Photographs and image editing techniques have the potential to double your social engagement. Images are a core component to maintaining audience attention and increasing site traffic. The kind of imaging and how you use it is key to a successful social media strategy.
According to Global Content Marketing Influencer Jeff Bullas, posts with images have 94% more total views than those without pictures. Images don’t only increase social engagement; they also enhance understanding and retention. Your audience may remember the message you are trying to send just because of the imaging.
Images convey messages and emotions, they communicate facts and opinions, and they invoke an atmosphere. Increasing your social engagement is not as easy as simply adding an image to your post; you need to have a solid social media and content strategy to be successful.
What do a successful content and social media strategy look like, and how will it increase your social engagement? Read along to find out.
Before looking for the perfect image, you need to be clear on what you want to accomplish with the content together with the image. What effect do you want it to have on the reader?
The aim of images should be divided into four categories:
- Inspiration
- Education
- Entertainment
- Provoking
Once you know within which category your content aim falls, choose an image that delivers the message you wish to relay.
Research Which Images Resonate
Be aware of the image content your audience is attracted to and engages with the most. You can do this by extracting historical, social data from networks your content and brand is active on.
Use social media management tools to highlight your content that has garnered the most attention and engagement, and outline the types of images that your most successful content has. From there, you can identify patterns across your social media platforms to make informed decisions on which images to use.
Creating and Sourcing Engaging Images
Sourcing engaging images can be intimidating, especially if you don’t have a social media management consultant or team.
Follow these tips to build a repository of visual content for successful engagement.
Capture Your Own Images
There is a misconception that you can only capture quality photographs with a professional, top-notch camera. But with the advanced technology of smartphones, you can capture and edit professional-quality photos.
When deciding on what to capture, look for:
- Contrast
- Emotions and Facial Expressions
- Angles
Access Youtube tutorials to learn the tips and tricks of mobile camera photography to capture engaging content. Facetune explains, whether it’s self-portraits or group portraits, face editor apps can transform your photo into flawless artwork.
Paid and Free Stock Photos
If creating your own images is not for you, consider stock image sites. You may need to open an account to access all the available photos as free stock photos are limited. Most stock photos are free from copyright restrictions, but some may require image attributions.
Ensure you do your research on attribution requirements before using the image.
Images to Avoid Using
As tempting as it is to use the Google image search to find the image you are looking for, 9/10 times, these images are copyrighted, and if not, they require royalties for their use.
Images, much like art and literature, are intellectual property that requires permission for use. If you do not pay attention to these legalities, you leave yourself vulnerable to a lawsuit.
Conclusion
Because we live in an age where visuals are so important, images have the potential to double or even triple your social engagement. Be mindful of which images you use, where you get them, and your intention when using them.
