Do you have an unlimited budget to spend on pricey images for your emails?
No? Me neither.
Which is a shame because we know that quality images make a huge difference to the overall look of your email. But unfortunately they often don’t come cheap!
And sadly emails full of corny stock photos just don’t cut it.
Even an email with an enticing subject line, engaging and relevant copy and a brilliant call to action can fall flat if it’s accompanied by a cheesy photo.
So I’d like to share with you four easy ways to source brilliant images, that won’t break the bank. In fact, they’re free!
1. Make the most of free image websites
A colleague recently shared Stock Photos that don’t suck with me. This article contains a list of where to find the best free photos on the internet – you can’t argue with that!
One of the great things about it is that the author continues to update it as more websites pop up.
It’s worth noting that a couple of sites on this list require you to attribute the photo – so keep that in mind if you use them.
2. Google’s advanced search can be your best friend
Google has added an advanced search option so that you can search for images that are free to use or share even commercially.
Do you want to edit the photos and make them your own? Well, now there’s a Google search option for that as well!
3. Use creative commons images
Many users of the site Flickr have chosen to offer their work under a Creative Commons license, and you can easily search for content under this type of license. This means in some cases you can copy, distribute, display images if you give the photographer credit – check the fine print for each photo.
4. Let your inner photographer roam free
Now this option might be a little out of some people’s comfort zone but it’s something we’ve played with here at Vision6 so I wanted to share it with you.
Take the photos yourself. All you need is a couple of willing co-workers or bribable friends and a back drop. Additionally if you’re selling products this is a fantastic opportunity to showcase your wares.
Here are a couple of photos from a recent shoot we did. We used a run of the mill camera and one of our colleagues stepped up to play photographer (thanks Warwick!).
Still can’t find the perfect image?
Wrong size? Too much going on in the background? Or maybe you need to add some text?
Well don’t worry, you can now easily edit all of your images in Vision6, so say goodbye to expensive photo editing software!
These are just a couple of my ideas, but I’d love to hear of any sites I’ve missed or tips you have for finding inexpensive images? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.