Netizens are getting more selective of the content they consume online. That’s why brands must find exclusive, authentic ways to attract customers to their websites and blogs. But, it shouldn’t be something completely out of the ordinary. Simply adding more visuals to your blog posts will work quite well.
Nonetheless, it’s not enough to just use random pictures from Google in your articles to accelerate your content’s marketing and consumption. You should carefully select visuals and make sure they convey proper, desired messages to your target audience. Read on to learn essential tips for finding and posting pictures on your blog.
Why should you use images in blog posts?
Recently, Optimind Technology Solutions presented demonstrative infographics, showing that online articles with images get 94% more views than those without pictures. Indeed, visual content serves as a great marketing tool. It grabs attention and allows readers to understand your messages and ideas better. Moreover, reading articles with no illustrations can get boring, as you only see text and nothing else to spice up your vision and complement the written information. When sharing your blog posts on social media, a cover photo will be the main detail in attracting readers.
5 useful tips for using pictures on your blog
Most blog posts contain pictures. But why do only a few of them achieve high ranks in search results? Learn here how to select suitable images, correctly combine textual and visual information, and understand the basics of SEO promotion.
#1 Search for realistic images of people
Nielsen Norman Group has studied user experience practices. Their research found that netizens spend 10% more time looking at pictures of people than reading content. Using images with people helps involve consumers with the content and build trust in the product.
Blog visuals must always look natural, without containing forced smiles or strange gestures. Realistic images of people also encourage readers to take action, e.g., book a personal consultation or leave a request. Just show your blog is written by people for people. You can add a company’s executives and staff photos to relevant posts, making them look more customer-oriented.
#2 Break up your text with visuals
Walls of text are hardly readable, making users leave those web pages as soon as possible. You can significantly improve the visual perception of your blog posts by separating long reads with images.
Blog Pros analyzed 100 of the highest ranking blogs on the internet and concluded that successful posts should contain at least one image every 350 words. You can use these statistics to make clear visual structure on your website.
Another text perception issue arises on mobile devices. They have small screens that don’t allow users to skim articles and make a reading decision. You can use sense-bearing, suitable images in your blog posts to give readers enough visual information about the content. By scrolling through the text and seeing relevant images, they can determine whether they’re interested in reading your post.
#3 Compress your images
Image size affects website loading speed. Moreover, each visual element loads in turn. The larger your files, the slower the page’s loading speed; endless waiting for a website to open is stressful. This is especially true for users who use smartphones with unstable internet connections.
You can compress photos used for a blog to fix this issue. There are a lot of online tools for quick, automated resizing. For example, the TinyPNG compressor can process up to 20 files simultaneously, allowing you to upload pictures for a specific article within a short time.
#4 Incorporate SEO elements
Internet users are using Google visual search more these days, and you can benefit from it. When you use pictures in a blog, they automatically appear in Google Images. This way, readers can find your site after browsing relevant content in the search engine. Make sure to describe your photos by adding alternative text, so users can find them by keyword. Alt picture attribute is a short description for users and search engines.
These simple manipulations will help encourage users to visit your blog and attract new potential clients. To add alternative text to your image in the WordPress content management system, proceed with the next steps:
- Open your website admin panel, go to the Posts tab, and create a new article.
- Add a relevant image in the text editor workspace.
- Click on a picture and go to the Image Settings tab in the menu.
- Enter your image description in the Alt block.
#5 Only use legally-downloaded pictures
All visual content on the internet is released under specific license types. Some of them prohibit image usage without source attribution or for commercial promotions. What’s important, search engines crawl all files on your website. If they find illegal images, your source can be banned and you can even receive an infringement lawsuit. It is complicated to eliminate search engine restrictions, so you should monitor the quality and legality of the published content.
Small businesses and start-ups often can’t afford to shoot their own unique content, especially when they are just going to use images for illustrative purposes in a blog post. However, you can download ready-to-use, free licensed pictures on stock content marketplaces.
Where to download images for your blog
Depositphotos.com is one of the largest stock content marketplaces with an extensive library of photos, vectors, illustrations, infographics, videos, music tracks, and sound effects. The platform features 230+ million royalty-free files and is constantly updated with fresh content. You can browse thematic collections and trendy collections to find relevant pictures on topics for your blog.
Using advanced filters can significantly speed up your image-finding process. You can sort files by type, orientation, date, contributor, color, number of people, location, and origin. If you have a reference picture you’d like to use, but don’t know if you have legal permission, try the Search by Image feature. It will automatically find similar, licensed files in high resolution that you can use commercially.
Conclusion
High-quality images in your blog help accelerate your content marketing and encourage customers to read your online articles, stay on a website longer, and learn more about a brand. Properly-selected visuals look attractive, complete a text, and accurately convey your message. Make sure the images in your blog posts fit the topic, have appropriate sizing, and are correctly licensed. Browse stock content marketplaces like Depositphotos to find HD royalty-free images on multiple subjects.
