Visual Manipulation: The Power of Selling Through Photos
Visual Manipulation: The Power of Selling Through Photos
The popular expression, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” is the key to successful marketing. Photography is an incredibly powerful form of art that stimulates an individual visually, mentally, and emotionally. Photography cause people to laugh, cry, and most importantly, buy.
A business can profit using photographic visual manipulation to successfully sell their product, image, or service. With the barrage of visual media that the average consumer witnesses, it is important to create an image that is powerful, compelling, and memorable.
The Profitable Power of Visual Manipulation
Visual manipulation is a very powerful and effective advertising technique that has been used for decades. For example, the Absolut advertising campaigns have permanently engrained the quintessential bottle in consumer’s minds. Through creative photography and visual manipulation, these advertisements strike home with the consumer’s lifestyle preferences.
It is estimated that 95% of consumers are more likely to buy a product because of a visual image or a photograph. Imagine if you are selling designer sunglasses – you may have incredibly powerful ad copy, but without the right image, consumers will automatically skip over your marketing efforts. However, a sleek, glamorous model aboard a fancy yacht wearing those luxurious sunglasses is a stimulating image that prompts consumers to notice your product.
A photograph is not only “worth a million words,” but it can be worth millions of dollars. For example, through visual manipulation, the greatest fashion houses - such as Chanel, Versace, and Armani – have created powerful companies that constantly capture consumer dollars.
Creating the perfect advertising photo
When you browse through any magazine, the vast majority of the flashy, captivating images are enhanced and retouched. Whether you have a model with an unsightly blemish, or a stray leaf blowing across the hood of the Ferrarri, all of the imperfections are removed in post-editing.
By using visual manipulation, the ambiance, attitude, and emotions portrayed in a photograph can be perfectly altered to suit your marketing campaign efforts. With changes in lighting and tone, a photo can go from dreary to cheery, and a model can transform from plain to gorgeous.
In addition, visual manipulation gives you an opportunity to create fantastical images that cannot be achieved through standard photography alone. When an image is unique, it stands out to the consumer – and this translates into increased revenues.
Visual manipulation, in whatever form, is a powerful selling tool. A photograph can speak not only words, but also dollar signs.