Posted by : Jared Kisten Friday 7 August 2015



Welcome to the Bigger Picture

You know all those motivational quotes that flood your Facebook account? Yeah, those puppies hugging teddybears, the woman staring out at the beach, the athlete running towards the finish line…? Do you have any idea what an impact these have on you?

In medical terms, Wikipedia.org describes this visual memory as:

“The relationship between perceptual processing and the encoding, storage and retrieval of the resulting neural representations. Visual memory occurs over a broad time range spanning from eye movements to years in order to visually navigate to a previously visited location. Visual memory is a form of memory which preserves some characteristics of our senses pertaining to visual experience. We are able to place in memory visual information which resembles objects, places, animals or people in a mental image. The experience of visual memory is also referred to as the mind's eye through which we can retrieve from our memory a mental image of original objects, places, animals or people.”

Our senses have a big impact on how we feel, who we are and what we do. And sight is probably the sensory tool we use the most. Our mind reacts very differently to visual stimuli than it does to other forms of communication. In fact, as much as 93% of communication is nonverbal.

Even though you might not appreciate the visual onslaught you get on Facebook, it actually does affect you. Humans have an innate fondness for different images, and each image represents an emotional or physical experience we have attached to it.

People generally think in pictures. It is the first form of recognition we experience as children, even before we can speak.Dr. Lynell Burmark, Ph.D. Associate at the Thornburg Centre for Professional Development says:

"...unless our words, concepts, ideas are hooked onto an image, they will go in one ear, sail through the brain, and go out the other ear. Words are processed by our short-term memory where we can only retain about 7 bits of information (plus or minus 2). This is why, by the way, that we have 7-digit phone numbers. Images, on the other hand, go directly into long-term memory where they are indelibly etched."

But what does this have to do with advertising, and Social Media in particular?

When it comes to developing Social Media campaigns that deliver results, nothing is better than visual content. The number of YouTube and Instagram users in South Africa has increased by 53% and 65% respectively. Pintrest, a social curation website for sharing and categorising images found online, is now South Africa’s favourite Social Media platform.

“We’re seeing the beginning of the visual revolution in online usage in South Africa,”says Arthur Goldstuck, managing director of technology market researchers World Wide Worx.

“The global rise of video is now making itself felt here. Once the cost of mobile data comes down for the emerging smartphone market, video will become a dominant medium, strongly supported by other visual media.”

While visual use in Social Media is becoming a big factor in South Africa, it is important to remember that it isn’t a one-size-fits-all exercise. There is clearly a trend towards using visual content, but agencies need to tailor this according to their target market t make it effective.

Decimal Agency recommends consistent research and testing in order to get the right formula. The trends are constantly changing, making it imperative to know what your audience likes to look at. Daily interaction and content is a must as it engages your audience and leaves no space for being left behind.

This is also the method that Decimal Agency employs in its Social Media strategies. Since the addition of our Social Media Manager, the interaction of our clients has increased by approx. 30%. This is excluding the increase in paid-for media.

If you’re looking to make most of your Social Media content, call Decimal Agency. We not only get the Bigger Picture, we use it to get your Business Bigger.



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