The Ultimate Guide to Using Stock Photos of People in Marketing

  • 2024-10-04

Today, visual materials determine how successful your marketing campaign or content will be. High-quality photos of people can help you convey emotion, tell a story, and connect with your audience. Yet, it's getting harder and harder to captivate the attention of your audience amidst the sea of content being produced every day. 

People’s attention spans are shrinking, and competition is fiercer than ever. That’s why you need to know how to stand out by using stock images of people in your content. With eight practical tips, this guide will teach you how to choose authentic images that resonate with your target audience. Keep reading to learn more!

Dos and don'ts for using stock images of people in your marketing materials

1. Avoid cheesy stock photos of people

When browsing pictures of people on Depositphotos, don’t fall for cheesy photos—the ones that scream low effort, inauthenticity, and lackluster. If you can see that the person in the photo is trying too hard, so can your audience. 

Instead, opt for images that are authentic, diverse, and relatable. Stock content platforms like Depositphotos often have curated collections with handpicked visuals. They contain trendy and original images that are ready to be used for a variety of creative projects. 

2. Choose natural-looking images

A good rule of thumb is to choose photographs of people who show real emotions, natural poses, and realistic behaviors. Over-enthusiastic or over-posed images can come across as forced and insincere, turning your audience away.

To prevent your audience from bouncing from your content, opt for images that feel genuine. Say no to cliched photography concepts from the 2000s, such as cheesy stock images of business people shaking hands, people laughing into the camera while cooking alone, or women shopping with exaggerated smiles.

3. Do not use unrealistic scenarios

Do you know what’s worse than unnatural images? Unrealistic scenarios. People may just skip over a staged picture of someone with fake emotions without paying attention. However, unrealistic scenarios can upset customers and create negative associations with your business.  

For example, stock photos present many stereotypes about bosses. You can see pictures of a boss surrounded by five people, demanding to answer two or three calls and sign papers. But does this happen in real life? Most likely not. In reality, bosses are often busy but not so overworked.

4. Consider your target audience

Do not pick a random stock photo of a person for your project. Make sure it represents your audience and is relevant to the content and context of your marketing message. This way, your audience will be able to relate to the image more easily, improving the impact of your message. 

For better results, use A/B testing or split testing. This is a research method where you compare two versions of a marketing asset to see which one performs better. With real-time feedback, A/B testing allows you to enhance content engagement, reduce bounce rates, and boost conversion rates.