The Picture Perfect Website: The Dos and Don'ts of Adding Pictures to Websites

Do: Get professional pictures taken

Instead of buying pictures from a stock photo website, invest in some professional photography for your website. This may seem like an unnecessary cost, but it will make your website seem much more welcoming and genuine. Even though visitors are not seeing or speaking to you in person, being able to get an accurate view of your business and employees will help them make a connection with your business. Not to mention having professional pictures taken means having high quality pictures that will help establish credibility with visitors.

Don't: Take pictures from unidentified sources

This means finding pictures from Google Images or something similar and using for your website or blog. Most people have heard this is illegal, but many do not realize the actual repercussions from stealing photos online. To keep it simple, if you didn’t buy the picture, create the graphic, or take the picture, then you shouldn’t put it on your website.

Do: Strategically place pictures on pages

When creating a page for your website or blog, it is important to remember to keep the page organized and easy to read for the visitor. If the page is too cluttered, they will get frustrated and leave. By placing the picture in an easy to see spot, such as the top left hand corner, visitors will have a focal point and will be able to register the format of the page easier. Try not to place the picture at the bottom of the content, which could cause visitors to have to scroll to see the picture.

Don't: Post photos that are more than three years old

It doesn’t matter if you think you look younger, skinnier, or more professional in a picture taken five years ago, you shouldn’t put it on your website. Visitors will portray you and your business as out of date and deceiving. Do you enjoy seeing a picture of someone and once you meet them they look 10 years older? That’s exactly what you will do to your customers if you put out of date pictures on your website. Try to get recent pictures of you, your employees, your products, and your storefront so visitors can get the most accurate visual of your business.