Where to Get Product Images?

1. Brands & suppliers. This is the most trusted and legally safe source of pictures. The main problem here arises when you need to spend lots of hours on image pickup. The best way to save time here is to automate image delivery from your brands/suppliers with a help of a dedicated solution.

2. Content providers. These service providers serve as a database with all product information including texts, images, videos, specifications, etc. There are truly plenty of useful data you need but the main issue retailers usually struggle with is the complicated process of actually receiving the data from content providers and repurposing it to their required formats. Again, this friction can be reduced by using tailored eCommerce technology.

Consider these ways to get eCommerce images for retailers:

1. Download from marketplaces. Always check licensing and approved use.
2. Take pictures yourself. Get a decent camera, invest in a tripod, and set up lighting/or outdoor shoots.
3. Hire a professional product image photographer. A good photographer, carefully briefed, can produce visuals which fully reflect the brand vision & identity.
4. Find product images from free sources like royalty-free stock photos like Unsplash, Burst Shopify, Pexels, Pixabay, Freepik and others.

There are also paid sources with a bigger range of images, including Shutterstock, iStock, Adobe Stock, and others.

Why Invest Time in eCommerce Images

Product image creation can be time-consuming, however, they bring significant benefits and drives sales. Here are the main reasons images can work really well for your business:

1. Drawing attention

It’s the first thing the buyer sees. The brain processes visual information 60,000 faster than text. Especially when it comes to product pictures. 

2. Showcasing products from a closer-to-life perspective

The online world is tricky and, as a retailer/brand, you have a challenging task: to provide a near-brick-n-mortar shop experience using internet tools. 

3. Overcoming competition

There will be dozens of similar products to yours. However, if you upgrade your items pics instead of using retail stock images, you will win the race.

4. Building a brand image

Suprisingly, people can remember the content of 2500 pictures with over 90 percent accuracy 72 hours after looking at them for only 10 seconds. 

5. Generate more sales, with fewer returns

The more precise you are - the better sales, and less frustrated angry buyers. 

6. Going viral on social

Luckily, social media sales channels allow more creativity, than eCommerce platforms - like Google Shopping, eBay, Amazon, and similar. Imaginative images make people talk and share your content.

Each eCommerce Platform Has Its Own Image Specifications

If you already sell on Amazon/eBay/Google Shopping, etc., you may have noticed the differences in requirements and desperately try to remember all? Don’t worry, you can find general guidelines in the picture below.

For some hardware products, images are less important than technical specifications. So it pays to invest resources in getting high-quality product descriptions from Сontent Service Providers (also known as content catalogues providers) and share them across your channels automatically with a help of a PIM software solution. PIM systems can also help you manage images for your products in a single place, and save you from tedious manual work.

Product Images Best Practices for 2021

1. Start with a background. Pay attention to the difference in colors of the product itself and background. They shouldn’t blend. The background should rather be an “intensifier” for a product. 

2. Reach 3D effect. Add shades to make it look real and 3 dimensional. Experiment with different kinds of shades to make it feel alive. Or, make it move! 

3. Play with colors. Fancy trying something outstanding? Experiment with bright colors, patterns, and structures. 

4. Design a catchy layout. Flatlay is another trend in product photography you couldn’t have missed. Especially, if your target persona is a Millennial or a Gen Z individual, consuming only aesthetically pleasant content.

5. Stick to one style in all of your products. Make them work together, not compete. Add zoom in/zoom out option. This allows for better viewing of the structure of a product’s material; certain tiny parts, etc.

6. Set up automated images export/import. Shooting and designing eye-catching visuals is not enough anymore in the fast-paced eCommerce world. Both brands and retailers nowadays have challenges with exchanging images & rich media and to solve this problem automated PIM solutions come in handy.