Every minute over 200,000 images are uploaded to Facebook, not to mention Instagram, Snapchat and all of the other social media sites. Are you using pictures in your marketing? When you get clear on why and how to use pictures in your marketing, then you will start to see a difference in your engagement and much more.

Here are five reasons to use pictures in your marketing:

1. A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words

Have you ever explained something to someone and they just didn't get it but then you drew them a picture and they instantly got it? When it comes to your business and marketing, entrepreneurs spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to get their message across. Do you find it hard to get the words across? Why not look for an image that represents your audience? I wanted to capture my clients' as powerful action takers so I created this image.

2. Search Engine Optimization

Have you noticed that when you search for something on Google or Yahoo or any other search engine, usually the second tab is images? Images are another opportunity for you to get discovered on search engines. Every one of your blog posts should have at least one image attached to it. First, because when you share it on social media more people will see it,  but second if you give your image a name and tags, Google can search those images as well.

3. Increase Engagement on Social Media

Did you notice that Facebook revised the layout of their newsfeed so that images and videos show up bigger and better? Why did they do that? Because Facebook knows more about you than you do. And what they know is that you are more attracted to the posts with images and videos. So your posts need to include great images.

4. Build Relationships

People want to know more about what you are doing. If you build something, take pictures of the process. If you provide a service then let people see what you are up to. Remember that people buy from people they trust and trust is built over time. Pictures tell the story of your life and your business and as people watch your story they start to feel like they are part of it.

5. Eye Candy Increases Traffic

When I finally figured out the importance of images on my site and in my blog posts I noticed a direct increase in traffic to my site. However, I was also clear that it was my responsibility to share my blog posts, webinars etc. If I wasn't sharing them people wouldn't have been coming to my site.

BONUS:  Two ways to get images for your blog

1.  Take or create your own. 

Sometimes the most interesting pictures are things that you come across in your daily life. Now that most of us carry a camera around with us as part of our phone, there is no real reason not to take pictures for your blog. When you need a good picture – take a few minutes and go on a photo safari – and snap a few pictures.  You can edit them online for free using Pixlr or picmonkey.  You can also create your own infographics using a program like Canva.

2. Get them from the web.  

While I don't recommend using random pictures from Google in your blog post (that is copyright infringement), there are sites where you can get images that you can use for free.  Michele Shaeffer has an amazing post that lists 20 sources of free images for your blog. By the way, Pexels is my favorite place to look for images.