A picture is worth 1,000 words: How to get more great photos for your website & social media!

Photos are the easiest and best way to promote your business whether you’re in tourism or sell a physical product. People are ‘visual’; if it looks good, they more likely to buy or book it! In fact, 92% of communication is visual..

I see many businesses struggling to update photos (and video) on their website and social media. It’s easy if you like taking photos yourself (I do!), but can be a hassle if you don’t.

Here are 6 ways and ideas to obtain good photos:

1. Put some budget aside each year to get professional photos taken. These can be used everywhere: your brochure, website, social media (incl Tripadvisor, your google map listing etc.), ads and media will use professional photos. Also, if your product appears in wholesale brochures, if you have great pics, they will be used to promote the region too.
2. But not all photos have to be ‘professional’ photos. Photos you take yourself can feel more authentic and spontaneous. Get a good quality late model smartphone. Not only are the cameras very good on them, you can also take some cool little videos!
3. Take photos every day and upload them on Instagram and Facebook (you can link these so you only have to do it once) and have a live feed on your website. This way, you’ll always have ‘fresh’ photos on your website! Don't forget to put a caption, hashtag or alt-tag on your photo so people know what they're looking at!
4. If you employ staff, there is bound to be someone who loves photography as a hobby. Make it part of their job description and you’ll have great new photos all the time!
5. Take a photography course.
6. Make a ‘shoot list’, a list of topics that would be great to have photos of for your marketing.

• Think about the things that your customers tell you they love about what you sell.
• Have a look at what other websites, and the type of photos that appeal most.
• The type of photos and posts that get shared most are photos that are: funny, inspirational, cute, stunning, surprising, novel.
• You could have a ‘theme’. For example, one of our local tabloids has a photo each week of a someone reading the publication in somewhere in the world.
• People photos: of your customers enjoying your product/having fun!
  
• Photos of your team (on the ‘About us’ page). Your customers want to see who they're dealing with!
• Add text to your photo (great for Facebook ads etc) - see example below.

So, plan how you're going to have fresh photo content on your website on a regular basis.

Till next week, Marijke