If there is one thing that really matters on your website, it’s the images you choose.
The reason this is true is because of the simple fact that, according to a study done by 3M, our human brains process images about 60,000 times faster than we process text. What this means is people will come onto your site and in an instant decide whether (or not) they want to stay.
The images you choose are what makes the potential customer feel connected to you or sends them clicking over to your competitor.
Given the fact that one of our specialities at 321GoProject is building dynamic websites, we’ve seen a lot of websites – the good, the amazing, and the downright terrible. We want to help you make sure your website doesn’t fall into that latter camp.
One big initial mistake people make is they choose images that depict their business rather than choosing images that appeal to their ideal customer. In the gym industry, this would look like featuring a picture of your gym on your homepage rather than one of happy people working out. As proud of your gym as you may be, it’s just not what a potential customer cares about most.
They want to know they’ll fit in there.
They want to know how your gym can impact the change they want to see in themselves.
If they choose you, will they be happier? Will they be fitter? Will they be sexier? Will they be stronger to do the things outside that they want?
This is what should be portrayed on your homepage. And this is done through featuring people who have found these results.
What motivates people to buy what you are selling is a deep need to fix an internal problem.
They don’t feel good about themselves for one reason or another – they can’t fit in their clothes, they feel insecure, they feel themselves getting older and weaker, they aren’t what they “used to be”, they feel out of control, or any host of other reasons.
Your goal on your website is to offer hope that what they are looking for can be found if they sign up with you.
Remember – your website is not for you or for your members. It’s for those new people considering if they want to be a part of what you’re offering.
Almost every single affiliate or gym owner we’ve spoken with says what differentiates them is “community”. Ok, I get it… that’s truly great, but there are a couple immediate problems I see with that: 1) everyone claims that what makes them different is their community, and 2) if you’re not communicating on your website that fostering community really is a value of yours through the images you choose, then no one is going to believe your words.
Donald Miller lists 3 questions you should answer with every image you use:
- Does it add value or provide information? In the overwhelm of content we are exposed to everyday, people don’t just want to see pretty images, they want something that provides value.
- Does it make an emotional impact? The best images are those that elicit an emotional reactions.
- Does is show the transformation my product offers? Every image, especially on your homepage, should communicate what will happen if they use your product or service.
And then another thing to consider is which images you should not choose. If you’ve got any of these 4 types of images on your site, it’s time to do some serious renovating (or demolition/rebuild):
- Stock photos – we all have the ability to recognize a bad stock photo a mile away. They are generally dull and well, stock-photo-ish. An exception would be the gym specific stock photos you get access to in Hub.
- Crowd shots – it’s far better to use a close-up image that has a single point of focus. Group shots can tend to be boring if there’s not one single main subject to focus on.
- Poor quality images – it would be better if you didn’t have any images at all (and that’s not a good option) than if you include over-pixelated, low res pictures.
- Images that people can’t relate to – for those people who don’t yet understand the world of CrossFit, it will be virtually impossible to relate to grimacing workout photos. You want them to see the positive emotional results, not the pain in the process.
Here’s an example. Check out both images below and determine which one image appeals to you more.
The 1st picture is okay – it’s crisp and clean, she’s fit, focused, working out, but there’s not much emotion. The 2nd picture is a close up, she’s motivational, she’s loving what she’s doing, she’s inviting you into something bigger than yourself. That 2nd one would be a better choice every time.
The images you choose for your website matter.
We’ve said it before and we’ll continue to say it because it needs to be understood – in this day and age, your website is one of the best investments you can make into your business. Think about how you feel when you’re searching for a new product or service and you stumble onto an out-of- date website. You probably don’t stick around long. Be careful that you’re not losing potential members because you’re unwilling to make the investment into a solid website.
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