Visual content marketing – do you know how to use an interesting visual effect to increase your sales? Everybody knows that clothes do not make the man – the most important is not visible. What matters is our hearts, mind, and intelligence, but the very first contact is visual, that is why we have to be dressed esthetically, our appearance has to be well-groomed. The look matters and is an integral part of our life. This is why visual content marketing focuses on observable, perceptible elements that are present on the website. Read the article to find out more.
Visual content marketing – table of contents:
- What is visual content marketing?
- Importance of visual content marketing
- Visual communication guidelines
- Summary
What is visual content marketing?
Visual content marketing deals with all components on the website that are viewable, besides the text. Those elements are especially important in the case of advertisements or other marketing materials.
Currently, internet marketing heavily depends on the visual aspects of the presented designs. All types of posts that are placed on social media (Facebook, Instagram, and others) have to contain some type of image to draw the attention of the audience. All visual materials have to be visually pleasing for the viewers.
Visual content marketing can utilize a wide range of features to create content for the brand advertisement. All visual components, that are not readable, are parts of visual content. Infographics are one of the most popular visual forms used in media recently. It is a type of design that connects features of texts and images. It can be created in many ways. One can use graphical elements such as icons, logotypes, shapes, arrows, or charts. It is a form of creation that aims to pass the information to the audience and visualize the content. The infographic aims to stop the eyes of the audience on the pictures during scrolling.
Banners are another universal and common form of advertisement. The traditional version of the banner has written content printed with the images on the sheet of material. On the internet, similarly to in case of infographics, the banner is a graphical form of content transfer – the content can be either informative or advertising, but in opposition to the infographics, that is purely informative, the banner encourages to visit the website, where the presented product or service can be bought.
Social media images are another type of visual elements that can be found on websites. Those components are used to create a pleasant for the eye graphical image that will draw the reader’s attention. Those images are usually graphics or mockups that are consistent with the brand identification when it comes to color or characteristic elements.
Pictures are the next from the huge set of visual elements. Those components are the basis of all websites and they do not disappoint the creators. All that has to be taken under consideration is that one should avoid downloading ready-made stock pictures from free platforms. Pictures should be unique, hence it is better to make them by yourself, especially if they are to present our products. To make good pictures one has to possess good equipment, although most of the creators use cameras on smart devices. Pictures made by the website owner will stand out from the crowd and attract attention.
Videos and gifs are broadly used for all types of promotional activities on the internet. For some target groups, videos are the best solution to pass interesting information. We can create video tutorials of our products or webinars with instructions – those forms are much better than traditional paper forms and guides. GIFs are types of graphics that are animated, the animation repeats itself. This form of animation should not be longer than 3 seconds and it is worth considering the appropriateness of the design for our selected target group.
Each graphical form, visualization, or recording is much more interesting than the traditional, dry text. In most cases, it is easier to remember the information that was presented visually.
Importance of visual content marketing
Visual content marketing has influenced internet marketing strongly. Currently, any text that is not accompanied by the images is almost invisible and perishes like a drop in the ocean. Social media and the internet are all about visual effects. There are many vital reasons to devote time to creating visual content, such as:
- The attention of the audience – graphics and other visual components, as was already mentioned, capture the attention of the users. On the internet, many advertisements are ignored by the users, and only well-thought-out designs have a chance to be spotted.
- Images help to remember – many studies have shown that people remember four times more if the content was presented visually than if it was just read. Graphical elements are easier to memorize than texts. It is worth paying special attention to advertisements and graphic designs since they can deliver our messages to clients faster and more efficiently.
- Increased audience commitment – social media are saturated with graphical designs and images. Most of the posts contain pictures or other visual components. Click-through rates depend on perception, users are more focused on optical effects and pictures translate into a stronger impact on their choices.
Visual communication guidelines
There are plenty of tips regarding the creation of visual identification of a brand, product, or website. Each graphic designer has his ideas, opinions, and secrets, but some factors are crucial for great visual content creation. One has to remember about:
- Color – keep consistency between your brand identification style and other visual components. Users should know that posts were created by your company.
- Target audience – select your content with your audience in mind, your designs have to be attractive visually.
- Images – images, and pictures are necessary for all types of posts to increase the chance of reaching your potential readers.
- Shorter forms – to encourage readers not to create long sections, and divide long texts into parts.
- Coherency – keep your visual elements compatible with the whole content. The images that are not consistent with the written messages confuse the readers and make your advertisements incomprehensible.
Summary
Even the simplest message may become a challenge for a company. To be successful one should pay attention to the visual part of online marketing. One has to remember that color is an inseparable element of the brand. Additionally, what is crucial, all the posts on social media have to be accompanied by graphics, images, and pleasant the eye visual elements. It is worth spending more time considering all the visual elements of brand creation – our designs should reflect the brand and its values. Great designs facilitate recognition of the brand through the coherent selection of colors and other visual effects.
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