Spend a few minutes online, and you’ll realize that photos and videos rule the space. This phenomenon, known as ‘Word of Eye’, is taking the digital world by storm. According to brand consultant Julie Cottineau, who coined the term ‘Word of Eye’, consumers are highly visual these days and technological advances have turned visual currency into the currency of choice. Visual content is easy to create and share – after all, Facebook users upload over 350 million images per day and nearly 4 billion photos have been shared on Instagram. With stats like these, it’s easy to see why visual content rules the social space.  

 
“People don’t have a lot of time for words. Increasingly, we’re finding that it’s the visual process, the ‘show me, don’t tell me,’ that gets consumers hooked,” says Julie. As a brand, creating visual content is more important than ever. It’s easy for viewers to ‘like’ or ‘share’ images across all social platforms, so your images have the opportunity to be seen by more eyes – a powerful form of free advertising!  

 
Incorporating Visuals Into Your Marketing Strategy  

 
Images capture experiences more accurately than attempting to describe them, so think of your community through a visual lens. Prospective renters want to see photos of apartment interiors, lifestyle, and amenities, because it helps them visualize themselves living in your community. It's important for community listings to feature high-quality images that showcase attributes of the property, capturing the attention of apartment shoppers. Using video to highlight the features of your community is an even better way to appeal to renters, as over 90% use video in their apartment search.  

 
With the rise of Pinterest and Instagram, and the fact that Facebook now allows photo comments in place of words, it’s easier than ever for you incorporate images of your own into your social media mix. Snap some eye-catching photos and then use a photo-editing site like PicMonkey to add text, color filters, or borders to optimize the image for sharing purposes. A great way to draw interest to images on Instagram and Pinterest is to add text related to the subject of the image or article that accompanies it.  

 
Find ways to engage with your residents through images – perhaps host an Instagram Challenge, where you ask renters to share a photo a day depicting various aspects of your community. Not only are you building positive relationships with participants, but you’ll be collecting original content that you can share on your social networks!  

 
The best part about following this visual trend: photos are extremely shareable, which can dramatically increase your reach. Get your camera or phone out and snap some photos!