It’s the age of the Internet. That means that, aside from having more and more information available to us at any given time, that our screens have become an extremely visual place. Think about it, with screen sizes increasing on tablets and smartphones, resolutions increasing on computers and countless other tech updates, what a person says online is now just as important as the photos that go along with it. In fact, it can even be argued that photos are more important – because they’re instantly seen and host a lasting impression (whereas text has to be read), visual aids are a growing importance within the virtual world.
The same goes for your website, and the pictures you’re putting on it. When using photos that are blurry or of ill quality, customers will get a sense of low quality as soon as they enter your site. To avoid this potential issue, you should be using high-resolution images for your website. Talk with a photographer or web designer about what will be best for your specific design. In general, however, the higher the resolution, the better, as photos can be resized and made smaller to fit specific spaces.
Next, consider the subject matter of your photos. What’s seen in each image? How does that image reflect upon your business? In this light, you want to be sure to pick photographs that are dynamic, yet still relevant to your industry. This way you can avoid static pictures that look like they came straight from a cheesy stock catalog, but aren’t going too unique that you scare away your target market.
Another design criteria to look into is that of size. Your images should fit within the design and limitations of your website. These sizes were put into place by a designer to best represent screen size, proportions, and more. Many websites will even have photos that “slide” or change with time or that adjust automatically, depending on the viewer’s screen. This is a growing practice among web design and one that embraces the mobile user.
In contrast, photos (or websites) that aren’t made to be responsive, or are incorrectly cropped for a design, can throw off an entire site’s look and feel. This step in and of itself can make a section that looks as though it was poorly put together, or that it’s hard to use – whether or not that’s the case.
To ensure this doesn’t happen to you, or your website, look to the help of trained professionals instead. Talk to them about website and photos sizes, resolutions, pixels, or any other factor they believe would help your images to become a higher quality. As always, we’re here to help!
As digital marketing experts, we can help you choose the best pictures to represent your brand online, through social media, and more. Whether you’re just looking for advice, or would like to be walked through the entire process, we can help get you where you need to go.
