By Joelle Harms | Senior Digital Editor
Seeing is believing.
And lucky for us, we live in a world where taking images or finding free images, illustrations and photos is as easy as 1- 2-3. (Just make sure you check usage rights before posting and editing.) Lone text isn’t acceptable to stand alone anymore — especially when you consider all of the visuals that are competing for your audience’s attention.
Getting your article read is (obviously) the main reason you write an article. But, it could be the best article in the world and not be seen because, well, your audience didn’t actually “see” it.
Here are the five reasons why you should always include a visual component to your online article:
1. Articles with images get 94 percent more total views. Optimind Technology, a digital marketing agency, published these results. Even if the numbers may not be as high as 94 percent for your website, chances are it’s more than 50 percent, which means this is pretty much a no-brainer.
2. It’s easy. “I wouldn’t do it if it was easy” is not the case here. Finding images to complement your topic is simple (and fun). See the bottom of this article for a list of resources I regularly use.
3. Not everyone is an avid reader. People or potential customers that visit your website may not be there to truly read. Most will skim — if that. Adding an image can really put words into meaning for those who are visual learners.
4. It makes the complicated uncomplicated. Not everyone is a wordsmith, and not everyone sees words the same way. Most writers have had work on their desk that requires meticulous wording because the topic itself is confusing. For articles like this, consider infographics or images that show steps.
5. The world of images is at your fingertips. Don’t be afraid to think outside of the box. Image allow for so much creativity and it allows us to experiment where sometimes writing does not.
Three free stock photo and image resources:
