The Importance of Product Photography

In 2015, visual content is fast becoming the central pillar of web design; current trends indicate that users’ preference for attractive visual imagery over long swathes of copy is set to increase over the coming months, so if you haven’t already, it’s really time to assess whether or not your product photography is letting your site down.

This blog looks at the importance of product photography, how it can separate your business from the competition, and why it shouldn’t cost the earth.

Increased Competition

As more and more consumers look to make cheaper purchases online, businesses are increasingly investing more money in e-commerce websites and digital marketing strategies in order to secure their custom. This means that whatever you sell, from retro furniture to organic clothing, there’s probably going to be a litany of other sites out there offering the same service, potentially at a lower price point. Sites like Ebay, Amazon and Etsy also offer businesses multiple avenues to take their products to market, again making it more difficult for your e-commerce site to stand out.

This means that good product photography has never been more important for small and large online retailers alike. Regardless of whether or not you’re trying to address an international market, having arresting visual imagery on your site is one of the easiest ways to set yourself aside from other retailers online. If your company offers genuine, high quality products then it’s only befitting to have images that reflect this.

Mobile Audiences

It’s no big secret in the digital marketing industry that more audiences than ever now access the internet through mobile devices, such as tablets and smart phones. As more audiences access your content on the move, there’s increasing pressure on your site to capture the fleeting attention span of users who might just be browsing aimlessly in order to fill time. With such a limited amount of time available, it’s difficult for your content to capture your audience’s attention and imagination, which means it’s up to your product imagery to do the job. It’s a slight cliché, but great product photography should do the talking for you, illustrating the quality and distinction of your product ranges and enticing your audiences to read into them further.
Professional Product Photography Made Easy
Thanks to the plethora of image editing services now available both on and offline, it’s never been easier to populate your site with beautiful, eye-catching product photography. Packages like Adobe PhotoShop prioritise user friendliness, and are also complimented by a wealth of online tutorials, making them a viable tool to enhance your product imagery on a tight budget.
Social networks like Instagram and Twitter now also offer some basic image enhancement tools, allowing you to spruce up your photos with a number of filters before publishing them, again facilitating the creation of remarkable images under strict budgets. These sites are also a great place for e-commerce retailers to target and develop a select group of audience members who have already displayed an interest in what they have to offer.

Social Media

As we move further into 2015, the emphasis that large brands place on their social media marketing efforts looks set to carry on increasing, which means that yours should too. Multiple studies suggest that social media audiences react best to attractive visual content, which is reflected in the dramatic increase in users of sites like Instagram and Pinterest. This means that your product photography must not only look professional, but also be branded and distinctive, so as to set your social media presence apart from that of your competitors. Posts on sites like Twitter are also refined by strict character limitations, which again means that more emphasis is placed on outstanding imagery rather than wordy content.

The bottom line is that as an e-commerce retailer, your products are the backbone of your business, and as such their appearance will affect the customer’s perception of you as a whole. Web design trends dictate that your site’s visual elements are going to be more important than ever before, and with so many competitors out there competing for the same business, can you really afford to neglect them? The creation of stunning visuals, however, needn’t cost a fortune any longer; with sites like Instagram offering free editing software, now really is the time to revolutionise your product photography, and get a head start on your online competitors.