How to Choose the Best Images for Your Website | Iceberg Web Design

How to Choose the Best Images for Your Website

Every year, websites become more visual, requiring images that captivate the site visitor and communicate your message in tandem with the written content. Therefore, finding and choosing the right images for your website is essential to your brand’s success recipe.

Humans are visual creatures. A single photograph can stir up a symphony of emotions, so your website’s aesthetics and imagery must provoke the right emotions. There are some simple rules of thumb to ensure your website’s imagery sends the message you want visitors to receive.

Use Professional Photography To Build Trust

There are quality stock photos that, when chosen carefully and used by a skilled designer, can visually supplement a website when a client doesn’t have sufficient images. However, because Google prioritizes sites with fresh, original content, you should avoid using stock photos unless you absolutely have to. 

Avoid clichéd photos of perfect employees grinning in the office when using stock photography, or your website will appear unprofessional and outdated. Even worse, your message will seem inauthentic. That’s no way to earn the trust of potential customers. One of the best marketing investments you can make is in professional photography. Customers want to see your real employees in your actual place of business. These images put an actual face to your company. They help create the trust and authority your brand needs to stand out. User trust is well worth the effort to provide original images.

Use Images that Speak to Your Target Audience

You wouldn’t have pictures of men in big trucks on a website that exclusively sells women’s clothing. Nor would you have pictures of teenagers on a site for a nursing home. Know your audience and use images they can relate to.

Remember that people tend to skim websites rather than read them, so using images that evoke the emotions you want your audience to feel is essential. For example, do you want your site to be fun, like a family entertainment center, or sophisticated, like a fine dining restaurant? Use images that reflect that feeling.

Use photos of people and include smiling faces (genuine smiles–not fake ones). This sends customers the message that your product or service makes people happy. And emotions are contagious. 

Use Multiple High-Quality Product Images for E-Commerce

Multiple images of your products increase confidence in the product by helping customers feel like they know what they are purchasing. This leads to more sales. Therefore, your website should feature bright, high-quality images that offer multiple views of your products or services. 

When choosing images for your website, select high-resolution images. When adjusting the size of an image, keep dimensions the same to avoid skewing the image and crop the photo if necessary. Never increase the size of an image the same because doing so will decrease the quality.

Include Infographics

Infographics are a fantastic way to entertain and quickly educate your audience about your product. Many visitors don’t have time to read through all of your content and just want the main facts. A well-made infographic can provide them with these facts in a memorable and shareable way.

Always Have Permission To Use Images

Never use images on your website without permission. It is a discourtesy to the photographer and could result in you getting sued. This includes photos you find anywhere on the internet unless they are entered into the public domain.

Optimize Your Images for SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

Image optimization is one of the building blocks of  SEO. Search engine optimization determines where your site appears on the search engine results page. You want your site to be at the top, and your images play a significant role in getting it there. 

Work with a design team that knows how to optimize your images to boost your site on Google. Among other things, optimized images make your site run faster and look better. Your design team can help with image optimization practices, including

  • Image file compression
  • Correctly naming the image file for relevant search terms
  • Creating alt text that describes the image and provides SEO value

Need a Reliable Design Team To Optimize Your Images?

Count on the Designers and Developers at Iceberg Web Design. We even have a dedicated SEO team to help you take your business to the next level when you are ready.

Contact Us Today!

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