21 Day Challenge - Image-inize your brand

We've talked a lot about content the past two days, specifically how to maximize and monitor what you're putting out there. But we haven't touched on the one thing that really brings life to your business - imagery.

Don't just tell people what you're all about. Show them.

I challenge you to image-inize your brand.

It's pretty simple. Think about the last time you signed onto Facebook and intended to only spend a few minutes doing a quick review of your news feed. Half-hour later, you're still signed in. What held you up? I guarantee it was a photo. That led to another photo. Which opened up an album. And soon enough you're in a sea of cat photos feeling more and more behind in your day. There's a reason Facebook spent $1 billion purchasing Instagram.

According to Harvard Business School, roughly 70% of all Facebook activities revolve around photos.

Proof is in the pudding -- My engagement is nearly 20x more active with an image than a regular ole status update.

With a photo.

My insights doubled as well:

Without a photo.

And if that still doesn't convince you, don't forget about photo-centric Pinterest - the fasting growing stand alone website ever.

It's not just sharing photos that's important. It's sharing your own photos that makes the difference. Your photos are your story. You've already created a story from the first day of the challenge. Time to give it legs.

There are literally hundreds of opportunities to capture something visual related to your business each and every day. It's a matter of opening your eyes and stepping outside your world for a minute. Use these visual opportunities to let people behind the scenes of your world. Share photos of your office, your staff, that wonderful hand-written card you received last week. Or take your company mission statement or story and create a quote graphic out of it. Besides, Instagram, one of our favorite tools is picmonkey which will allow you to create and enhance your own images.

Besides sharing photos to your social networks, your website should display photography branded for you and your company. You have a current head shot up on your about page, right? How about on the home page of your site? Are you using stock photography or is their an opportunity to bring you and your team members to the forefront? Investing in custom photography for your website is an expense but so worth it. The aesthetics of your site directly impacts how long someone will stay on your site.

Once you've captured and created all this imagery, don't forget about sharing it. And making it easily shareable. It also goes without saying that if imagery is this important, video better be on your radar as well.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine how you can translate that into revenue.

-Shauna

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