Why you need to replace your generic stock photos with customized brand photos
Stock photos look and feel impersonal, and it’s costing you money.
If you’ve spent any amount of time scrolling social media in the past ten years, you’ve seen at least one stock photo turned into a meme. The old man with a too-wide smile sipping coffee at his computer. The woman who’s laughing a little too hard at her salad. The team, hands joined at the center, poised for a spirited 'Go Team!' chant. These photos could all technically serve a non-humorous purpose, but instead have become memes in perpetuity.
“Go Team!” Stock photo
Yes, these are somewhat exaggerated examples. But they illustrate one of the main drawbacks for using stock photos: These overly-posed, often-cheesy images lack authenticity. Stock photos are meant to work for a variety of contexts. However, in an effort to be as generic as possible, they often come off as too professional and have an off-putting, “cold” effect.
Why investing in good brand photography is worth it
Even if they’re aware of some of the drawbacks, many businesses today still rely on stock photos to “get the job done.”
Let’s face it— buying generic stock images online is relatively easy and cheap. But whatever time and effort you might save in this respect, you’ll end up paying elsewhere. Even if you do land on an image that’s “close enough” to the messaging you’d like to convey, it’s likely it’s the wrong orientation or size, and you’ll spend your valuable time on an online image converter trying to make something work.
Don’t get me wrong, this can be a reasonable place to start if your business is in its very beginnings. But if you’re looking to level up your business in 2024, custom brand photography is absolutely the way to go.
As a small business owner, you’ve spent countless hours crafting a mission statement for your brand. When you share your brand on social media and the web, visuals are just as important, if not more, than the words in your captions. And your next client might be driven away by a first-impression glance at overly cheesy, unrelatable imaging.
Create a stronger brand in 2024
Great branded visuals provide an opportunity for you to share a realistic, authentic picture of what it would look like to work with you and your team. If you’re working with a good brand photographer, they’ll also work with you in advance to add touches of your brand’s colors and logo within the cohesive set of images.
After the photoshoot, you’ll come out with tons of on-brand images to use across social media platforms, your website, and print advertising, perfectly cropped and/or resized to meet the exact needs of your business. You won’t have to worry about coming off as something you’re not. Your photographer will work with you to communicate who you are through a set of professional photos that show you care about your brand and your clients.
The best way to book your dream client is by showing them exactly who you are and what you offer.
If iPhone photos are not cutting it anymore for your Etsy shop, or if your team’s personality can’t be captured in an overly-posed portrait, we’ve got you covered. We currently offer packages for small businesses of all shapes and sizes. Whether you’re working solo out of your mom’s basement, you have a brick-and-mortar space with physical products, or anything in between, we’ll work with you to create a set of cohesive, memorable and beautiful images that will help bring your brand to life.
In other words, we exist to capture you doing what you love.
Interested?
Fill out the inquiry form to learn more!
