There is no denying that humans are visually-oriented by design. So much so, that a recent survey concluded about 93% of consumers consider visual appearance (i.e. striking/inviting/high-quality product photography) to be a key deciding factor in their purchasing decision.
Meaning, if your product images are sub-par … potential customers will automatically assume your products are sub-par too.
Why? Because images are powerful and are masters in the art of persuasion. So let’s dive into the world of product photography and why the story YOUR product images convey matters.
How Product Photography Can Increase Your Sales and Conversions
① FACT: Shoppers use their senses when shopping in a physical store.
② FACT: Shoppers CANNOT use all of their senses when shopping online.
And that is the fundamental reason why having high-quality images on your ecommerce website is non-negotiable.
Your product images need to not only act as a sensory substitution, but remove any doubt your potential customer may have whether they want to purchase your product or not.
Simply put: if a potential customer cannot clearly see WHAT they are buying (be it the colour, texture or size of the item, the chances are they won’t make the purchase (ESPECIALLY if it’s a high-end item) … and who can blame them?
When spending a lot of money, customers want (and deserve) to know exactly what it is they are buying. Is the product orange or is it pink? Is it big or is it small? Pleather, leather, something in-between?
That is exactly why poor quality images are detrimental to your online store’s success, as poor-quality images translate into poor-quality products and create multiple buyer objections.
How To Take A Proper Product Image?
Your product images need to CLEARLY show your potential customer the correct colour, texture and size of your product, as well as show your product from different angles.
Therefore when shooting your product images, you must ensure you have more than ONE high-quality image of EACH product taken from a variety of angles — especially as you will be using these images on various digital platforms like your website, social media, newsletters and ads.
Lifestyle images are of course a great way to showcase the size of your products, PLUS they actually help your customer envision your product in their life … which inherently leads to:
① add to cart
② proceed to checkout
③ and voila … a sale made!
You can use an exit-intent popup to convert an additional 2 to 4% of your website visitors by offering a discount/promotion as a last-ditch effort to encourage them to complete their purchase.
But Wait … What Is A Lifestyle Image?
A lifestyle image is an image that depicts your product in a real-life setting, i.e. earrings in a model’s ear, a bag over a model’s shoulder, to staging furniture in a home.
Using a lifestyle image on your homepage also elevates your brand identity, as well as the overall look and feel of your site. Let’s have a look at some lifestyle image examples:
A lifestyle image of an earring.
A lifestyle image of a leather handbag.
A lifestyle image of a coffee table.
Do I Need A Professional Photographer?
We HIGHLY recommend ecommerce business owners use a professional photographer. However, the fact remains: if you have an artistic side/a vision/a proper camera (or phone) — YOU can make magic happen.
Please Remember: it IS impossible to take high-quality photos using an old phone. If you were expecting those photos to properly convey the quality your brand stands for … it simply won’t work.
Ensure Your Product Photography Is Not The Reason You Are Losing Sales
Join me for 5-ish minutes, as I show you why your product images could be failing to generate a higher volume of sales! I will also show you how to change it in order to start generating more sales for your online store. 📸👇
Conclusion
Consumers will always be drawn to an image BEFORE they read the text on the page. So don’t wait for them to read that your product is incredible … SHOW them from the get-go your product is incredible using high-quality and clear imagery.
Ready to transform your homepage into a revenue-generating machine? Be sure to download our Ultimate Ecommerce Homepage Checklist. It contains the exact method we use to grow our private clients’ online empires!
