How Important are Photos in Your Marketing Strategy?

Your photo library is the visual foundation on which any marketing strategy is built. 

Research says you have eight seconds to catch the eye of a Gen Z.

And for print - the decision to read or reject pamphlets and direct mail pieces is made by readers in

just 2.5 seconds. 

Travellers want to visualise potential new experiences. How will it make them feel? To stand out in the tourism industry and inspire travellers to book you over competitors, place compelling visuals centre-stage throughout your marketing. There are two types - hero images and

stock/complementary images.

'Hero Shots' are your defining images - what sets you apart. 

They are "wow" photographs that make the viewer think "I want to be there now"; They grab attention quickly in a saturation of images. A library of promotional images complements the hero shots. These images are less memorable but just as necessary to tell the story.  Just like a magazine with their hero image on the cover, and the additional photos within the article.

Your appeal and uniqueness

+

great idea/concept

+

awesome team

=

Hero image

Uniqueness/appeal could be a landmark, a feeling or an experience.

The great idea revolves around a story. What does your ideal audience want to see? Weather, atmosphere, activity, talent similar to themselves? Let your audience imagine it could be them

there, enjoying your destination.

Find the production team you need and trust. Look at their portfolio, get to know them, find recommendations. You have to be comfortable and confident.

Finally, make sure your images (hero and stock) sit firmly within your marketing brand. They should be images that define you and make you unique.

Thousands of dollars are being spent taking those images into the marketplace - websites, promotional collateral, travel shows, social media - it makes sense to do it properly from the start.

Strzelecki Track, the outback and Innamincka

I am an ocean girl. It's where I feel happiest, most alive, relaxed and 'at home'. So to take me to the Outback is a little adventure. I love my adventures, where I discover, learn and have fun. Then re-align myself with the ocean when I get back home.

I had a photoshoot for The Outback Loop, Innamincka Hotel and Flinders Ranges and Outback this year. It took me on a long weekend trip into the Outback via the Strzelecki Track. Lots of red dust and billions of flies. I didn't mind the dust (although the camera probably hated me for it) but the flies - argh, I can never get used to them. We would arrive anywhere, in the middle of nowhere, and within seconds, have flies swarming us. My hands were working a constant windscreen wiper motion across my face.

But it was worth it. The beauty of being surrounded by vast nothingness. The quietness. The colours. The people. The history of Burke and Wills. And let's not forget the dancing in the front bar - true country style, after a few beers (or wine for me).

Country life depends on community, weather and the natural environment. Visiting this area is a real world classroom. At least once, everyone should get themselves into the Outback.