{"id":19397,"date":"2016-04-05T14:21:00","date_gmt":"2016-04-05T18:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.shareaholic.com\/?p=19397"},"modified":"2016-04-12T13:14:45","modified_gmt":"2016-04-12T17:14:45","slug":"product-photography-drives-sales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/product-photography-drives-sales\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Drive Sales With Effective Product Photography"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Use your photos\u00a0to drive more traffic. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/image-share-buttons\/\" target=\"_blank\">Try Shareable Images<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>As consumers, we love pouring through photos, admiring them\u2026 that is, until we can\u2019t seem to find the level of detail we\u2019re looking for. On the flip side, as website managers, isn\u2019t it a pain to photograph, upload, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/retail-sites-page-load-time\/\" target=\"_blank\">manage <em>all<\/em> those photos<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p>Although product photos can seem both cumbersome\u00a0and even pointless to anyone managing a website or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/top-10-ecommerce-plugins-for-wordpress\/\" target=\"_blank\">e-commerce\u00a0business<\/a>, especially in an\u00a0era where\u00a0\u201ccontent is king,\u201d they are perhaps more important than ever. And until the cost of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/video-marketing-seo-results\/\" target=\"_blank\">video production<\/a> drops or someone invents a 3D product simulation experience, they\u2019ll be the quickest, most inexpensive way for you to convey what you are selling and why it matters to audience.<\/p>\n<p>Here are three ways you can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/how-to-use-images-on-your-blog\/\" target=\"_blank\">use product photography<\/a> to improve\u00a0sales\u00a0pages, boost conversions, and keep shoppers around longer.<\/p>\n<h3>Think One Photo is Enough? Nope<\/h3>\n<p>Unless you\u2019re selling brown paper bags or paper clips online, you can\u2019t get away with a single product photo anymore. The novelty of e-commerce has worn off, and it\u2019s time to play hardball. To differentiate yourself, you need to differentiate your products \u2013 and that means <strong>putting in real effort<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Consumers who are looking to make a purchase, especially if it\u2019s an expensive one, are going to spend time pouring over every detail of your product pages before they make a decision. If you can\u2019t offer the information they need, they\u2019re likely going to leave. This includes photos. What this means is: if there\u2019s any doubt, because of your photos, you\u2019re going to lose a sale.<\/p>\n<p>You should utilize multiple product photos to make these details very clear:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The size or scale of your item<\/li>\n<li>What is included in the packaging<\/li>\n<li>If any assembly is required (consider showing an assembled shot, as well as one of\u00a0all the pieces\/parts)<\/li>\n<li>How it looks from all angles<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>That last bullet point is important, and the one I think is vastly underutilized. It doesn\u2019t take long to photograph your product from a few extra angles, and it can make a huge difference in how it\u2019s perceived by shoppers. For example, Eastern Mountain Sports includes photos of its backpacks <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ems.com\/product\/index.jsp?productId=32986896&amp;cp=3677338.11354705.12786628.4058670\">from multiple angles<\/a>, allowing you to count the number of pockets and inspect the padding and support for yourself:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19401 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/EMS-backpack.png\" alt=\"EMS backpack\" width=\"395\" height=\"416\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/EMS-backpack.png 395w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/EMS-backpack-380x400.png 380w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/EMS-backpack-285x300.png 285w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/EMS-backpack-300x316.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 395px) 100vw, 395px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Then there\u2019s Thirty-One Gifts, a company that <em>dares<\/em> you to say \u201cit\u2019s just a lunch bag!\u201d Their product pages all have something like <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thirtyonegifts.com\/catalog\/product\/262\/catid\/20\/swid\/927a\/lunch-break-thermal-in-navy-wave\/\" target=\"_blank\">seven individual photos<\/a>, which means you will never be surprised by what your new bag looks like on the bottom or laying on its side or\u00a0inside-out. Did I mention they all zoom in, too? Love it.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19407 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Thirty-One-Gifts.png\" alt=\"Thirty-One Gifts\" width=\"446\" height=\"382\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Thirty-One-Gifts.png 446w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Thirty-One-Gifts-300x257.png 300w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Thirty-One-Gifts-350x300.png 350w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 446px) 100vw, 446px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you publish\u00a0pictures of each of your products, try to include as many shots as is reasonable for you. If you have a complex product, this goes double for you. Can you <strong>eliminate confusion<\/strong> by adding more photos, or make details clearer? Give it a shot and let us know how your audience reacts.<\/p>\n<h3>Real Photos Make a Real Difference<\/h3>\n<p>Have you ever visited an e-commerce website where everything just looked\u2026 well, fake? Or browsed a series of similar items \u2013 like candles, soaps, or shirts \u2013 where it was obvious someone just hopped into Photoshop and played with the color settings until they got the results they wanted?<\/p>\n<p>Online, authenticity sometimes loses out in favor of quick wins. As consumers get savvier, 3D renderings are becoming easier to spot, and that \u201cfake\u201d feeling may drive them away to someone who\u2019s willing to be more \u201creal.\u201d The thought process may be \u201cwell, if their images are fake, what does that say about their products? Or their values, or their customer service?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course,\u00a0\u201creal photographs\u201d alone may not necessarily\u00a0help your case. Take <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nngroup.com\/articles\/photos-as-web-content\/\" target=\"_blank\">this eyetracking study<\/a>, for example. Users reading a\u00a0Yale School of Management page completely ignored the photo of students on the right side. Why? Because it served <strong>absolutely no purpose whatsoever<\/strong>. It also isn&#8217;t the most\u00a0compelling photo, is it?<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19402 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Eyetracking-study-from-Yale.jpg\" alt=\"Eyetracking study from Yale\" width=\"475\" height=\"498\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Eyetracking-study-from-Yale.jpg 475w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Eyetracking-study-from-Yale-382x400.jpg 382w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Eyetracking-study-from-Yale-286x300.jpg 286w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Eyetracking-study-from-Yale-300x315.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 475px) 100vw, 475px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When consumers look\u00a0at products online, they ask\u00a0themselves the question:\u00a0<strong>\u201cHow will this fit into my life?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>So, if you provide\u00a0them with photographs of a real product in real situations, they are more likely to apply your product to their <em>own<\/em> situations, needs, circumstances, and so on.<\/p>\n<p>To use an example from real life, when I was looking for a new phone a few months ago, I remember being totally captivated by Motorola\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.motorola.com\/us\/FLEXR1-1\/Moto-X\/FLEXR1.html\" target=\"_blank\">amazing landing page<\/a> for the Moto X, which uses 100% real photographs of both the phone itself <em>and<\/em> in action in the lives of users:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19405\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page.png\" alt=\"Moto X landing page\" width=\"560\" height=\"424\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page.png 1264w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page-528x400.png 528w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page-300x227.png 300w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page-768x582.png 768w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page-1024x776.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Moto-X-landing-page-396x300.png 396w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re viewing this landing page asking, \u201cHow could this phone improve my life?\u201d or \u201cWhat makes this smartphone different?\u201d don\u2019t you think it already answers these questions? These photographs tell a much better, clearer story than 3D renders could.<\/p>\n<p>I also always love <a href=\"http:\/\/oldnavy.gap.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Old Navy\u2019s<\/a> efforts to show their clothing on real people rather than mannequins:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19406 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Old-Navy-products.jpg\" alt=\"Old Navy products\" width=\"202\" height=\"270\" \/><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s so much easier to tell how shirts or pants will \u201cfit\u201d based on how a real person is wearing them, isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n<h3>The Desire is in the Details<\/h3>\n<p>My final recommendation for product photography is one I feel very strongly about: detail shots. That is, the close-up photographs of the nitty-gritty little details, things that might get overlooked.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s skip back a bit to the Moto X landing page. If you clicked that link, did you notice the \u201cIt just fits\u201d section and the little \u201cM\u201d indent on the back of the phone? When you hold the Moto X, your pointer finger rests there naturally. That is one of my favorite features, but both the copy <em>and<\/em>\u00a0the photographs gloss over it. It\u2019s a <strong>huge missed opportunity<\/strong>!<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19409\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/little-m.png\" alt=\"Moto X It Just Fits\" width=\"480\" height=\"376\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/little-m.png 631w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/little-m-511x400.png 511w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/little-m-300x235.png 300w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/little-m-383x300.png 383w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>By focusing on even small details, you can create desire to learn more, to inspect things very closely. And <strong>the closer a consumer gets to your product, the more likely they are to convert.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Here are three of my favorite examples of details that differentiate. Bravelets offers\u00a0very, very close-up photographs of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bravelets.com\/product\/cure-alzheimer-s-fund-silver-chain-2\" target=\"_blank\">finest details from\u00a0its\u00a0jewelry line<\/a>, including the clasp of their necklaces:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19399\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Bravelets.jpg\" alt=\"Bravelets\" width=\"480\" height=\"305\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Bravelets.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Bravelets-630x400.jpg 630w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Bravelets-300x190.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Bravelets-768x487.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Bravelets-400x254.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>CJ Pony Parts shows customers not only what a new Mustang spoiler looks like, but <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cjponyparts.com\/3dcarbon-rear-spoiler-gt500-style-2010-2014\/p\/RS10-V\/\" target=\"_blank\">how it will appear mounted on their vehicle<\/a> from multiple views:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-19400\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/CJ-Pony-Parts-spoiler.jpg\" alt=\"CJ Pony Parts spoiler\" width=\"560\" height=\"373\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/CJ-Pony-Parts-spoiler.jpg 686w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/CJ-Pony-Parts-spoiler-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/CJ-Pony-Parts-spoiler-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/CJ-Pony-Parts-spoiler-400x266.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&#8230;and IKEA makes its ultra-affordable\u00a0LACK side table look even more appealing by including three <em>different<\/em> photos for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ikea.com\/us\/en\/catalog\/products\/40104270\/#\/50251699\" target=\"_blank\">each and every color and finish variant<\/a>. IKEA\u2019s attention to detail always amazes me as a consumer.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-19403\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Ikea-Table.jpg\" alt=\"Ikea Table\" width=\"425\" height=\"331\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Ikea-Table.jpg 425w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Ikea-Table-300x234.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Ikea-Table-385x300.jpg 385w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 425px) 100vw, 425px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Does it take time and money to photograph or <em>at least<\/em> generate very high-quality 3D renderings of these items from different angles and distances? Absolutely.<\/p>\n<p>But <strong>consumers appreciate the little details<\/strong>. It can be hard to visualize what a spoiler will look like on your car without an \u201caction shot,\u201d or you may not be able to get over a $42 price tag without realizing that there\u2019s a powerful hidden message on the backside of\u00a0your necklace.<\/p>\n<p>By investing a little more in your product photography, and focusing on even the smallest details, you can make one more last push to get your visitors to take action. Think about it this way: if it takes $30 to add another ten photos, you&#8217;ll need less than a handful of\u00a0sales to justify that expense. Easy as pie.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>What are some other ways you can use compelling\u00a0product\u00a0photography to drive sales and keep shoppers engaged on your site longer? We would love to hear your suggestions in the comments!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em><strong>About the author: <\/strong>Nicole Kohler (<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nicoleckohler\" target=\"_blank\">@nicoleckohler<\/a>) is a writer, marketing geek, and lover of all things yellow. She is a Content Strategist for <a href=\"http:\/\/www.webpagefx.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">WebpageFX<\/a>, and confesses to being just the tiniest bit addicted to Twitter.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Calling all writers:<\/strong>\u00a0We <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/guest-blogging-guidelines\/\" target=\"_blank\">love guest bloggers<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a style=\"text-align: center;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/shareaholic-email-signup\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/shareaholic-newsletter-cta.png\" alt=\"Shareaholic Email Signup\" width=\"300\" height=\"120\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Excited at the idea of working at Shareaholic?\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/shareaholic.com\/careers\">Join the team or refer a friend<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Use your photos\u00a0to drive more traffic. Try Shareable Images. As consumers, we love pouring through photos, admiring them\u2026 that is, until we can\u2019t seem to&hellip;&nbsp;<br \/><a class=\"continue-reading\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/product-photography-drives-sales\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":69,"featured_media":19402,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[521],"tags":[581,623,188,444,426],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19397"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/69"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19397"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19397\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19397"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19397"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shareaholic.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19397"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}