts and figures. Memes lighten the mood and introduce humor into your content, and are a popular method of tailoring content for social media sharing.
Video Vibes and SlideShows
Video, of course, is hitting all the high notes, with a study showing 87 percent of marketers had a positive impact from including digital video in content. Animated gifs are having their day across the Interwebs, and good, old-fashioned presentations can be transformed into “lights, camera, action” at a mouse-click.
Forget PowerPoint – Programs such as Prezi, Visme, Powtoon and SlideCaptain generate slideshows you can embed in your content to give the user a multimedia experience of note.
Using a Data-Driven Process
Choosing the most appropriate type of image—and the image itself—is best done using a data-driven process. Research from HootSuite shows the type of images that perform best on sites like Instagram are:
- User-generated content, which boosts authenticity and shows others are engaging with your brand.
- Behind the scenes pictures, that give an insider’s view into your company and products. These have to be real, though; staged, awkward shots will be a turn-off for visitors.
- Influencer shots containing images of well-known industry leaders or celebrities in candid situations.
- Inspiring images that are uplifting and motivational.
Above all, look for images that display relevance and originality, and when you’ve found the right graphic element for a piece of content make sure you get permission from the owner to republish it. Don’t assume because it’s in the public domain you can use it—that usually doesn’t apply to for-profit marketing purposes. You could find yourself facing copyright infringement. And may the Force be with you.
Call Wax Custom Communications at 305-350-5700 or visit waxcom.com for more information on how to choose the right images for your marketing content.
