What is the right image?
Selecting visuals for marketing communications
Selecting the right image for a content piece is crucial to grabbing your audience's attention, conveying your message effectively, and enhancing the overall quality of your content. Here's a step-by-step guide to help you choose the best image:
Understand Your Audience and Content** Before selecting an image, ensure you have a clear understanding of your target audience and the main message of your content piece. Is your audience professional, casual, young, or diverse? What emotions or ideas do you want to convey through your content?
Define the Purpose** Determine the purpose of the image within your content. Is it meant to illustrate a concept, evoke an emotion, or provide a visual example? Knowing the purpose will guide your image selection.
Maintain Relevance** Choose an image that is directly relevant to your content. It should enhance and support the text, rather than being a random or unrelated visual.
Quality Matters** Ensure the image is of high quality and resolution. Blurry or pixelated images can negatively impact the perception of your content's professionalism.
Visual Appeal** The image should be visually appealing and engaging. It should capture attention and entice readers to continue reading your content.
Consistency with Branding** If the content is associated with a brand or organization, make sure the image aligns with the brand's visual identity, colour palette, and style.
Copyright and Licensing** Always use images that you have the right to use. This could involve purchasing stock photos, using images from a reputable free image resource (like Unsplash or Pexels), or creating your own images. Emotion and Tone**: Consider the emotions and tone you want to convey. Is your content serious, lighthearted, informative, or inspirational? Choose an image that complements the desired emotional tone.
Composition and Balance** Pay attention to the composition of the image. Is it balanced, well-framed, and visually interesting? The image should be visually pleasing and draw the viewer's eye to the key focal points. Test and Feedback**: If possible, get feedback from colleagues, peers, or your target audience before finalizing your image selection. Different perspectives can provide valuable insights.
Alternative Text (Alt Text)** If your content will be published online, don't forget to provide alt text for the image. Alt text is a brief description of the image for accessibility purposes, helping visually impaired individuals understand the content.
Placement and Size** Consider where the image will be placed in your content. Ensure it's appropriately sized and positioned to fit seamlessly within the layout.
A/B Testing** If you have the resources, consider A/B testing different images to see which one performs better in terms of engagement and conversion.
It is important to remember, that the image should enhance your content and make it more impactful, so take your time to choose the right one. If you're ever in doubt, it's better to opt for a simpler, more neutral image than to choose one that distracts or detracts from your content's message.