How Visual Content Improves Your Website Rank on SERPs

There’s an adage you probably heard quite a lot, “pictures speak a thousand words.” It might be over-used but we can say that it’s true. Visuals have always been an important part of communication, and that includes online content.

Most of us went to YouTube or articles with pictures to see a tutorial or to simply find an answer. Those visuals help us understand whether we’re doing something right or not.

Not only can visuals illustrate what you want to say but they can also make your website rank higher in Google. In other words, when you add images, infographics, and product demo videos to your website, you are not only making it more visually appealing to your visitors, but also providing valuable content that can give a boost to your SEO strategy.

Here are some powerful ways how visual content can help your website to sit at the top pages of Google SERPs.

#1. Visual content conveys messages better

Information will be much easier to digest and more eye-pleasing to look at when we see them through videos, charts, infographics, and photos. Visuals are not only more engaging for viewers but they can also convey your message faster and much better than words alone.

The very reason why Google is favoring websites with rich content is that visual information will help people understand the concepts quickly without having to skim through long, 3000-word articles or blog posts.

When you have a well-optimized website with rich visual content, you not only make it easier for your viewers to understand but also improve your chances of getting a better search engine ranking.

#2. Visual content increase dwell time

Dwell time is the amount of time a visitor spends on your website. The longer they stay, the better it is for your SEO ranking. This is because Google takes into consideration not just how many people visit your website but also how long they stay.

In that case, one way to encourage visitors to stick around is by providing interesting and valuable visual content. When a visitor sees something that interests them, they will naturally spend more time on your website to learn more. This is one of the reasons why infographics or videos are so effective in getting people to engage with your content.

#3. Improve the backlink profile

Backlinks are still one of the most important ranking factors for Google. The more high-quality links you have pointing to your website, the higher it will rank in search engine results pages.

Meanwhile, visual content is much easier to share across digital channels. The more you share them, the more chances you have to get them seen. And when other websites find your content valuable, they’ll use them as a resource for their own content– and link back to your piece to give you credit. That’s how you can get more backlinks. This will help strengthen your backlink profile and, in turn, boost your SEO ranking.

#4. Higher click-through rates

The higher your click-through rate, the better chances you have to increase traffic and get more valuable links pointing back at your site– all because people are seeing it on the first for relevant keywords in Google SERPs.

This is where visual content comes into play again– especially videos. A website with a video is 53 times more likely to appear in the top five search results than a website without a video.

#5. Build a rapport with audiences

When you provide valuable, original visual content, you are also building a rapport with your audiences. They will start to see you as an authoritative figure in your industry and will trust the information that you share.

When they trust you, they’re more likely to do business with you. This way, Google also takes into account your brand authority and whether or not you’re a trustworthy business.

Wrapping up

Visual content is not only about making your website look good but also providing valuable information to your viewers. When done correctly, it can help improve your website SEO ranking and bring in more traffic. Another good news is that you can create a variety of visual content using affordable, easy-to-use tools out there.

Author

Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, an award-winning explainer video company. He helps businesses increase conversion rates, close more sales, and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).