When was the last time that wording alone captivated your interest? 

Being in the creative industry we, at The Mug, are highly motivated by quality visuals. As designers, we find that our best website designs often correlate to not only having amazing copy and a cohesive brand strategy but also high-quality images throughout the website. 

There are a lot of great ways to get good website imagery and they may be easier than you think! We’ve put together some of our favorite tips to help you plan your website images. Read on for more information!

Utilize Stock Images

One of the more widely known options for finding pictures to use on your website is stock images. Sites like Shutterstock, Pexels, or Unsplash are all databases for stock images and some even offer stock video footage. There are some stock image websites that cost money for use of their photos while some remain free! 

The tricky part about using stock photos is not finding them, but rather knowing where and how to use them most effectively. With our website designs, we opt to use stock images sparingly. We hold the opinion that stock photos are best used as filler or supplemental imagery. We want our designs to be unique and truly custom for our clients and that is difficult to achieve if we use the same pictures as many websites on the internet!

Show Your Face

If you’re like the majority of our clients, you may run a small business or work alone as an individual. In our experience, it’s a good idea to share photos that include yourself and your employees! Customers enjoy putting a face to the name. By including images of you and your staff, you can give your clients a sense of who they are working with and the personalities behind your business! These don’t have to be professional, though we’ll always advocate for high quality.

Read More: What to do with website content?

Branded Photography

We love to recommend to our clients that they invest in a branded photography session. Branded photography takes the point above and takes it to the next level. While showcasing your staff and their smiling faces, you can work with a brand photographer to really fine-tune the look your brand should present! With branded photography, you’ll want to pay special attention to the colors used.

Branded photography might include headshots, candid action shots, as well as industry detail photos. 

Use an Assortment of Different Image Types

As designers, we want to stress the importance of having an assortment of different images on your website. Headshots are great to put a face to the name, however, a website will need more than just headshots to truly articulate all that your business has to offer. Supplemental imagery is often necessary, whether these are captured during a branded photoshoot or acquired via stock photography, a variety of high-quality images will really help bring your website design together! 

If you’re interested in working with us for a website redesign or a brand new custom website, let us know! We’d love to work with you!