Posted on March 18th, 2023.

Regardless of your business’s sector or industry, your website and social media presence are crucial. These marketing tools cannot be considered ‘luxuries’ anymore, or parts of your business that would simply be ‘nice to have’. If you want to stand any chance of generating leads, growing your company and reaching more of your target customers in 2023, you need to be investing in a professional website and a supporting social media strategy, not one or the other.

Any professional website and social media profile(s) should come with high-quality photos. While social media platforms and the ever-expanding index of websites are flooded with imagery, you may be wondering what the point of it is. The reality is that your photos can drastically influence how people - more specifically, your potential customers - can perceive your brand. Therefore, your images need to accomplish several things: establish credibility, engage the customer, and subsequently support your marketing and brand awareness goals. So it’s fair to say that finding the best website and social media photos is challenging. Luckily, this guide is here to help you.

Choosing the Right Social Media and Business Photos

When business owners think of using images that showcase their brand, there is often an assumption that they should invest in a professional digital camera, buy a plethora of camera lens filters, and use them all wherever possible. Ultimately, only some business owners are going to have the capability to pull this off successfully.

However, if you’re an architect, builder, landscape designer, or product manufacturer, you may benefit from professional commercial photography. You can create bespoke imagery that captures the essence, components and features of your specific product(s) to spare no detail, should you sell directly on your website. Or, if you’re looking for supporting material for case studies or popular jobs that you have completed, imagery is crucial, so the photos need to have the right lighting, aperture and depth of field to capture professionally. These make great social media posts.

On the flip side, if you provide services like consultancy, legal advice, accountancy, or training (among others), your ideal imagery may need to consist of more in-action shots or even be more metaphorical in nature. You may also need professional portraits or headshots of your team, which you can then put on your website so your customers can put a name to a face.

The options for social media or business photos are endless, depending on what you do. However, if the idea of choosing fills you with dread, please do not fret. You do not need to be a proficient photography expert to choose images that are going to work for your business and social media. All it takes is a little forward-thinking, preparation, and a strategic approach.

Types of Photos to Consider

When it comes to your business and social media photos, there are many options at your disposal.

Corporate Headshots

Individual corporate headshots usually consist of a white background with the image focus being on one person, usually from the shoulders up. These shots exist to convey an individual or company’s professionalism and experience.

Business Portraits

Portraits are slightly different from headshots. These shots usually include more of the subject’s body, with a broader range of lighting styles and backgrounds used. Companies can often use portraits in more versatile ways than standard headshots, although both have their place for a company’s marketing aims.

Group Shots

Shots of an entire team in a communal office can evoke a sense of togetherness and camaraderie about your company. If you want your team to be recognised as personable or approachable, these can establish that desired connection with your customers.

Stock Imagery

Many business owners swear off stock website images due to having no relevancy or connection to the content. While they do come with risks, they can also be valuable additions to your website, blog, and supporting social media posts. There are plenty of free and affordable stock image libraries (such as Shutterstock or DepositPhotos), but it’s important to read the terms of use and ensure the photos you choose are relevant.

Location Photography

If you’re establishing a presence in your local area or community, photos of yourself or members of your team in front of well-known landmarks or attractions in your area can help build a sense of trust and personality. However, if you offer regional or national services, you may have to be more strategic with the locations you choose to highlight.

Before/After Pictures

If you provide services, one of the most effective and convincing photo types to use is before-and-after images. These images showcase what you do but also to what extent, thus helping customers decide whether you are a good fit for them.

Action Shots

Showing photos of you or your team in action can give potential customers an insight into your routine, services, equipment and demeanour. In turn, these images can establish more credibility and authenticity to what you do, as well as highlight your expertise in the field.

Moblox 5 Tips for improving your online imagery and photos

Every business is different and has unique aims for attracting the right customers. After all, the customer is the most important part of a business, is it not? Therefore, choosing any or all of the above photo types, without any proper consideration for your customers, is a recipe for disaster.

Ultimately, your photos need to add value to what you’re trying to sell to them through your website or social media. Therefore, whatever you decide to utilise, make sure you follow these five tips for maximum effect.

1. Make the Photos Relatable

A crucial part of marketing to your target audience is to put yourself in their shoes. Try to understand what they relate to. What are their pain points? What do they look for in a business like yours?

Once you establish the core ‘wants’ or ‘needs’ of your audience, you can use this information to determine how your photos address those points. Behind every social media follower and website visit is a person, often starved for time, so it’s crucial to make your images relatable and attention-grabbing

2. Consistency

Create a consistent approach to the style of imagery you use across your website and social media. Consistent branding is crucial to appear professional, recognisable and approachable, especially if you highlight branding elements in your images.

On the same topic of consistency, it’s wise to keep your business fresh in your audience’s minds and post regularly with relevant imagery alongside the posts. Use your website blog and social media pages to keep your audience informed and up-to-date with your company’s developments.

3. Be On-Brand and Authentic

You may benefit by adding glimpses of your branding or brand colours in parts of your photos. Consistent colour schemes can help your audience recognise your brand through your photos, whether your branding is highlighted in small accessories or is the subject of an entire image. What other props or features can you add to give the image more credibility and authenticity to your brand?

4. Show a Variety, But Not Too Much

The images you choose should evoke an emotional response from your audience. Depending on what you sell, your photography needs to reflect what you do, to achieve a desired action from the people you’re trying to sell to. This might mean you have one or several types of photos to use across your site and social media.

If this is the case, be smart about what you’re highlighting. By all means, have a variety, but have consistency too. Using numerous styles of images without any real flow or thought can become overwhelming for the customer and invoke mixed messages.

5. Demonstrate Uniqueness

Most social media content is visual these days, whether it's through the use of static imagery or video. Your target audience will likely digest content in the same way, so it’s vital to create content that’s creative and unique so that it engages the right people in the correct ways.

The best types of content are those that elicit a response or a reaction and provide helpful insight or information to the user, having addressed a key pain point of theirs, with an easy route for them to find out more or fix the problem they have.

When executed correctly and strategically, marketing your business through your website or social media is much easier if you have the right images in your repertoire. They can be the difference between achieving no customers to swathes of them, so don’t overlook or ignore them.

Source: Moblox