Visual marketing is the use of images, colors, videos, signs, and symbols to attract potential customers to your products and/or services. Studies by 3M Corporation have shown that we process images 60,000 times faster than text. Therefore, using visual marketing will communicate your message to your potential customers much faster and more efficiently than using plain text.

You see visual marketing everywhere. T-shirts, billboards, delivery trucks, buildings, etc. are all examples of visual marketing. But the internet has opened up a whole new world of visual marketing and we need to realize the importance of using everything it has to offer.

Reading the data below will help you conclude that visual marketing is a necessary part of your marketing campaign.

1. Emotions: We make purchases based on our emotions, and images appeal to our emotions. Think of an image of the American flag. What emotions does that bring? How about a photo of a soldier coming home from the war with his baby in his arms? The actual image of this elicits much more emotion than if we read the text that describes it. Marketers know this and use it to their advantage.

2. Visitors who view product videos are 85% more likely to buy than visitors who don’t. (Internet retailer)

3. Blog posts with an image can drive up to 3 times more traffic than a plain text post. (SEOmoz)

4. Having images on your website can increase your monthly unique visitors by 200% – 300%. (Attivio)

5. Brand – Would you be more likely to notice the golden arches or a sign saying MacDonald’s? I know that for me and many others it would be the visual rather than the text. Visual branding is one of the most important aspects of visual marketing. What do you think of when you see an apple that has taken a bite out of it? How about a red and yellow seashell or a curved check mark? These images have programmed our brain to think of one thing and it works!

6. Pinterest is a social site that uses mostly images. With that in mind, according to comScore, Pinterest shoppers spend more money, more often, and on more items than any of the other top 5 social media sites. Studies also show that when it comes to revenue per click, Pinterest outperforms both Facebook and Twitter.

7. Articles with images are viewed 94% more times than plain text.

8. Social Media – Using photos and images on your social sites will dramatically increase interest in your posts and response to your posts.

9. By using images on your website, you can more than double your conversion rate.

10. Visual marketing will indeed give you more traffic, increase your conversion rates, and make your business more successful.

*Note: Always make sure you are using the images legally. You can’t just copy and use any image you find on a website. Always check the license terms and usage details. Some terms only allow non-commercial use and other similar limitations.

“A picture is worth a thousand words.” I don’t know if the person who said this was referring to marketing but in the marketing world it’s 100% accurate.

So, if you’re not using visual marketing yet, get started now and “see” for yourself what a difference it can make to your business and success!