How Cheap Stock Images can help your Business?

Oct 15

Images Can Make or Break Your Marketing Campaign

stock photographerStock imagery, no matter where you get it from, can make or break any marketing campaign of yours. As a marketer, I’m sure your eye is just as keen as mine when we browse the Internet and see poor marketing campaigns.

Many people use images that are distracting and take away from the primary focus of the article, blog post or Web page. Others still, use images for nothing more than decoration. Take just a moment and think about why you’re adding any particular image to your projects. If you use the wrong image, you could very quickly and easily transmit the wrong message. Don’t worry – you wouldn’t be the first one to do so. However, if you do send the wrong message, it will probably be your job to clean up the mess.

Cheap Is Not an Indication of Quality

cheap stock photos in the internet

Cheap images are not an indication of quality. Free images might be an indication of quality, but not cheap ones. You still pay for cheap images. By paying for the image, you’re probably paying for a royalty-free license. Although this may limit how the images used, it does one thing in the background. For every image you purchase, stock photo agencies (check out Stock Photo Secrets as they have listed the top 5 stock photo agencies) turn around and pay a commission to the artist – the professional photographer. This provides an incentive for the photographer to create more professionally curated images.

This business model is not new. This model is actually the reason why stock agencies often have between 40 million and 60 million images in their libraries. Professional photographers continually add new files to those libraries on a daily basis. Cheap images do not have cheap quality. They are still professional photos.

Do You Have a Reason to Use an Image?

Do you have a reason to use a picture for your project? It’s been said before that adding images to text can make it more engaging. Have you added images simply to make the text easier to read?

Images Are Meant to Enhance

Images are adjunct when they are being added to text. They are secondary. If you have a blog post that is full of uninteresting, boring and irrelevant information, it doesn’t matter how many interesting images you add to it. It will not be read. Images are designed to enhance your message. When your image reinforces your message, your message will reach more people.

Images Are Meant to Sell

sell stock photos online

Images are primary selling tools. However, if you don’t actually photograph your product, then don’t pretend that you did with a stock photo. People can see right through that. However, stock photos can still be used to help you sell your products. Depending on your product, you may be able to find a picture of someone who is happily using a product very similar to yours. If you can’t find that, then do what Coke does in their commercials.

When you see a Coke commercial, what feeling are you left with? You see, Coke is well aware that their flagship product has a hard time standing up on its own – it is nothing more than caffeinated sugar water. Don’t get me wrong, I love Coke. In fact, I’m an avid vintage Coke product collector. So what does Coke do that is so effective?

They associate images and activities that invoke positive feelings within the viewer with their product. You can take any Coke commercial and see people running through parks on a sunny day, spending the holidays together as a family, or other images that invoke positive feelings. How do they associate it? When you look at a Coke commercial, they’re very careful with their timing. At the very end of the commercial, after you have all these images fresh in your mind, they show their bright red logo.

If you have a hard time using images to sell your product, then use your stock photos to associate positive feelings with your product. It works – Coke does it all the time.

Images Can Direct People’s Attention

Did you know that images have the ability to direct your visitors attention? It’s true. You see, there are three visual things that people cannot resist:

  • The gaze of other people
  • Finding out where an arrow points
  • Following an object’s line of sight

When you want to direct the attention of someone who’s visiting your Web page, you can use images of people who are looking at your focal point. If you want to use a vector image, use an arrow. If an object appears to be pointing at something, your audience won’t be able to help themselves by looking at the same object.

Use Images of Real People

By using images of real people, you’re adding the human aspect to your business. It’s often called, “humanizing your business.” People love this because it shows that real people are behind the face of a corporation. It enables people to connect in a way that is otherwise impossible.

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4 Advantages of Using Cheap Stock Photos

Aug 20

With the increasing need for images around the internet, it is not a surprise that many cheap stock images websites are popping out one after another. Of course, creative folks have the option to purchase cheap stock photography or grab free photos from Google. While the latter may sound more pocket-friendly, there are certain legal issues that one may face upon doing so. Here are other reasons why you should use cheap stock photos instead of free images.

1) You can find stock photos cheap more easily and quickly.

find easily stock images

It may sound surprising if you are used to searching free images through search engines, but finding cheap stock images are, in fact, easier and faster. Why? They are ready for direct download. You have a choice between signing up for free membership and getting a single purchase. Whatever theme you need, you can easily search, buy and download them from a stock photo website.

2) You can select from a wide range of collection.

stock photo agencies

Unlike the images available in search engines, you have a broad selection of cheap stock images from stock photography sites. Millions of photos from artists all around the world are available in their libraries. You will surely be overwhelmed with the amount of choices you can get. In addition, these websites also have search bars, which may be easier to navigate than image searches. Since every website has its own collection, it is up to you to find one that suits your budget and your creative needs.

3) Your purchases images have licenses.

License your image

As mentioned above, cheap stock photos have licenses that protect you from legal implications. Having access to them gives you more freedom and protection in your creative projects. Every image you download from stock photo agencies has licenses that enclose you to the agencies’ terms and conditions. On the other hand, Google image search do not have these licenses and using them could cost you more than cheap stock images.

4) Purchasing stock photo cheap entitles you to membership benefits.

Membership Benefits

Did you know that purchasing images from cheap stock photo sites entitles you to membership benefits? Yes, and it is actually an advantage. Many of these websites offer daily or weekly free photos that are only accessible to registered members. Two of these websites are Shutterstock and iStock. Generally, memberships are free of charge. They do not require you pay for anything until you decide to purchase an image from their libraries.

You can get more from purchasing cheap stock photos from reputable websites. You can enjoy buying options that will allow you to purchase images within your budget. Many of these websites have flexible subscription plans and single-purchase options. It is up to you to get what best suits your creative needs.

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