Question: Should I outsource my business’ product photography?

Answer: That depends – if you’re noticing that your products aren’t selling, and you know that the issue isn’t (for example) a slow website, or lack of marketing, it might be time to bring in a professional for your product images!

Product Photography has a Job To Do

At the end of the day, every photo you use to promote your business has a job to do. But if you’re a product seller, and you have an online presence, your product photos have an even MORE important job to do, because those photos are how your people see what you sell. Which sounds like it’s super straightforward, I mean, their introduction to the problem your product solves will likely be visual, not text based. It’ll be on a sales page, an Instagram post, or maybe even Pinterest. But it’s the visual that’s supposed to stop their scroll – make them pay attention. It’s supposed to push them to envision themselves with that problem solved, in a way that they align with aesthetically. And now more than ever, they’re also supposed to ensure your potential customers are clear that the thing you’re selling is REAL, because we all know what’s happened with AI generated product photos online recently.

But if you’re having a problem with your conversions online, how can you tell whether that means it’s time to outsource your product photography?

There are some clear signs that it’s time to outsource your business’ product photography

Lucky for you, there’s basically a magic checklist of things you can rule out before you move to outsourcing product photography for your business – and they’re benchmarkable, measurable, and things you’re probably already paying attention to. So without further ado, let’s talk about the steps you should take before you jump to outsourcing your product photography!

1 – You’ve ruled out website issues

The key first step here, is making sure you’re ruled out logistical website issues before you move on to upgrading to professional product photos. If you’re not making sales, it might straight up be because your website isn’t easy to navigate, the cart doesn’t work well, people run into roadblocks, or you’ve got the dreaded slow load speed of something built in 2005 that you’ve been limping along with since. Now, if you largely sell on platforms like Creative Market, or Etsy, or other marketplaces like that, then you don’t have to worry about your own web speeds nearly as much. (You should still have a website though… they’re important!!)

But if your website is loading super slowly, or needs to be mobile optimized, or just needs work in general, then those issues need to be taken care of before you can move on to blaming your product photos. New ones might help, sure. But they won’t solve your website woes, and they won’t have the same impact on conversion, if the problem is actually your load speeds, for example! So run some website audits, see what’s going on… and if everything looks good, then you can confidently say you’ve ruled out website problems as a cause of your low conversions. Which means we can move on to step two!

2 – You know you’re selling on the right marketplaces

This next one covers those of you not relying on sales directly on your website, because it’s 2026, and marketplaces exist! If your sales are lower than they should be… are you actually selling in the RIGHT places? Does your audience ACTUALLY buy there? Or did you just choose a marketplace kind of at random to get yourself started? There’s no shame in that last one – done is better than perfect, and getting started is often the biggest hurdle. Been there, done that. But you don’t have to STICK with a platform, just because you chose it as your first step! If you’re not making sales on Etsy, for example, check out your competition. What are they doing that you’re not? Do you HAVE competitors on there? Can you gauge whether that’s because you’ve found a market hole… or whether that’s because no one is buying what you sell on there?

This is another one where you’ve GOT to go do the research. So go do it, and ask yourself truly, “do I need to be looking at other places to sell my product?” If the honest answer is “yeah probably,” then start there.

3 – Your marketing is in the right places… but falling flat

The question of marketing for your products is a big one – and that’s why there’s a caveat here. You NEED to be marketing in the right places before you can truly gauge whether your marketing is falling flat, because otherwise… you’re just talking to the wrong people. Not in a “these people are wrong” kind of way, but in a “the demographic that uses this platform or is reached in this way isn’t the right audience for my product” kind of way. So again, go do your research. Have you picked a platform to market on based on data, or vibes? If you’re 100% sure your audience is using that tool though… then you can know whether it’s a problem with your ad/marketing images, or whether it’s a bigger problem entirely. If your people are there, maybe it’s time to upgrade your product imagery. If they’re not? It’s time to go find other places to market!!

4 – You’re struggling to get traction on social media

The last big tell we’re going to talk about today, is social media. Now, this might also be where you’re marketing, so there might be some cross over from the previous one. Overall, if you’re struggling to get traction on social media, it can be caused by a lot of things. So before you can really tell whether it’s your images that need an upgrade, you need to be sure that you’re posting in the right places, that you’re being consistent, and that you’re staying true to your brand. If all of those are true, and you’re STILL having issues getting traction on your accounts, then it might be a problem with your visuals. And the good thing is, problems with your visuals can be solved by working with a professional product photographer, like me and my team here at Jessica Strobel Photography!

Is it time to outsource YOUR business’ product photography?

Which brings us to this: if you’re sure it’s not your website, the places you’re selling, your marketing, or where you’re posting… it’s time to chat. I’d love to create a package of product photos that highlight what you sell, speak directly to your ideal clients, and align with your overall branding. And that right there? It’s the recipe for product sale success!!

Bonus: Take a look at just a few results that my AMAZING team of collaborators and me have gotten for our social media management clients!