We live in a modern world that is obsessed with images. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s a scientific fact that our brains love images! So the question becomes: if you want to grow your business and be successful in this modern world, how do you capitalize on this fact? The easiest and most cost-effective answer = photography for business.

Business photography, or commercial photography, is photography aimed at selling. It happens best when you hire a professional photographer to take high-quality photos of your products, brand, message, services, and personnel.  These images are then used for websites, social media, advertising, and/or portfolios, the goal is to grow your business.

Getting back to our first point, photography specifically for business is the perfect way to capitalize on the preferred language of the brain, as well as the popularity of social media and our short attention spans! Images get to the point a whole lot faster than words, and this is important in today’s fast-paced world of mass information. So, no matter what your business or what you’re selling, commercial photography is the way to grow your business.

8 benefits of hiring a professional photographer for your benefit

Provides high-quality images 

This might seem self-evident, but it’s worth stating from the start. The photographs you get when you hire a professional photographer will far exceed anything you could do on yours. Professional photographers have the experience, eye, and equipment that make them experts at what they do. Even if you have the training and equipment of a photographer, as a business owner or entrepreneur, you cannot do everything. You need to do what you do best and let others help. Business photography not only yields high-quality, high res images but is cost-effective because you’re not doing the work, and the images can be used for multiple purposes. Invaluable!

Cultivates your brand

That experience and eye we mentioned that professional photographers have? That’s what creates clever framing, bold colors, and creative composition. That is what helps build your company’s digital personality. With commercial photography, you get a photography partner who will help you develop a photography business plan that tells your company’s story, creates your online image, and makes your brand recognizable. Where stock photos feel impersonal, commissioned business photography tailored to your brand and message makes it clear to your customers who you are. Images are the preferred storytellers of today. Recognizable, curated visual content saves also saves your prospective clients time as they learn your story in seconds and decide you’re the brand for them!

Builds credibility

Another benefit of hiring a professional photographer is that it instantly shows you care about your company, product, and brands. Everyone knows it costs money to hire a photographer. So when customers see professional photography on your website and social media, they also see professionalism and dedication. Another benefit? Beautiful, high-res photographs that suggest that a company is doing well. When consumers see high-quality images, they trust the company also has a high-quality product. The opposite is just as true: a customer sees poor-quality images and inevitably wonders what else is poor quality. Show off your brand and build your credibility with well-executed photography that customers trust.

Gives you an edge on social media

Social media is a must for businesses. You can take breaks from it in your personal life but never with your business. In today’s world, this is one of the sure ways that consumers connect with products and services, those they already love, and those they’re trying to find. As a result, social media is an excellent way for companies to build loyal followings and organically attract new customers. But the key is having strong images. Even people who know the importance of visual content to grow their business don’t necessarily invest in the right visual content. Business photography gives you high-quality images that catch people’s eyes. It helps you stay in line with your brand and stand out from your competitors. Another tip for social media: consistency across whichever platforms you choose to use!  

Engages your audience

The importance of first impressions is nothing new, but first impressions might be more critical now, given how many options are out there and how fast people are scrolling and clicking through them. You want your visual content to show who you are and do it in an impactful way that keeps people looking. Not only that, images are easy to share. Likes, shares, and retweets on social media can be some of the best advertising. If your images engage people with your posts and brand, then you can guarantee it will also grow your audience and customers organically. 

Helps with Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Images not only make our brains happy, they also make Google (and other search engines) happy! We should qualify: images that are correctly labeled with search-friendly metadata and good descriptions. This is what’s called an “optimized photo”, and it’s what search engines need to find your website and rank it. The easier your business site is to find, the more you get clicked on and the higher you rank. It’s everyone’s SEO dream. But SEO still goes back to quality, professional photos because ultimately, a prospective customer is typically going to choose a website with beautiful images over one with poor quality images or none. And good images, like those from a professional photographer that tell your story and describe your product in color and action are what’s going to keep people on your website. Commercial photography is aimed at selling, and that includes getting people to your product in the first place.

Saves time and money

We’ve mentioned this along the way, but let’s say it outright: investing in professional photography for your business will save you time and money in the long run. Yes, there are initial costs and time investments with finding the right photographer and having the photoshoots. But compare those financial and time costs with what you would have to spend on equipment and training to get your own proper business photographs and then keep up on visual content. That point made, it’s important to clarify that commercial photography doesn’t have to break the bank at the forefront. Even one business photoshoot makes a difference. You can use the images across multiple platforms, including your website, social media, and advertising. 

Gives you an edge over competitors

Despite all the reasons listed above, there will still be business owners and entrepreneurs who will cut corners, either as a perceived necessity or simply because it’s easier. If there is nothing else that will motivate you to hire a professional photographer or have at least one business shoot, let it be your innate competitiveness. It’s there in every business person and entrepreneur, wanting to show the world why they and their product are the best. With professional photography, you can show both and get ahead of your competitors. And if they’re also using business photography to sell themselves, all the more reason for you to do so too! Show the best of yourself, your brand, and your product.
Read more about why professional photography is so important to your business.

Business photography types

Whatever your business or whoever your clients, commercial photography is essential to your visual image, branding, and marketing, but some folks might wonder what types of business photography exist and if they apply to their company. 
Here are a few types to get you planning:

Product photography 

Whatever it is you create or sell, you want to show it off in the best, literal light. This type of photography involves simple white backgrounds or complimentary colors and is all about highlighting your product. 

Event photography 

All the work that goes into planning an event is just one reason these gatherings should be captured. Event photography does this in a professional way that lets you use the image to show off keynote speakers, panels, and occurrences for posterity and portfolios.

Branding photography 

This type of photography tells your visual story. It helps establish your colors, themes, tones, and styles, giving you a recognizable identity. A successful branding photoshoot will set the standard for your future visual content and become your style guide.

Professional headshots

Unlike portraits, headshots are cropped a bit closer and are for professional purposes, like business websites, LinkedIn, and other networking purposes. While they can be creative and authentic, the key is professionalism. Everyone should have a set of professional headshots!

Every individual should have a set of professional headshots on hand.

Fashion photography

Whether you’re a designer or a model, fashion photography is all about promoting fashion, couture, and accessories. You’ll see it on billboards, in fashion magazines, and in modeling portfolios. 

Property photography

Property photography is the perfect type of photography for real estate agents, hoteliers, and architects. These photoshoots aim to relay the appeal, uniqueness, and design of the properties being photographed. 

Food photography

There’s a reason cookbooks are top sellers and food. If your business is food, then you know that food photography is essential to keeping your customers hungry for more! Show off those recipes and food products with professional images.

Lifestyle photography

This type of business photography shows your products or services in action, being used. Imagine a Jeep four-wheeling over rugged terrain, a writer sitting in a coffee shop using their Macbook Air, or someone jogging with their new Nike.

Lifestyle photographers help customers visual a product in action and in their own lives!

What is it like to work with a professional photographer for your business?

Working with a professional photographer is working with a trusted partner who brings the visions in your head to life through images you can then share with your customer and audience.

How does this happen?

First, choose a photographer who is reputable and has the style sense that you’re after. But if you don’t know what style you’re after, that’s okay too. We hire professionals because they can see things in ways we can’t and bring expertise that we don’t have. So if you can’t envision what your visual content should look like, focus on choosing a photographer who is responsive, professional, and communicates well. 

Once you’ve found your photographer, start brainstorming together. Tell them all your goals and ideas, so they can translate it into potential photoshoots and photographic styles. They want you to be happy with the product they produce, so the more information you can give them, the better. They are also happy to use their expertise to help you achieve your goals, so listen to their suggestions.

What will the results be?

Check out this photoshoot with chef Yaniv Cohen for a glimpse of what your own commercial photographs could look like!