The much-parroted “content is king” has long been replaced by the more provocative—and accurate—assertion: “Visual content is king.” Just take a look at your feeds and you’ll find that wherever you go, whether it’s Facebook, LinkedIn or even the traditionally text-based Twitter, there’s a steady stream of images and videos vying for your attention.
As a business leader, entrepreneur or marketer, you’ve probably already initiated your own visual content marketing strategy, even if it simply means adding more images to your blog posts. That’s okay—to start.
To really set yourself apart, though, you have to rise above the noise by being more deliberate about the kind of visual content you’re putting out there.
For example, filling your posts with nice-looking stock images isn’t really going to cut it nowadays. To get others to really appreciate your brand and what it stands for, you should consider some of the most shared content pieces out there today and what they can do for your social media engagement levels.
So, let’s take a look at what the numbers say about the most viral visual content formats:
- In 2014, the amount of video on Facebook’s news feed increased 3.6 times in comparison with the previous year.
- On Twitter, it was found that tweets with images received 89% more favorites, 18% more clicks, and 150% more retweets.
- In a recent study, 86% of consumers stated that they were looking for more interactive and visual content on demand, such as videos, interactive presentations and infographics.
- In a study conducted by Buzzsumo, it was found that the most shared content type is the infographic.
- 70% of marketers plan to increase their use of original visual assets, such as infographics and memes, in 2015.
- A 2014 survey reveals that the use of infographics increased from 9% to 52%.
How to Create Better Visual Content
The numbers clearly show that people are more likely to share original, interactive, and visually engaging content. But how do you go about doing this if you don’t plan on hiring a full-time graphic artist or designer?
Here’s where Visme comes into the picture.
A powerful, drag-and-drop multi-tool for visual content creation, Visme is designed to help individuals and organizations create compelling visual content for a variety of needs.
From infographics and presentations to reports and product demos, any type of visual content can be created with this free online software. The best part is you don’t have to be an expert in visual arts to create content your followers will actually share.
Packed with professional-looking templates that can be completely customized to your needs, as well as millions of free images and thousands of icons, Visme allows you to save time and still create something that looks like hours were spent doing it.
Here are just some of the ways Visme can kickstart your visual content marketing strategy with new and original content:
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Create shareable infographics
Researchers have found that visual data is processed a whopping 60,000 times faster than text. Studies have also found that the majority of people—some studies cite as much as 60%–are visual learners. This explains why infographics are a surefire way to increase social media engagement.
The problem is that without a graphic designer on board, this would take weeks, even months to complete. Visme helps you create content at a consistent pace by simplifying the process of infographic development. With customizable templates designed for a variety of purposes and different formats and styles, Visme’s software allows you to create eye-catching annual and financial reports, campaign launches and updates, and blog posts in infographic format. This guide can inspire diverse businesses in their creation of highly viral infographic pieces.
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Create interactive presentations
Another big trend in content marketing is visual storytelling. In order to rise above the fray and avoid rehashing the same old content in unoriginal ways, the most innovative brands are engaging their audiences with captivating visual stories. One of the best ways to do this is by repurposing existent blog posts and e-books and turning them into sleek presentations that can be shared with your networks and embedded anywhere. If designed with a clear storyline and the right color combinations, images, and amount of text, you can be sure that your followers will spend a lot of time engaging with your content.
You can find a ton of useful tips on designing killer presentations—whether to use them as embeddable slide shows or as presentation aids—in this webinar.
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Create memes and imagery
Memes and images with overlaid text are everywhere nowadays—and their popularity is only growing. Instead of filling your posts with overused stock photos and irrelevant images found online, you can create your own original memes using Visme. Its extensive font and image library will surely inspire you to have fun with visual content creation and even unleash your untapped creative potential.
These are just a handful of the viral content formats you can incorporate into your visual content marketing strategy to increase your engagement levels by leaps and bounds. There are many others. See for yourself how others are using Visme or try it today for free. You might just surprise yourself and find another innovative use for this highly versatile software. Happy content creation!
Disclaimer: I was not compensated by Visme for this post. I use Visme and this post is based on my experience using it.