The benefits of pictures in social media posts and blogs are amazing: photos get 53% more Likes, 104% more comments, and 84% more click throughs on Facebook, according to a KISSmetrics study. However, do you know which pictures to accept, and which pictures to avoid? Here are three tips to pick the right picture.
Is the Picture Engaging, High Quality, AND Fast to Download?
Is the picture engaging? Does it have bright colours, happy people, good-looking products, and so? Does the photo draw your eyes in when you look at it?Is your picture of sufficient quality? A pixelated photo of extremely low resolution makes readers wonder why did you not use a better photo. On the other hand, you don’t need ultra-hi-res 45-megapixel photos. In fact, such photos will take too long to download. You need to carefully balance the photo size, quality, and download speed of the overall post. A good rule of thumb is to keep the photo under 100 kB, preferably under 50kB in size.
Is Your Picture Meaningful WITHOUT Additional Text Next To It?
If your picture is merely symbolic and is not a diagram, illustration, or photo of the article you are linking to, you will likely not get as many clicks and other engagements. Your post picture should tell the reader what will he or she will be reading.If you cannot find a proper picture, do NOT blindly search for free photos to just “something” to post. A random photo can make your post look unprofessional and affect clickthrus. However, you can make a “somewhat” relevant picture even more relevant by adding a few words as text overlay. Just don’t overdo it. 4-6 words should be sufficient to get your point across.
Can You Use It Legally?
If these pictures came from you or your company, then you can use them without worries. Previously I have discussed how to use your Instagram account for pictures to go to your blog or social media posts. This is the safest route.
If you did not create the pictures (or have permission from the creator) then do NOT use the pictures, even if you think no one will notice.
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