Why is Visual Marketing So Important?

Visual marketing is the use of images, colors, video, signs and symbols to get potential customers to become attracted to your products and/or services. Studies by the 3M Corporation have shown that we process visuals 60,000 times faster than text. Thus, using visual marketing will communicate your message to your potential customers much faster and far more efficiently than using plain text.

You see visual marketing all around. T-Shirts, billboards, delivery trucks, buildings, etc., are all examples of visual marketing. But the internet has opened up a whole new world of visual marketing and we need to realize the importance of utilizing all it has to offer.

Reading the facts below will help you conclude that visual marketing is a necessary part of your marketing campaign.

1. Emotions – We make purchases based on our emotions and visuals appeal to our emotions. Think about a picture of the American flag. What emotions does that bring out? How about a picture of a soldier returning home from war holding his baby? The actual image of this brings out much more emotion than if we read the text describing it. Marketers know this and use it to their advantage.

2. Visitors who view product videos are 85% more likely to buy than visitors who do not. (Internet Retailer)

3. Blog posts with a visual can attract up to 3x more traffic than a plain text post. (SEOmoz)

4. Having visuals on your website can increase your monthly unique visitors by 200% - 300%. (Attivio)

5. Branding – Would you be more likely to notice the golden arches or a sign that said MacDonald’s? I know for me and many others it would be the visual rather than the text. Visual branding is one of the most important aspects of visual marketing. What do you think of when you see an apple with a bite taken out of it? How about a red and yellow seashell or a curved checkmark? These images have programmed our brain to think of one thing and it works!

6. Pinterest is a social site which uses mainly images. With that in mind, according to comScore, Pinterest buyers spend more money, more often, and on more items than any of the other top 5 social media sites. Studies also show that when it comes to revenue on a per click basis, Pinterest beats both Facebook and Twitter.

7. Articles with images get viewed 94% more times than plain text.

8. Social Media – Using photos and images on your social sites will dramatically increase interest in your posts and response to your posts.

9. By using images on your website, it is possible to more than double your conversion rate.

10. In effect, visual marketing will get you more traffic, boost your conversion rates and make your business more successful.

*Note: Always make sure you are using images legally. You cannot just copy and use any image you find on a website. Always check for license terms and usage specifics. Some terms only allow for non-commercial use and other such limitations.

“A picture is worth a thousand words.” I don’t know if the person who said this was referring to marketing but in the marketing world it is 100% accurate.

So, if you are not yet using visual marketing, get started now and “see” for yourself the difference it can make for your business and your success!