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Better Social Media Images Improve Audience Engagement

by Good2bSocial • October 4th, 2018 • Social Media | Blog

social media imagesNot all social platforms are created equal. You know this, but have you considered how your use of visuals should vary based on each platform? Every social channel will have their own best practices to engage your audience. The images and visual aids you choose are a big part of building a bigger, more active audience.

Our experts have spent time researching what you need to know about social media images, and have some data-driven tips to help you pack a punch with your visuals.

Pay attention to the big four

We’re not talking about the major accounting firms. We’re talking about ingenuity, brightness, liveliness, and clarity. Research discussed at the International Conference on Information Management in 2018 showed that images that were heavily liked on Facebook tended to display these 4 characteristics. Law firms and other businesses might need to get creative in coming up with images that are “lively” and “bright” – but if you do, you’ll have a lot more success than using another stock photo.

Facebook and Instagram are not the same

Marketers sometimes believe that if an image does well on Facebook, it will do well on Instagram (and vice versa). These platforms are quite different and therefore, that doesn’t ring true. Successful Instagram posts tend to be brighter, and have a lot of white space or background space in them. More specifically, images that create engagement on Instagram tend to have colors toward the blue end of the spectrum and feature low saturation, with gray or faded tones. Images with a single dominant color and those with a lot of texture also tend to do well.

It’s also interesting to note that on Facebook, images with a body part interacting with something (such as a hand or arm) perform better than those with faces. On Instagram, the opposite is true, and images with faces earn more likes.

Make images informative

A new trend in social media images is creating data visualizations for content. Informative images (or infographics) can be a powerful way to gain attention on social media. If your firm has conducted research or has complex information to share, it’s worth breaking it down into a visual format that is easily digested by your audience. If you choose to go this route, be smart with your use of color (for example, using it to separate categories), and leverage simple charts and graphs that people are used to. Use design methods to draw the viewer’s eye toward the most important features, and make sure whatever format you’re using won’t leave the image looking cluttered.

Hints are all around you.

When in doubt, turn to your own feed. See what is getting shared and what you are drawn to. You can assume that images that have been shared multiple times are creating higher engagement. If you like a photo, and see others have as well, you can assume people are drawn to it.

Takeaway

Social media is always changing and so there is always more to learn. If you need any guidance in sprucing up your social media presence, or understanding how it can make an impact for your firm, feel free to ask.

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