It’s a Cardinal Sin to use Stock Corporate Imagery on your Company’s Website and Social Media: Top 3 Reasons Why

Don’t get me wrong – there is some truly beautiful stock imagery sites out there. Sites such as unsplash.com and stocksnap.io now provide free or inexpensive access to a wide range of gorgeous photography from landscapes to architecture. However, when it comes to portraying the corporate experience, there is more than just the aesthetic appeal to consider regarding what stock photography will say about your company.

Read the top 3 reasons why investing in custom corporate photography over settling for the use of stock corporate imagery on your company’s website and social media will provide a better return on your investment in the long-run.

1. Stock imagery do nothing to establish your brand.

You probably wouldn’t type “logos” into a Google image search, right click and just save any logo that pops up that you think will “work” for your company and adopt that as your new company logo, would you? Why would you search for imagery to place on your website or to use in social media posts that way, then? Once you’ve established the visual identity of your brand through having a professionally created logo and corporate color scheme, all other visual presentations of your company, including photography, should match the general feel of that scheme you’ve established. Original corporate photography directed to match your company’s look and feel is an essential part of cohesive branding that will help your target market understand what you are really about and establish your brand’s promise and value.

 

2. Emotions conveyed by stock imagery models are too perfect, which does not equate to authenticity.

We all have seen that perfectly diverse and perfectly cheesy huddle of white collared workers flashing their toothy white smiles at the camera splashed across stock photography sites. And we all know that no group of people in a single workplace will or should exist like that – perky, bubbly, immaculate. In today’s world, consumers value authenticity. This means featuring photography of the actual person who is answering your phone calls on the other side, even if she’s not a gorgeous 10 wearing a smart little headset. Custom corporate photography can feature the reality of your personnel and genuine emotion that is relatable to your potential clients and imperfectly beautiful.

3. People know you don’t work in a floor-to-ceiling glass office. Show them where you really work.

Just as original photography tells the unique story of your personnel, it is also important to tell the unique story of your workspace. In both instances, stock photography tells the story of essentially fictional people in a fictional world. Again, authenticity is key in establishing a relationship with your potential clientele by helping them to visualize the space in which your business is happening. Depending on your particular brand’s identity, featuring photography that captures the reality of your flickering fluorescent lights and cracked leather office chairs might just do more to win over the hearts of your potential clients than that ultra-white, perpetually sunny stock office photo can do.

By Sonja Ciotti, Graphic Designer, Greenroom Communications