All too often, graphic design is left out of the marketing campaigns of small businesses. It’s easy for small business owners to view extra graphic design work as a superfluous part of web design, especially when these small business owners have a very limited budget for their own marketing campaigns.

But when a business does make use of graphic design work, it’s able to create a well-rounded and effective advertising campaign online — and here are a couple statistics to back up that statement:

50%: The increased possibility that a webpage will rank somewhere on the first page of a Google search result if the webpage has a video. Many small business owners think of on-site videos as one of those \”extras\” that aren’t necessary for running a successful business — and it’s true, that many businesses run perfectly well without a decent webpage. But more people are demanding that businesses provide information online, and that this information is presented professionally and conveniently. Outsourcing this task to a professional website designer may be in order, but it’s clear that outsourcing this task is definitely an investment which will contribute to an effective advertising campaign, and it’ll pay off in the long run.

12%: The amount of growth in website traffic that the average web page will see after including infographics in content pages. Infographics are one of those lesser-known, yet highly-effective, small business advertising tips. They present tons of information, but do so in a very visual way that involves colors, fonts, and pictures. The idea behind an infographic is to gain audience interest with special effects, but to do so without distracting the reader from the important information. Creating infographics can be a daunting task for someone who isn’t familiar with digital art, so many businesses choose to work with an advertising agency that employs graphic designers, or simply to have third-party graphic design agencies take care of it. Again, this is an investment, and it pays off as it contributes to an effective advertising campaign over time.

So now the conversation is being left up to the readers: do you agree with the majority of marketers who believe that advertising is an art in itself, and should naturally incorporate artistic components? Or are you still anti-graphic design? Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments section! Read more.