Images of war. Illustrations of peace. Photos of terror. Portraits of beauty.

I’m obsessed with images and their power over us.

I saw a hypnotherapist once who told me that our subconscious learns things from images much more effectively than it does from language and words. The subconscious mind (about 90%) is responsible for making most of our decisions. And it THINKS IN PICTURES.

Research shows that we’re reading less online, scanning more, and video is projected to be 80% of internet traffic – so there is no denying the power of imagery online. And we’ve all heard the saying “a picture says 1000 words.”

Our business is our art. And activist Cesar Cruz said it:

“Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.”

Think of the graphics and the photography you currently use – on your website, your social media, your printed materials – and ask yourself:

• Am I using visuals to their most powerful effect (especially on the most viewed pages of my website, Home and About?)

• Do my images speak to my viewer by inspiring, enlightening, educating? Or are they merely filling space? Are they there at all or am I missing an opportunity to tell a better story?

• Am I regurgitating images that I see elsewhere? Am I using images that seem safe or expected with the subject matter?

• If a goal of yours is to shake up your industry or your audience, are you using images to help you do that?

• If you’re trying to help your audience, are you using images that illustrate the result they’re looking to achieve?

Georgia O’Keefe said “I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way – things I had no words for.”

The images you use are speaking for you – what are they saying?