08 December 2014

Do Blog Posts Need Pictures?

Just about every blog post you're ever going to come across is a piece of writing. That's the main purpose of a blog post, no matter what you're writing about. You're writing something. But that doesn't mean the writing is the only part of the post. A lot of bloggers will include pictures in their posts to go with the writing, whether it's a book cover, movie poster, or just a picture of their cat (I've certainly done a few of those). But are pictures necessary when you're creating a post? And more importantly, do they draw a bigger audience?

There is a lot to think about when considering to put pictures in a blog post. Is it a post that needs one? Will you be able to find a picture that goes along with your topic? Do you even have permission to use it? (I'd suggest reading this article by author Roni Loren--very informative and kind of scary). If you're writing something more personal, you can add your own pictures that go along with your story. How easy it is to include a picture depends on what kind of post you're writing. But do you feel like you have to include a picture in every post just to get more attention?

Usually in any blog feed, when a post shows up, you'll also see the first picture that is in the blog post. What I'm wondering is if this makes anyone more likely to click on the link and read the whole post. Is the point of putting pictures with our blog posts to make them more interesting, or just to catch people's attention?

I thought I would analyze my own posts just to see if the ones with pictures got more page views. For me, it didn't seem to make any difference. Out of the last ten blog posts (excluding any blog hops or awards that have their own picture), only two of my posts had at least one picture. And these posts actually had fewer page views than most of my posts without pictures. I'm sure a lot of factors go into this, what days of the week I posted on (Mondays always tend to get more views than Fridays, for example), what the post was about (posts with a "writing tips" label got more views than others). The list could go on and on. So with my blog at least, I'm not sure adding pictures makes a difference. But I write about writing (mostly), so I guess it makes sense that the writing is what attracts people.

I think it really goes by a blog by blog and post by post basis. If you're writing about someone's published book, it makes sense to include a picture of it. If you're just rambling about your writing troubles, there may not be a picture to go with it, and really, one isn't necessary for a post like that. For me, at least, when I'm going through a blog feed, I'm not really attracted by the pictures. I'm more interested in who wrote it (if it's someone whose blog I visit regularly, I'm more likely to click) and what the topic is. Throwing a picture up along with it doesn't seem to make a difference.

What do you guys think? Are you more likely to click on a post if it has a picture? Do you think your posts get more page views when they have one?


16 comments:

  1. I recently just revamped my Blog banner and added a widget. The widget advertised other links to other posts and boy was I glad I had used pics because the widget looked better with them. However, the pics weren't as important as my post titles. One of my posts were titled: "Did you know..?" and then after that the minor header was "Evil is Sexy". But the only part the widget picks up is "Did you know..?"

    It was at that moment I realised, man, I did not title my posts in the best way possible. And for that reason I hope the pictures fill in the other half of drawing someone's curiosity. So basically, what I'm saying is, I think post titles are more important than pictures, because titles are what really tells you what the post is going to be about!

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  2. I've always heard that the best posts have text, often broken with headlines or bullet points, and photos or images. (That said, my post today is almost all photos.) Wise to be careful what images you use, because they are copyrighted.

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  3. As a blog reader, it doesn't really matter to me if people post pics or not.

    As a blogger, I rarely use pictures in my posts but I do try to utilize white space or bullet points or change up the font, etc so it's not just one big block of text. I tend to use pictures more on the sidebar.

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  4. I have a NEED to post pictures. I'm a visual person, so I don't know any other way. It's fun hunting for the right pictures.

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  5. Very rarely do I do a post w/out pics. I'm like Jay Noel, very visual. I try and always put a link to the source of where I found it. Don't know if that's techincally what you're supposed to do... I probably should read that link you provided- but I don't want to be scared! lol

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  6. I've heard that pictures help break up the blog post like headlines and bolded text do. I don't know if it affects my posts, but I do like to include an image in most my posts. If anything, I think it makes the post look more visually appealing.

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  7. I am one to lean towards a pic. In just a few short paragraphs I had 4 pics. I think they jazz up my posts and make it fun and lively. I'm like Jay, I'm a visual person and love color!!

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  8. I always post photos or images. They say it makes the text easier to read. That and I like images!

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  9. Interesting topic! I never post a blog without a gif or pic or both. Overall i def think as long as the topic's good that's all that truly matters, but I'm a visual person and like color and shiny things! lol

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  10. I used to post pictures on my blog, but then I read that post by Roni Loren and took those pictures down; I don't want to get in trouble with the people who took those pictures and didn't realize that I could. I also don't really take that many pictures to begin with, because I'm not photogenic and don't want to reveal my identity on my blog anyway. But as far as whether or not I'll click on a blog if it has pictures on it, I'm usually more interested in what the person wrote, though I will look at the pictures.

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  11. I don't think they are necessary but it helps to break up large chunks of text and may keep people reading.

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  12. I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, well-chosen images can do a lot to make a post more interesting, but sometimes you'll see them used just because someone thinks they need images to break up text and the images don't fit or are stock photos that are boring. I follow one blogger who never uses images, only paragraphs of texts and sometimes quite long posts as well. But her writing is so good that I read every word of it.

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  13. I always include a picture with my blog posts. Think of lead articles in newspapers; they have pictures. Yes, there are substantial articles farther back with no pictures, but do they look as interesting?

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  14. I love pictures, but content is king.

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  15. I usually include a picture, but that's because it goes well with the blog theme I use. It has a nice slot for a picture right up top. Of course, like in the times of today, I usually pick a random picture I already own. It sometimes doesn't relate. Ah well...

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  16. I use pics mostly to illustrate a point or (in years gone by) build a post around. Beyond that, I get normal pageviews for content.

    Father Nature's Corner

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