In his 2011 book, Moonwalking with Einstein, science writer Joshua Foer describes how someone can increase their memory. He learned of a technique while covering a national memory competition. The following year, Foer won that same competition using this very technique.
To improve one’s memory, Foer learned that one has to associate an image with the information that needs to be remembered. The more memorable that image, the better the chance of remembering. It’s possible that Allan Paivio’s Dual Coding Theory (visual explanation here ;-) ) might help explain this.
Alexandra Horowitz, a PhD in cognitive science who teaches psychology at Barnard College in the US, wrote, “… a simple fact of human cognition: we naturally remember visual images. … The less banal, the better. Quotidian scenes are forgettable. What snags the cells of our brains are disgusting, bizarre and novel images.”
On a somewhat related note, it’s thought that our brains “see” in pictures. Not text, not video. Pictures.
Text is processed by our short-term memory. Visuals, such as photos, are processed by our long-term memory. According to cognitive learning studies by psychologist Jerome Bruner, we retain about 10% of what we hear, 20% of what we read, and 80% of what we see. In general, about 83% of learning occurs visually.
The important takeaway for business is that to ensure their marketing is effective (i.e. memorable), it must use pictures, ideally unique, unforgettable photos. (As for “disgusting, bizarre” images, well, you sometimes see such pictures used in fashion ads.)
Or to rephrase it: not using pictures means the marketing message won’t be that memorable no matter how much text is included.
Legendary advertising executive David Ogilvy wrote in his 1963 Confessions of an Advertising Man that the best, most memorable print ads contained a photo along with a headline and/or photo caption. Ogilvy previously worked for George Gallup, (the “Gallup Poll” person), and Gallup market research showed the importance of using photos.
With regards to TV commercials, Ogilvy wrote in 1963, “Dr. Gallup reports that if you say something which you don’t also illustrate, the viewer immediately forgets it. I conclude that if you don’t show it, there is no point in saying it.” No doubt the same thing applies to today’s web sites.
Furthermore, Ogilvy wrote, the most effective photos for business are not pictures that win “camera club awards” but rather pictures that tell a story, pictures with an editorial look. Such pictures arouse curiosity and pull the reader into the marketing text. “This is the trap to set,” said Ogilvy.
Combining all of the above, it should be obvious that the best way for any company to make its marketing more effective is to use photography. The power of photography is undeniable. It will increase readership and will provide the necessary image(s) to trigger the reader’s memory.
Photography is the number one way for a company to get attention, build trust and enhance corporate image. Photographs can help create and preserve memories and influence opinion.
The most memorable stories have pictures. Stories with pictures are the most memorable.
