Are you looking for the best way to boost engagement on social media for your business? I suggest you focus on images, because pictures, really do speak a thousand words when it comes to social media marketing.
How do I know that?
Well, according to a study which analyzed 30,000 of the top posts by brands on Facebook, 87% of the posts with the highest engagement were photo posts!
On top of that, according to a study conducted by Twitter, Tweets with photos receive a 35% increase in retweets over regular Tweets!
So imagery is clearly pretty important when it comes to social media marketing, but the next question you have to be asking yourself is, “where can I find images to use for my social media posts?”
In this post we will answer that very question! So get ready to hear about 15 different online image resources.
Searchable Resources
The first six image resources that we will look at are very comprehensive. They have large libraries full of images, and they give you the ability to search and filter in order to find the perfect picture.
1) Dreamstine is really a one stop shop for everything you could need in terms of imagery. It boasts a library of over 29,000,000 images, and claims to have the world’s largest community in stock photography, with images being contributed by photographers around the globe.
One of the best things about Dreamstine is that in addition to its paid download plans, it also has a fairly impressive library of free images.
2) FreeDigitalPhotos.Net is an image resource bursting at the seams with great images that you can use for your business…for free! One of the features of this site that I like the most is its detailed advanced search option. In addition to searching for the keyword you do want, you can exclude the keywords that you don’t. You can also search by image type (image or illustration), orientation of the image, if there are people in the image or not, and more!
3) morgueFile has a library stocked (no pun intended) with millions of images. The images that I have found on morgueFile tend to have a slightly different feel from the ones on other stock image sites, but that is just my personal experience. What I can say that sets this site apart from others is that in addition to showing you images from its own library, morgueFile gives you the option to search through other stock image libraries as well, like Getty, iStock, and more.
4) Flickr is one of the coolest photo resources available on the web. It is made up of a massive community of photographers committed to sharing amazing images with the world. And when I say massive, I mean MASSIVE. Flickr claims to have billions of images in its library. All of which are searchable by keyword and license. Oh, and the pictures are free!
5) Dollar Photo Club if the free resources aren’t cutting it for you, it doesn’t mean you need to spend a lot of money on your images. Dollar Photo Club, as the name suggests, is a great place for finding cheap images to use for your business – to quote their about page:
So sure, you’re paying money, but in return you get access to some pretty amazing, high quality images that are well worth it.
6) ShutterStock has a massive collection of fantastic pictures, but it is only for the serious folks out there who are looking to download a lot of images on a regular basis. ShutterStock offers different subscription plans which enable you to download up to 25 images a day!
If you are someone who will be downloading a lot of images, then this could definitely be worth it for you. A one month plan costs $249, but if you compare that to Dollar Photo Club for example it is a huge savings – 25 images a day for a month equals 750 images, or $750 at Dollar Photo Club.
Cool Image Resources
If you’ve looked through all of the searchable image resources for the perfect image, and you just haven’t found what you’re looking for, chances are you need a bit of inspiration. Something with a little “wow factor.” That is what these next photo resources provide – the wow!
(By the way, all of the sources in this section are totally free!)
7) Death to the Stock Photo is the perfect source for inspiration. The way this site works is simple. There’s no searching or anything like that. You sign up for their newsletter, and then once a month you receive an email with their new images. No sorting, no keywords, just amazing pictures!
Now, if you think that’s pointless since you can’t choose what image you get, think again! Sometimes it’s better to be inspired by a picture you see, than to have an idea inspire the picture you want to use.
8) Unsplash is not a very large library, but it is a good one. What do I mean by that? Well, there is a search option, and you can find images according to a keyword, but you won’t find anywhere near as many responses for your search on this site as you will on one of the first six tools mentioned. What this site lacks in quantity though, it makes up for in quality. Just go to the homepage and scroll through the images there and you will see what I mean.
9) Life of Pix is all about color! Once again, this is a library that you cannot search through, you can only scroll, but believe me, that is enough. All the pictures on Life of Pix are large, bright, and colorful making them perfect for attention grabbing posts on social media. I mean who wouldn’t look at this picture?
10) Gratisography is the perfect place to find something a bit different. This site has your standard scenery and nature shots, but then it spices things up with some crazy, wacky pictures too! If you’re looking for something off the beaten trail, then Gratisography is a good place to look.
Background Resources
Sometimes you don’t need an image, you’re just looking for a cool background for a graphic you’re preparing. Well there are resources on the web that have you covered there too!
11) The Pattern Library is, as the name suggests, a library of patterns. Go here to fulfill your pattern dreams. All you have to do is scroll through until you find the pattern you like, download it, and you’re good to go!
12) Subtle Patterns has slightly gentler patterns than the Pattern Library. These are better for light backgrounds, but the patterns can still spruce up any image or graphic!
Clipart Resources
Finally, we come to clipart – the fun, cartoons that can add some personality and depth to any graphic!
13) Pixabay is a great place to find any clipart that you might need. One of the best parts of the clipart that you will find on this site is that they are mainly in PNG format, meaning the background of the picture is transparent and so the image can be placed on any background that you want.
14) Open Clipart has much more basic illustrations than Pixabay, but sometimes simplicity is exactly what you need in order to complete the graphic you are designing.
15) Clipart Lord is a simple site filled with all kinds of clipart. The site is organized according to category, and states explicitly under each image what the license on the clipart is, so you can easily know which images you can use and how.
Start Boosting Your Engagement
Now that you know where to find good images, it’s time for you to get to work boosting engagement on social media!
P.S. If you’re looking for a great way to put your images to good use, you should definitely check out the Power Banner, which will enable you to create beautiful banners for Facebook, PPC ads, email, and more!
Zack is a social media enthusiast who loves all things digital. He is the inbound marketing manager at StoreYa where he spends his days searching for the newest social marketing scoop. If you’d like to chat with him, feel free to connect with him on any social platform.
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