Online marketing is nothing without steller visual content, illustrations and graphics which need to be used regularly and effectively.
Images are known to drive a lot of engagement on various social media platforms and even on websites. Platforms such as Instagram and Pinteest are successful largely because of how heavily focused the content such as images and videos
In order to drive serious traffic to your website or social media and create engagement or increasinging conversion rates on landing pages of your ecommerce website, the use of images must be taken into consideration. It is so much more likely that your content such as blogs get more shares if it contains attractive images and gifs.
We understand the importance of visual content but where can you find these attractive images that can boost your engagement? Images that convey the message and can suit the aesthetic your brand are hard to find and given the importance of putting out quality and quantity ‘content’ you may wonder if it is at all feasible to take photos yourself or hire a professional photographer?
There are many stock photo sites, luckily where you can find attractive visual content to add to your blogs, posts and even branding. These photos are free to use and you can easily access the many mages in a matter of seconds.
So if you want more retweets, here are a few sites where you can find premium stock photos, no matter the keyword easily and without having to pay a penny.
#1 Pixabay
The first name that comes to mind when looking for free stock photos is Pixaby. Ask any graphic designer or content creator. Pixaby is easily everybody’s favourite website to get free images from. Here you can easily find photos that fit into your blogs or can be posted on your social networks. There is no need for asking permission from anyone before using these images. You can use these Business Stock Images to publish content anywhere and without sourcing Pixabay or providing image credits. Obviously there is a license that needs to be read and understood before using these stock photos to better understand what these images can and cannot be used for.
#2 Pexels
Another great site for getting free stock photos is Pexels. Pexels is one of the most commonly used stock photo sites that gives you access to thousands of free images in a variety of categories. These images can be used for a variety of purposes be it commercial or non-commercial. You can also modify these images and won’t need ro give credits to Pexels or the owners.
Once again, the site has a license that gives you better insight on how the images on Pexels can and cannot be used.
#3 Unsplash
Unsplash is yet another popular stock photo site that has over 850,000 photos that you can use freely. The p;atform is quite similar to Pexels. You can use the photos for commercial and non-commercial purposes. You do not have to credit the owners for the use of these images and when you are using these images, you can modify them in any way. Unsplash is a great platform for anyone looking to use attractive images in their blog posts, who do not have the time or resources to take professional looking photos for their small business.
#4 Burst
Burst is a great platform for anyone looking for stock photos that can be used to run ecommerce sites such as Shopify, The images you find on Burst can be used for online marketing as well as offline marketing which makes it a great tool for small business. The pictures you find on Burst are usually used for creating artwork that is printed on mugs, t-shirts and the like. To better understand the guidelines of how the images on Burst can be used, we recommend reading their terms of use.
#5 StockSnap.io
StockSnap.io is a popular site for finding stock images to use. The site allows users to view favourites, and downloads on the images so you can find the most popular ones. This is a great tool for small businesses and content creators who want to put out engaging and interactive content for their viewers. The best thing about StockSnap.io is that you can also find the best performing photos in the trending section. This way you can add images that generate more engagement on your website and social media platforms.
#6 Getty Images
With a huge library of stock photos, Getty Images is yet another great resource for royalty free images. There are many who avoid using Getty Images simply because of how expensive this site can be but there is a way you can use Getty Images for free. By embedding the images you can use them for free. When searching for an image you can click on the embed icon and then copy paste it on your site, however you want to use it. This is a great way to use stock photos from Getty images without breaking any rules and not needing to pay for the photos.
#7 Kaboompics
Kaboompics is a great resource for finding a wide selection of stock photos. When you use the Kaboompics site you can search images based on color as well as keyword. This is an interesting feature that can prove to be very useful for graphic designers looking to ensure that their designs align with the branding.
The search results on Kaboompics can be filtered further for you to find the best selection of photos to aid in the design process.
#8 FoodiesFeed
Running a food blog is made easy with FoodiesFeed where you can find the best stock photos of food and drinks. These photos are licensed under creative commons zero which makes it possible for users to modify, copy and distribute these photos as they wish, and use it for commercial and non-commercial purposes. If you wish to learn more about what this license permits, visit the website and read it thoroughly.
#9 Flickr
Flickr provides a great selection of stock photos while also working as a social media network for creatives. There are billions of photos on Flickr tah can be used for free. The general rule is that you can use an image as per the creative commons license set by the specific user. Check the caption under the image set by the owner and use the image accordingly.
#10 Google image search
Google in itself is a great source of stock images. When using images from Google you can modify the ‘usage rights’ settings on the search page so that you can easily find images that can be used by you for marketing purposes.
#11 Canva
Canva is a great resource for marketing, making presentations and also a great source of stock photos. There is a good selection of stock photos available on canva but it is especially useful when you are designing a social media post and you have stock images readily available on the app. Canva has a premium version that obviously gives you access to more images and more templates than the free version. But you can get a deal done by only using the free version.
#12 Reshot
Reshot is a great source of stock photos which are free to use. It is very common among freelancers because of the great selection of photos to allow you to create better content for editorials and commercials.
#13 Gratisography
Gratisography is a great place to find high-resolution photos that you can use for personal and commercial purposes. The platform is updated with new photos on a daily and weekly basis so you will never run out of content to post.
#14 Freestock
Freestock provides you with a large selection of Creatives Commons Zero photos that you can use for your personal and commercial projects.
#15 Picography
Picography is yet another website where you can find aesthetic stock photos. The special thing about Picography is that the photos submitted are from renowned photographers from around the world such as Dave Meier and others. These photos are also under the Creative Commons Zero License.
#16 Foca
Foca is a selection of amazing stock photos from the renowned photographer Jeffrey Betts, all provided under the Creative Commons CC0 license.
#17 Picjumbo
On Picjumbo you can find stock images in a variety of categories. These include photos for personal and commercial use. The database is updated regularly so you can easily find new content here.
To conclude there are many free and premium stock photo websites available that can help you take your business to the next level. This list contains only free stock image websites. By using these websites you can easily add high quality and relevant images to your blog posts, websites and social media pages, making them interactive and increasing your engagement.
You can easily use these images, edit them and publish them without having to pay for any subscription and also avoid having to ask for permission from the owners
