Believe it or not an astounding 63% of social media marketing content is now visually driven. Experts surmise that this number is only likely to grow in coming years. But visually driven content isn’t just taking the online world by storm. It’s also driving consumer engagement.
Visual content consistently garners more consumer attention and consumer interaction. The bottom line? When it comes to both blogging and social media marketing your brand needs to make a conscious effort to integrate compelling, high-quality images and video into content.
Add images to your Facebook posts.
Facebook users upload roughly 300 million photos to the social media site daily—that’s a 20% increase in the past year. Studies show that Facebook posts with images consistently garner more likes, comments, and shares. There is a considerable amount of research to back-up this point.
Photo posts on Facebook receive 53% more likes than the average post, attract 104% more comments, and receive 84% more link clicks. All in all, it is estimated that photo posts see approximately 120% more engagement other posts. But remember: it’s not just about adding any photo; it’s about adding the right photo.
Always make sure that these images are high quality and compelling. Whether a picture of a sublime sunset or an intriguing street scene people are much more likely to engage with compelling images, whether they are beautiful, thought provoking, or inspiring.
Get on Instagram.
There’s no getting around it: Instagram is one of the biggest players in the social media world and a key driver of visually driven content. With 150 million users, 16 billion photo shares, and 1.2 billion average daily likes Instagram is truly a social media giant. Companies are catching onto this power.
It is estimated that over 70% of major companies have an Instagram account and nearly one in four Fortune 500 companies are active on the site, including companies like Nike, Apple, Starbucks, Nordstrom, Allstate, and Ralph Lauren.
However, it crucial to keep in mind that using Instagram for visually driven content marketing is about much more than posting a constant stream of product shots. The companies who use most successfully post high-quality, compelling images that facilitate emotion connections between their brand and their target customers.
Nike is a great example of a brand that truly has their Instagram strategy down. The company consistently posts powerful and inspirational images of everyday life such as an adventurous snowboarder gliding across remote, snowy terrain or a surfer catching a wave at sunset.
With a true talent for telling remarkable stories with a single image Nike manages to express it’s core values through its Instagram content: challenge, activity, adventure, and inspiration.
This strategy has proved to be remarkably successful: Nike has managed to amass over three million followers, making them the most popular brand on Instagram. The content you post should clearly reflect your brand’s values and it should facilitate an emotional connection with consumers based on those values.
Invest in quality infographics.
Infograhpics are a tremendously powerful way to visually convey important information and data. When integrated into a social media marketing strategy. Infograhpics can be an excellent way to reach people who may simply not be accustomed to the technical lingo or who are unfamiliar with the common knowledge associated with your particular industry.
An infographic also has the intrinsic benefit of being quick and easy to read. They relay tangible, pertinent information in a clear manner that is easy for the consumer to understand. They often present numerical information or complex data that would be otherwise tedious to digest in an interesting manner.
Don’t forget about video.
Video is an absolutely crucial component of any visually driven content marketing strategy. While videos can be shared across a variety of different social networking sites, including Facebook, Vine, and Instagram, it should be noted that YouTube is an excellent way for companies to make a foray into video content marketing.
Now the world’s largest video site and second largest search engine, an astounding seventy-two hours of video footage are being uploaded to YouTube every single minute and hundreds of millions of users regularly frequent the site. Ultimately, it is a powerful way to facilitate interaction between consumers and your brand.
The trick, however, is to create videos that are compelling. Research shows that that viewers decide whether or not to keep watching during the first 15 seconds of video so you need to attract a viewer’s attention and you need to do so as quickly as possible.
