Always? Sometimes? Never? I was researching what others thought and I couldn’t really find anyone saying not to use images. However, I did find a few sporadic posts about how vital images are, but none of them ranked very high in the search engines. I had to dig deep to find support in favor of blog images.
That either tells me there’s no compelling evidence to support either side, or I was using the wrong key words to search. Personally I like images in blog posts. I enjoy reading a blog if images are included in the right way. What’s the right way though? For me, it’s scarce but incisive. I don’t need there to be a picture for every action you describe or joke you tell like it’s a Family Guy cut away.
If you’re going to use images, make it compliment the point you’re trying to make in your post. I’m tired of seeing that stock photo of some guy in a suit smiling way too big at absolutely nothing. You know what I mean. If you’re writing about how black clothes are more slimming than colors, show a side by side comparison. If you’re talking about favorite ice cream flavors by age group, include a fancy little demographic pie chart. Otherwise, let it be.
Even though I enjoy pertinent images in blog posts, I’m trying something different here at All Start No Finish. I’m keeping things as textual as I can here. That doesn’t mean you won’t see the occasional image included from time to time, but finding images can be a pain in the ass too.
Acquiring images adds an unnecessary layer of time and stress to blog publishing. Sure, it can be worth it sometimes, but not every post needs a picture in my opinion. You either have to create it yourself, obtain permission from someone else, or pay for it. I’ve also heard the horror stories of authors paying for images from large sites only to have the authors come hunt them down still claiming infringement.
People come to your blog to read what you have to say. There are exceptions if you’re a photo or travel blogger and speak more through your images. Similar situation if you host a podcast on your site. You’ll speak more through video. If you’re a writer, you speak through text, and that should be your focus to get your point across.
If you find the ideal image that compliments your post perfectly, by all means include it. If you’re struggling to find the right image and spending more time searching than you did writing, you might be wise to just pass on the picture this time. Chances are it will not make that much of an impact to warrant wasting all that time.
Here’s something interesting. If you do include an image or two in each blog post, it may serve you well to add a catchy caption. I guess it’s natural for our eyes to move down when we view an image, so make that caption memorable or enticing. I’ve never done it myself. I only found this on SocialTriggers while doing some research and figured I’d pass it along for you to try.
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