This issue comes up almost every week in our business. Should I hire a professional photographer, or should I use stock photos? There are pros and cons to both, so let’s weigh the pros and cons of both.
Original Photography
PROS:
- Control – you have control over how your photos are taken and how you use them.
- Build trust with customers – the photos are authentic and customers have a better sense of who you really are.
- Proven success – case studies have shown that original photos perform better in ads and social media.
- Google likes them better – believe it or not, they do help a bit with your SEO and user experience.
CONS:
- Cost – professional photographers can be pricy.
- Time – sometimes it takes a lot of time to set up to get the right shot.
- Quality – if you are relying on your phone to do the job, quality could be an issue.
Stock Photography
PROS:
- Cost – they can be cheap, very cheap.
- Time – it’s great when you need a photo right away.
- Quality – for the most part, quality is not an issue as most images are available in various size formats
CONS:
- You don’t own the image – other companies can buy the same photo and use it, even your competitors.
- They are not real – customers know when a stock photo is being used. They know everyone in your company doesn’t look like a model.
- Google doesn’t like them as much as original content– stock images are not Google’s favourite.
Photography always makes your marketing dynamic. Some photos are not worth a thousand words, some are worth ten thousand. There is no real winner in this debate, but we tell our clients that original is better but a little stock every now and then doesn’t hurt. Ultimately it’s up to you and your budget.