5 Tips for choosing images for social media

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5 Tips for choosing images for social media

Why is choosing images for social media so important?

Simple. An image conveys a thousand words and emotions, and people have an attention span of less than nine seconds.

When it comes to choosing images for your social media platform, you must understand the platform itself, and who your audience is.

Consumers will make a decision based on the aesthetics of a product. Therefore, you must be able to appeal to their interests and needs. You can achieve this with the images you select for your campaigns.

In this post, we’ve got five tips to help you choose the best images for your social media platforms.

1. Different platforms, different image sizes

As mentioned above, you must understand the platform you want to use. This means knowing where images will display and know the different image sizes that will fit these different real estates on the platform.

Cropping or resizing your images to fit the different placements on various platforms, will inform you on the image to use. When you crop an image, some elements can be lost, and you don’t want to use an image that will distort the “story” the image conveys. When images don’t render properly, the emotion evoked by your followers might be that you don’t care about the presentation of your brand.

What are the different image sizes for social media platforms? Read this guide for the different sizes.

2. Use high-quality images

Quality image means selecting high resolution photos. The more pixels an image contains, the more vivid, clear, and detailed the image is. The fewer pixels an image has, the more it looks pixelated, making the image blurry.

When cropping or resizing images, always choose the largest file size possible so you don’t lose resolution and details in the image, and risk having a blurry picture on your social media feed.

3. Select attention grabbing photos

We’re all fighting for attention on social media. That’s why it’s essential to understand the platforms and know your audience. When these two practices are understood, you can now differentiate your brand from the rest, and create content your followers can’t ignore.

Share photos that are of interest of your following and social media posts that contain images perform better and receives more engagements than posts without.

4. Diversify your images

Now that you have attention-grabbing photos, you will need to diversify your images to keep interest and to keep your audience wanting more.

Mix your feed with a variety of stock photos, infographics, memes, and videos/gifs.

When you change the visual information on your feed, you avoid user fatigue, keep your followers engaged, and interest in your content.

5. Have a consistent visual identity

Brands now have multiple social media accounts, it’s crucial to keep your visual identity consistent so your followers recognize your brand.

Your visual identity is as vital as your written message. It’s important to connect your images to your message every chance you get. Using a consistent visual identity tied with your message, will create a stronger brand recognition, whether your followers are on Instagram or on Twitter.

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