Painting a thousand words

PR is painted as, essentially, a discipline of words. From developing and perfecting messaging, to helping create the collateral that will drive that message, to actually convincing others of the message (with any luck successfully); it’s our use of language that is put to the test and that helps us stand out. However, this doesn’t mean that we need to limit ourselves to the written or spoken word: even at the level of B2B, tech images, from diagrams to photos, can be a huge help.

At its most basic, a simple image can help explain a complex concept to a reader or even to a PR themselves (for example, my understanding of virtualisation was kick-started by, essentially, a drawing of a load of rectangles chopped into pieces and linked together). It can also give an appreciation of what some technologies actually look like in the flesh, to coin a phrase. Although there can sometimes be a bit of confusion between useful business technology and evil robot-spiders.

It has also been drummed into many PRs’ heads that images can help sell a story, which is certainly true: after all, anything that can help make a concept more understandable or make a story jump off the page will be more attractive, especially when publishing space is limited. In this case, the image should be appropriate: while it may be tempting to use the old archive photo of a tank at every opportunity, a picture of a data centre, or a business, illustrating technology in use might be a tad more useful. That said, some views are rather more cynical about just what pictures might be appropriate and when.

Lastly there are spokesperson pictures: always useful when illustrating a story or simply for getting an idea of what the person you’ve never actually met in the flesh looks like. Of course, there are a few simple rules to follow here too. They should be decently lit. There should be a variety, in different poses and format, to choose from. They should show the subject at ease and in a somewhat formal situation. And, while taking indoor or outdoor shots against a simple or complex background is mainly a matter of taste, it’s worth checking to make sure the final composition won’t contain a hidden message.