A thousand words: The rise of the visual social network

We’ve said it before – images and video are becoming increasingly important elements when it comes to social media and your online presence. People would much rather watch a quick video clip than read a whole page of text. And if they are going to read a page of text, they’ll be much more likely to do so if it’s peppered with interesting and appealing visuals.

Just look at the top three fastest growing apps in 2013: Vine, Flickr and Instagram – it’s all about the images and video. The online audience is hungry for visually-rich material, and it is the brands that deliver this on social media platforms that are winning followers and recognition.

A recent example from South Africa is the Soweto Gospel Choir and Woolworths’ heartfelt and beautiful tribute to Nelson Mandela – a video that left me with tears and lasting goosebumps.

The infographic below, created by @ManwthePlanigan, unpacks this shift to the visual in the online space, and provides brands with a few ideas to navigate this ever-changing landscape.