Your Business Has Changed. Do Your Website Photos Show It?
When were the photos on your website taken?
For most businesses, the answer is when the website was built. How long ago was that? Three years? Four? Maybe even longer?
A lot can change during that time. Employees come and go. Equipment gets replaced. Offices are remodeled. New products and services are added. Meanwhile, your website may still be introducing customers to a version of your business that no longer exists.
Website photography is easy to overlook because the photos are already there. They are not broken, and nobody receives an alert when a team photo turns five years old. They simply become less accurate a little at a time.
Outdated Photos Can Confuse Your Customers
Customers use your photos to get a feel for your business before they call. They want to see the people they may work with, the building they need to find, the equipment you use, and examples of the work you perform.
If your team page features employees who left several years ago, your customers notice. The same is true when your website shows an old storefront, a retired company vehicle, discontinued products, or a service you no longer provide.
Current business photos make your company feel active, approachable, and trustworthy. They show customers what they can expect right now.
Website Photos Need to Work Differently
A photo that looks great on Facebook may not work well on a website. The same website photo might appear as a wide banner on a desktop computer, a square image in a gallery, and a narrow crop on a phone.
That is why website photography requires some planning. Photos need enough space around the subject to be cropped for different screens. They should also be properly sized and compressed so they look sharp without slowing down the website.
Once photos are added, they should include descriptive alt text. This makes the website more accessible and gives search engines and AI tools more information about the people, services, products, and locations shown in each image.
What Should You Photograph?
Start with the things your customers would want to see before working with you. That may include your team, building, office, equipment, company vehicles, products, completed projects, or employees working with customers.
Action photos are especially useful. Instead of photographing an employee standing next to a piece of equipment, show that person using it. If your work creates a visible transformation, take before-and-after photos from the same location and angle.
The goal is to show what your business is really like, and not to make everyone pose awkwardly in front of the least cluttered wall you can find.
Can You Take Your Own Website Photos?
Modern phones can take excellent website photos when you know what to aim for. Turn the phone sideways, use natural light, clear distracting items from the background, and take several versions of every shot. Avoid zooming in too tightly because your web developer will need room to crop the image.
You should also make a shot list before you begin. Otherwise, it is very easy to take 75 photos of your building and forget to photograph the service you most want to promote.
Two Ways to Refresh Your Website Photography
Iceberg Web Design can help whether you want to take the photos yourself or hand the entire project to us.
Our Photo Kit gives you practical instructions and a shot list built around your website. You take the photos on your own schedule, send them to us, and our team prepares them for the web.
If you would rather have us handle the photography, a Penguin will come to your business with a website-specific shot list. We’ll photograph your people, location, equipment, products, and work in progress. Our team will then edit, crop, size, describe, and place the selected photos on your website.
Let’s Put Current Photos on Your Website
Summer and early fall are the best times to photograph building exteriors and outdoor work in Minnesota. The green season is short, and brown arrives before anyone is emotionally prepared for it.
If your website photos are ready for an update, learn more about our website photography services or call Iceberg Web Design at 763-350-8762. We are Website Developers Who Answer the Phone!®
