The rapid rise in smartphones, digital photos and the ability to instantly share images has put the use of photography in digital marketing at the forefront of online marketing strategies. 

When, for example, did you last read a blog post or article online with nothing to look at?

When was the last time you engaged with something on a social media platform without an image?

With an online presence in today’s society playing such a huge role in the success of businesses, we can’t ignore the impact of photography in digital marketing. Facebook alone has over 2.2 billion users & Instagram, a relative newcomer has 1 billion+ users. (July 2019 data)

Most businesses have a website, many a blog & be active on at least one if not several, social media platforms.

  • Website
  • Blog
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube

Humans are naturally visual creatures. Photos online are often our first visual introduction to prospective clients, customers & business associates.

How are you using imagery on these digital platforms? 

How are you using photography in digital marketing?

With the rise of the visual culture we live in, it is increasingly important to use image-based marketing strategies for your website and online content.

Tweets that include images get 18% more clicks, 89% more favourites & 150% more retweets on Twitter than plain text tweets. (Source: buffer)

Facebook posts that include images get 53% more likes &104% more comments than those that are just words. (Source: Mike Gingerich)

Images & videos are becoming the most effective way to communicate online. Why? They increase visibility & get people to talk about your business.

On average, pages with images or video draw 94% more views than their text-only counterparts. (source)

Photos do a better job of telling stories, conveying emotion & selling products & services.  We all know the saying “A picture speaks 1000 words”.  Research has shown that the brain processes images 60,000 times faster than it does text & that 93% of all human communication is visual. (source)

Using social media to market your business is all about keeping current. In January 2019, the photosharing platform Instagram reported 500 million daily active Stories users worldwide, up from 400 million in June 2018. (source)

Digital platforms are where our clients hang out so why wouldn’t we?

But how do we make ourselves and our businesses stand out in a busy digital world?

Four ways to rock your online social marketing with photography

1. Use photos to… Be creative

In order to make our brands stand out in the online marketplace we need to be different to our competitors.  Do your company website & social platforms use the same photos that you see all over the internet?

Visual platforms like Facebook, Instagram & Pinterest are more popular with consumers than ever before, providing brands with plenty of opportunities to tell compelling stories to engage their followers.  Don’t just ‘shoot’ your products or your staff.  Style them, tell a story give viewers a reason to click, like, share and talk about your business.

Starbucks is a great example of a brand that creatively uses photography in its online marketing

What do they sell?

The simple answer might be coffee.

With the photography on their social media platforms, they are selling a lifestyle.  An aspiration.

Dates with friends. Lazy summer afternoons in the park. Leisurely weekend breakfasts with the papers. A bit of adventure, freshness, creativity & a little bit of Christmas love.

Starbucks use images on social media to engage in conversation with their customer. Share a photo of a Starbucks coffee on Instagram, hashtag it & they will like, share and comment.  Their creative use of photography opens up a two-way dialogue with their client.

But that’s Starbucks, a large, multi-national corporation.  What if it’s me, myself and I?

Be creative, do something different. Tell a story & use Starbucks’ principle of engaging with your customer through your photos.

2. Use photos to… Know your style

Does the style of the photos that you post online compliment your brand?

Your brand attributes will guide you towards a particular visual style for your business. It’s essential that you bring these elements into your photography.  A friendly, fun, lively, contemporary business.  Do the photos you post on social platforms reflect this?

Bright colours, photographed on a white background, can help create a fun, bold & adventurous brand. Think Apple.

Continuity is key. Visual content shared online is a great way of communicating with customers & potential clients. One of the best ways to build these relationships is to be consistent. Consistent in sharing content regularly & also consistent in the look & feel of your photography.

When someone scrolls through your Facebook or Instagram feed there needs to be a connection between the images & your brand. Consistency in style, in the lighting you use & in the way you edit the photos.

3. Use photos to… Personalise your brand

People like to connect with people, people do business with people. Consumers like the story attached to the thing that you’re selling.

Sharing photos of you and your team on your website, blog or Facebook page can go a long way towards humanising your brand. The team meeting on a Monday morning, a staff event and the work’s Christmas party.

If you have a product consider ways you & your team can interact with that product. Illustrate the positive impact the brand has on you & your team’s lives & consumers will want to be a part of it too.

I recommend using a professional photographer to take photos for you.  

A professional has the expertise in working with light & the artistic eye & knowledge about how to position you to capture your best angle. They have the ability to catch the natural, spontaneous expressions & the skill in visual storytelling to make your photos shine.  The images will have the authenticity of being real people, your employees, but with the quality of a professional photo.


Case Study

This is a client I worked with a couple of years ago.  Established 40+ years, they had little or no online presence.  

A family-run vehicle repair centre offering a personalised service – they wanted their online marketing to reflect this.

We used ‘real’ people, their staff team, and approached it in a documentary style, shooting them in situ, in their workshops, in their overalls with the cars & vehicles they service.   Over two days we created a library of 600+ images for them to use to engage with their clients on an ongoing basis.


Do you want to personalise your brand but can’t afford a professional photographer at the moment?

Three tips for shooting your own photos for use online

1. Find the best light.

This is probably natural light, position your subject by an open door or next to a window. If outside try to find some shade to avoid the harsh, contrasty effect of bright sunlight.

2. Remove distracting elements.

Before you shoot, look through the viewfinder, is there anything that shouldn’t be there? A dirty cup on the desk, a coat on the back of a chair?

3. Think about composition.

Try different angles.  Shoot from above, from the side, close up, and further back. But always, always remember tip number one – find the best light!


4. Use photos to be original (AKA avoid stock)

The photography you use in digital marketing should be about you, your business, your services & your products. Giving your clients a little sneaky peep into your world. Stock photography won’t help you achieve authenticity. If you don’t show real people working at your company, how do consumers know you really stand behind your business?

Does your business website use the same photos that you see all over the web?

Are you using the same stock photos as your competitors?

Or are you doing something different?

There is a fabulous blog post by Hubspot “13 Stock Photos to Never Use in Your Marketing

To stand out from other businesses within your genre you need to use photos that are different. Ones that make you individual. The best way to do this is to create your own.

If you must use stock, here are three places I recommend trying:

And if you do use stock photography, get your rights right. Do not, ever, ever,  ‘right click save as’!

Just because an image is on Google doesn’t mean you have the right to use it for your online marketing. Simply crediting a photo to someone who hasn’t given you permission won’t necessarily cover you. And don’t forget to check your usage requirements; what can and can’t you do with the photo. Some licences allow you to use it online, some in print, some Worldwide & some just in the UK. If in doubt, ask!

To Summarise…

Use photography in your digital marketing to…

…Be creative

…Know your style

…Personalise your brand

…and be original!

Do you need images to tell your story online? 

2 Replies to “Using photography in digital marketing to build your brand

Comments are closed.