Chapters

Summary

Matt has worked in the photography space for over a decade. Even longer in the ecommerce space. In this episode, he shared his unique experience of stumbling into two different but related fields.

First, Matt got into commercial photography in 2009. He used to run an ecommerce business before that. Matt and his team were trying to ramp up their ecommerce business with photos. As a result, Matt gained more interest in the mechanism of images helping businesses. His store grew as he learned more about photography and its business application. Matt said he liked to see fast changes brought by photos.

Simon asked Matt about his inspiration behind starting an ecommerce business. Matt used to work in recruitment before starting his ecommerce business. He met up with one of his friends. Both of them felt the need to change. One day, they went to learn how to play the didgeridoo. Matt and his friend then got the idea to teach the didgeridoo as a business.

The next topic was the importance of photography for an ecommerce business. Matt said the photos of your products are just as crucial as your website design and functionality. He advised differentiating your products by presenting value through pictures and words. Otherwise, you will have to compete with cheaper prices. According to Matt, the effort put into your photos and descriptions will appear in sales.

Matt gave an example from his didgeridoo store. Initially, their photos only showed the products. There was no face or life in any one of them. Matt remembered his experience working with a surfboard shop in the U.K. Their promotional photos had someone using their product. It brought life and activity around the promotions. Matt decided to do that for his store as well. People were more attracted to their website. Their tone in their emails was warmer and friendly. Sales had increased!

Next, Simon asked Matt what makes a good product photo. Matt answered that a good product photo properly does its job. There are at least two types of photos for an ecommerce website. One type of photo is campaign imagery. This involves creative shots and edits of the product to be used as website banners. Its job is to appeal to the audience. The other type of photo is the product image. This one is more functional and less creative. Its job is to answer the questions of the customers regarding the product. For example, you might need a simple shot to show the plugs for a microphone. The customer can tell which type of cable they will need. If each photo does its allocated job, those are good product photos.

On the other hand, Matt said inconsistent photos are the worst photos to use on an ecommerce website. It will make the website look cluttered even if the photos look nice individually. Decide on an angle and style to stay consistent. Matt also mentioned that shiny round products are challenging for photos.

Simon then asked for tips on shooting your first product photos. Matt answered that you should work out whether you should do it or not. For example, let’s say you are selling handmade one-off products. It will be better for you to learn photography by yourself. If you have a generic product, you can get a photographer to do it. This is because you can use the same photo for a long time.

Matt shared his experience running his store. In a nutshell, there was nothing that led to exponential business improvement. It was about trial and error, tweaking bit by bit. Matt advised continuing to improve when running a business.

Simon then asked for some marketing and branding tips. Matt advised keeping a template or rule for your branding. For example, decide on a font or colour scheme to follow when creating content. People might not recognise your brand if you go too far from that template. He also added that well-performing businesses have a lot of real-world activities. (E.g. pop-up stores, events, etc.)

Lastly, Matt shared his opinion on the future of ecommerce. He hopes that the ease and speed of ecommerce will be enhanced. Matt also thinks “meaningful purchases” will do well if businesses can communicate them. (He is referring to the experience behind the purchase, such as the feeling of the markets or the culture of the location.)