27 Mar Do You Have a Visual on the Future of Social Media?

Over the past few months it’s become obvious that the fastest growing social networks are Pinterest and Instagram.  Facebook image posts seem to generate more reach, likes and comments than any other type of content.  On Twitter, links to images are becoming more popular than any other content posted.

Images are becoming more important on websites and web pages are getting shared online, with the images from the pages being the focus of the share.

Are images the new key to success in social media marketing?

Here are some stats to consider:

• Images are the most shared and clicked on content on Twitter.
• Images receive 50% more interactions on Facebook.
• Google+ users have uploaded 3.4 billion photos.
• Recruiters spend more time examining a LinkedIn user’s picture than actually reviewing the person’s qualifications.

As you assess your strategy for social media there are 3 things that you must think about if you want to grow the reach of your business and traffic to your website.

Your website

Images on your website are very important to how your website is shared on social networks and ultimately how much traffic you get from social media.  If you don’t have a relevant image on your web page, when it is shared on Facebook it wouldn’t include an image and would generate fewer clicks and traffic to your site.

Additionally, people are scanning websites more than reading them. No one has the time or patience do read a website that looks like a 40-page brochure. You must tell a story, and that story is best told today with images.

You can’t ignore it any longer: you must include images as a part of your strategy on social networks.  On LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter images are key to generating shares and clicks.  Images should be at the core of your content strategy for these sites.

Look at your overall strategy

Visual Social Media sites like Instagram and Pinterest are naturally among the quickest growing social networks, but is it right for your business?  If your brand is highly visual like food or retail, these sites can provide great visual awareness and traffic for your brand.  Take the time to understand if visually-driven social networks might be right in helping your business to grow online.

If not, it does not mean your website, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn strategies do not need a visual overhaul!

What do you think? Do your image posts generate more comments, likes and shares than your other content?