6 Reasons PRs Aren't Using Images (But Need To!!)

We know that images make a journalist's life a million times easier. Why? Because when they receive that top-story from you they can pump it out to the masses, without having to waste time Googling suitable photos. Oh but the other thing we know...PR practitioners and businesses alike avoid using images like the plague! We're in a bit of a catch 22 situation here, aren't we?!

We’ve found there are six main reasons why PR practitioners don't use images as part of their communications. And here are our solutions to these problems so you can start creating more vibrant, eye-catching and interesting content.

“Our product is boring. I don’t think it would be a good subject for an interesting picture.”

All the more reason why you should use some creative images to enliven your communications! Think of Innocent Drinks. Their product is not unique but their social media content is awash with images which are unrelated to their product but fit with the quirky image they’re trying to attach to their brand’s personality.

These images were taken from Innocent Drinks' social media posts

However, if you don’t think this would work for your brand then you should consider thinking about how you can create an emotive or humorous image in some way connected to your product. Look at this humorous example for Webroot Internet Security. 

Another tip is to write down your headline. What first comes to your mind when you read it? Have you used a metaphor? It's often easier to match a picture to a headline than the whole story.

“Professional photographers are too expensive, I can't afford to pay for photographs to accompany every press release I send out.”

Professional photographers may not always be as expensive as you think. If you plan wisely you really can get a lot for your money...

Rather than photographing on an individual campaign basis, consider making a list of all the campaign activities you will have in upcoming months so you can think about the images you might like to accompany your documents.

It is much cheaper to hire a photographer for a whole day and take a wide range of shots to build up your photo library. This collection of photographs can then be shared with your whole team so they can have easy access to photographs when they’re creating documents and presentations.

“We’re a small company we can’t afford fancy digital cameras, never mind a photographer.”

Don’t underestimate the power of your smartphone or tablet. The number of megapixels on these devices is equivalent to the digital cameras people were investing in only a few years ago. Also the quality of apps, such as Instagram, is constantly improving.

While at present the images you can produce on these devices may not be of high enough quality for printed materials, they can certainly be used across social media and in blog posts.  

123RF – you need to find the cost/quality ratio you are comfortable with.

If you want to buy photos and use them without restrictions, make sure you search for “royalty free”.

So, these are some of our solutions. What do you think? Perhaps you have some of your own tricks to add? Let us know in the comments below.