THE IMPORTANCE OF GREAT PHOTOS

Web pages with images or video receive an average of 94 percent more views than their text-only counterparts, according to Hubspot, a marketing and sales software provider. Professional photography is not only essential for advertising and marketing efforts, but having high-resolution photos significantly increases your chances of earning press coverage as well.

As experienced public relations and marketing professionals, we’ve outlined the types of photos every business should invest in — images that create positive impressions of your company, authenticity and trust, media coverage and emotional connections with future customers.

A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS

Before customers make a purchase, they want to know what they’re getting themselves into. Image matters and the way your staff, facility, products or services look in photos can be the deciding factor why someone chooses you over your competitor. People are also spending more time on the web now than ever before, making quality photography even more imperative.

Envision the last time you were planning a vacation. Before selecting an experience, you vetted the business online for basic amenities: clean restrooms, a friendly-looking staff, up-to-date and safe equipment. Now imagine you find an appealing experience, but their website and social media channels lack high-quality photos. You begin questioning whether or not the business is even legit. Customers want to envision what their experience will be like even before they step foot into your store. Photos of your property help them visualize a positive, enjoyable experience. Forbes shares more reasons why brand image matters more than you think.

HIGHLIGHT YOUR HUMAN SIDE

Taking great headshots of your company’s key employees is a great way to demonstrate your brand’s personality and values. It allows customers to link what your company does to the people behind the action, creating trust and authenticity.

Photos of your staff in action is another excellent way to create a human connection with your customers. These types of images highlight the extraordinary elements that comprise your organization and compel prospective customers to take an interest and reach out, according to Meero.com.

NEVER MISS A MEDIA OPPORTUNITY

Whether a news outlet is a broadcast, print or web-based medium, it is almost guaranteed every story will be accompanied by some sort of visual element, whether it’s photo or video. Although news stations and most papers have their own photographers and videographers they prefer to capture content with, it’s never a guarantee news outlets possess the time or budget to shoot video or photos of your business.

Maybe a magazine from the other side of the country is interested in covering your story but they can’t travel to take photos. Perhaps the local paper’s photographer experienced a change in her schedule and suddenly can’t attend your event anymore. The news station’s cameraman misses filming a specific person or element of your business because he ran out of time.

You never want to find yourself in a situation where you’re missing a media opportunity because you weren’t prepared with photos or video. Public relations professionals are experts at creating press kits loaded with the proper types of images and video the media can use in their content. This allows the journalist to focus on writing a compelling story rather than hunting down mediocre photos of your business or cutting the story altogether. Forbes shares additional reasons why your business needs a press kit.

SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT

High-quality, professional photos not only increase social media reach and engagement, but good photography also helps customers imagine a personal experience with your products or services through visual storytelling.

Flux Magazine explains how lifestyle imagery creates opportunities for brands to strongly position themselves by showing potential customers how their products or services can become part of their lives. It’s a way for people to imagine themselves as the model in the photo excited to take off in your company’s helicopter or the customer in your restaurant tasting a brand-new dish. This emotional connection helps customers feel confident in their buying decision.

Now that you understand the importance of good photography and the types of photos you should invest in, it may be time to schedule a photoshoot with your team. From shooting high-resolution, media-friendly photographs consistent with your branding and story to creating a press kit containing everything a reporter needs for a story, we’re here to help you create your photo library to maximize your publicity efforts.

From brainstorming photo concepts to setting up photoshoots, The Vox Agency is passionate about creating compelling, eye-catching photos that tell your story and increase your sales and bottom line. For additional photography services information, contact us.