Best Visual Content to Use in Your Content Marketing: 6 Popular Methods
Nobody cares.
Nobody cares about what you have to say. I know reading this sucks, but it’s the truth. And the sooner you accept it, the sooner you can shift your focus to something that will make people want to care.
That something is visual storytelling.
It isn’t a sort of dark magic (that we know of); it’s just visual content at play.
Plus, you don’t need the brain of Stephen Hawking to visually communicate a complex concept; you just need a few ideas.
The water’s warm and we’re diving headfirst.
What Is Visual Content?
Visual content (or visual content marketing if you want to get fancy) means conveying your story using compelling visual elements. Unlike text content, visual content hinges on imagery, design, and aesthetics to communicate ideas and information.
But if your audience doesn’t care about what you say, why would they grace your visual content with a second glance?
Well, if you insist on going sciencey – a study found that people who follow directions presented with text and illustrations do the task 323% better than those who follow plain text. Studies like these are even more prevalent in this era of information overload, as brands need to capture and retain the audience’s attention with a visually stimulating and resonant experience. Studies also show that people remember 65% of the visual content they see 3 days later.
Let’s take Apple’s product launches as an example. When the company reveals its latest gadget, they don’t throw a wall of text at you. While you will eventually read the text specifications, Apple will draw you in with animations, short videos, and scenography.
Do you think they would’ve generated the same buzz with 20 lines of sterile text?
Debatable.
What Are the Best Types of Visual Content Marketing?
The key to success in visual content marketing lies in harnessing different tools and tactics. Although there are many out there, here are the 3 favorites that yield the best results:
1. Infographics
Infographics are royalty and we will bend to their every will and desire. They convey information in an easily digestible format and increase the drive to read an article by 80%. This is because it boosts information retention and is 3x more likely to be shared on socials.
the drive to read an article increases by 80% when an infographic is included
2. Videos
Video accounted for 82.5% of internet traffic in 2023. What does that tell brands?
It says that your audience are likely to spend much longer on your website or social media platforms if you engage them with video. Not only that, but video content helps build brand awareness and interest in your product or service. Plus, it’s a great way to show off your personality and values.
Video accounted for 82.5% of internet traffic in 2023
3. Photos
Although the popularity of a regular photo has waned a bit, we still have to underscore the significance of high-quality images as part of your content strategy. Photos and screenshots contribute to a positive user experience and have been shown to boost engagement time and time again.
For example, some case studies cite that tweets with images get 313% more engagement than those without. This isn’t a statistic to sneeze at.
3 Tips for Using Visual Content in Your Content Marketing
To create successful visual content, you need strategic choices and creative decisions. Here are 3 tips to make the transition easier for you and your brand.
Remember – creating content doesn’t have to be complicated, so don’t overthink it.
Use UGC
UGC (User-Generated Content) is a goldmine for any content marketing strategy. According to studies, up to 93% of customers mention it informs their purchasing decision. This content showcases your customers’ experience with your brand and isn’t just you shouting about how awesome you are.
Here, you leverage authenticity. Use case studies of before-and-after images to create powerful narratives that resonate with your audience or use branded hashtags and challenges to get your community involved. Who knows, you might even go viral.
Maintain Your Visual Identity
Consistency in visual identity is a non-negotiable element of effective branding. A cornerstone, so to speak. Your brand’s colors, fonts, and design style are the language your brand speaks. It’s how you convey your brand’s personality, values, and message.
If your brand colors are green and orange, for example, posting visuals doused in red and blue can create confusion and dilute your recognition. This is not to say you should ONLY post content in your brand colors, but make sure that when you venture beyond your primary palette, there’s a thread that ties everything back to your identity.
Repurpose Written Content
Turning your text content into engaging visuals like infographics or videos is a tactic that can elevate your content marketing efforts. Like a good teacher, you’re giving your students (readers) an opportunity to take in the information in a manner that suits them best, whether through text, images, or audio.
For example, since infographics can simplify complex topics and make data more understandable and memorable, you can summarize your blog posts and integrate the image at the top. This way, you’re delivering information in a format that’s not only aesthetic but also effective.
Strategy for success in Macedonia
What’s the right strategy for success in Macedonia? Why is it hard to make it here?
Essentially, it’s down to two things:
- Your definition of success (which conditions need to be satisfied, which goals need to be achieved)
- Your plan for success (how you plan to achieve the goal)
Ultimately, if you don’t know where you’re heading, you will always be in the wrong place. Therefore, you’ll need to define:
- Where you want to go
- The turnover you want to achieve
- The services you offer
- The products you produce
- How many people you want in a team
For the best results, we always aim to define the deadlines beforehand and allocate members of the team for each goal.
And when moving towards success, we shouldn’t only be motivated by the end goal. Instead, we should look forward to the way there and cherish every small success and every solved problem. And, of course, we should be driven by the consistent desire for a new, better goal.
So, where’s the challenge here?
Finding the right team, of course!
Usually, people with the same vision and enthusiasm are not found, but made. By focusing our attention on the big picture, describing it well, and being consistent with our promises, the right people will join and propel us further. Everything else will simply follow.
Overall, the greatest challenge is that we don’t have resources to learn from. As a result, we grow by trial and error. Unfortunately, when we learn from online resources, follow world trends, attend numerous webinars and buy hundreds of courses, our service may still fall flat in Macedonia. In fact, it will either be too expensive to implement or it won’t yield any results.
Therefore, it’s crucial to adapt world trends to suit Macedonia and the Macedonians, as one trend doesn’t work everywhere and appeal to everyone.
Trends that will dramatically change Digital Marketing in 2021
Trends That Will Dramatically Change Digital Marketing in 2021
As we look upon 2021, we must ask ourselves:
Which dramatic changes in consumer behaviour and marketing strategy will have a positive impact on campaigns and digital marketing in general?
Luckily, there’s reason to believe that the future in the digital world will be bright. In fact, many digital channels have significantly benefited from an unfortunate situation, one being Zoom, which experienced a dizzying share growth during the pandemic.
Let’s look at some trends we predict will dramatically change digital marketing in 2021:
Change in Consumer Behaviour
Although additional effort and research will be needed to predict consumer and user behaviour, it’s certain that companies and brands will have to undergo drastic changes in their approach to marketing.
Traditional event types and sale lounge visits will adapt to the ‘new normal’, subsequently bringing in a dramatic increase in virtual events and online sales.
Businesses Will Digitise
The pandemic has forced companies to digitise and a large number have begun heavily investing in digital platforms, e-commerce, bots, e-mail marketing, apps, artificial intelligence and the like. We expect this trend to continue well into the future.
Focus on Social and Ethical Responsibility
Studies have shown that business ethics will be at the forefront of marketing. Thus far, companies have somewhat neglected broadcasting their ethics and morals, which has, in turn, driven their customers away.
Nowadays, more brands have begun practicing anti-consumerism, an approach that didn’t make sense in the past.
Influencer Marketing Will Be Crucial
Although consumer brands have been using influencers in their campaigns for a while, the pandemic and physical restrictions have boosted influencer marketing to new heights.
Hopefully 2021 will be full of optimism, with a focus on digitisation and digital services, and with consumers striving for a faster and more simplified online experience.
Why Should Your Business Be on Social Media?
It’s almost certain that one of the first things you’ve heard about building a business is carving a social media footprint. It seems as if businesses wouldn’t be able to survive without it!
Although that’s not entirely true, social media will undoubtedly be a valuable asset to your marketing strategy and an indispensable link to your strategy chain.
But social media is not a one-and-done solution, neither is it a one-size-fits-all. So, to use it to its full potential, you need to think about your goals.
In general, there are 9 goals for being present on socials:
- Raising brand awareness
- Attracting visitors to your website
- Creating potential clients
- Growing revenue
- Raising brand engagement
- Building a community around your business
- Offering customer service
- Increasing your presence in print
- Talking with customers about your brand
These points will probably have more than one goal, but that’s fine. In fact, it’s generally encouraged.
However, you should focus on only a few goals until you’re confident enough that you (or your team) can handle more.
Are Businesses Without Digital Marketing Doomed to Fail?
Nowadays, it’s almost unthinkable for a business to neglect digital marketing. Even companies that have observed fantastic results with their campaigns will be forced to continuously adapt to stay in the game.
The automobile industry is a great example of this, i.e., Tesla has developed an innovative approach for constructing vehicles to resemble smartphones in that they contain touch screens and lack dealerships. In the beginning, everyone thought this was impossible, but Tesla has remained the fastest-growing vehicle manufacturer.
We can see a similar trend with many other businesses. The pandemic has shown us that business models which cannot be modernised or digitised will be left behind and forced to shut down to avoid unnecessary repercussions. In fact, underdeveloped countries are the only ones allowing state intervention for failing businesses under the pretext of protecting employees. Unfortunately for those involved, this inadequate practice leads to further indebtment and a more catastrophic collapse in the coming years.
Business leaders who want to maintain a competitive edge and keep up with trends need to ponder which aspect would benefit from automatising, new technologies, and digital marketing.
What to Look Out for When Promoting Your Brand
Platform Your Employees
There’s nothing more personable than a smiling face promoting your brand.
Often, companies post photos of team building events. While that’s all well and good, it’s difficult to differentiate individuals. Although team photos can be fun and have a certainly place in your strategy, you should never underestimate the power of a solo shot.
Share, But Don’t Overshare
As a company working with clients and partners, you undoubtedly have many interesting stories to share about them and your joint projects. A successful product or an award-winning service should be celebrated not just internally, but externally as well, through social media.
Don’t cleave to posting tediously long announcements about launching your app or financing a start-up. Although sometimes these posts should be seen on your page, ponder other ways of presenting the story. And remember to mind your tone – formal writing rarely does well on social media. Choose your brand voice, adapt it to your audience, and stick with it.
Neglecting Your Capabilities
Have you ever wondered why a talented individual would want to join your company? Is it the competitive salary? The delectable lunch provided? Not exactly!
In fact, more often than not, driven employees choose to become a part of a company because of their intrinsic desire to grow as a professional by contributing to the growth of their workplace.
As a result, ensure you show the outside world that you house intellectuals and professionals in your industry. Follow the simple truth that talent attracts talent, regardless of whether it’s directly or indirectly. And remember, showcase that you have people who are great and easy to work with.
Why Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing is the most cost-effective option on the market today. All funds invested are funnelled towards the right place and target the right people.
Nowadays, video seems to bring about the greatest advantage. Results are incredibly easy to follow and you can easily establish a direct communication line with consumers.
Since we carry our smartphones with us everywhere (even to a fault), social networking sites are our favourite source of entertainment. This is why it’s imperative for a business to be present on as many channels as possible, i.e., everywhere the target audience most often lingers.
As younger generations are glued to their digital devices and social media, they prefer solving issues with digital tools. Therefore, it’s more likely that they would refer to the Internet for shopping and ordering takeout.
So, if your business doesn’t take advantage of this vast pool of opportunity, you’ll miss out on a profitable source of income and a personal connection with your customers.
