In part 1, I briefly touched on the importance of visual content and ways you could go about creating it. Did you know that on Facebook, photo albums, pictures, and videos get 180%, 120%, and 100% more engagement respectively? In addition, here are 19 Reasons You Should Include Visual Content in Your Marketing [Data]. In this blog post, I’m giving you some different paths you can take if you decided you want to increase your visual presence.
Photography
Taking photographs of your products or services is probably one of the easiest, cheapest way to generate visual content.
– Photos of your products
– Photos of your customers enjoying your product/service
– Photos of funny or interesting things that happen in or around your business
Here, Luv 4 Anouka simply showcases their products in the best way possible. In addition to showing a product on the shelf or in-stores, it’s also important to show the product in use! You’ll notice this is a high quality photograph; if your business is very visual, it may be a good idea to invest in a good camera.
Charts, Infographics, Guides
No one likes to read a 1,000 word count blog when the information can be presented in a visually pleasing way. Charts, infographics and guides are so popular because they take the best possible content and make it easily digestible. There are only so many hours in a day – people will appreciate the fact that you went through the trouble to make learning easier for them. All industries and businesses can benefit from this type of visual content. For example, you could turn these things industry specifics into aesthetic wonders:
– Interesting statistics and research
– How-to’s
– Lists/Trends
– Compiled tips
– This or that (lead people to the right answer through a series of questions)
– Unique solutions to common problems
– Pairings (things that complement each other)
See this example of a pairing guide from local Princeton business, the Chocolate Lovers Club! (Click for full size)
Quotes, Tips, Advice
You don’t have to go and create a whole infographic if you want to provide one tip or one quote at a time. This actually helps to prolong the life of your content, because instead of sharing the same thing once a week, your fans are constantly getting something new and fresh. Funny or inspirational quotes placed over a photo related to your business are similar to the popular memes floating around on the internet. Try it and see what kind of response you get!
This is an example of how author Ellyn Spragins pulls quotes from her books every week and makes them a little more exciting! In addition, she puts a link back to her website which is so important for driving traffic back, as well as having the viewer associate the image with the brand.
Other Creative Ideas
If you want to get really creative with an image of your product or service, there are a few things you can do to spice it up.
– Feature your employees/customers with interesting information about them/quotes from them
– Showcase your product with other complimentary products (particularly for fashion brands/boutiques)
– Take before and after (particularly for services like webdesign, home décor, etc.)
– Create recipe cards (particularly for restaurants, bars, and food brands)
Instead of just posting a photo of this coat, Flemington Furs compares this coat with a coat you’d find on the runway. Doesn’t it make it a little more exciting?
Dana Jefferson is the designer behind the chocolate pairing chart, the quote and the runway to realway image. Dana Jefferson is a student at St. John’s University (’13) in NYC, studying graphic design and doing freelance design and fine art work. She specializes in branding, package design, typography, and drawing. She is inspired by designers such as Walter Landor, Milton Glaser, and Herb Lubalin. Her work can be viewed at: http://www.behance.net/