Have you ever wondered why your website lacks enough visitors despite a brilliant content strategy? In the saturated world of digital marketing, your business must have a robust online presence. After all, your competition is tough, as 71% of brands these days have a website.
Your site must be captivating and enthralling to stand out among the crowd and leave a lasting impression on users. Incorporating visuals in your website can do just this for your business and much more!
Images not only add life to your website, but they make boring, plain content more appealing. Engaging content enhances the user experience, which leads to higher conversion rates.
So, whether you’re running an eCommerce platform, a corporate site, or a personal blog, images are the first thing you should consider when designing your site. If you want to see your conversion numbers rolling, put on your creative cap and make the most out of images.
Read on to discover how photos help increase website conversion rates.
Table of Contents
What Does Website Conversion Mean?
The term conversion doesn’t have a standard definition in the digital world. Website conversion refers to the specific action visitors take that aligns with the website’s goals or online marketing campaigns.
Here are some common examples of what website conversions can look like:
- eCommerce purchase: For an online store, conversion occurs when the visitor completes a purchase.
- Content engagement: For content-driven websites, conversion refers to the amount of time a visitor spends on a page or multiple pages.
- Lead generation: If your website aims to generate leads, conversion, in this case, can be anything from filling out a form to signing up for a newsletter or downloading a free ebook.
- Affiliate marketing: In the realm of affiliate marketing, conversion happens when a visitor clicks on an affiliate link.
- Donations: For non-profit organizations, conversion happens when a visitor makes a donation through their website.
Website conversion is crucial if you want your brand to survive in this competitive world. It is a vital metric indicating that users are no longer passive browsers but active participants contributing to website goals.
It’s a pivotal moment for any business as it directly impacts sales and ROIs.
Therefore, regardless of your business niche, you should incorporate visuals (images) on your site, as they can make or break your website game.
Understanding the Psychology Behind the Power of Images
Have you ever wondered why certain websites can make you feel things and drive you to take action while others leave you indifferent? It all boils down to the power of visuals.
According to a recent survey by Top Design Firms, nearly 40% of consumers said they prioritize images when asked about the valuable elements in website design. This whopping number indicates our innate desire to see and experience.
The old saying that a picture is worth a thousand words stands true to this day. Images have the power to communicate and resonate with us as they are processed many times faster than text.
Take a look at the Christmas campaign by Coca-Cola.
Source: Coca-Cola Family Dinner for Christmas
We dare you not to smile!
The above picture will make you nostalgic for family time and might urge you to call the people you miss most.
The image isn’t just about soft drinks but about creating a sense of connection, joy, happiness, and belonging that we dearly miss in our daily lives.
Last year, Coca-Cola’s holiday campaign revolved around the theme “Christmas always finds its way.” The picture celebrates Christmas’s unstoppable, magical force in bringing people together.
It connects with users at a personal level, which helps drive sales and boost brand loyalty.
How Do Images Affect Us?
Images are not only there to make your website look pretty but also have a profound psychological impact on users. When employed strategically, they can:
- Evoke emotions in consumers
- Influence buying decisions
They are the attention-grabbers and have the power to set our mood that defines our actions. Marketers are leveraging this knowledge left, right, and center by incorporating imagery in their strategy to boost sales.
Other than basic needs like groceries, most purchases or actions are for emotional reasons. No matter how much we try to justify it logically, emotions overpower us and make us take action.
Take a look at the Charity: Water website.
Source: Charity: Water
How does this image make you feel?
Tell us your heart is not filled with love seeing the smile on this little boy’s face.
Tell us you don’t grieve for these little souls?
This snapshot from the Charity: Water website makes you feel emotions: sadness, grief, and maybe hope. All these feelings create a sense of urgency that makes you take the desired act of donating towards their initiatives. This is the power of visuals.
Have a look at this Care website.
Source: Care
The name alone tugs our heartstrings, and the faces of these little angels make you feel the need to help them.
This banner on the Care website reinforces the idea that the brand uses images that help foster an emotional connection that urges viewers to donate and save lives.
8 Ways Images Help Boost Website Conversion
Now let’s discuss the top eight ways you can effectively use images to boost your website’s conversion rates.
- Add High-quality Images
Suppose you’re browsing a jewelry website. You come across an article that features a heirloom necklace. You click on it only to be greeted with a low-resolution, pixelated image. Would you buy it? No.
Adding images that are of high quality is crucial for a brand’s success as they have the power to:
- Foster loyalty and trust
- Improve credibility
- Build authenticity
- Resonates with the consumer through storytelling
Pictures are the face of your products, and what good would it do to users if it’s unclear? When consumers see your offerings for what they are, they understand it better, ultimately driving sales.
However, the audience knows you’re trying to sell, so don’t go overboard with photos. Use custom visuals strategically where required. Utilize the F pattern for the optimal placement of images and compress them to boost the website conversion rate.
Businesses use custom images on their websites to enhance their brand’s uniqueness, authenticity, and identity. Yet, due to budget constraints, personalized photography may not be an option for every business. But don’t worry, the hero of the hour is here to save the day: stock photos.
Stock photos are pre-shot images available online – both free and paid. You can use them in your visual marketing strategy to boost sales.
However, you need to ensure the images are not too generic, or they won’t help with conversions. Try using photo editing software like Adobe Photoshop, Canva, or Lightroom to tweak the pictures so they align with your brand’s identity.
- Give Context
Consumers these days do not just want to see the product; they want to experience it. When using images on your site, give them the context to visualize your offering. Users who see a product in action are more likely to connect with it.
Take a look at these photos:
Source: The Diamond Store
Selling a ring? Show me what it looks like when I’m wearing it.
Source: Little Beast
Running a page for dog’s clothing? Let the beast’s parents imagine how their furry child would look in this tie-dye sweater.
The website showcases a picture of a dog wearing it alongside a standalone of the product itself.
Which one of these catches your attention?
Now, how about buying a watch for yourself or your loved one? Holzkern lets you visualize how this premium watch will look on the wrist of your favorite human.
Source: Holzkern
When consumers see what your product brings to them, they explore it more. Doing this ultimately enhances engagement and conversion rates.
- Add a Human Touch
Did you know showing people’s faces helps humanize the brand and increases the conversion rate by 95%?
When browsing online, one thing that consumers are worried about is trust. Adding human photographs to your site helps break this subconscious barrier as people are able to relate to it more.
Here are some reasons why adding a human touch to your images makes them fare well in the digital world:
- They leave a positive first impression on the visitor
- Human faces on landing pages add credibility to your offerings
- They make your brand more relatable
- Unlock the Power of GIFs and Memes
GIFs and Memes are forms of digital images and are more popular than ever. They don’t require buffering or clicking, yet they never fail to capture your attention.
Some can be funny; others can make you think. Nearly all of them have a pop-culture reference. They are naturally addictive and spark reactions, resulting in high levels of engagement.
Moreover, these super-fun-on-point visuals are witty and tend to go viral, which helps skyrocket your brand’s reach, driving more leads and sales.
So, if you want to make your website relatable, use GIFs and memes to humanize the content. When people find themselves connecting with your brand, it becomes more likable and memorable.
- Add Mascots
Add mascots to your branding strategy if you want your website conversions to soar. It’s a visual character that is a symbolic representation of your brand.
This personalized addition to any site helps engage the audience’s attention and creates a bonding experience. Mascots can be anything, from traditional animated characters to animals and objects.
It brings out the fun side of your brand identity and makes it more memorable and recognizable. The flair of creativity it brings to your web design adds a touch of playfulness that enhances the user experience.
Below are some examples of brands that are using mascots in their marketing strategy:
Source: Chester Cheetah – Cheetos
Coco the Monkey – Kellogg Coco Pops
The Laughing Cow – Creamy Cheese Spread
Ronald McDonald – Fast Food Chain
Tony the Tiger – Kellogg’s
- Use Images to Tell a Story
Images can be used as visual storytellers that help your brand convey your message loud and clear. Engaging audiences through a story is an art; many brands are pros at it.
Do you remember Disney’s ‘Dream Big, Princess’ photography campaign?
9-year old Alice, dressed up as a princess, plays soccer with her team.
Source: Vogue
11-year-old Sol Silva dreams of becoming Brazil’s first woman world champion surfer.
Source: Disney
Source: Vogue
Despite having an aggressive battle with bone cancer, Grace Bunke continues to hope and enjoy her favorite activity. She dreams of being a future Paralympian.
This campaign became a movement shattering princess stereotypes. With this initiative, Disney encouraged kids around the globe to dream big and pursue their passions.
While the primary goal of Disney was not to boost sales, the enhanced brand engagement and brand loyalty indirectly amped up the conversion rates.
- Use 360-degree Images for Immersive Experiences
In today’s digital landscape, just reading about your product or service will not cut it for your customers. People want to analyze, see, and experience it from all perspectives before coming to a conclusion. Enter 360-degree images.
These rotatable images are created by taking multiple pictures of the same product or object. The images are then combined and displayed to the viewers on a digital turntable controlled by the computer.
Businesses these days are leveraging this knowledge and are seeing a positive impact, such as:
- Increased conversion rate
- Decreased product returns
- Increased page view time
- Reduced bounce rate
- Flaunt People’s Reviews
Users who read positive testimonials about your products or services come to ease about their purchase decisions. Customers develop a sense of trust, making them feel they can rely on your brand.
Consumers always read reviews, so ensure to have a section in your website design that is dedicated to them.
Source: Bellalicious Bath and Body
Bellalicious Bath and Body does it right when it comes to showing off testimonials. The positive review comforts potential visitors, which can help drive sales.
Conclusion
Images are an excellent way to make your brand appealing to an audience and make them take the desired action. They evoke emotions, humanize content, and tell stories that people can connect with. Follow the tips and tricks outlined in this article to effectively harness the power of images to elevate your web design and conversion metrics.
2 Responses
Thank you for the article. I am a beginner SMM specialist, I would like to ask for advice on how best to improve the conversion rate of Pierre Jewelry? I’m trying to use image upscaling for more resolution. I don’t think gifs or memes would work for a jewelry company 🙂
Gifs and memes can work, but it depends on the brand. I would suggest reaching out to an agency (like us – email me at arg@gaenzlemarketing.com) and inquiring about our SEO services. You can get started by reading the SEO articles on our site as well.