1. Question 1
Visuals are not decoration. They are communication tools. Provide three strategic reasons why visuals are essential to effective web content. For each reason:
• Clearly explain the concept
• Provide a real-world example (not generic statements)
Marks are awarded for depth, not surface-level answers. (6 Marks)
Strategic Reason 1
Visuals Leave a Lasting Impact
With visuals you are able to leave a lasting impact on your audience as retention is increased compared to written information “People remember only 10% of information heard three days later, but retain 65% when paired with relevant images. Visual learning increases retention by 400% compared to text alone” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 4) This shows that our minds desire visual stimuli and thus we can more easily recall information spread through images rather than something explained with words. “67% of consumers say product images are very important in purchase decisions, 84% of people have been convinced to buy after watching a brand’s video” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 5) Visuals create trust when it comes to brand communication, it allows us to connect with a brand on a deeper level and drives us to want to purchase an item. If McDonalds had an advertisement out for its new burger but instead of their advertisements featuring a tasty burger they simply put text describing the burger. We may be able to imagine the burger based on words like brown juicy paddy or melted cheese but people will be less likely to remember the description. We are visual creatures “90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 1) So it is no wonder we gravitate towards visuals and why they leave an impact on us.
Visuals have played a role in advertising even before the internet and when advertisers were competing for people’s attention on traditional media. The major difference between now and then is that the audience isn’t captive, they have more of a choice to scroll away from your ad and find something more entertaining. This is why impactful visuals matter “People form first impressions of websites in just 50 milliseconds” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 1) This applies to all visuals and shows that the impact is almost immediate but this also means consumers are quick to judge a book by its cover. If the image catches our attention but it isn’t impactful it can be just as easy to forget as it was to process it.
Again it must be emphasized that the viewer only has so much time they can spare “The average attention span is 2.8 – 8 seconds” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals.pdf, Slide 13) and its important to recognize the viewers time is sacred and if the visual is uninteresting or not impactful then they will likely not care to read or listen past the initial two seconds. Images are more than just a visual checkmark that accommodates your written work, if your visual doesn’t stick out then why should anybody read it? If you’re scrolling on TikTok or YouTube reels and an ad pops up but the first two seconds are just silence with no visual stimuli what’s the point of your staying on that video. If you are writing a blog post about a niche topic and instead of incorporating visuals, you simply have a wall of text in a basic font. People will take one look at that and not bother reading it because there’s too many words. People aren’t stupid they’re stingy and their time matters to them.
While visuals do leave a lasting impact this must be considered strategically. Visuals must feel relevant and appealing to be impactful. Without impactful visuals viewers are more likely to ignore or forget what is being offered to them.
Strategic Reason 2:
It Leads To Conversions
When discussing the strategic impact of visuals online it should be emphasized that incorporating visuals leads to a higher conversion rate “88% of people say they’ve been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a brand’s video.. Landing pages with videos can increase conversions by up to 86%. Quality product photography directly correlates with purchase confidence” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 5) Visuals like video demonstrations, product photography and other visuals create trust and reduce anxiety for the consumer. People want to purchase something that feels tangible and something they can visualize themselves using in their lives. The best comparison would be innovations in this area that uses your camera to generate a photo of how you may look wearing a product. Hair stylists have even incorporated using AI to let someone see what a hairstyle may look like on them. While these examples may seem above and beyond in some cases it still clearly emphasizes a consumer’s need for visual reassurance, it’s harder to trust someone who describes the mansion they own but never shows it versus someone who actually shows you the mansion in person.
Beyond images and video interactive content is another powerful tool in this regard, “Interactive Content generates 2x more conversions than passive content and increases time on page by 47%” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 6) Consumers crave interaction, it feels unique and allows the user to immerse themselves in the content. By feeling as if they were part of the content they feel they have a stake in the information they are learning. Interactive content has been shown to work with cases such as Shopify Merchants who offered “360 degree product views that increase conversion rates by 27% and reduce returns by 22%” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 9) by letting the user experience the product as if it was right in front of them, the user gains trust in the product.
When incorporating visuals the easier the consumer can visualize the product in their daily life the better. This variable can depend on the perceived cost, you likely wouldn’t need a 360 degree view for a burger from McDonalds but if you’re buying a car that’s a large investment and requires more reassurance. Visuals provide reassurance to consumers and reassurance creates conversions.
Strategic Reason 3
Visual Makes Up The Modern World
Everybody is a photographer, designer, cinematographer or essentially anything that used to cost thousands of dollars to produce in the past visually. Just take a look at the apps we use like TikTok, YouTube Reels, Instagram Reels and other short form video content apps. “Instagram has 2.5 billion active monthly users” (Briscoe, W9 – D – Enhancing Content (W26).pdf, Slide 19) “10% of all pictures taken by all humankind were shot in the last 12 months” (Briscoe, W9 – D – Enhancing Content (W26).pdf, Slide 15) These stats highlight a powerful truth, visual is the dominant medium in the modern day and if you still prioritize written content alone you are being left in the mud. With everyone else being able to share visually it means that visuals are a necessity in web advertising and it helps create a clear picture of the extreme amounts of information people are processing on a daily basis.
“Tweets with images receive 150% more retweets than text-only-tweets” (Briscoe, The Power of Visuals in Web Content Overview (W26).pdf, Slide 9) The thing with twitter is that when somebody uses the app they are effectively ‘doomscrolling’ they are quickly running through content, processing everything in milliseconds and will only stop if they are captivated by a post. The best way to get someone to stop scrolling is to incorporate a visual element that engages the user and captures their attention. This is not news, you are competing with everyone who has posted a photo on their feed so why put yourself at a disadvantage by not adding a visual element to your post.
This rule should go for any bit of content that you make. If you know you’re competing with 2.6 billion other people and brands then you should be doing anything to get an edge against your competition. By incorporating visual elements you immediately eliminate competitors who did not utilize them.
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