There is no doubt that images play a very important role in social media marketing. This was proven recently by the billion-dollar deal that saw Facebook’s acquiring Instagram . Research has shown that almost 80% of the activities on Facebook revolve around users uploading, commenting, viewing or liking photos. This is something that cannot be ignored, considering the social network has more than 800 million users.
The following are some of the reasons why images are essential for successful social media marketing.
1. Images are easy to share
If you update your status on your Facebook stage, people can either comment or like that status. However, when you upload an image, there is the option of sharing. This means that people can easily repost the image on their profiles, thus reaching many other people. Photos are therefore more effective for social media marketing compared to mere status updates.
2. Images are easier to understand and more memorable
Copywriters can take days to craft a marketing message, putting together words which will evoke the best possible response from readers. Indeed, there is real value in that. However, as it has always been said, a picture is worth a thousand words. An image can convey a more emotional and much deeper message than any status update. This is especially true in the case of Twitter, where status updates are restricted to a 140-character limit.
3. People prefer to interact with images
If a post is image-based, your followers and fans are more likely to comment, share, retweet or like it. This interaction is vital for successful digital marketing. Every time people interact with any of your posts, they expose your business to their own social circles. Strong, relevant images can therefore be very effective in accelerating brand awareness.
4. Images add a ‘human touch’ to businesses
Driving sales pitches on social media sites can very easily put off your audience or followers. No one wants to be friends with someone who always wants something from them. That is very inhuman. Photos are a great way of humanizing your business, thus making it more relatable and attractive to prospects. Customers want to deal with someone whose life is similar to theirs, and grapples with the same problems they do. The best way of identifying with your audience is to give a personal touch through photos which show elements of your personality. Upload photos from your recent vacation, about your new born baby or a major conference you attended. This way, your audience will see you as an ordinary person who just happens to be an authority in a specific subject area or field. Many of the leading internet marketers use this tactic to gather more people around themselves.
Conclusion
To ensure your photo sharing on social media networks is effective, you need to be very creative and to use appropriate tools. Don’t just limit yourself to Facebook where only your fans and friends can see your photos. Open accounts on other sites such as Flickr, Instagram and Twitter. When choosing photos to share, use photo editing tools to put some finishing touches. There are many free services online that can help you put images in the proper shape and format. This will ensure that the photos, once shared, will capture the attention of the audience and convey the correct message.
Proper images which have been posted on the internet will continue working for you for a very long time. The people that see your images will inevitably get an idea of what you do and who you are. This will increase your chances of getting new business leads.
Charles Mburugu is a technology enthusiast who is currently writing for a blog promoting coupon deals such as istock promo code 2012 and jupiter images promo . He also writes about social media and internet marketing.
