Visual Content Marketing Statistics You Can No Longer Ignore in 2017
Creating relevant and useful content is essential for companies if they want to demonstrate a deep understanding of their customers' pain points and also prove their experience in meeting them. Keeping your products or services top of mind gets more challenging each day as the amount of information is continuously increasing in all industries, while people have changed the way they consume content. Therefore, the way we craft and present our content becomes essential for getting it across, together with the distribution channels and the mix of intuitive, convincing and friendly instruments we decide to use. This leads companies to the need of defining really good visual content marketing strategy and tactics.
We put together useful visual content marketing statistics for building content instruments that will differentiate your company and turn it into an authority figure in your industry.
For examples of our works in these areas, check our portfolio section. If you need help in crafting your own valuable instruments, drop us a line or give us a call.
We’d be happy to help you build your bright story!
Time for New Promises to Ourselves
Time flies for each of us like it was never here in the first place. It flies whether we spend it well or not. Whether we do things our way or not. Whether we grow our flame or not. Whether we are kind and caring, or not. It flies anyway.
We were kids right up until yesterday when we used to dream about how we would do wonderful things in the world and how we would feed the world’s happiness and enthusiasm from our own endless reserves. Our imagination and inner drive were enough for making the world look wonderful.
We were happy without knowing what happiness is.
Then we grew up and began to adopt patterns, conditions, expectations, grown-up habits, reasons, and limitations...forgetting too many times about what we used to be, what we used to imagine, what we wanted to become. Forgetting who we are.
Today is a new beginning. Not only because it is another year’s end and we need to set new resolutions, but because the only sure thing we have is this day. So today is the best time to remind ourselves of what it used to be our greatest dream, our greatest self, our greatest miracle to give back to the world. Or if we don’t remember, we can start searching for it today.
The strongest promise is the one we make to ourselves.
We cannot cheat on ourselves because we can grasp the uselessness of it. Our inner essence is freedom, authenticity and simplicity and all we have to do is let it manifest and amplify. So, we need to start this inner journey to ourselves today. We need to identify what it is that makes us unique and how we can spread the value of our uniqueness into the world. Once we make this a promise to ourselves, we have to make it happen. No more excuses, no more reasons, no more delays.
For each of us, our personal meeting with time itself will come.
After an entire life filled with everything a human life could contain, after receiving at birth a unique mix of gifts and talents and an infinite potential to shape reality with love and compassion, it would be such a pity to go there without a big smile on our face and a light, bright soul.
How to Offer a Unified User Experience across the Entire Customer Journey
Technology focused brands evolved from just mirroring products and organizations to expressing and emphasizing the immediate value, access and support they bring to people’s lives - whether we talk about software, medical, production, or any other sector that uses the power of technology as a foundation.
Technology companies need to grow human and differentiating brands, while keeping their industry-specific voice. This is why communication itself needs to evolve from displaying features lists in a unidirectional manner, to analyzing the customer’s journey and offering him custom answers to every experience he encounters on the way. This means building a unified overall user experience that covers the entire spectrum of customer interactions with your technology product and brand. By doing so, you increase favorability and loyalty like nothing else.
To sum up, a fluid, unified and delightful user experience means setting and meeting a constant level of expectations across the entire customer journey, at every contact point with your brand: across products, services and people interactions and on any offline or online communication channel.
This is what makes a customer choose and stick to your business, creates upsell opportunities and increases your brand ambassadors’ percent in a crowded and hyper tech brand world.
Manifesto for Bright Living. How & Why I Created My Own #Bright Way
I rarely write about myself. This time it is not an exception, but it came out this way because it is the story of a beginning I wanted to share, hoping I could inspire more people to start shaping their own beginning.
After many years of studying, taking on projects and missions, adapting to various corporate systems, readjusting, building, rebuilding and doing it all over again, I started feeling a growing urge to create and truly own my professional way. One that would be closer to my inner self, one that would match my personality, thoughts and vision for life.
All the other ways I had taken up to this point were good and useful at their time and contributed to the person and professional I am today. But this time it was different: my inner voice first whispered shyly in my solitude moments, then started to speak up.
I know and feel that I want to spend my time growing the good in the world, which for me means to do everything in a simple, kind, helpful and genuine way. I combined this life belief with my professional expertise and this is how Bright came to life: to stand for a bright mind, a bright attitude towards life itself and a bright way of living and doing business.
Based on all these, Bright starts its journey as a new generation branding and communication company that aims at revealing the essence, the good and the unlimited potential within people and their companies. No polish, no useless special effects. Just inspiring people to trust their inner authenticity and reflect it in their communication with the world outside.
Moreover, with a technical background and after working so many years within technology and software companies, I became passionate with the accessibility, flexibility and speed of action that technology offers. I appreciate and support those bright companies that have a key role in making people’s lives better by using technology in creative and innovative ways.
I was lucky to find a team that shares these beliefs and passion and we kind of created a niche of our own, as our customers are mostly technology focused companies. We help them with creating and growing relevant brands, communicating effectively or extending to new markets. We also support them in offering their customers more value faster through an intuitive and coherent user experience across channels. And the most important thing is that we always build upon transparency, simplicity, kindness, genuine respect and a good sense of humor. This is why Bright stands for both shiny and intelligent.
I am happy to feel that my energy and imagination are now spent on things I believe in and that I can make them happen my way. In time, I envision Bright to inspire more people and spread its brightness into their lives, while supporting them in reaching their full, unlimited potential.
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Share your thoughts here or at cristina@bright-living.net. I would be happy to help you build your own bright story.
Less Busy, More Human
Probably this would be my shortest article, as this is kind of all I have to say.
Still, I go on by saying that my greatest joy would be to see us all leaving our 'busy' coats on a chair somewhere... And then putting our 'human' coats on and forget to take them off, no matter what we end up doing, be it during busy business hours or free time.
We keep ourselves busy to become more self-confident and financially secure, but in the process we many times forget about being human, kind, loving, compassionate, helpful, authentic. This is in the end what keeps us connected to ourselves and others and emotionally secure to make all our other plans happen.
So today, on #worldsmileday, I am sharing my thoughts for growing our human and caring side and expressing it genuinely in everything we do, for the simple reason of making someone, anyone, smile.
[infographic] How to Achieve Brand Recognition & Consistency
A brand is in essence, the collection of customer experiences and interactions with your company’s products and services.
Brand recognition, favorability, and loyalty have a very direct impact on your company’s sales figures. They are generated by the sum of customer experiences related both to direct brand use and to the way the brand communicates.
While direct user experience is all mighty, it must be supported by coherent brand communication. A brand's image can be ruined by poor and sloppy communication, but the same extent it can be enhanced and supported by relevant and consistent communication across all channels.
Here is a simple yet important checklist of what to cover for building and maintaining a consistent brand across online and offline channels:
Follow us on our Bright LinkedIn page. Drop us a line to help you reinvent your marketing and communication approach.
Taking Piano Lessons at 30: A New Challenge with Unexpected Rewards
I’ve always wanted to play the piano.
So wherever I heard a piano singing I felt so much emotion and in a strange way, I felt closer to myself. Sometimes the opportunity of learning to play was so close to me that I could touch it, but yet I didn’t.
Until one day. I said to one of my friends that I’ve been wanting to play the piano for so long. He asked: ‘And what stops you now?’
Right: what was stopping me now?
So I put away whatever reasons, called a school I selected and just started.
Here’s where the fun part began
Playing one thing with your right hand and another with your left hand, while turning your sight from the song sheets in front of you to the piano keys…and still fall on the right key with each finger. Sounds impossible? I can tell you that it’s very hard at the beginning... like so many other things in daily life, so I decided to go along with it.
There were days when I left the classes so tired and frustrated because my songs didn’t sound as they should have. It didn’t seem at all like the fun or the relaxing time I was expecting.
But I kept trying, practicing and didn’t give up. And soon, each new song started to sound as it should have.
The hours of practice
These hours connected me to myself even more and with every hour I felt more and more confident that I could do this. No matter how hard, no matter how many mistakes I made, or how many times I had to start from the beginning only to make the same mistakes again.
I felt I had a renewed opportunity to make it better and this understanding reflected in many areas of my life.
Then it was public singing
This seemed fine at first, as I thought it would be similar to public speaking and holding presentations. Well, it wasn’t. The moment I stepped on the stage, my hands were shaking and I had to put my best efforts to focus on playing my part and stop being nervous.
I am still working on it and see it as a valuable exercise for being conscious of the layers we need to peel off as adults so we can feel at ease with being exposed in our continuous growth journey.
The best part: I met determined, talented people
Playing the piano, the same as starting any new activity, put me in contact with people that became wonderful role models:
- Children who dedicate a good part of their childhood to music and grow with such valuable discipline, passion and self-awareness
- Grown-up kids just like me who find time between their family, job and duties to study, grow and discover themselves
- Inspiring teachers whose playing is so natural and clear thanks to their dedication and countless hours of concentration, effort and continuous learning.
I learned the best team spirit lesson from seeing people playing in an orchestra: different instruments, unique approaches, various personalities. But it is always about playing the same song.
The awesome part: pushing and extending limits
I thought it would be easy and relaxing. I found out it took determination, long hours of practice and sometimes a lot of frustration. But it influenced all areas of my life and came along with growing self-confidence, continuous adjustment and mental resetting. And a lot of joy.
The pleasure of discovering the next song from this perspective equals the enthusiasm and curiosity of discovering new parts of myself.
I shared this story because I take every chance to encourage people to make each and every dream come true. What is yours?
We all have in ourselves what it takes to make it.
Every Monday a New Journey Begins. Make It Valuable!
Our mind and body perceive Mondays like the most difficult start-over times. And when you think it happens every single week, it becomes that unfriendly day that takes over to something beautiful and full of endless opportunities and discoveries: the all mighty weekend.
But what if we changed perspective and saw Mondays as the beginning of a great new journey? A beginning that we cannot waste in longing about the past weekend or yawn in a slow start.
Monday is a new beginning that we should value and make the most of, as it opens the world of a brand new week.
Don’t waste it in nostalgia over the last weekend, but instead:
Be curious – about all this new day has to offer and about the new opportunities that may arise this week. Every Monday takes us closer to making our dream come true or to advancing on our personal mission.
Be grateful – for having this new day and week to get exciting things done, to change those that don’t work the way you’d like them to or to learn new things. Be grateful that you can work on yourself for continuous self-improvement and for generating more and more value.
Be joyous – about all the things you have in life, from sunny nature to family and friends. Be joyous for being yourself, the way you are. Every one of us has the potential of achieving great if only we didn’t condition ourselves so much and kept our natural inner smile on Mondays, too.
Be empowering – to those who need it, at work or at home. This is not the same with helping, as helping fixes a problem one time, but won’t teach people to solve problems on their own and be self-sustained. Instead, take the time to empower and teach as this is the best way of helping.
Be conscious – about your role and mission and about time. Use this new day as best as you can to grow your flame and make your role. Every Monday is valuable, unique and unrepeatable.
Make the most of this new Monday.
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Follow us on our Bright LinkedIn page. Drop us a line to help you reinvent your marketing and communication approach.
Mindful & Efficient Ways to Use Social Media as a Company
The new marketing and communication have a strong influence on business growth and success and work at their best when they are adequate, relevant and human. As social media became an essential tool of today’s communication instruments, I will uncover things I find essential for mindful social media use.
Social media is an increasingly important meeting point between businesses and clients. We cannot afford to ignore it, as it gives an excellent opportunity to nurture dialogue, build brand awareness and favourability, and gain valuable customer insights. This is why every company should define, execute, track and adjust a tailor-made social media strategy in line with the characteristics, expectations and pain points of its customers.
Four essential things for a successful launch in social media for business:
1. do thorough research about your buyer personas (your ideal, most relevant customers) and define your goals
2. choose the most suitable social platforms to use based on point 1 and the specifics of your company (I would say a proper mix of 2-3 is enough). Here is a great article on how to make the most of your LinkedIn presence as a B2B company.
3. create a Social Media Style Guide for a consistent way to respond to customers, share content, create posts and build your online brand image
4. define a Content Strategy that matches your objectives
5. build and maintain a Content Plan and Calendar for scheduling your social media activity, keeping track of objectives and setting the posting frequency for each platform
When you do this initial part right and post relevant content on a regular basis, you consolidate a differentiating image and occupy a valuable spot in their mind.
Keep your customers engaged and happy, offer valuable and helpful content, answer their questions, embrace feedback and they will keep you at heart.
Social media doesn’t work by itself and takes time and resources to do it right. So when companies use social media to cut some costs and mark some actions as done, they'd better think again. The worst thing one could do is treat social media separately or just as a more affordable way of promoting products. Actually, it is not like this anymore.
Social media should be well integrated into the overall communication and online strategy, always with eyes on how it influences sales and brand perception. Social media is by no means a patch that fixes the lack of consistent actions on other channels.
Last, but not least, direct interaction with customers and friends (if we talk about the personal side) is priceless, so don’t replace it with virtual interaction, as comfortable or rapid as it may seem.
Being connected doesn't mean you have a connection if you haven’t met your ‘friends’ or customers face to face in ages.
The Value and Importance of Time, from a Little Boy
Do you need to be conscious of time passing by when all you have to do is play, run, sing, paint and laugh? When every day is a joy and every simple discovery is a miracle?
When you are 5 years old, your time is today and now. The present moment is so important that it captures your full concentration and emotion. Children are fully present within themselves and happy ‘now’ and as every day comes by. One ‘today’ at a time.
I remembered what ‘today’ means. And why it is so important.
As he played with his LEGO bricks in full concentration, I realized that every day is like a brick. One brick here, one next to it, one on top and so on. Day after day, brick after brick, we build ourselves.
The little builder left some free space between some of the bricks in an ingenious way. I soon learnt from him that he called it an ‘invention’.
I am leaving enough space between these bricks to let fresh air inside. But I have to be careful how I place them because I still want to keep my construction solid”, he said with a serious face.
Fair enough.
Every day we live in joy, kindness and consciousness is a great day that will add to who we are and what we become. But there are days when we forget to enjoy, learn something new or do something kind. Days when we worry or stretch ourselves so much that we end up missing the point of our effort. We put no solid brick there to build upon and leave unconsolidated empty spaces.
Be conscious of the contribution every today has in building yourself and the importance of letting fresh air in.
I learned from this little boy what ‘now’ means. And why it is so valuable.
He kept building until his invention took unexpected shapes and included surprising elements. Remember? One brick after another. He didn’t know where this was going to get him, but he felt he was on his right way.
Suddenly, he says:
You know, I am so happy because now I am making such an interesting invention. It is my favorite!
You can seize the value of now when you let it absorb you and remain connected to yourself in everything you do. When you use every moment to make your dreams and ideas happen, you keep building at who you were destined to become.
Learn from the way children play and react to life with genuine surprise and curiosity. What I learnt from my little play companion is that every now weights its value in the things we enjoy doing and the way we remain connected to ourselves. We are not so far away from the child within if we leave him some air and space to be.
And after all, life itself is a sum of now + now + now + … + now.