Picture this! The Impact of Images in 2012

Social media has trained us to be brief and visual. Text heavy powerpoints seem so 1980s
compared to a 140 character tweet. We get so much more love with our image versus text only posts. Instagram, Pinterest and smartphone cameras have made it easy to create, share and curate images.

Getting Visual in 2012: Key Stats 

• Phones have gotten smarter: 1 in 2 mobile phone users have smartphones (Nielsen)
• People are getting social on their phones: 40.8 billion minutes spent on mobile social media apps in 2012, 76% YOY growth (Marketing Profs)
• Sharing pictures has become common : 56% of internet users share images they created or curated (Pew Internet)
• Instagram is a huge depository of images: Instagram has 1 billion+ images and is adding an average of 5 million+ Photos Per Day (Instagram)
• Pinterest is driving huge traffic : Pinterest made the top 50 web properties list with 25 million visitors which makes them the 4th most visited social media site (ComScore)
• Brands are investing in Instagram and Pinterest: 63% of the top 100 brands are on Pinterest, 54% on Instagram.  (Simply Measured )

A more visual social media space is putting pressure on brands to produce unique, relevant and engaging visuals. Not easy! Here are a few examples of visual strategies that work.

Behind the Scenes:

Post pictures to offer a glimpse of the real people behind your company and operations. Pampers adds a human touch by congratulating its employees who have new babies.

Create a Visual Identity:

Invest in graphics that match your brand personality for your social accounts. Intel stands out for it’s geeky but clever images, especially on Facebook.

Contests:

Hold a contest to get users to contribute images tied to your brand and up engagement. Ben & Jerry’s is offering Instagram fans that share their #CaptureEuphoria moments for a chance to be featured in local ads.

Be Trendy:

Use special events, hot topics and holidays to create visuals that are topical. Extra points if you can use images of your product creatively like Diet Coke.

Infographics:

Create infographics using your in house data, survey results  and/or secondary sources to tell a compelling story on a topic related to your brand.  Amstel took infographics to another level by using Facebook data to allow users to customize an infographic about themselves. Here is my very own Complicated Facebook tale:

Going Vintage

Dig up old pictures to share some history and add personality on your social accounts. American Express regularly digs up vintage photos that add fun to their accounts.

 Which images do you think work on social media?

Want more? Take a look at the great post and useful infographic over at Socially Sorted. See a good list of great instagram campaigns on Postano.