Visual content is king! As we quickly scroll through our favourite social media networks anything that is not easily digestible, eye catching or captivating is lost. By incorporating visual content into your content marketing strategy you can increase your brand’s reach and engagement because visual content is easier for your audience to comprehend and remember. In fact, research shows that we only recall around 20% of what we read, but we retain as much as 80% of what we see!
1. Stand out against your competitors.
It’s important to stand out and rise above your competitors. Do some research on your competitors to figure out what they are doing differently, what kinds of content are they creating and how they are engaging with their customers on social media – ask why potential customers are choosing to do business with other businesses instead of with you, when you have 10 years more experience and make better coffee, what are they doing differently? By studying and learning you will be able to plan your own visual content strategy more effectively and create content that is better tailored to your own target market.
2. Show you understand your customer.
While you want your visuals to grab the attention of your customers and potential customers, that’s only half the story. To create compelling content that adds value, you first need to understand your audience’s needs and expectations. By interviewing and researching your audience you can find out what problems they want to solve, you can ask them what content they would like see and you can learn what they would like to be informed about. This will give you ideas so that you can create visual content that is relevant, targeted and that has the power to persuade and move them to action.
3. Show your authority.
Your visuals represent your business, so it’s important to create compelling visual content that conveys your brand image and personality but that also show’s your professionalism and authority. There’s no point in putting up videos of your cat’s 18th birthday weekend if your business is developing software, but of course there would be value in posting videos of how the ease of using your software saves both time and money. Tips and tricks that provide value will keep you front of mind and help to cross-promote you as your customers share your insights with their own networks.
4. It’s easier to understand.
Visual content is easier to understand and will therefore reach your customers and deliver your message more quickly. There are lots of different types of visual content that your brand or business can create and start incorporating into its marketing strategy on a weekly and daily basis, such as dazzling videos, emotive photography, inspiring cinemagraphs or funny animations. The statistics can’t be ignored – to learn about something, 72% of people would rather watch a short snappy video than take the time to read several paragraphs of long winded text.
5. Grow brand awareness and drive traffic.
The key to your visual content’s success is to make sure it’s high quality, visually rich and that it both appeals and engages with your audience. So today, the expression “a picture is worth a thousand words” takes on a whole new meaning. The picture or video you shot at Cafe Swish of your smashed avocado with enoki mushrooms on chargrilled toast is worth more than a thousand words – today it could be worth a thousand likes, shares, comments, pins, retweets or favourites, and who couldn’t benefit from exposure like that?
These are all the reasons that a modern business wanting to engage with their clients needs a visual content strategy that provides constant & consistent brand awareness. Don’t worry if this sounds too much, at Crispy Dog we can help you create a tailored plan that is on budget – feel free get in touch!
