Taking photos of the cars in your dealership’s inventory is time-consuming, difficult, and expensive. Even if you are willing to invest the necessary resources into this project, you may not be able to produce high quality vehicle photos unless you are a trained photographer. For this reason, most auto dealerships use photos from a car image database instead of taking their own.
But all car image databases are not created equal, which is why it’s so important to take your time to find the right one for your dealership. Here’s what to look for when choosing a car image database for your auto dealership:
Comprehensive Vehicle Coverage
Some car image databases offer limited coverage of the vehicles. For example, these databases may only include photos of the exterior of vehicles or vehicle photos taken from a specific angle. However, the best car image database should provide comprehensive vehicle coverage.
Look for a car stock photo database that has photos of both the interior and exterior of each vehicle. The photos should be taken from a wide variety of angles and distances.
Why is this important? Your customers will use the images you post online to learn about new vehicles, compare their options, and make purchase decisions. But they can’t do this if they can’t see every part of the vehicle.
For instance, a customer who is comparing a handful of different sedans may want to narrow down their options by comparing the interior of each vehicle. If you don’t have access to these images, this customer won’t be able to make a purchase decision on your site. Instead, they may need to visit a competitor’s website to find the information they need. Once they leave your site, it’s not very likely that they will return.
To avoid this problem, choose a car image database with comprehensive coverage of every vehicle.
Extensive Library of Vehicles
Finding a car image database with an extensive library of vehicle images is crucial. If you choose an image database with a small selection of images, you may not be able to find all of the images you need for your dealership. As a result, you may need to take your own photos to supplement the images you pull from the database.
Look for a car stock photo library that contains images of various makes and models. You should be able to find images of sedans, SUVs, vans, trucks, sports cars, and other vehicles.
You should also have access to images of vehicles made by a wide variety of automotive manufacturers. For example, you shouldn’t choose an image library that only contains images of luxury vehicles. Instead, look for a library that contains images of vehicles of all price points. This way, you will be able to find all of the images you need for your dealership in one place.
Easy to Search
The best car stock photo libraries contain thousands of different images. It would take far too much time to manually look through all of these images, which is why it’s so important to find a database that is easy to search.
You should be able to use the search feature to quickly find a specific image within the database. This may involve searching by keyword, such as the make and model of the vehicle you are trying to find an image for. You should have the ability to filter your search results, too. Look for a database that allows you to filter by make, model, year, type of image, and other options.
If you choose a database that isn’t easy to search, you could waste a lot of time struggling to find the images you need for your dealership. Save yourself the time and trouble by choosing a database that is searchable.
Used and New Models
Some car image databases only contain images of new models. However, if your dealership sells used vehicles as well as new vehicles, it’s important to find a stock photo library that gives you access to images of both.
Why? Showing images of used vehicles for sale at your dealership is just as important as showing images of new models. If you aren’t using high quality images of used vehicles, you could be missing out on an opportunity to win over countless customers.
If an image database claims to contain images of used models, make sure you know what model years are included. In other words, does this mean the database contains images of vehicles that are only a year old or 10 years old? Get the answer to this question before deciding which database is right for your dealership.
New Releases
Automotive manufacturers release new models every year. Sometimes, the newest model doesn’t look much different from the previous year’s model. But every few years, the manufacturer may decide to completely redesign the vehicle, which means the newest model won’t look anything like the previous year’s design. This is why it is so important to find a car image database with images of new releases.
Look for a stock photo library that will give you access to images of new vehicles shortly after they are announced or released. The sooner you can get these images, the sooner you can start promoting these vehicles to your target audience. It’s not easy to get your hands on high quality photos of newly released vehicles, so this can also give you a competitive advantage over other dealerships in your community.
Consistency
You don’t need to look through every image within the database before choosing a stock photo provider. However, you should look at a sample of images to check for consistency.
Most automotive consumers compare photos of a few different vehicles when deciding which one to purchase. To make this process easier for your customers, show photos with consistent lighting, angles, and views.
For example, say the customer is comparing two vehicles by looking at photos with inconsistent lighting. If the lighting isn’t consistent, this makes it hard for the customer to truly compare the pros and cons of each vehicle.
Using consistent photos can also make your dealership look more professional. If some photos are high quality and others are poor quality, this can give your target audience the wrong impression.
High Quality
Perhaps the most important factor to consider when choosing a car image database is the quality of the photos. The images should be taken by professional photographers who know what features to highlight, what lighting to use, and what angles to take photos from.
You should never choose a car image database that contains grainy, low resolution photos. Images of this quality will not help you appeal to your target audience, generate sales, or grow your dealership. In fact, they could damage your dealership by making you appear unprofessional.
The higher the quality and resolution of your images, the better your dealership will look to your target audience. Keep this in mind when deciding which car image database is right for your business.
Accurate Representations of Vehicles
It’s important to analyze the stock photos within a database to see if the way the vehicles look in the photos is an accurate representation of how they look in real life. Do the interior and exterior colors look true to life? Does the car look smaller or larger than it does in person? Are the photos deceiving?
If the images are not accurate representations of the vehicles, look for another car image database. Why? Using these images to promote your dealership could mislead or confuse customers. A customer may fall in love with an image of a vehicle they see on your website only to find out that it doesn’t look the same once they see it in person.
This can harm your relationships with your customers and your reputation in the community. To avoid this problem, find a database with photos that accurately represent the vehicles.
Variety of Digital Assets
The images you choose to promote your dealership can make or break your business. However, images aren’t the only digital assets you should use to grow your business. The most successful auto dealerships rely on a wide variety of digital assets, which is why you should look for a stock photo library that contains more than just images.
Find a car image database that also includes videos. Exterior spin, fly-around, and showroom videos are incredibly useful. These eye-catching videos can help you drive more traffic to your website, grow your followers on social media, and generate more sales.
Look for a database that offers extended reality automotive digital assets, too. Extended reality includes virtual reality and augmented reality technologies. Having access to virtual reality and augmented reality assets can impress your target audience and set you apart from your competitors.
If you’re looking for the best car stock photos, look no further than EVOX Images. EVOX’s car image database is the gold standard for automotive imagery. In fact, it is the most comprehensive image database of consumer production vehicles in the U.S. Connect with us today to learn more.
DRIVING INNOVATION IN AUTOMOTIVE IMAGERY
The EVOX Images database features the most innovative packages of interior and exterior stills, 360º vehicle imagery, and VR experiences. At more than a million images strong, our team consistently raises the bar on industry standards, and offers an unmatched delivery schedule.
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