As we all know, in 2018 social media is not just used for personal connections and personal branding. It’s a huge facet of a business’ marketing strategy. Whether a business decides to use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or more, there’s a lot of work that goes into creating good content.
If you write a fantastic blog or have great insights to share, they’re basically worthless if they don’t catch the eye of the consumer you are attempting to target. And what’s the first and quickest way to catch their eye? The image!
The image you pair with your content is crucial. We have tips on how to become a social media image guru to generate the best results for your brand without breaking the bank.
Image size matters
Depending on the social media platform you use, the size of the image matters. Use this chart to avoid incorrect sizing that changes the way the image is portrayed on the different platforms.
| Social Site | Cover Size | Profile Size | Share Size |
| 400px x 400px | 1500px x 500px | 440px x 220px | |
| 180px x 180px | 851px x 315 px | 1200px x 630px | |
| 110px x 100px | 161px x 161px | 1080px x 1080px | |
| 165px x 165px | 222px x 150px | 236px width | |
| 400px x 400px | 974px x 300px | 1000px x 425px | |
| Tumbler | 128px x 128px | 500px x 750px | |
| YouTube | 250px x 250px | 2560px x 1440px | 1280px x 760px |
| Google+ | 250px x 250px | 1080px x 608px | 497px x 279px |
Grab their attention
You might only have a couple second to grab the attention of the person scrolling through the feed. What are you trying to convey about your brand? How can you use an image to connect with your target audience? Search for an eye-catching image from one of the many free image hosting sites out there (hint: check out shutterstock, unsplash, and istockphoto).
Graphic Assistance
You don’t need to hire a graphic designer or be one to make awesome social media images. Check out these free sites for a little graphic assistance when curating content for your brand’s social media platforms. These sites can help you layer text over photos in an attractive way or use some of their stock backgrounds and visuals to jumpstart your image creation.
CTA
Don’t forget to include a call-to-action either on the image or in the description. What do you want your audience to do as they scroll through their feed and see your post? Try to be as narrow and specific as possible. Avoid requesting too many actions at one time.
As with many things in life, practice makes perfect. You’ll no doubt pick up more social media image tips and tricks along the way. Make a point to follow other accounts of images you like and use them for inspiration in your own unique content. Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with your followers on a daily basis and present them with great images that resonate with them.
