Improve Your WordPress Website with Royalty-Free Images

A picture is worth a thousand words. It’s a cliché, but there is a real, proven value in using photos to convey messages and promote content. In fact, vision trumps all other senses.

When someone hears a piece of information, they’ll likely only recall 10% of the info three days later. But it’s different when there’s an image to go along with the same information. They’re likely to remember 65% of everything even after the third day.

Photos grab attention, particularly relevant ones. The quality of the images on your site is of vital importance. Low-quality photos and graphics are tacky and unimpressive. Using grainy, out-of-focus, random photos just for the sake of adding visuals is bad at so many levels. It defeats the purpose of incorporating images to your content.

You want to project a professional impression to your visitors. That’s understandable. This is why it’s imperative you only use high-quality photos. They should be relevant to your brand and your message.

46% of people who view a website look into the site’s design quality to check if the brand is credible or not. And a large part of a web design is the images used on the site. Also, 60% of online buyers prefer local search results that have photos.

Images improve engagement, particularly on sites powered by WordPress. However, the wrong kind of photos can also damage your brand and hurt your conversion rate. Uploading any photo without care or consideration on your site won’t cut it. You want to make a difference and stand out from your competition. This is why you need to choose high-quality photos. And that’s where royalty-free images come in.

Royalty-Free Stock Images: A Quick Overview

Most people think “royalty free” images (RF), and stock images are the same. The truth is, they’re very different from one another.

Royalty-free images are not free, per se. You need to pay once – a flat fee – for the image. After that, you can use it as many times as you like, in whatever way you like. The cost of the one-time payment differs depending on the source and the resolution of the image.

The RF license enables you to use the photos in a broad range without additional charges. Having said that, it’s also important that you check the terms under a royalty-free license. Each photo agency defines their own conditions. Read the license agreement in detail before making a purchase. This helps you avoid future legal problems.

Advantages of Using Royalty-Free Images on Your Site

Effective Communicator

People are visual creatures. A huge portion of the human brain is all about visual processing. A good-quality image will command the attention of your readers. You make them take note of what you want to say because it’s a natural reaction for people to zero-in on visual aids. And humans process photos at an alarming speed.

So, using a relevant photo to convey your message is basically you cutting to the chase.

Versatility

Using royalty-free images means you only pay once for a photo. After that, you can use it in different ways at different times. By paying a single flat fee, you pretty much have the image’s right of usage.

This enables you to make the most out of it whenever you need to. You can even use one RF image in multiple projects at the same time.

High-Quality Images

One of the main reasons bloggers prefer royalty-free images is due to the quality of the photos.

Stock photo repositories follow a set of requirements for photos in their collection.

The technical quality of the photos must be somewhere between good and excellent.

It’s why you make a one-time payment to acquire the images.

While a lot of free photos online are decent, their quality is not sufficient to make your content stand out.

Easy Customization

After paying the flat fee for RF photos once, you can do whatever you want with the images to fit your needs. This means you can edit, crop, distort and add filters to the royalty-free photos. You can customize them in any way to your liking.

This allows you to incorporate them into your album effortlessly. They won’t stick out like a sore thumb if you’re using a particular filter for all your website and social media photos.

Customization of these images is relatively easy. There are a lot of powerful photo editing apps you can use. Also, most uploaders make sure that their photos are open for any modification once bought.

Fast and Economical

The beauty of royalty-free images is you don’t have to do the actual hard work to come up with stunning photos.

You don’t have to plan a concept. You don’t have to waste time and money bringing equipment from point A to B.

No need to set up your own studio. With a simple click and a one-time fee, you have the pictures on your hard drive in minutes.

Smart Filters

Stock photo websites are user-friendly. You probably have deadline or targets to meet. Stock photos can help you achieve them. Now, you don’t have to scour the internet for the perfect image. All you need to do is go to a reputable image repository. Use the site’s smart filters. Put in the correct keywords and parameters.

From there, the RF website will immediately direct you to your preferred content. WordPress users will also find this easy. There are WP plugins that make this process more efficient for users. You only need to access the plugin and its filters to get the job done.

Membership Benefits

Becoming a member of an RF stock media site has important advantages. You’ll be in the know of resources that are rarely available to the general public. You will have access to private sites of talented photographers and visual artists.

You will get discounts for photos under different licenses. And, you will know tips and tricks on how to maximize the use of royalty-free images.

Source of Inspiration

You don’t even have to purchase an RF image to benefit from it. Simply browsing through a gallery of images can do so much. You can quickly come across a photo that can inspire you and tickle your creative bone.

You can create a whole new piece of content from a single photo. You can revisit an old topic and see it a different way just by looking at a relevant image.

Tell a Story

Why are they called visual aids? They help people understand and interpret the story better in a visual manner.

Too much text can bore you. It can bring to the point of disinterest. Most of the time, scientific facts – even important ones – just don’t connect with people.

Photos tremendously help in connecting the story to its readers. Images will grab your attention. They will get you involved.

With pictures, you see the story as it unfolds, rather than just standing on the outskirts.

Information Dispenser

Today’s world is brimming with stimuli that information overload becomes very real. Audiences look for the most fluent and convenient way to gather information. And, most of the time, it’s through photos.

The brain quickly absorbs image-based content. As mentioned above, humans are visual creatures. This is why infographics are popular and consistently used by bloggers. But even the simplest simple photos can quickly provide info to your readers. You just have to make sure that the images you use to make sense to your content.

Leads Converter

Sites with images on top of the usual informative content get more views. They have better stats than those that present their products in text form only. Pictures attract more visitors to your website. They increase the possibility of converting leads into actual buyers.

Remember that your photos help tell the story of your brand, product or service. Using visual communication builds brand credibility. Quality images trigger lead conversion because photos increase user engagement.

This means visitors get to spend a long time on your website. They also form a connection between you and your leads. This applies in particular if the photos you use hit home and trigger an emotional response.

Product Pusher

The use of images creates a sense of trust between you and your site visitors. Posting high-quality, royalty-free images show that you care.

You think about what you put out there and what you associate with your brand. The pictures indicate that you mean serious business. This greatly helps in establishing your credibility.

Converting a potential lead into a paying customer becomes easier.

High-quality RF photos are especially ideal for marketers. They help further promote your brand. These images are not just for your website or blog.

They are also effective on other marketing campaigns and social media posts.

There’s one thing you have to remember, though. Not all of these images are of the same quality. To get your money’s worth, make sure to purchase images from a reliable source like DealFuel. Check out this bundle of great stock vectors and photos.