I love storytelling, and as of relatively late stories have taken on their most effective form in the guise of photos, videos, and other similar forms of visual content. Humans are very visual creatures, we depend on imagery immensely when seeking information or making decisions that there are entire industries built around the research and optimisation of visual content delivery and retention. I find the science of it fascinating, and even more so when I realise that the market growth in visual content is just getting started! Here’s a quick collection of recent facts and statistics that I thought you’d find interesting:

32% of marketers say visual images are the most important form of content for their business, with blogging coming in second (27%) [source]

When people hear information, they’re likely to remember only 10% of that information three days later. However, if a relevant image is paired with that same information, people retained 65% of the information three days later. [source] 

In a 2018 HubSpot survey, 54% of consumers wanted to see more video content from a brand or business they support.

Cisco projects that global internet traffic from videos will make up 82% of all consumer internet traffic by 2021.

85% of adults consume content on multiple devices at the same time. [source]

Eye-tracking studies show internet readers pay close attention to information-carrying images. In fact, when the images are relevant, readers spend more time looking at the images than they do reading text on the page. 

There are more than 500 million Instagram users active every day, with 1 billion active accounts every month. 80% of personal accounts follow at least one business on Instagram. [source]

All photos used in this guide are from photoshoots I’ve shot personally and sometimes produced, taken with a Sony A9 + 70-200 f/2.8, a Fujifilm X100S with 50mm teleconverter, and Contax G2 with a 50mm f/2.0 and Agfa Vista 400, shot in various locations including my studio.

What do you think of the guide? If you found it useful, you might want to download a practical list I’ve put together of the 7 Most Common Mistakes People Make When Planning Commercial Photoshoots. Download your free copy now by clicking this link.

How did you feel reading these statistics? What do you think the impact of these trends will be in your business? Leave a comment below, I’d love to hear your thoughts as I love talking shop and sharing ideas on visual content and marketing!