how to subtly use stock photography for your small business

supplement your brand photography with on-brand stock photos

Let’s pretend I’m a mind reader for just a moment.

Here are the thoughts I’m guessing you have when it comes to content and stock photography.

• Stock photos NEVER match my brand 🤦🏻‍♀️
• I’m totally unable to create any kind of consistency with stock photos
• I’m not a professional photographer 📷
• I don’t know where to begin the search
• How am I supposed to have a photoshoot every time I need more content 🤷🏻‍♀️
• My current stock photos only work for one platform

Feeling seen or heard by any or all of these??? 

Maybe I should drop everything and just become a mind reader 🤔

Just kidding. I love my day job, and I love serving you!

Instead of quitting my day job, I’m relaunching something special just for you…

THE EK STOCK SHOP!

Say goodbye to stock photo sorrows and hello to subtle solutions 👋

Fit Check 1- Aesthetic

Be honest, how many times have you rolled your eyes scrolling through stock photos? 

In no time at all, your search goes from “this is fun” to “whyyyyyyyyyy!?”

It matters though. One of your highest marketing goals as a brand is to become recognizable. And photos that are all over the place are never going to accomplish that.

I bet, you’ve been here before…

7 tabs are open. Your fingers are cramping from that little mouse and trackpad dance when you have to switch back and forth between tabs. Those fingers eventually end up in your hair as you scream, “STOP THE MADNESS!”

It can be hard to curate the right collection of photos that fit you and your brand. So, close those other tabs and open the EK Stock Shop where you’ll find business + lifestyle stock photography that actually fits your aesthetic.

To make your stock photography work for you, it’s essential that it’s cohesive – similar colors, lighting, and moods. You already have a lot of tools for branding, now you need to use them.

Pro tips: 

• Select stock photos that use the same color as your already established color palette. 
• Define the mood. How do you want people to feel when they see the images you’re sharing?
• Choose a style of lighting and stick with it.

Fit Check 2- Platforms

One of the biggest tells of poor stock photo usage is… 

When the dimensions for a platform or off. It’s one of those things where you know it when you see it. It’s when someone takes a photo that was clearly meant to be a square and tries to crop it into a story or email header. For the numbers people, I’ll say it like this…

1:1 ≠ 9:16

And lots of other ratios ≠ lots of other ratios

The point is all your platforms are different. They’re kind of needy. They require a specific image to be happy. The right stock photos are how you can appease them.

A quick guide to platform dimensions:

• Instagram
  • Squares 1:1 (1080×1080 px)
  • Portrait 4:5 (1080×1350 px)
  • Horizontal 1.9:1 (1080×566 px)
  • Reels + Stories 9:16 (1080×1920 px)
• Pinterest
  • 9:16 (1080×1920 px)
  • 2:3 (1000×1500 px)
• Email Headers
  • 3:1 (600×200 px)

Pro Tips:

• Make a list of the assets you need beforehand. Like a detailed one. That way you know what you’re looking for!
• You can use platforms like Canva to crop stock photos, but your default photo editor on your computer is probably all you need. Even your social media scheduler may allow you to edit dimensions without leaving the app. 
• Dimensions matter on your website as much if not more than they do on social media. Be sure to scroll through your website’s desktop AND mobile sites before committing to a final design. 

Fit Check 3- Make It Your Own

The most important part of curating stock photos is that they work for you! After all, the whole point of hunting them down is to use them to talk about your brand and offerings.

When looking for stock photos, you need images that can be customized to match your aesthetic.

What that could mean:

• Blank space in the photo where you can add text
• Elements like empty letter boards that you can add text to
• An element in the photo that you can connect to something unique about your business

This is your opportunity to make what started as someone else’s look like it was yours all along.

Incorporate your brand fonts and colors to breathe life into your stock photos and make them your own!

Pro Tip:

• If you’ve got some graphic design background, get the Adobe Suite up and running to add your brand elements.
• If you’re not a designer, Canva is a great and free tool that will let you do this.

The New AND Improved EK Stock Shop

What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t tell you that I not only have tips for how to use your stock photos but might also have THE stock photos you’ve been looking for?!

This month I’m relaunching the EK Stock Shop – stock photography that’ll sell your offer and grow your audience, forever and ever (and ever). But this time around I’m launching it as a monthly membership, a subscription if you will. 

That’s right. Stock photos year-round. In every season. That match your brand and aesthetic. All in one place.

Moving forward the EK Stock Shop Membership will offer: 

• Single-Business Stock Photos: $17/month
• Agency Stock Photos: $25/month (i.e., if a social media manager wants to use the stock photos/videos for their own clients)

Explore the new EK Stock Shop Membership to see if dreams really do come true!