A universal PR rule that must never be broken is that: every single piece of copy shared externally MUST have an accompanying picture. It sounds obvious but it is often one of the biggest battles fought in the PR realm...
By the time a press release has come together, it’s usually been a battle to get most of the information. I’m often amazed at how little information companies share with the expectation of a good press release as the result. Or possibly worse, how businesses try to cut corners by drafting an incomprehensible press release themselves. You can find my press release guidelines here, but if you can, please leave it to the experts.
Once the press release is ready to go – there’s always the question of an accompanying picture. Bafflement often crosses the face of the client asked and it can take five to 10 email exchanges to get a picture that is suitable.
So, I thought I would help us all save a bit of time and share my PR picture golden rules…
1. Size
A picture to go with a press release should be rectangular, horizontal, 1MB in size and ideally 300dpi. Now in this day and age of square Instagram posts and vertical TikTok videos, you can be forgiven for sending a different size or shaped image, but if you take a look at a newspaper, magazine or online news site ALL THE PICTURES ARE HORIZONTAL. To say this is a bugbear of mine, is an understatement.
The size is equally as important as the shape because a publication needs to be able to enlarge or print a picture without it becoming blurry or pixelated. So, if you take the teeny tiny thumbnail from your LinkedIn profile and a publication reprints it four times the size your face becomes a blurry mess. Don’t be a blurry mess, make sure your image is at least 1MB.
2. Types of image
Now this is also pretty basic, but I’m going to lay it out for simplicity reasons. If a press release, article, thought-piece or any other kind of post is about a product, you need a picture of that product to go with it. If it’s about a person, you need a picture of that person. If it’s about a new office, you need a picture of that new office. Are you getting the theme here? Make sure your picture illustrates the copy.
3. Technology images
The one area that’s slightly more complex is tech-based products or services. These are typically more difficult to visually represent. That’s not to say you don’t need to bother, it just means your job is harder. Whether it is a data analytics service, Internet of Things based or Artificial Intelligence, it’s worth investing time and money to have a series of images created that visually represent your product or service and what it can do for customers. You’ll need this for your website anyway so having it for PR purposes is a bonus.
4. Images for social media
Images for social media don’t tend to be the same size and shape as those used for PR. Often, they’re square or vertical versions of the same image. Depending on where you want your article to live beyond a publication – please do consider creating a variety of sizes and options. There are numerous web pages outlining the different sizes so it’s easy to search for 'what are the different picture sizes for social media' and get some useful results.
5. Headshots
As a business leader, you will need headshots. That’s a horizontal 1MB in size photograph of you from your waist up standing in front of a neutral background. You need to be wearing business appropriate attire. And no, your Facebook profile picture of you holding a beer or that picture of you on a beach holiday won’t work. It can’t be square and we can’t crop out your dog, partner or mother. If you try to use a vertical picture it will be cropped so you look like you’re peering out through a letterbox. This is not what you want.
You should be looking directly into the camera – not up or down at it. And definitely no bathroom selfies. Or props please! If in doubt, get a professional photographer to take some pictures for you – these can range from around £200 or you can go to Snappy Snaps for £50. Keep in mind this is the image of you that you’ll repeatedly see – as will the world – so it’s worth investing in.
These are only a few considerations when it comes to images for use in PR. There are many more requirements for social media and business websites. A bigger feature article for a national publication in all likelihood would send its own photographer to cover a story, but it’s still best to have your own images too.
The resounding takeaway should be that images are important. Where copy, press releases and articles are the lifeblood of your PR and marketing, images are its beating heart. EVERYTHING important needs to be visually represented. You, your product or service, location, company culture, offices etc. We’re visual animals and we like to see things – it’s an easy and quick way to understand something.
As someone who writes for much of her job, I still truly believe that a picture is worth a thousand words. I’ve seen the power of a brilliant image and how far it can travel – from the front page of a newspaper or magazine to infinite places online. Pictures are powerful, don’t skimp on them or skip them.
Victoria Fairclough is a PR & Communications Consultant at Fair Communications. For more information, please visit: www.faircommunications.co.uk
Kommentare