As mobile devices become more powerful, users are better able to take pictures and upload them. Users are also increasingly capable of viewing images on those mobile devices. Not only is the hardware becoming more image oriented, but the trend in software and internet services is to emphasize those images and allow sharing them. This trend was easy to spot before Pinterest even if most were unable to do so.
Chas Edwards has an opinion piece at Adage.com about the need for social media agencies and their clients to adopt an image strategy. Customers are increasingly exposed and reliant on images. There are some moments when the designed image is the closest thing to content about a brand that customers will see. Pinterest’s great advancement is the ability to pin a single image. That image then serves similarly to the +1 button or the like button.
Not only can an image serve as a logo for a brand but the image can operate contextually. Where the image links is able to change depending upon where the image is clicked. Videos can be served up or static pages, such as a homepage, can be offered. As Pinterest grows then other social networks will begin incorporating more sophisticated techniques and effects. Before this becomes a normalized practice, the social media agency needs to create and implement an image strategy.