Retouching images may seem like a minor process. However, the field of advertisement, marketing, and e-commerce, has endless benefits visible to consumers, which will be seen in your sales figures.
Retouching images aims to enhance the image quality further and reduce noise for some aspects of the pictures to stand out more where the camera cannot pick up certain things. The best retouches are close to the original image where one can’t tell they have been worked on, and just like a magic trick, we use sleight of hand to capture their attention while entertaining them.
What is Retouching?
“The post-production process of altering the raw image file to introduce changes to the shapes, shades, colors, and sizes of the items in pictures resulting in physical alterations of the initial visual objects.”
Removing blemishes and spots, adjusting fly hair, sharpening edges, and smoothing the model’s skin are all examples of retouching. Image editing is more straightforward; things like tuning saturation, color, and resizing images are examples of image editing which don’t bring physical changes to the object.
Benefits of Retouching product images
In present market conditions, attention is vital. One of the most effective ways to do this is through images, so brands must use whatever means available to them, and retouching images being one of them, is used often.
In this article, we’ll take an in-depth look at some benefits of retouching images:
1. Grabbing Attention
The market is saturated with images since they are easy to produce, consume, and understand. As they say, a picture speaks a thousand words. Social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc., thrive on them.
But what makes an image popular or successful?
It’s the content and social context of the image.
An example can be the image of a vibrant orange fruit with sprinkles of water that convey the rich flavor and freshness of the fruit in a juice commercial or poster.
The distinct view of the product pulls one’s attention towards it. People are now used to extravagant-looking websites, glamorous celebrities, and attractive models that demand attention with their looks and presence. This has caused people to overlook unappealing photos as their attention is caught elsewhere.
Consumers are now used to high standards as companies employ skilled artists, photographers, image editors, etc. A significant portion of a company’s expenses is spent on advertisement and marketing. Hence it makes sense for the employees to use whatever is possible to achieve their goals and attract new and existing consumers.
2)Increased Presence
When you gain a lot of attention, you start setting yourself apart from the competition and indicate to your audience why you should pick them. Commercially retouched photographs convey a sense of professionalism and quality to the consumers while giving potential customers a chance to inspect the images of the product.
Having a good picture positively influences customers purchasing decisions. If that decision is then further reinforced with quality and trust in what they perceived or getting more, then that is when you build a strong following which strengthens your brand. People tend to give more weight to others’ views on a product before they consume the product or service, and if it has a positive response, it enforces their purchasing habits.
Awareness of the brand presence influences even inexperienced customers who would try out making a new decision, task, and subject as they look around for clues on what might be good for them or ask others.
3)Generate Clicks
When looking for a product or service online, we often interact with the most detailed and eye-catching image, which we take a closer look at to get a general idea of the product. This increases the website’s interaction, creating traffic and allowing search engines to bring the site among the first choices.
When placed against a slew of choices for the same product, the consumer often chooses the ones with better image quality and those with a variety of views so that they can see the details online.
4)Building Credibility
It’s easier to sell a product or service once, and to keep bringing them back for more will decide the long-term fate of the brand. Companies might sell a product or service, and getting customers back is more accessible when you have credibility.
Credibility is built on consistency.
A brand is discovered through images online or adverts, in person, or through word of mouth. Interested people, after viewing, then decide to buy the product or service, and should the result lead to what they expected or more, they will associate genuine trust with its branding.
Images displayed by brands with consistent quality give us a sense of trust that they are professionals and have a solid team behind them.
This is why people trust to invest their time and money in those brands. Similarly, this is what potential partners use as an indicator of establishing collaboration and partnerships with other brands and influencers.
5)Saved time
Retouching images saves a considerable amount of time in reshooting when you have entire catalogs of items that are put into the business. It would be even better if you could automate or delegate the process to another, reducing the workload even further.
Sometimes images don’t do justice to the product and require it to be seen face to face to appreciate its craftsmanship, quality, and feel that might not get captured on camera. So retouching the images is necessary, but keeping them accurate to the actual product will mutually relieve sellers and buyers of any remorse and headaches.
6)Social media engagement
Websites and social media development have enabled various features and methods for increasing engagement and services. Sites like Facebook Marketplace and Instagram Shopping have features that bring various small and large brands to the platform where there is a sizable demographic of people of different age groups as active users at a convenient reach.
Most small businesses don’t bother setting up their websites as they rely primarily on social media, but engagement depends on how captivating the image is for upvotes, shares, and comments. Fine-tuning your photos by retouching them gives it that edge to go against competitors and clearly define aspects of the products or services.
7)Appropriate Image formats and sizes
Retouching photos enhances the product’s visuals to appeal to the consumer base. Depending on how you store the image, use it in prints, and sell the product online on various platforms such as Instagram and Facebook requires several sizes and formats for each case.
Professional studios anticipate this and pay great attention to the resulting image suitable for the chosen audience and channel.
In conclusion
Retouching images enhance the image’s appeal to the consumers, where physical alteration of the picture takes place. It serves to benefit brands by grabbing the attention of the consumers and making them stand out, their presence known, and differentiate from the competition. It boosts product clicks and builds credibility, thereby driving social media engagement. Time is saved on photoshoots where retouching them would do the job, especially when dealing with a catalog of items, and finally, having a versatile line of images catered to each website, print, and adverts.