- Social Media Posts with Great images experience...120-180%,Higher Engagement Rates
Tweets That have images get 18% more clicks-throughs, 89% greater favorites & 150% greater re-tweets. (Source)
Visual images in your social media posts
have a strong impact on people. They may be the single most important organic SEO strategy at your disposal! Consider these facts:
- People remember 80% of what they see
- People
remember only 20% of what they read
- 65%
of people are visual learners
- 90%
of all information people process is visual
The amount of content on the internet
is huge. Consider that every minute:
- 3,472
images are pinned on Pinterest
- 2,460,000 pieces of content are shared on Facebook
- 277,000 tweets are sent
Visual tools help you craft beautiful images that market your products and
services.
You might believe that high-quality
visual tools are simply out of your budget. Wrong!
In this list we share 21 Free Tools
you can use to create great images to better digitally market your business.
Let's Start With the Top 10 Free Visual Content Creation Tools!
1. PowToon- Want a professional
looking animated explainer video but don’t have thousands of dollars to
pay for it? Would you love an attention-getting animated presentation but lack
the technical skill?
How about putting Powerpoint to shame with the ultimate animated business slide show? PowToon is for you. It is very user-friendly
and allows the novice to create…
- Product
or Service Overviews
- Presentations
of all kinds
- Instructional
Videos
Research demonstrates that videos on landing
pages increase conversions by 86%. As the point of visual marketing is to
increase sales, it makes sense to make video a priority.
2. Canva- Canva specializes in graphic
design. It offers templates, most of which are free, to create the
following:
- Banners
- Poster
- Infographics
- Website
Buttons
- Social
Media Headers and Backgrounds
Canva also has a database that contains over 1
million images that you can use for business. Like Logo Type Maker, there
are free and low-cost options.
3. Piktochart- Some business are
in data-heavy fields. Paragraphs with a lot of percentages are
likely to be forgotten. Piktochart makes designing an infographic
easy. You simply select a theme and template and the plug in your
data and text.
4. Infogr.am- Here is another tool to create stunning
infographics. Infogr. am allows you to use its templates or create
your own.
Whether you use Piktochart or Infogr.am, infographics deliver great benefits.
Infographics are…
- 30x more likely to be read than
text-only content
- 3x
more likely to get Liked and Shared than plain content
- Generate
more traffic than text blog posts
5. Awesome Screenshot- This tool
allows you to add graphics right to a screenshot. Imagine how much more
effective your screenshot is with an arrow pointing to what you want to
emphasize! You’ve got to see this one!
6. Logo Type Maker- A business uses a
logo to associate its brand with a particular image. You can go to Logo
Type Maker and pick out one for free.
As with many sites, there is also a
paid option. If you select ‘Customizable,’ the cost may likely be less
than hiring a freelance graphic artist.
7.PicMonkey- Do you need to simply edit
a photo? At PicMonkey, you just need to upload and…
· Add text
· Select a frame
· Adjust the background
You then have a great image that you can use on
social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter.
8. QuotesCover- A quote can
summarize a point you want to make. QuotesCover is a tool that allows you
to add famous statements to your social media profile or e-cards. A
strong feature of QuotesCover is its attractive fonts. A font needs to
be:
- Attention-getting
- Easy-to-read
9. Quozio-
This tool is another one that helps you incorporate quotes in to your social
media. You just type of quote, select a background, and post. It is
that straightforward.
10. Fotor- Fotor is a free app that allows you
to do the
following:
· Create a card- Good manners never go out of style. Imagine the great impression
you leave when you send a customized thank you card to a client.
· Build a collage- Fotor enables you to make collages. If you’re an
orthodontist who wants to show pictures of lots of kids with beautiful smiles,
this app meets that need.
· Photo editing- you can add frames and quickly adjust your photos.
11. PicCollage- Want to use your phone to
create a collage of happy customers? Then PicCollage is for you. This tool works on Apple and Android devices.
12. LiveLuvCreate- Do you have great
photos on your home computer or on your Facebook profile?
You can use
LiveLuvCreate to craft them into great images for your social media
accounts. This tool offers borders, effects, and the ability to overlay
text.
13. Pixlr- Pixlr is an online tool
that is available for Apple or Android devices. It has 3 modules:
Pixlr Express allows you to
make basic edits to an image:
- You
can select an image that shows you or your customers, products or service.
- You
then use Pixlr Express to add text to the image and post it to social
media.
- Pixlr-O-Matic
offers solid photo editing tools such as borders.
·
Pixlr
Editor is for people who want to create new images or who have become
comfortable using more advanced editing tools.
14. GIMP-
GIMP is a free, computer based (Windows and Mac OS X) photo editor. You
can manage all your basic photo-editing needs (cropping, resizing, retouching)
from a business computer.
15. Unsplash-
Sometimes we don’t have images at our disposal. For instance, some
business such as therapist’s or doctor’s offices can’t use patients’ images
because of confidentiality. Yet, these offices want to convey the caring
nature of their services with a picture. Unsplash comes in here very nicely.
Unsplash offers free images that are not
copyrighted. This fact means that you can use them for your business
purposes -royalty free.
16. New
Old Stock- Similar to Unsplash, New Old Stock offers images that have
no known copyright restrictions on them. Its vintage photos distinguish
it from Unsplash.
If you’re trying to create a unique image from a time past,
this free service might have what you need.
Note: 43% of social media users share pictures. Make sure you put one of these service to work for you.
17. Adobe Color CC- It
is important to incorporate color into your brand. Adobe Color is free to down
load and use with other Adobe products.
This touch app allows to choose from
existing color palettes or create new ones from your phone. When you want
to use color but are unsure which ones to use, employ this simple guide:
-
Red- Excitement
-
Black- Luxury
- Green- Healing
- Blue- Trust
- Purple- Creativity
Research shows that 60% of the acceptance or
rejection of a brand is due to the color impression. Think carefully about the
image you create for prospective customers.
18. Placeit-
If you run an online business and want images that convey how easy it is to
order from you, Placeit helps you.
Placeit is an app that offers photos of people
using different devices in varied setting (i.e. an office, on the beach).
It even offers ‘freebies’ delivered to your Dropbox.
For example, this app allows you to add your company logo and images into the blank screen of an Iphone or laptop.
Note: Like other services, Placeit has paid
features too. Make sure if you’re on a tight budget to use the free images
first.
These tools are great for leveraging your
Pinterest account for business!
19. Pinwords-
With its growing popularity, no list of visual tools is complete without
mentioning those ones related to Pinterest. The first is Pinwords.
You can add text to an image with this tool.
20. Pinstamatic-
Here is another simple, Pinterest-focused tool. You can create images and
use text with different backgrounds (for instance, a sticky note
background).
Bonus Link for your Brick and Mortar Business:
21. Business Card Land- Have you
ever ordered business cards from an office supply store and felt like you
didn’t get much value for your money? Business Card Land exists for this
reason. It offers editable templates so you can create and print your own
business cards.
Visuals Showcase Your Talents
If you have a website, research shows prospects
spend less than 15 seconds reading the content.
Eye-catching pictures and images are a must to
convert viewers to customers.
Make sure you create content that both
showcases your talents and addresses the needs of potential customers.
You can identify topics from various sources:
- Keyword
Research
- Popular Blogs In Your Niche
- Your
Own Research
All of this information shows that we live in a
visual world. These new apps and computer-based tools allow you, a small
business owner access tools that once belonged only to large corporations with
graphic arts departments.
Be sure to use these tools to get the most out
of your digital marketing and social selling efforts!
Sources
Top image courtesy of: http://pixabay.com/en/photos/online
Person 2 Person Engagement
