E-Commerce

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The Sales Value of Strong Product Photos

To shoot better video interviews, I've decided to purchase a couple of Lowel Pro video lights with barndoors -- a fine quality product. New, they're fairly pricey, but on eBay you can sometimes find some good deals -- or not.

13 bids, $140	17 bids, $114.85	13 bids, $145
10 bids, $157.50	9 bids, $129.50	4 bids, $121.47

For essentially the same light, you'll see that the quality of the photo tends to affect bidding interest and final sales price (including shipping). Of course, selling in online stores is different from eBay auctions. But across the board, perceived value in an online or catalog environment is closely related to the quality of product image.

Don't count on the manufacturer to supply you with the best product photo. Especially if an item is a strong seller for you, make sure you have top quality photographs in order to increase perceived value, your conversion rate, and perhaps raise your price point a bit.

If you sell products online, consider getting a professional to shoot your best sellers. Or shoot your own product photos with a light tent that you can purchase for $50 to $100 -- or make yourself. Great photos can pay for themselves rapidly in increased sales.

Now just for fun, try to guess which of the images below garnered the most views on my YouTube channel recently.

814 views

1,511 views

344 views

You guessed right. YouTube selects the exact middle frame of your video and uses it as the default image. If you're wondering what the beautiful model is doing smack dab in the center of one of my videos, catch my interview with Bryan Eisenberg on "Optimizing E-Commerce Product Images."

The right photos can capture the attention, perceived value, and sales your products so richly deserve.