7 Visual Marketing Facts You Need to Know in 2020

When scrolling down your Facebook feed, what kind of content catches your attention? Is it text, images, videos, or GIFs?

As your eyes scan through your feed, you stop, whether on purpose or not, if a visual holds your attention. Most of the time, if the visual is engaging, it gets a click, a comment, like, or share.

Visual marketing involves the use of videos, infographics, images, and charts to increase your reach and engagement.

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Every marketer is fighting to catch and hold their audience’s attention. You want a consumer to not only see your content but read it and take some action.

It’s due to the effectiveness of visuals that images and videos are the most widely used types of content. 80% of marketers prefer using visual images when driving social media marketing campaigns, while 63% use videos.

Image via Social Media Examiner

This post covers visual marketing facts that will help you design effective strategies. But first, let us understand what visual marketing is.

What is Visual Marketing?

Visual marketing involves the use of videos, images, graphics, logos, and other multimedia content. Visuals let you engagingly convey your information. They can be a great way to get the attention of your audience, even when they are only skimming through your article.

Marketers can leverage visuals to tell a brand’s story or to inform and educate their audience.

In the previously cited study, 68% of marketers said that they wanted to increase their use of visual images. Additionally, 77% and 63% of marketers said they wanted to use more videos and live videos, respectively.

Visual Marketing Facts: Why Your Business Needs It

If you’re still not convinced about the power of visual marketing, here are some facts that prove its benefits as a marketing strategy

1. People Prefer Visuals to Text

Reading long articles doesn’t catch the fancy of all consumers. Not everyone has the attention span for it. In fact, only 20% of readers finish reading an article. The average reader reads only 25% of an article.

Furthermore, 73% of respondents said in a survey that they have less time to give towards reading and research. However, they revealed that they were willing to spare over five minutes for interactive and visual content.

Image via Demand Gen

By having visuals as part of your content, you can capture the reader’s attention. They can help you break down complex subjects into an easy-to-understand form. This, in turn, can help you increase the time people spend on your website.

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According to a survey by Infographic World, 61% of consumers voted infographics as the most effective form of content for learning and retaining information.

They help them think deeply about a subject, consider making purchases, discuss topics with their friends and family, and change opinions.

Image via Infographic World

When it comes to branded content, visuals win over text. Wyzowl found that 72% of consumers would rather watch a video than read text to find out more about a product or service.

HubSpot also found that 54% of consumers said they would like to see videos from companies or brands they support. A majority of the respondents also said that they preferred videos that were entertaining, funny, and informative.

Image via HubSpot

When it comes to attention span, the length of your videos is also an important factor. According to Vidyard, only 25% of the audience will finish watching a video that is longer than 20 minutes. If you want to hold the attention of your audience with videos, keep them short.

Key Takeaways

Visuals can get you the attention of your audience. Instead of writing a lengthy article on how to use your product, opt for visuals. You could make a fun infographic with instructions on the process.

Alternatively, you could also create a video explaining the process. Just make sure that your videos aren’t too long.

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2. Visual Marketing Increases Conversions

Facebook for Business found that 30% of US mobile shoppers consider video as the best medium to discover new products. In addition to this, 48% of Australians said that they had purchased a product after watching a branded video.

That’s all from Facebook. Google’s findings also reiterate this trend.

Think with Google also found that shoppers, overwhelmed by choices, turn to online videos for guidance on what to buy. They also found that:

• People spend double the time watching YouTube videos on the topic “Which product to buy” year-over-year.
• The total watch time for videos on YouTube related to the topic, “When to buy” has increased by 100%.
• 90% of shoppers have discovered new brands and products on YouTube.
• 60% of shoppers use online videos for inspiration and ideas for making purchases.
• 50% of shoppers revealed that online videos have helped them decide on which product or brand to purchase from.
• 50% of shoppers are likely to visit a store or consider buying a specific product if it is mentioned in a video online.
• 50% of shoppers stated that they used online videos while shopping in a store.

Image Source: Think with Google

Marley Spoon, a meal kit subscription service, tested this concept while trying to scale its advertising. They wanted to raise awareness and grow their customer base. They used a YouTube-only campaign, where they tailored every product explanation video to different audiences.

There was an ad showing how easy it is to use their service. Another one showed a family describing their experience in a humorous and emotive tone. They used different videos but with the same objective. They included calls-to-action at the end of each ad, encouraging viewers to “Sign Up” or “Try Now.”

Their brand awareness increased by 25%, while their branded search volumes increased 9.5 times. Subscriptions to their meal kit increased by 52% while ad recall grew by 49%.

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Key Takeaways

Use great visuals to create brand awareness and a clear path to purchase. Identify user needs and create content to address these needs.

The visuals will capture consumer attention, engage, and inspire them. Include a call-to-action to encourage them to act. The holistic visual marketing strategy can deliver both long-term and short-term goals.

Read the full post at ShaneBarker.com.