The Importance of Professional Product Photography for Your E-commerce Business
Product photography is a crucial aspect of all e-commerce businesses. They say, “A picture paints a thousand words,” and nowhere is this more true than in e-commerce.
Unlike brick-and-mortar stores, where customers can visit and enter to touch products, interact face-to-face with store staff, and see items personally, an e-commerce business relies almost exclusively on the photos on its website to sell its products.
This is where professional product photography comes in. When you work with a professional photographer, you can instantly improve the quality of your photos and, in turn, your website's overall quality.
Professional product photography is essential to building your brand story, engaging your audience, and ultimately, increasing profits.
Let’s take a look at how product photography can help your e-commerce business.
Why is professional product photography important?
Think of your own experience as a consumer. When you visit a website, and the photos you see are low-resolution, blurred, or just don't give you a good overall impression of the product, are you enticed to purchase from this website?
We’ll answer for you - probably not.
A survey by online marketplace Etsy showed that ninety percent of Etsy shoppers are most influenced by the quality of images of a product. This means that for a vast majority of their online shoppers, the most crucial factor in deciding to buy a product is the photos of the products. Pictures are more important than the shipping cost, customer reviews, and even the price of the product.
It's safe to assume that most online shoppers behave similarly when it comes to photos, including your target market and customer base.
Why should I invest in professional product photography?
Let's ask this question, would you hire an inexperienced amateur photographer for your wedding? Again, probably not. A wedding is (usually) a once-in-a-lifetime event, and you wouldn't want mediocre photos. Your e-commerce business is your livelihood, so why scrimp on one of the most important aspects of your business?
To save costs, you may be tempted to take your site's photos using your phone or maybe ask your neighbour who's dabbling in photography to take the photos for your site. However, even with all the technological advancements of camera phones, there is still a vast difference between photos you take yourself and professional product photography.
Here are several benefits of investing in professional product photography:
Professional product photographers specialise in this area and know the best practices in taking photos that will improve your online presence.
They also have extensive experience in product photography, which is not the same as your photography experience, even if you take a photo of your pet dog every day, for example.
Product photographers often have their own studio and professional equipment required to take the best photos for your e-commerce business. They can also professionally edit your photos and deliver them ready for posting.
Will professional product photography help increase my site’s sales and conversions?
Research shows that, yes, it will.
E-commerce platform Shopify shared that improving images and product descriptions contributed to a 30% increase in conversions.
A Medium article pointed out that quality product images help establish customer trust in your products and your brand.
Other research shows that 75% of online shoppers rely on product photos when deciding on potential purchases. Professional product photography can increase sales by enticing more customers to purchase your products.
Product photography is guaranteed to improve your website's images. These professional, high-quality, and expertly edited images will encourage customers to purchase your products.
Simply put, if you own an e-commerce business and have not invested in professional product photography, you are losing out on potential sales. Having great photos will enhance the overall customer experience every time they visit your site, which in turn improves sales and helps increase conversions.
If you’re ready to take your e-commerce business to the next level, contact Photoworks today. Let’s chat about how our services can help increase sales, improve conversions, and boost your e-commerce business.
