FIVE Reasons you need a Professional Photographer 📸✍🏼
I, as much as you (and the rest of the nation), am also sick of the words “pandemic”, “quarantine” and “virus”. However this time in our lives has come to prove that the market for online shopping is only growing bigger by the minute. With hundreds of thousands of brands trading online across the globe and more joining every day, it raises the question of “how can I stand out online?”. Why should customers buy from you? What will make you stand out in the bottomless pit of Etsy and Not On The High Street Sellers?
One of the best answers I can give you is imagery.
Yes, of course you need to have a viable product that is fundamentally great and you need a market audience. You need packaging and self motivation behind the scenes and the list goes on. Say you have all this and more, the future is bright but your imagery is not. How can you expect people to be drawn to YOUR website, marketplace or instagram, how can you catch the attention of the billions of users online?
It makes you stand out from the crowd.
Instant gratification and an ocean of stunning images on instagram mean that consumers’ eyes are drawn to the most gorgeous images within seconds. A UK study showed that 93% of consumers will consider the imagery of a product before they purchase it. Your brand is as good as your media simply because your media represents your entire brand. People will invest in what looks good, they’re more likely to take the chance on the product that looks the most professional and the brand that is most proud to be presenting to the world.
It builds trust.
Social media is arguably (I would say obviously) a more important tool than your website now. Whether people come across your website or your marketplace first, eight out of ten times that person will check your instagram account to see how “legit” you are and what your brand portrays online. Investing in your images will not only allow you to create a stunning, cohesive website, it will give you content for your social media platforms that will give you a return, it instils confidence in the consumer that you are a trustable brand.
It will double your sales.
I can factually tell you that good product photography can double and sometimes even triple your sales. I have worked closely with an online gift business called Smart Gift Solutions which was established in 2001. Needless to say their range of products needed rephotographing and their brand needed updating, since I have been updating their imagery, their sales have close to tripled.
You don’t have the equipment. (or the eye)
You can do product photography yourself, I will be making a blog post next week on my top “tips and tricks” you can do at home to get your imagery up to scratch. However, to achieve the best lighting techniques that make the atmosphere a mystery and get your product to sing out in its environment, really is a skill that needs a lot of study and practice. Some people just don’t have the creative eye to style the products and the technical knowledge to capture them perfectly. I can virtually guarantee that you also don’t have the lighting equipment, camera body, lens’ for different results, tripods and softwares to produce what a professional photographer can. Even still, running a business is more than a full time job itself and putting another task into the mix can be an added stress.
Consistency.
When your imagery is all consistent and it matches and it has a feel to it, customers feel comfortable because they can see you are consistent. You are consistently on the top of your game with making your products look the best, giving the impression that they are the best and every other aspect of your business is just as consistent too.
These are just the top 5 reasons as to why you should hire a professional to perfect your business visuals, it definitely is an investment you need to consider. However, do your research, figure out which photographer would best gel with your brand and contact people for enquiries to make sure they have the answers you need.