Photography for your business website: what to shoot and how to use it
By Martin Soliman,
Photos carry a lot of weight on a business website. They show visitors who they would be dealing with, what the place looks like and what to expect. Good photography does not need a large budget, but it does need a little planning. This guide covers what to photograph, how to prepare the images, and how Google suggests you describe them.
Start with a shot list
Before anyone picks up a camera, write down the pictures your site actually needs. The right list depends on the business. Some examples:
- A cafe: the room, the counter, the food and drinks as they are really served, and the team at work.
- An accountant or consultant: the people, the meeting space and the area clients walk into.
- A clinic: reception, the rooms, and each practitioner with a clear portrait.
- A boutique or florist: each product or arrangement on a plain background, plus a few in use or on display.
- A gym or studio: the space, a class in progress and the equipment members will use.
- A school: classrooms, grounds and staff, with permission sorted first.
Then match the list to your pages. The home page needs a strong main image, each service page needs one or two pictures of that service, and the about page needs people.
Use real people and real places
Stock images can fill a gap, but a visitor who is deciding whether to contact you usually wants to see the actual business. Where you can, use your own photos of your team, your premises and your work. If a photo shows an identifiable person, such as a client, patient, student or member, get their permission before it goes on the site. For schools and clinics in particular, check your own policies first.
Keep quality up without slowing the page
Google's guidance on images says high quality photos appeal to users more than blurry, unclear ones. The same guidance also points out that images are often a large part of a page's size, so quality has to be balanced against speed. In practice that means a few simple habits:
- Photograph in good natural light where you can, and keep the lens clean.
- Crop each image to the shape it will be shown in, and check how it looks on a phone as well as a desktop screen.
- Compress images before they go on the site, and avoid uploading a huge original when a smaller version will look just as sharp.
- Open the finished page on your own phone and see how quickly it loads.
Describe every image properly
Google's guidance, Google image SEO best practices, gives several points worth following. It suggests file names that are short but descriptive, rather than generic names such as image1.jpg. It says alt text should be useful and information rich, using keywords appropriately, and it warns against stuffing keywords into alt attributes. It also suggests placing images near relevant text, and notes that captions and image titles on the page help Google understand what a picture shows.
A plain way to apply this is to write alt text the way you would describe the picture to someone on the phone. For a cafe, something like "Flat white and a slice of orange cake on the front counter" says what is there. It also helps anyone using a screen reader, and it keeps you away from awkward keyword lists.
Stay consistent and keep it current
A site looks more trustworthy when its photos feel like they belong together. Use a similar style of lighting, framing and colour across the site, and retire pictures that no longer match reality. If the menu changes, the team changes or the shopfront is refurbished, the photos should change too. An outdated photo can quietly work against an otherwise good page.
A simple yearly routine
Most businesses do well with a short shoot once or twice a year, timed around a quiet period or a change in season. Keep one folder of approved images, name the files as you save them, and note which page each one belongs on. That way new pages and promotions never wait on a hunt for a usable photo.
How Conciergia handles it
Conciergia is a done for you online system run by one provider, so photos are only one of the things you do not have to manage alone. The website is custom built with unlimited pages and revisions, and hosting, maintenance, professional email, a Google Business Profile and a logo are included. Front Desk, the on site assistant, captures and qualifies enquiries and supports bookings, while search covers SEO, AEO and GEO with keyword research and articles, and social content is planned, made, scheduled and published. Pricing is a one off setup fee plus a weekly plan, with no lock in, and you can cancel anytime. The enquiries your site collects belong to you. See the pricing page and get in touch if you would like to talk it through.