Say it with Strong Photography
Since the Web entered the business landscape in the 1990s, companies have increasingly shifted their marketing focus from printed brochures to interactive Web sites. The resulting boom in corporate Web sites has created an ever-growing need for strong company photos. Just look at any fortune 500 company’s site and you’ll get the picture.
However, many small-business marketing professionals haven’t quite learned how best to tell their story through photos. Read on to find out how compelling photography can help build your corporate image online.
Let photographs speak for you.
The old adage “a picture is worth a thousand words” really should to be updated to “a picture is worth several thousand words”. Not only are the photographs more prominent online than ever, but they have also improved in quality. The attention to detail and the use of programs like Photoshop to fix even the smallest blemishes makes today’s photography extremely potent.
Take the Porche Web site, for example. The landing page for the new 911 Turbo Cabriolet features one photograph that shows the striking, classy good looks of the car better – and faster – than any copy could describe. The photography colors, quality, and perspective make you want to see more. And if you skip the intro, the rest of the pages are the same way. It relies on photography to show the Porsche message. Images really drive the message.
What’s your message?
At its best, corporate photography immediately and clearly shows site visitors what your company is and does. If you hire a professional to photograph your business, let him know what statement you want the photography to make. Do you own a restaurant? While it’s tempting to show photos of your building, a more customer-relevant message might be that you’ve got the juiciest steaks in town. So show your web visitors mouth-watering pictures of your best selling fillets. Make them salivate. Are you a florist? Don’t go overboard with staff photography. Give site visitors bright, beautiful, close-ups of your plants and flowers.
If professional photography isn’t in your budget, stock photography is an affordable alternative. Web design firms can find solid stock photography, either online or out of a catalog, that will help you tell your story. And at rates much more reasonable than hiring a photography crew, which can cost several thousand just for one day’s work.
Closing snapshot.
When you’re ready to have a site designed for your business (or have a facelift for your existing site), think about using strong, “talkative” photography to help convey your message. Compelling corporate photography is essential to any organization’s image-building efforts and will tell a story your site could never tell without it.
