What Kind of Images Can I Use For Commercial Use?
Images are an essential part of any marketing campaign. They can help you stand out from the competition, enhance your blog posts and keep readers engaged.
But using copyrighted images without permission or a valid license can lead to copyright infringement, which is a serious offense. Read on to discover six types of images and how to use them safely online.
Images for Blog Posts
Image-rich content is a great way to increase engagement on your blog. Studies have shown that content with images is viewed 94% more often than those without them. Additionally, it boosts conversions by over 300%.
However, it’s important to choose the right kind of images for your blog post. A blog post with a poor quality picture can easily lose your readers’ attention and cause them to leave your site. To avoid this, make sure that you use high-quality images with a relevant theme.
If you’re not a professional photographer, there are some sites that you can use to find images that are free and available for commercial use. These sites are a good option for bloggers who don’t have the budget to pay for professional images.
Flickr: This site has over 5 billion images from both amateur and professional photographers worldwide. It offers a wide range of photos that can be used in your blog posts, and you can even search for specific themes or topics to find relevant images.
Shutterstock (paid): This stock photo site has a large selection of high-quality, copyright-free pictures that you can use for your blog. It’s one of the most popular sources for royalty-free images, and it adds new content every week.
Pixabay: This site is another resource for finding high-quality, copyright-free photos that you can use in your blog posts. The site offers a huge selection of high-quality images, as well as video clips and music.
MorgueFile: Similar to Pixabay, this site is a great source of high-quality, copyright-free images that you can use in your blog posts. Like Pixabay, MorgueFile offers a search feature that makes it easy to find the perfect photos for your blog.
Unsplash: This is another site where you can find gorgeous, high-quality, free images that you can use for your blog posts. The licenses are clear, and the website is easy to navigate.
It’s a good idea to resize and compress the pictures you download before adding them to your blog articles. This will reduce their file size and improve your page’s speed. It will also help your website rank better in Google and other search engines.
Images for Websites
Adding visuals to your website can be a crucial part of promoting your business. However, not all images are created equal, so it’s important to ensure you’re using the right kind of images.
Whether you’re looking for images to use in your blog posts, social media posts, or for your online store, there are several websites that provide high-quality, royalty-free images that can be used for commercial purposes. This can be a great way to save money and still get high-quality images that look professional.
One of the best free stock image sites is Unsplash, which is a collection of hand-selected, high-quality images that are licensed under Creative Commons Zero (CC0). These licenses allow you to use the images for personal and commercial projects without attribution, which makes them perfect for all kinds of uses.
Another great option is Pexels, which offers a huge variety of photos and illustrations. It has a handy filter that allows you to search for copyright free images, and its interface is easy to use.
If you’re looking for a more unique selection of images, check out StockSnap. This site curates images that are far from ordinary and offers a handy trending section that can help you find new images to add to your website.
Alternatively, Wikimedia Commons is a collection of public domain images that can be freely used by anyone worldwide. It is a great resource for designers, as well as photographers and artists.
This website is a newcomer on the scene, but it has already built up an impressive database of free images. The quality of the photos on this site are excellent and their selection is constantly growing, so you’re bound to find something that suits your needs.
A note of caution: be sure to read the terms and conditions of the site before you download any photos. Some of them require attribution, which can be frustrating.
If you’re an ecommerce entrepreneur, Adobe Stock is a fantastic choice for you. They offer millions of images that you can download for free, and they also have a ‘collections’ system that helps you organize your images according to their intended use.
Images for Social Media Posts
The right images can make your social media posts stand out from the crowd and draw attention to your business. However, it can be a daunting task to decide what kind of images you should use on your business’s social media channels. Luckily, there are plenty of resources and tools out there that can help you create eye-catching visual content for your social media posts.
One of the most popular types of images that you can use on your social media channels is a photo. These photos are easy to take with your smartphone and can be easily edited to a high-quality standard using apps like Instagram or VSCO.
You can find many free stock photos on the internet, but you should be aware of licensing issues before you choose one. This will ensure that you don’t infringe on the rights of the image creator and that your business doesn’t have to pay for their work.
Another important consideration is the size of the image you choose to use for your social media post. Not all social media platforms are the same and a poorly-sized image can seem distorted on some. It’s best to use the right size for the channel you’re posting on.
Some of the most common types of images you can use for your social media posts are photographs and illustrations. These types of images can be used to add color and texture to your posts, and can include anything from logos to people and products.
In addition, you can also create images with the use of shapes or graphic elements. These can add a unique touch to your social media posts and will help your audience better understand what you’re trying to communicate.
If you’re looking for images that you can use for your social media posts, be sure to check out these free graphics design tools. Each of these tools is easy to use and will help you create stunning visuals in no time! You can even upload your own photos to the sites and customize them.
Images for Email Marketing
Images are an essential part of any email marketing campaign. They can draw readers in, increase click-through rates and create brand awareness. But, they also need to be chosen carefully and optimised properly.
Using the wrong images can be frustrating to readers, particularly if they are too large or small. This can lead to them deleting your emails before they’ve had a chance to read them.
To avoid this, always use the right image size and file sizes. For example, the recommended height for an email header image is 200 pixels, and the width should be 600 pixels. This means that your subscribers will never see a blank space where the image should be.
Aside from image size, there are a few other considerations to make when selecting the right image for your next email. These include the image format, which is important for avoiding the spam folder and for keeping your deliverability high.
Another important thing to remember is the ratio of text to image in your emails. You should aim to keep the text at least 60% of your email, and avoid using more than 40% of it to display images.
You can find free stock photos on various websites, but be sure to check that the images you use are licensed and high quality. Using generic stock photos can look cliche and unoriginal, so try to find something unique and authentic to make your email stand out.
The image size you choose to use will depend on how your email is displayed by your subscribers’ email service provider. This is why it’s important to send test emails on multiple devices to ensure that your images look the way they should across all platforms.
When choosing the image that best fits your email content, think about your target audience and what they’ll be most interested in seeing. For instance, if you’re selling travel destinations or the last pieces from your spring collection, it would be worth investing in some strong imagery to help your customers picture themselves wearing those products and what they can expect to get out of them.