Boost Your Business Website With Visual Content
We know that written content can make or break a website, but have you ever considered the importance of visual content within your site?
Written content is a must within any successful website, but as of late there has been an emerging importance on visual content to accompany text. Social media is changing the lens through which marketing is viewed, with major visual players like Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest coming on the scene. Facebook now ranks video content higher than its textual counterpart, so it could be time to invest in some visuals to boost your biz.
Quicksprout, a website consultant company, found that 63% of social media is now made up of images and nearly 66% of social media updates include some sort of visual content. Posts with relevant images get 94% more views than content without (the equivalent of double the views). Considering that tweets with images receive 150% more retweets it is definitely worth experimenting with images on Twitter.
According to Kissmetrics, visual content can give your site the extra boost it needs if done correctly. Here are some tips on how to make the most of visual content on your site.
Photos:
Images are the best way to engage with customers on your social media channels and website. The human brain can process an image 60,000 times faster than text, and images can help our brains remain interested in any specific topic.
There are a few rules that you want to follow when using images:
- Don’t use any photo you find just to have an image; the key is ‘relevance’.
- Pick an image that catches your eye and piques your interest; chances are, your customers will find it interesting too.
- Avoid stock photos that are obvious or overused.
- Keep file size in mind whenever posting a photo; large images can slow your site down.
- If you are taking your own photos, test out different filters. However if you pick just one it’s best to stick with it so your site has some consistency.
Infographics:
Readers love infographics, it is a proven fact. While they might seem a little intimidating at first, infographics are worth the time spent creating them. Try different tools and if you’re not ready to commit to paying for a service, try PowerPoint. PowerPoint is a great tool for designers who are testing the waters. Start small like this simple visual and work your way up to greatness (like this one from Midphase!).
Video:
YouTube and Vimeo have made embedding and sharing videos super easy, although Facebook hopes to knock them off their pedestal with its new autoplay feature. In fact, many social media sites have now embraced video posts, and apps like Vine have encouraged the average person to get video crazy. This is great news for your site! Creating and posting video content could boost customer engagement with your site ten-fold. Readers expect video for explanations of difficult tasks and if you provide the answers to the questions your readers are asking you will quickly become known as an expert in your field.
For example: Midphase offers this super-helpful and informative video for our clients to create websites with our website builder package. It is embedded directly onto our site for easy viewing:
Other forms of visual content to consider:
- Comics
- Screenshots
- Visual notes
- Graphs & Charts
- Memes
- Gifs
Not every form of visual content is going to work for your site, but with a little trial and error you will be able to find the perfect fit for your readers.
For more help creating the perfect website visit Midphase.com