A study conducted by StatisticBrain.com last year showed that the average adult attention span was only 8 seconds. Further, 17 percent of Internet page views last less than 4 seconds, while only 4 percent last longer than 10 minutes.

It’s no surprise that as technology evolves, the way we communicate with one another becomes faster and more efficient as well. We’ve been encouraged to do so, with Twitter limiting tweets to 140 characters and Vine videos topping out at 6 seconds.

What does this mean to social media marketers? It means that effective marketing must cater to the attention span of the audiences they are targeting, and one of the fastest ways to engage your audience is through visuals. Visual marketing has been around since the beginning of time. Our ancestors used illustrations on cave walls to record history and share stories. Fast-forward to the past year and the power of visuals is also the reason Facebook offered Snapchat $3 billion and purchased WhatsApp for a whopping $19 billion.

As long as people can see, photos and illustrations are the most effective medium to send your message and get the point across.

Here are three ways to maximize the visual content in your social media communications:

• Add Short Text: Photos can get the point across but adding short sections of text can clarify meaning and serve as calls to action (CTAs), making the message even more powerful.
• Make a Collage: The old adage “Seeing is Believing” embodies this example. Showing a transition or change in events through visual storytelling evokes more emotions, leading to increased memorability and response.
• Create Infographics: Infographics are a great way to show illustrations and back them with numbers and data facts. They can also be utilized across various social media platforms from Facebook and LinkedIn to Instagram and Pinterest.

According to a study by Buzzfeed, “In just one minute, 208,300 photos are posted to Facebook, 510,000 photos are liked on Instagram, and 100 hours of video are being uploaded to YouTube.” There are also numerous studies that social media posts with photos have higher rates of engagement compared to posts that do not. The best part of these facts is that they apply to both large corporate enterprises and small companies. The lesson is simple: know your audience’s behavior (where and when they like to engage), and then use these facts to your advantage. Maximizing your social media marketing presence increases your influence and ultimately your lead generation efforts.

For the latest trends and studies in marketing, follow us on Twitter. We’ll post some interesting infographics in addition to photos and illustrations.