Using Conference Photos on Your Website
Covered in this post—
Event Website Imagery Ideas
Conference Photos for Your Business Website
Conference Photos for Your Event Site
Your conference has wrapped up — congratulations, you did it! As you take a deep breath, your event photographer hands you a flash drive with thousands of conference photos – what is your next move?
There are a number of ways that conference photos can be leveraged. Most marketers immediately look to social media because of its ability to reach wider audiences. We won’t deny the power of social media, but it’s certainly not the only way you can use conference photos. For starters, remember the power of professional photos on your company website
Proprietary photos are a tremendous resource in any industry. They have the ability to convey energy and company culture. Bonus, photos can elevate your site's Google search results. When utilized properly, great photos can generate instant and lasting ROI.
As you plan your next event, be sure to look ahead to how you will utilize the digital capital that your event photography team will generate. Each image is a piece of the puzzle, telling the story of your event. At Mark Campbell Productions, our goal is to give you the best images possible and make it easier for you to put these resources into action.
Event Website Imagery Ideas
While an amateur photographer might go around snapping random photos during the event, a professional photography team will have a very clear blueprint to ensure success. As an event planner, an important thing to relay to your photography team is how the conference photos will be utilized in the future.
It might not seem like a pressing issue, but sharing the style, intended audience, message, and story that you are hoping to capture will help the photographer generate a better end product. Here are four of our favorite ways to use conference photos.
Relatable Images– Fear of missing out (FOMO) is real and a nice lever to pull in digital marketing. Relatable images can help visitors to your website or event page envision themselves at the event. An example of this could be the audience during a panel discussion.
Instead of a photo of the entire audience, it may only be a single woman busily taking notes, absorbing all of the information being presented. They both showcase a specific moment in time, but the latter conveys emotion and creates a story that can easily be related to by your audience.
Background Images – Using a conference photo as a background image can add depth to your website or landing page. The stark contrast between image and text draws the readers readers' relevant information.
Pro Tip: Double-check that text is easily readable and the image isn’t too busy.
Inline Photos – Inline photos are a powerful way to use conference photos on your website. They don’t take up the entire page and are typically used to highlight a specific section, break up the flow of the page, or showcase something unique. In this use case, images should be relevant and shouldn’t be mixed with stock photos.
Icons – Using conference photos as icons is a simple way to help guide your audience. This can be particularly powerful if your event will showcase well known industry professionals, and guest speakers, or draw attention to your company blog and other resources.
As you think through how you will utilize your upcoming conference photos, don’t be afraid to check out well established event pages. Large scale events, like SXSW, are great at squeezing every drop of value out of an image. Seeing how they utilize digital assets might spark a great idea that can help set your event apart.
Legally Using Images on Your Business Website
One of the most important pieces that must be planned for is adding the right permissions to your event registration. Doing so safeguards your business from potential litigation should an attendee not wish to have their image or likeness shared.
Like all other original works, Chicago event images fall under Illinois copyright law and consent must be provided for images to be shareable or used as promotional material. Adding this agreement to the registration information keeps everything tidy and prevents the photographer from having to navigate through non-shareable attendees as they capture images during the event.
Conference Photos for Your Business Website
When you are dealing with thousands of images, organization is key. During the planning, be sure to ask your photography team to help organize the final product. Doing so will make it easier to find the right type of photo for your business website. They will already be named and saved in the right categories. For example, you may want four master folders that images get placed into: Generic, Team Photos, Speakers, and Vendors.
Generic Conference Photos
Generic photos are typically going to be wide shots of the event space and the audience in general. These are great for background photos on a hero section or photo block, as they aren’t too specific but still tell a story.
Team Photos From Your Event
Team photos are great additions to your company's About Us or Hiring pages. They showcase company culture and provide a small glimpse into what it is like to work for your organization.
Photos of Experts at a Conference
Speakers and industry expert photos are incredibly powerful when used in recap articles or on next year’s event landing page. If the person isn’t instantly recognizable, add a caption with their credentials to help increase the click rate.
Vendor Images for Your Website
Vendor images offer a chance to highlight strategic partners on your website and should always be backlinked to their website. If possible, get images of your team engaging with the vendor or vendors engaging with attendees.
Conference Photos for Your Event Site
Your event page is an opportunity to write the first chapter of the story of your event before anyone steps foot in the event space. The images you choose will go a long way to help make that story come alive. Past conference photos can help create buzz around the next event, highlight how the event has grown over the years, and much more.
If your event has returning speakers, instead of the traditional headshot, opt for a dynamic photo from a past event or an image where that person is engaging with the audience. For returning vendors, use prior years' photos on the exhibitor floorplan to spice things up. Leverage specific images to showcase who your audience is and why a viewer should want to be in it.
Friendly reminder: you’ll get loads of amazing conference photos for your website. But remember that your business website doesn’t have to be cluttered with images to be effective. Take the time to look at other great event sites. Sometimes the best option is a single image that instantly connects with the viewer.
Get the Best Conference Photos From Our Chicago Team
High-quality professional photos have the ability to transport your audience to a specific time and place, elicit an emotional response, and drive action. As you plan your next event, make sure that you dedicate the necessary resources to get the shots that you need to tell your story.
At Mark Campbell Productions, we understand the complexities of creating and managing an event. Our team of Chicago-based professional photographers and videographers are ready to make the process easy and ensure that you get the best product possible. Connect with our team to learn more about our services and to get your quote today.
Great conference photos are worth more than a thousand words, and we are ready to prove it to you.