The story of achieving something challenging like climbing Mount Everest is not a new idea. So what makes the recent movie on Netflix calledThe Summit of the Godsdifferent? It’s one of the tales that used the power of visual storytelling.
In particular, the team used animation to showcase the hardship–and, later, the triumph–of scaling one of the highest mountains in the world.
Fortunately, one doesn’t need to produce a full-length feature to experience the same benefit. With 2D animation outsourcing, businesses can use the technique to implement a compelling marketing strategy.
What Makes Visual Storytelling Powerful
Not all marketing campaigns need storytelling to be effective, but most do. Here are the significant reasons visuals are potent tools in raising brand awareness, boosting sales, and increasing customer retention.
1. Humans Are Visual Learners
Do you ever wonder why kids usually receive picture books? Granted, almost everyone these days have a shorter attention span. Only a few have the time to read through laborious texts.
But there is another reason: humans are visual learners (or at least most of us are). Studies show that we are likely to retain 80 percent of what we see and only 20 percent of what we read. A study by 3M suggests that it could be because the brain processes visuals, such as images or videos, 60,000 times faster than text.
2. Visuals Can Better Express Emotions
The potency of visuals is also because they can better express emotions. Research shows that visuals are processed in the emotional part of the brain first. This is why ads that feature cute animals or people looking happy tend to be more successful than those with bland text-only messages.
Emotions matter in marketing for a variety of reasons:
- Emotions Sell: Understanding and leveraging consumer emotions in marketing is key to successful campaigns.
- The Halo Effect: Emotionally compelling images can influence product perceptions.
- Negative Comparisons: We tend to compare the things we see with our internal reference points (e.g., what we think is good usually doesn’t measure up).
- Consumer Activation: Emotional arousal speeds up consumers’ evaluation process.
3. Screens These Days Are So Much Better at Displaying Visuals
Back in the day, visuals weren’t as compelling because screens couldn’t display them as well. It didn’t help that web design was crude. Sometimes websites were accessible on laptops or tablets, but users still had difficulty browsing because the pages still used tables.
With the advent of high-resolution displays and retina screens, marketers can now display visuals in all their glory. YouTube, for example, can already play high-definition videos, which means images are sharper, cleaner, and more vibrant.
Users can also use streaming devices like Roku. This way, they can feed these videos straight from a mobile device to more giant TV screens.
4. Visuals Are Versatile
Visuals are versatile and can be used in a variety of ways. For instance, they can be animated to present a specific timeline. They can also create an infographic that explains something complex in easy-to-understand terms. The latter is perfect for e-commerce businesses because it shows people how products work and why they should buy them.
They can also be flexible. For instance, long-form video content uploaded on YouTube can become short-form. The marketer can then share it on social media channels, such as TikTok and Instagram, without losing the message in the process.
5. They Increase Engagement
One cannot understate the benefits of customer engagement. By increasing engagement, businesses can achieve several objectives such as:
- Generating leads
- Building brand awareness
- Boosting website traffic
- Improving SEO ranking
- Reducing shopping cart abandonment rates
- Increasing sales
Visuals play a significant role in achieving all these objectives. For example, social media posts with images or videos receive more engagement (likes, shares, and comments) than those without.
Infographicsalone can increase web traffic by almost 15 percent. eople are also more likely to read these materials completely than an article or a blog.
Visuals also help break up text-heavy content on the web, making it easier for people to digest information. They also increase engagement by drawing attention to essential elements on the page. When used correctly, they can also encourage people to take specific actions, such as subscribing to a newsletter or buying a product.
In a world where people are constantly bombarded with information, it’s no wonder that visuals reign supreme. They’re easy to process and communicate messages more powerfully than text. Marketers who use visuals to convey their messages are more likely to succeed than those who don’t. If you’re not yet using visuals in your marketing, it’s time to start.