If you’re trying to update your website and you do not have the financial means to take all your own original photos (don’t worry, most companies don’t), then it is likely you will be travelling to what seems to be an infinite well of stock photos. This well is chock-full of images ranging from the useful and generic “businessman holding a smartphone” image:
to something much more specific and downright unusable:[caption id="attachment_936" align="alignleft" width="367"]
In our constant efforts to help you update your website, we have come up with a small list of guidelines to help you find a stock photo that is perfect for your message.
Are You Unhappy With Your Conversion Rates?
Book a Strategy Session and learn how Media Contour can help you increase:
Conversion Rates- Return on Ad Spend
- Revenue
- Customer LTV
- Profit Margins
- Average Order Value
What are you trying to say?
What is your message? How can you convey this message without words? Is it as simple as showing the activity or is there a corollary? Certain ideas can illustrate what you are saying without really saying it. For example, a photo of a lighthouse may insinuate your brand is trusted, or has the right answers in an uncertain area. Create a word bank of emotions you wish to elicit from the viewer and associate those emotions to images.
Are your Product Pages a mess, or do you need some pointers on how to improve them?
Download our FREE High-Performance Product Page PDF to see what you’re missing or may not need, and improve your:
- Conversion Rates
- Return on Ad Spend
- Revenue
- Customer Lifetime Value
- Profit Margins
- Average Order Value
Who are you trying to say it to?
While a certain image may get the point across in your head, what about your audience? After all they’re the ones who you want to strike a chord with. If you decide to update your website or blog with images that are only relevant to you, why bother? Update your website with images that have saliency to your client. While you may think that a lighthouse is a sign of trust and certainty, a customer in the landlocked midwest may not feel the same way.
Is It Clever? Too Clever?
“When creating imagery, ‘don't see and say’ is a rule some advertises swear by” says Media Contour’s Art Director Luke Swenson. “You want viewers to make the connection themselves, that way you get the ‘ah-ha’ moment. These connections don't have to be rocket science or difficult to figure out, if you have a headline that says the exact same thing the image says visually, there is less the user has to do.” It’s also known as the ah-ha moment; that moment where they make the connection themselves. That little bit of connection will catch viewers off-guard and create a warmth in the viewer that will surely raise the time people spend on your site. Update your website with stock photos that are just grabbing enough to make the connection but not too clever that they miss the connection.Do you have any other ideas on how to better update your website? We would love to hear them! Leave us a comment below or send us a message on Twitter or Facebook.
.png)
