Words are brilliant! – as are images.
Take Snapchat, Pinterest or Instagram – all claim to be the fastest growing social media network depending on who you read – but so what?
(and incidentally, Facebook has plateaued out in this respect – even though it’s miles ahead with 71% take up amongst internet users)
…but speaking of Facebook, they rolled out video streaming in response, so there’s something in it for sure!
Add to that the mobile revolution, and you start to see the future (ignore it, and your business will go downhill).
In 1996 I was at the top of my game in the software world.
I’d just won a national software award two times in a row. I was No 1 in my market.
But if I’d bothered looking at the big picture (the statistics and trends of the time) I would have seen the rise of something new – but I didn’t, and it cost me – I was out of business 3 years later.
The writing is always on the wall – you’ve just got to find the right wall.
Warnings of the 2007 crash were known about and predicted with almost 100% certainty a year before it happened (read The Big Short or watch the movie).
How do you know which wall to look for? Only by being totally on top of your game. All the signs are there, they always are.
Mobile and Images are it right now.
So why are we moved by images and pictures?
It’s obvious right! Our number 1 sense is visual. (for those that can see at least).
We’re told to add images because “it improves conversion rates”.
Even random images? Yes. But there’s a problem.
Random images on their own, are just that – random.
This is why so called ‘stock images’ are frowned upon.
Yet a stock image is no different to any other image. It’s just an image. It either has meaning in context or it doesn’t.
Here’s a new definition of what a stock image is:
[pullquote align=”normal”]”A stock image is a random picture chosen because someone once said adding an image increases your conversion rate” [/pullquote]
The next natural progression is to think about story. How can a picture be useful if it’s not part of the story? In truth it can’t – no matter how cool the image might be – (I know because I’ve tried it far too many times).
But you can still tell a complete story in a single image:
That image takes you on a journey. You have a start (where you are now without the thing you’re about to buy), a middle (the thing on its way to you), and the end (it gets delivered).
The text is used to add another benefit as well as stating it’s a great deal.
Powerful but simple stuff.
And because of trends we already know where all this is heading.
- Are all your online assets mobile friendly?
- Are you using images intelligently?
As for me, I’m still learning. Fighting through all that free “advice” is a nightmare that can only be filtered by experience.
And everything depends on how you feel when you see it. That’s my trigger. Am I moved? Does it move me in the right direction?
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