Remember when you were a kid and you'd grab the books with the most colourful pictures? Well, that preference for visuals doesn't really fade away as we become adults.
In fact, studies have shown that blogs with pictures get more views – it's just how our brains are wired.
I mean, imagine landing on a website and seeing just words, no interesting visuals. Would you stick around to read that? Probably not.
As humans, we're naturally drawn to things that catch our eye. So, if a page lacks engaging visuals, it's a bit like watching a movie without the exciting plot twists—it's missing that extra touch that makes it truly engaging.
Having said that, getting high-quality images isn't always a breeze. If you use someone else's images without giving them credit, you could land in legal trouble. It's not just about ethics; you could face potential legal consequences.
This is where stock photos come in handy – they usually come with clear licensing terms, and you won't have to worry about attributions. It's a safer bet, helping you avoid any legal tangles while still enhancing your digital content.
And to sweeten the deal, these top 6 photo platforms we're about to recommend are free!
Unsplash
Unsplash is a super popular site for free stock images, owned by Getty Images. You can download pics from Unsplash for your personal or business needs. You are not required to highlight the photographer, though it is recommended to provide due credit.
Basically, Unsplash is home to lots of photographers from all over the world, and you can find all sorts of images to cater to a wide range of preferences.
TAKE NOTE: Just a heads up, you can't use their pictures for something that's in direct competition with Unsplash!
Freepik
Freepik is a super useful search engine where you can find loads of free high-quality photos and various design elements like vector images, illustrations, and PSD files. There are literally millions of graphics you can download and use for anything – personal or professional projects.
The awesome part is, Freepik's search engine has these handy filters that help you find exactly what you need – whether it's the type of resource, color, style, and more. And, if you're into Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop, no worries – you can download the graphics in formats that work with them. Easy peasy!
Pexels
Another site with images that are free to use and visually appealing is Pexels. It features a dedicated section showcasing the most popular searches and provides free videos for various purposes.
The platform is incredibly user-friendly and comes with excellent categorization, making browsing a delight for users. However, it's worth noting that some photos have limitations on their usage. You can check out the Pexels license for more detailed information.
For designers, there's plenty of additional info available for each image, including resolution and file size, allowing for customization according to their requirements. Mobile app versions for both iOS and Android are also up for grabs.
Pixabay
Pixabay stands out as one of the most popular sites for royalty-free images, boasting over 2.3 million results. It's a go-to spot for creatives of all kinds since, in addition to a vast collection of photos, you can also discover videos, music, and illustrations.
This platform hosts an extensive database of high-quality images, with a slightly more business and marketing orientation compared to Unsplash. This orientation proves beneficial for content marketers and bloggers. Another notable advantage of Pixabay is its provision of free vectors and illustrations.
Burst
Burst, supported by Shopify, is another excellent stock photo site providing royalty-free images, allowing you to reuse them without acquiring a new license. It proves to be a fantastic resource for entrepreneurs looking to create a visually appealing eCommerce site from scratch, featuring diverse collections to cater to various tastes.
An exclusive section named "Business Ideas" offers eCommerce tips and photo kits tailored for different product categories, making life easier for business owners!
Vecteezy
Vecteezy has a bunch of really nice free stock photos for you to check out. What makes this website stand out from others? Well, first off, it has a powerful search engine that lets you filter photos by things like color, orientation, style, number of people, and even the age of models.
Another cool thing is that Vecteezy provides signed model and property releases for all their free photos when needed. This basically keeps you and your designs out of legal trouble, which some other free stock photo sites might not do.
Lastly, the team at Vecteezy personally checks each photo submission for quality. This means you're getting a collection of photos that's been carefully put together for excellent quality.
Final Words
Building a strong brand requires grabbing attention with images. The good news is, that you don't have to go through the hassle of hiring photographers or designers to elevate your email or social media marketing.
Do your research and identify the ideal stock photo site for your business by considering your budget, goals, and preferred aesthetics. Once you've got that figured out, start sharing engaging content with your customers!
SO, WHERE DO YOU FIND THIS PARTNER?
Well, aren’t we glad you asked! We at DigiCom are obsessive data-driven marketers pulling from multi-disciplinary strategies to unlock scale. We buy media across all platforms and placements and provide creative solutions alongside content creation, and conversion rate optimizations. We pride ourselves on your successes and will stop at nothing to help you grow.
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