A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words
Whether you’re creating social media posts, blogs, or articles, it’s important to choose the right visual elements. You can write amazing posts all day, but without incorporating an eye-catching, beautiful photo, your message can fall flat or be overlooked. Humans are visual creatures and articles with photos receive approximately 94 percent more views, than articles without photos. Keep reading to find out how to make the right photo choices for the highest impact.
Quality > Quantity
Although it’s true that a picture is worth a thousand words, ten photos do not equal ten thousand words, at least when it comes to marketing. The careful selection of one photo with wonderful lighting, color scheme, and composition will do more for your post than a hastily chosen selection of multiple photos. If you’re searching for photos and you only find one that works, that’s completely fine. Don’t force yourself to choose a few more just to beef up your post; this won’t do you any favors. Too many photos in your post will likely distract from what you have to say, and you do not want your message to be overshadowed. One feature photo at the top of your blog or article will be a lot more effective than photos inserted after every paragraph.
Stick to Your Budget
When choosing photos for marketing use, it’s important to keep your budget in mind. If your business allots you thousands of dollars to spend on photo choices for posts, go ahead and search for images on websites like Shutterstock and iStock. These websites offer thousands of high-quality, gorgeous photos, but for a price. Photos can range anywhere from $5.00 to $50.00 or more, so purchasing photos from these sites can definitely add up. If you’re looking for free photo options, websites like Pexels and Unsplash are great options. They don’t offer the same variety as Shutterstock or iStock, but the quality is amazing and you’ll save a ton of money.
Keep Your Brand’s Color Scheme in Mind
When you’re looking for the right photo, it’s important to keep your brand’s color scheme and aesthetic in mind. If your color scheme is full of warm colors, like orange, red, and yellow, you should look for photos with a warm undertone to them. On the other hand, if your color scheme consists of cool colors, like blue, green, and purple, you’ll want to look for photos that match appropriately. If you find the perfect photo, but it doesn’t quite match your brand, you can always apply a filter using a photo editing app, such as PicMonkey. There are filters that allow you to change the warmth of your photo, as well as the overall color. Keeping your business’ visual messaging consistent across all platforms can help develop your brand, and make it more recognizable to customers.
Follow Your Instincts
There are tons of articles out there that give you the dos and don’ts of choosing photos, but when it all comes down to it, you know your brand better than anyone. If you feel that using a photo that breaks from your brand’s color scheme will have the best impact on consumers, do it. If you want to feature more photos than generally recommended, do it. As long as you create posts that you’re proud of and customers respond well to them, you’re headed in the right direction.
About the Author
Annie Astraikis is Parklife’s Social Media Manager.