When a customer searches for something on Amazon, all of the products displayed feature five key elements: a large image of the product, the product’s title, its product review stars, the product’s price, and when shipping is available by. The image that you select for a product is the very first thing that a customer’s eyes are drawn to in search results. This photo, along with the other images selected, also have prominent placing on every product page in the top left corner.
The quality of these photos can directly affect your sales numbers. A good or bad featured image could be the difference between whether or not a potential customer clicks on your listing in the first place, and the images you choose to represent your product could be the difference between closing a sale and the customer deciding to continue to look elsewhere. Here are four steps to follow to make sure that your Amazon product images are optimized.
Make Sure Your Photos Follow Amazon’s Image Guidelines
Amazon has an extensive list of product image requirements that sellers must follow when adding images to their product listings. All images submitted on Amazon must adhere to these technical specifications:
When a customer searches for something on Amazon, all of the products displayed feature five key elements: a large image of the product, the product’s title, its product review stars, the product’s price, and when shipping is available by. The image that you select for a product is the very first thing that a customer’s eyes are drawn to in search results. This photo, along with the other images selected, also have prominent placing on every product page in the top left corner.
The quality of these photos can directly affect your sales numbers. A good or bad featured image could be the difference between whether or not a potential customer clicks on your listing in the first place, and the images you choose to represent your product could be the difference between closing a sale and the customer deciding to continue to look elsewhere. Here are four steps to follow to make sure that your Amazon product images are optimized.
1. Make Sure Your Photos Follow Amazon’s Image Guidelines
Amazon has an extensive list of product image requirements that sellers must follow when adding images to their product listings. All images submitted on Amazon must adhere to these technical specifications:
File Format – Images can be uploaded in TIFF (.tif or .tiff), JPEG (.jpeg or .jpg), GIF (.gif) or PNG (.png) formats.
Pixel Dimensions – Image pixel dimensions of at least 1000 pixels for either height or width are preferred.
Color Mode – Images can be uploaded in the sRGB or CMYK color mode. Amazon uses RGB color mode for product pages, so using RGB is a good choice for continuity.
File Names – Each image file must be properly named using the following format: product identifier (ASIN, 13-digit ISBN, EAN, JAN or UPC), then a period, then the file extension of the image. For example, if you are submitting a JPEG image of a book with the ASIN B000654321, the correct file name would be B000654321.jpg
There are also specific rules for both the main image and the additional images. In both cases, all images must be “in focus, professionally lit and photographed or scanned, with realistic color, and smooth edges.” The main image must show the full product in frame, fill at least 85% of the frame, have a pure white background and contain no additional text or graphics. Additional images on the other hand can use backgrounds, props, text and graphics; but the product and props pictured are still expected to fill 85% of the frame or more.
2. Take Multiple Pictures and Make Use of Photo Editing Software
As mentioned in the paragraph above, all pictures uploaded on Amazon must be in focus and professionally lit. Fortunately, you won’t need to go out and buy a digital camera to take excellent photographs. Today’s smart phones are more than capable of producing extremely high-quality pictures. Just make sure to adjust your settings to maximize the quality and size that the photographs you take are saved in.
Lighting and background can make all of the difference when it comes to taking professional photographs of your products. Consider investing in a green screen and studio lighting to capture your products with vivid colors and no issues with focus or shading. If you are just getting started with your Amazon business, you should still be able to find budget options for lighting and green screens that can turn a corner of your home office into an impromptu photo studio.
Once you have taken multiple pictures from various angles, select your best photos and use photo editing software to fine-tune your images. This process will include cropping your image to correctly fit the frame, making sure your backgrounds are pure white on main images and making final adjustments on colors and your image size.
There are many free-to-use programs and applications for photo editing available on both computer and mobile devices. Photo editing is a worthwhile skill to learn if you don’t already have it, but you can also enlist the help of a friend or a professional if you are not interested in editing these photos yourself. The important thing is landing on a finished product that looks great and meets all of Amazon’s requirements.
3. Provide Useful Information Within Your Images
While the rules on the main product image for product listings are quite strict, Amazon gives sellers a lot of freedom when it comes to what additional images they want to use. Sellers can use other products or objects to help show the scale of their featured product, cropped or close-up images, backgrounds and environments, and event text and demonstrative graphics.
All of these tools can be used to your advantage. Are some of the best features about your product listed in an attractive way on your packaging? Crop a close-up photo of that section of your packaging to use as an additional image. Does your product work well with another one? Include a picture of the two products together to let your potential buyer know.
As the saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words”. Every customer is different; some will read all of the product details that you list in your description while others will just browse through your pictures. Give yourself the best possible chance to capture those visually-driven buyers with images that are not only attractive, but informative as well.
4. Organize Your Photos to Create a Natural Flow
After you have taken the time to create and edit a great set of images that does a great job of representing your product and brand, don’t forget to curate these images by organizing them into an order that makes sense. Images that are out of order can create a disjointed experience for the customer as they roll their cursor or finger over your pictures.
Think about the story you want your images to tell, from showing your product in different angles and colors to providing more information on what it does and how it works. Then set up your additional images in an order that organically tells this story. Following these steps should help your images improve your product pages and boost your Amazon sales.
There are also specific rules for both the main image and the additional images. In both cases, all images must be “in focus, professionally lit and photographed or scanned, with realistic color, and smooth edges.” The main image must show the full product in frame, fill at least 85% of the frame, have a pure white background and contain no additional text or graphics. Additional images on the other hand can use backgrounds, props, text and graphics; but the product and props pictured are still expected to fill 85% of the frame or more.
Take Multiple Pictures and Make Use of Photo Editing Software
As mentioned in the paragraph above, all pictures uploaded on Amazon must be in focus and professionally lit. Fortunately, you won’t need to go out and buy a digital camera to take excellent photographs. Today’s smart phones are more than capable of producing extremely high-quality pictures. Just make sure to adjust your settings to maximize the quality and size that the photographs you take are saved in.
Lighting and background can make all of the difference when it comes to taking professional photographs of your products. Consider investing in a green screen and studio lighting to capture your products with vivid colors and no issues with focus or shading. If you are just getting started with your Amazon business, you should still be able to find budget options for lighting and green screens that can turn a corner of your home office into an impromptu photo studio.
Once you have taken multiple pictures from various angles, select your best photos and use photo editing software to fine-tune your images. This process will include cropping your image to correctly fit the frame, making sure your backgrounds are pure white on main images and making final adjustments on colors and your image size.
There are many free-to-use programs and applications for photo editing available on both computer and mobile devices. Photo editing is a worthwhile skill to learn if you don’t already have it, but you can also enlist the help of a friend or a professional if you are not interested in editing these photos yourself. The important thing is landing on a finished product that looks great and meets all of Amazon’s requirements.
Provide Useful Information Within Your Images
While the rules on the main product image for product listings are quite strict, Amazon gives sellers a lot of freedom when it comes to what additional images they want to use. Sellers can use other products or objects to help show the scale of their featured product, cropped or close-up images, backgrounds and environments, and event text and demonstrative graphics.
All of these tools can be used to your advantage. Are some of the best features about your product listed in an attractive way on your packaging? Crop a close-up photo of that section of your packaging to use as an additional image. Does your product work well with another one? Include a picture of the two products together to let your potential buyer know.
As the saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words”. Every customer is different; some will read all of the product details that you list in your description while others will just browse through your pictures. Give yourself the best possible chance to capture those visually-driven buyers with images that are not only attractive, but informative as well.
Organize Your Photos to Create a Natural Flow
After you have taken the time to create and edit a great set of images that does a great job of representing your product and brand, don’t forget to curate these images by organizing them into an order that makes sense. Images that are out of order can create a disjointed experience for the customer as they roll their cursor or finger over your pictures.
Think about the story you want your images to tell, from showing your product in different angles and colors to providing more information on what it does and how it works. Then set up your additional images in an order that organically tells this story. Following these steps should help your images improve your product pages and boost your Amazon sales.
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