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HOW DO YOU MEET YOUR AUDIENCE THROUGH DIGITAL CHANNELS?
- Break through the noise to reach today's visual customers
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Images play a crucial role in reaching your target audience through digital channels. Studies show that digital content containing relevant images get 94% more impressions than material that that lack relevant images*. Experienced photographer and creative producer, Kristofer Samuelsson, shares his best advice on how to best reach your target audience.
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Hi Kristofer! Tell us, what do you work with?
"I work with my clients' communications strategies, I lead workshops and create trend analysis, as well as I produce stills and videos, or a mix between the two."
"Many of my clients are working hard to meet their customers' changing needs and behaviors in digital channels. I am a creative producer that links the company's vision, activities and the external events to a relevant and workable plan for how to communicate with different audiences, segments in different channels."
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How do you see the role of images in digital marketing?
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"The picture definitely has a central role, and has found a new arena in digital development. Pictures engage, inform and create action. But the picture is not an isolated island, it should interact with the context surrounding it."
"Today, pictures are mixed with all kinds of media and available technology, new platforms, faster connectivity, targeted ads, and at the same time we have smarter tools to monitor statistics and follow up. This places greater demands on understanding who
we communicate with, or who we wish to communicate with."
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How is the picture doing in the digital world today?
"I think that there is an over-reliance on creating viral successes rather than long-term focus on getting the right message to the right audience, and measuring the effect of the image rather than shares and number of views. The visual power of images is strong, and when properly utilized, images will create commitment as well as action."
"With more than 1.8 billion photos uploaded daily, previously disparate image genres now flow together in a way that both image providers and purchasers should take into consideration."
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Can you tell us more - what does it mean when image genres flow together?
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"Just think of how your Facebook feed looks, with a mix of friends' posts, videos of cute animals, business ads and perhaps news media. This allows us to increase the tolerance for different expressions while also placing new demands on how companies communicate. The image simply must be interesting in order to stand out."
"The image must be share worthy and able to trigger action, and remain in line with what we expect the brand to communicate. If you wish to highlight sustainability, an example could be a selfie of a CEO in a field to create an authentic and transparent communication, while it would be wrong in other contexts."
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What is the difference between using graphics and images?
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"Just like how we work with a marketing mix in our communication, a variation or a combination of images and graphics in the right channels is the most effective. Today we more often see images in slideshows on Instagram or Facebook where graphics have been added in order to reinforce the message."
"Pictures have a visual appeal that quickly touches and engages while the graphics can quickly describe and inform. There is a huge noise in our digital channels and several hundred brands fight daily for attention, interspersed with friends and family's posts. This makes us ask ourselves how we can create images, videos and graphics that engage the audience we are trying to reach."
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How do we create engagement?
"My advice is based on the recipient's perspective, try to put yourself into what penetrates the clutter and creates effective communication. Is your post with image, video or text unique? What is worth being shared and spread further? If you can't answer that, you should probably re-think the operation."
"On a website, some other rules apply. On your website you are responsible for all the communication and the need to create interest using other variables
to find an interplay of shape, text, images, graphics and videos."
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Visual content is becoming increasingly more important for how people discover products and brands. What can a good image do that text can't?
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"An image can be loaded with the values ​​that we can communicate in seconds as opposed to a text. More companies must dare to stop showing their products in the picture, and instead make sure that the images are charged with the values that the recipient wants to surround themselves with or that the sender wants to connect their product with. It is more effective to focus on the experience of a product than to see the product itself."
"Text of course, is not unimportant, but if used correctly, will reinforce the image and together, text and image combine to send a strong message that provides the desired effect."
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Beware of the most common errors when you select images for digital channels
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• You may think the picture is interesting, but have you checked in with your target audience and figured out which emotions and action it evokes?
• In your eagerness, or lack of discussion and thought, you tend to choose too many product related and informative images, instead of those that arouse feelings.
• You select images with too much detail that do not display well on smaller screen devices. Many images have to work in an responsive web design, so it has to function as a landscape image in a laptop, but a portrait in a mobile phone.
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Checklist for succeeding with your image selection for digital channels
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• Choose clean images with clear messages. The subject needs to be central in order to engage and touch. The feeling you want is 100 percent authenticity and relevance. The picture should communicate inside and out.
• Slide shows are efficient and play an important role today. We are back to the classic narrative and storytelling form.
• Always look back to your situational analysis. Who is it you want to communicate with? What is important in order to reach that target group?
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THREE SUMMER TIPS
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We wish a happy image summer and send along three tips on the way:
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Tip 1
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Did you know that it is possible to chat with us directly through our website? It means you can get rapid and effective help whenever you need it, no matter if you have questions regarding pricing or about image searches!
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Tip 2
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With our new image package that you buy in a 5, 10 or 25 pack, your image purchases this summer do not get any easier (or more affordable!). Talk to one of our sales people for more information!
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Tip 3
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You can also experience the height of summer with our screensaver! We've just updated it with summery images that let you feel the warmth no matter what the weather is outside. The screensaver is free to download and offers a beautiful image inspiration when your computer is resting. Download it here!
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We are open all weekdays as usual during the summer! Everyone here at Johnér wishes you a great summer!
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*according to Hubspot.com January 13, 2016.
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