It is essential to know your clients if you want to offer them what they are looking for. By spending a little time on market research you will increase your revenues. In this article we give you some tips that can help you to get to know your customers better than ever – and retain them.

As in a brick and mortar shop, you should know who is purchasing your products. It’s the same in your online shop: If you want success you should be aware of the different customer groups and the profiles of different clients.

1.       The customer’s profile

A study conducted by market research company Lab42 reveals that typical customers of an online shop are very demanding: They are shopping online for better sales and promotions, a broader selection and better prices than in a brick and mortar shop.

This nice info graphic by Lab42 shows many of the reasons why people are attracted to an online shop. You will learn, for example, that positive customer reviews are very important to win customer confidence and loyalty.

http://blog.lab42.com/shopping-and-shipping-a-look-at-how-people-shop-online

2.       How can you select your customers?

One of the best tools to get to know your clients is Google Analytics. Remember that you can activate it in the back office of your ePages online shop if you go to Marketing >> Google Analytics.

 The pros of Google Analytics are:

·         It gives you the geographic location and the source of the online customer traffic.

·         The conversion rate: How many of your visitors bought something?

·         You can see the key words that brought you potential customers.

·         Online shop’s usability: Which pages and product detail pages were the most visited?

·         Shopping cart abandonment: Which pages were the most abandoned?

 Alexa is also a very useful tool that allows you to determine the demographic profile of your clients. For instance, it will show you the average age,gender and level of education of the visitors to your website. Simply enter your shop’s URL and click “Audience”.

Social networks can also help you. For example, on Twitter you can find groups or conversations with hash tags related to your business activity. Go through the comments to help you better understand the interests and behaviour of your potential clients. We provide more information in a blog post about the use of social media.  

3.       It is your turn: strike back

 As soon as you know your potential customers and their behaviour a littlebetter, much will have already been achieved. Now you should use this information for your own shop strategy. For instance, we recommend that you create a table, such as the one below, to  analyse your customer andimplement your strategy.

4.       Get customer satisfaction and loyalty

 Do you already know how to obtain the loyalty of your customers? Here we will give you some tips that make it much easier to turn  visitors to your online shop into loyal customers:

·         Adapt your campaigns to the different kinds of client you may have and to their real needs. With an ePages online shop you can create groups of clients and send different newsletters to each one.

·         Make your contact details stand out: give a phone number and an email address. It is important to provide this information because even if the clients don’t call you, it will give them a sense of security when purchasing your products.

·         Give special offers to your best clients: in your back office you can define your customer groups according to whether they are regular or new clients.

·         You must provide terms and conditions, information regarding payment and delivery methods and a return policy. It is essential to show your customers that your shop is serious and professional.

·         Offer coupons instead of discounts on prices; this way the clients have to come back to your shop. Go to Marketing >> Coupons to create them.  

Important: don’t forget to include this information:

·         Address of your physical store (if you have one).

·         Practical tips.

·         Shopping tips.

·         Product instructions for use.

·         Special articles in your blog.

 5.       Service for your international customers

If you are selling abroad or plan to sell cross-border, please remember that there are cultural differences. In this case you should change your strategy to win and retain customers.  

If you want to learn more about the internationalisation of your online business we recommend a blog post by our guest author Martin Werdler. In his article he underlines that expanding to other European countries requires more than patience and proper language translations.

Finally, something to smile about but with an essenceof truth. HSBC has made a hilarious campaign about cultural differences:

English vs. Chinese: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6_WAmt3cMdk

Other videos:

• Germans vs. French: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1vvLQd53Ps
• English vs. Italians: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jrbu0lCWjk
• Americans vs. Japanese: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHuO6qmiSgg

You have probably come across similar situations: Sometimes you change settings and a couple of months later you have a problem with an order or a client. But you don’t remember exactly what you have changed. Don’t worry, this happens even to the most experienced online merchants! Please go through all of the following points and check that everything is okay.

1. Country settings

For a correct tax calculation you need to indicate where your shop is located. To do so, go to Settings >> General Settings >> Address and make sure that your country is selected. You normally verify this setting when going through the setup assistant.

2. Tax Matrix

Go to Settings >> Tax calculation >> Tax matrix and ensure that the various tax details are correct. Usually our software automatically completes this step. Under certain circumstances, however, you will have to change the matrix and adjust the tax classes and tax areas. This is the case, for example, when you have an Austrian online shop with a German provider.

Please also keep in mind that food and beverage have a lower rate of taxation than other products in many countries.

3. Country allocation

In Settings >> Tax calculation >> Tax areas >> Assignment of countries you will see a list of all the countries where you are selling products. Each of them stands for different tax rules. You can adjust the areas by changing the tax matrix. Also shown are all the regions and cities with exceptions from the normal tax rules. For instance, in the United Kingdom taxes are lower in Jersey or Guernsey. By selecting the respective post codes of these islands you can define exceptions.

4. Tax model

The setting “net prices” is only correct if directed at business customers. In all other cases, please select “gross prices”.

5. Languages, currencies and countries

Go to Settings >> Country Settings and make sure that the countries, languages and currencies you want to offer to the customers of your shop are visible in your storefront. Adjust the list in order to avoid fake or unwanted orders from, for example, Korea.

6. Regions

Under Settings >> Country Settings >> Countries you can also check if a country has been assigned to the correct tax area. Check all areas (this option is not available in all ePages online shops) and make sure that every country is assigned to no more than one area (e.g. your country, EU or non-EU).

7. Delivery Methods

Have you activated every delivery method you want to offer to your customers in a certain region? Is it restricted to a certain group of customers? To which group does the respective customer belong? If he is a non-registered customer, his group will be “Default for ordering without registration” (see Customers >> Customer groups). If he is registered, he will be put into the default group (if you haven’t put him into another one yet).

Settings: Is the tax class of your products correct? If you usually enter gross prices, your ePages online shop software automatically calculates the net price and saves it in the database.

8. Payment Methods

Have you activated every payment method you want to offer to your customers in a certain region? Is it available only for certain regions (see 6)? Do you want to offer this payment method only to a specific customer group? Are there any restrictions in terms of the minimum and maximum order value for this payment method (in all currencies)?

9. Dependencies

Go to Settings >> Shipping >> Dependencies and choose all possible combinations you want to allow for your shipping and payment methods. Orders may not be completed if there are empty rows and/or columns in the matrix and a customer selectsone of these exact combinations.

10. Customer

You can set different tax models for different registered customers. Go to Customers >> Customers >> [Customer] >> Customer account. For every client you can set a VAT number. Verify it to avoid errors in the system. You should also decide if he has to pay gross or net prices, if he is from the EU or not, etc…

Don’t forget that for Italian clients you need to fill in the Tax Number box.

11. User

Your ePages online shop makes a distinction between customers and users. A user is the person who registers with an email address and a password. To order, a user needs to have completed the full registration (Go to Customers >> Customers >> [Customer] >> User data >> Sign in).

If you encounter the problem where a non-registered user cannot order in your online shop, just check Settings >> Basket settings: If Basket only for registered customers is activated, please deactivate it and allow non-registered users to buy from your shop.

Finishing the registration process does not automatically mean that your customers can immediately order. You must check your Basket settings for this. If you have marked the option “No” in “Allow order immediately after registration”, remove it thus allowing the customers to start ordering. Go to Customers >> Customers >> [Customer]>> General >> Customer Account and then select “Yes” in Allow orders. On this page you can also see if the customers belong to a specific customer group. This is potentially important for the use of price lists, see 12.

In some cases it can help to check the customer data by clicking on Customers >> Customers >> [Customer] >> User data >> Sign in and verify if the correct language and the currency are set for this user. You should also take a look at the delivery address and billing address and ensure that the appropriate country is typed in.

12. Price lists

In Products >> Price lists you can check the validity period (from / to) of the price lists. An icon in front of the identifier will help you: If it is highlighted in green the price list is valid. Also check if the currency of the respective list is correct.

Within the price list you have the option to share the list with specific customer groups or even single users. For this you will need the correct data to be entered.

Look at the tab Shopping basket discount to see if the values are correctly set.

If you go to Products >> Price Lists >> Advanced Settings you can choose how you want to display the respective prices in the online shop. The use of “List prices” is pre-set, but this setting can of course be changed.

Please check specific products (go to the “Prices” tab) and take a look at whether or not the discount is applied correctly.

13. Basket settings

Have you set a minimum order value (per currency)? What does it refer to? If some of your customers cannot order a product, this might be the solution: Go to Settings >> Basket settings and then select “No” beside the option “Enable selection of the tax area in the basket”. If yes was selected your clients could potentially select the wrong tax area. But the ePages software automatically recognizes the correct tax area.

This checklist is quite long. But don’t worry. Most of the mistakes can be found within a few minutes and long before going through all the points in this list. Good luck and happy selling!

Twice a year we release a new version of our online shop software, which offers a lot of upgrades and improvements. Version 6.15 includes a number of innovations that will help make your online shop more beautiful and enhance its usability. Please ask your provider when the update to 6.15 will be rolled out.

Customers can find products more quickly using search filters

We already improved the search function of your online shop in version 6.14. The new search filter is based on this and allows your customers to find their desired products even quicker than before.

This is how it works: After a customer types in a search term, search filters appear on the left-hand side of your shop – these allow you to narrow down your search to certain manufacturers for example, a particular price range or customer ratings. Using these filters limits the number of search results.

New online shop design on mobile devices

Mobile internet is becoming more and more important. This is true for e-commerce as well: a lot of people use their mobile devices to buy in online shops. With ePages 6.15 we revamped the mobile version of your online shop and, in particular, enhanced the usability of the mobile version. 

Now there is a product slider on the home page and we’ve renewed the product detail page. We also simplified the sharing of products via Facebook, Twitter and email.

A content slider for your shop

With ePages 6.15 you can add a content slider to your website. It will help you to highlight products, news or promotions. With only a few clicks you can add pictures or adjust its settings.

Create your own forms

Now you can easily create your own forms, for instance for contests and contact. Simply add new form fields by dragging and dropping them onto the page.

Customisable buttons

Customise the buttons in your shop! With version 6.15, you can edit the colour, font size, width and length of the buttons. The shopping cart button can now be changed individually. For instance, you can make it more eye-catching in order to increase your conversion rate.

Faster processing of emails

Your online shop sends out default emails. For example, after buying a product the user receives the purchase confirmation via email. Now, with our new update, you can edit these emails much more easily than before. You can also send out test emails to yourself directly via the back office.

You will soon find a series of blog articles here which describe the features of 6.15 in more detail.

If you are already active as an online merchant, then you are probably very familiar with the products you offer. Take advantage of this and present yourself as an expert. Give your customers good advice and increase loyalty.

Many consumers have only a vague idea of what they really want. They could most likely be in need of your friendly advice to help them find the right product. As the shop owner you are the product expert, so ensure to make great use of this opportunity and consult their needs. You want to persuade the customers in choosing your shop – and no one else’s. So what exactly should you do?

Make yourself visible

Just take a look yourself at how impersonal many online shops are. While many owners of brick & mortar shops maintain personal client relationships, some online retailers are a phantom to their customers. Common mistakes range from the lack of personal information about the merchant, to deeply hidden contact details often imbedded well within the imprint.

The customer wants to know to whom he is giving his money to. This is why so many customers search online first but then proceed to purchase their goods in a local store afterwards. Convey to your customers and give them the feeling of trust by showing them your face. This is meant literally: Upload a picture of yourself and (if applicable) your team. A photo speaks a thousand words and this will give them a small but significant glimpse of behind the scenes and indicate that you personally stand answerable to your online shop.

Attach a map

If you have a brick & mortar shop in addition to your online shop, you should implement a map on your website to exactly show where you are located. To do so, simply navigate to your shop’s back office administration area, then to Content / Categories >> Preview. Click specifically in the area where you would like to insert the map and click on Gadget in the upper menu. Choose Maps, select a provider (such as Google Maps) then type-in your shops’ physical address location. Click Insert, then Save. The map will now appear in your online shop.

Answer frequently asked questions

You have an idea about the things you sell? Of course you do, so you should present yourself as an expert and answer your customers’ questions. Especially loved websites are those composed with pre-specified answers to those frequently asked questions (FAQ). There are certainly common questions raised about your products or services that you should openly showcase in your own FAQ page. Perhaps you sell records? Then mention how your customers can recognise what the differences are, various types – maybe a suggestion where to buy one. Or you specialise in fine shoes? Then give your customers tips on how to treat and keep the leather in tip top condition. Using your FAQ in this manner, regardless of your shop type and products, you demonstrate to your clients that you are technically familiar with the subject.

Be accessible

Show your customers that they can always contact you. Don’t restrict your consulting opportunities to e-mail only, instead give them the chance to call you directly. Answer their questions quickly in person and help them to find the right product in your online shop. In terms of choosing what the best method of contact is, it is clear e-mail is good, but being reachable by telephone is even better –and a mixture of both is most optimal. Also remember to clearly display the opening hours and do not forget to use an answering machine for out of office times or if your line is engaged. Key here, is to not lose a potential sale.

Online and offline commerce go hand in hand nowadays. Many online merchants with an ePages online shop are also accessible offline, be it with a traditional brick & mortar shop or just a sales area in their warehouse. Here you can read about the advantages and opportunities.

Having a local point of contact creates trust among customers. It also allows customers to save on shipping costs and quickly obtain the desired product without delay in waiting. For successful merchants, it is vital to be present in both worlds – on and offline.

Highlight your physical store on the web

Offer informative details about your brick & mortar shop on your website to make it obvious that you are also an offline retailer. Present high-quality photos; even if you only sell out of your warehouse directly, this is not something to hide. A good photographer will be able to put you and your stock in the lime light.

Allow customers to profit from collecting their purchase themselves

In addition to the normal shipping methods offered via your online shop, also allow your customers to “Pick-up” their goods directly from your store. Motivate your customers by offering a discount should they wish to collect their items in person .

You benefit twofold:

• You save the fees for the electronic payment processes.
• The customers are more likely to remember you as a person as well as your business due to the physical connection. The chance that they become repeat and loyal customers increases hugely.

Your advice on site is convincing

Use your expertise and offer free consultation at your brick & mortar store. Face to face conversations allow you to recommend your customers to purchase the right product – especially those more expensive ones. You also have the opportunity to evaluate situations and clients and make special offers in order to secure a happy customer.

Invite your customers to events

Find out which of your existing customers live in your area. To do so, simply click on Customer >> Customers within the back office of your online shop. Then click on the small arrow icon to the left of the search box at the top right-hand corner. Now you can filter out the customers living in the same place as you. With the use of newsletters, you can invite these customers to special events at your physical store – of course to only those customers that opted-in to receiving your mails.

In a previous blog post we explained how to improve the user experience during the purchasing process, which is one of the key aspects of the conversion rate. In this blog post, we will explain this further.

Analyse the visits to and purchases from your online shop

First of all, we recommend analysing the behaviour of all visitors to your online shop. You will find it interesting to see which pages are visited the most and how this compares to the orders you receive.

How is the buying process going? Do I have that many dropouts?

After analysing your site traffic you will notice that most of the visits to your site do not end in a purchase. This is normal, don’t worry!

The experts in user experience describe this process as a sales funnel, where a shop loses potential customers as they approach the purchasing stage. As shown in the graph below, there are several ways to prevent these customer’s loses and increase your conversion rate:

Source: Smashing Magazine

Design and presentation of the product

Perception has a huge influence on conversion rate so take extra care over your shop’s design and the presentation of your products. The speed at which your images load will also impact your conversion, with many customers waiting a maximum of 6 seconds. You can control this in your back office by creating larger or smaller images/ galleries.

Shop navigation and ease of finding products

There are two types of purchases that will affect the navigation in your shop: the rational purchases and the emotional purchases. An impulsive customer will purchase products based on their appearance, price and descriptions. On the other hand, a rational buyer, who is completely the opposite, will seek out the best deals. A rational customer will think:  ”winter is coming and I need a jacket. It has to be something that I like and that is not too expensive (and I will search until I find my ideal jacket)”.

Based on the rational buyer, the design of the main page and subcategories in your online shop needs to be logical and easy to navigate. Therefore we must think about the name and the descriptions of categories, so customers can easily get to the product they are looking for, and ensure that the search box is clear and in a visible place. We also highly recommend you use the cross-selling feature (“Users who bought this, also bought this other article …”), as this will help customers make a decision between different products, accessories, and/or related items. The cross selling option can be activated in the detail page of your products.

Shop trust

After browsing, searching and comparing, a customer will decide which products they are going to purchase. But when it comes to payment, there are still nevertheless some doubts: how can I pay? When will it be delivered? If the size doesn’t fit me or I don’t like it, will it be possible to return the product? Is this a trusted site?

To push conversions at this stage we recommend:

• Make  the shipping, payment, return policies etc. clear- don’t be afraid to highlight these, as they will be useful to customers that are not familiar with your shop.
• If you have a customer service operation, make the contact information and the schedules easy to find.  In any case, you should always strive to offer a contact phone number, as this will increase trust in your online shop.
• Optimise brand endorsements: logos of recognisable payment providers (PayPal, Skrill) and, of course, confidence labels such as Trusted Shops or SafeBuy (you can activate them in the Marketing page of your back office) will instantly increase the trustworthiness of your online business.

Simple payment process

This is the critical moment when determining if the customer will complete the purchase or not. As we mentioned in the beginning, this article will help you improve the experience of the purchasing process. The basic rule is: offer a simple and fast process, with easy ways to pay and plenty of shipping options.

But I am still losing purchases…

Why, after improving my purchasing process, am I still losing customers?

There could be many answers to this question.  The e-commerce industry is highly competitive so consider this and what perhaps could distinguish you from others in your sector. Try to also obtain feedback from dissatisfied customers (but don’t harass them!). Evaluate any sudden reduction in visitor numbers, continuously analyse which sections of your online shop you could improve, offer promotions and optimise your shop to improve the customer experience and level of satisfaction. As they say, the customer should always come first.

Note: Customisable products are available with ePages version 6.14 and above (to find out which version your online shop is running, click here).  Please also check with your provider if this option is available in your e-commerce pack.

One of the key features of ePages 6.14 is that you can now offer your customers the option to customise their products with text and images. This new function is very easy to setup and manage as you can limit the area of the product that may be personalised (eg. the label of a gift) and decide if the buyer can include their own text and/ or images.

First, select Yes for activate customisation of this product and then fill out the instructions for the customer.

Configure the customisation

In the image preview, you can define the size of the area that the customer is able to customise. If you want to add several fields for text and images, we recommend adding a box by field, as shown in the example below:

You can then define each  section that the customer will be able to customise: i.e. text field or image selection.

In the text field you can set:

• The character limit of the text, and if it can be on one or several lines.
• The font types that a customer can choose (you can even upload other fonts), minimum size and colours. Click on Define fonts to set these options.

In the image selection field, you can determine:

• Minimum image size to be uploaded.
• File Formats (by clicking the link Define file formats).

Further, you can also change the text of the Customisation button, as shown in the image above.

Customers view in the online shop

Once you have saved the product, it will appear in your shop with a customise button and your customers will be able to insert their text or image in the pre-defined boxes. Once the text and/or image are included, they will be able to modify the size, colour, font, etc. When finished, they will be able to add it to their basket and proceed with the order as with any other product.

Manage the order

When you receive the order confirmation in your back office, you will find all of the information you need to customise the product: font and size of the text and any images that have been uploaded by the customer.

Remember that with this feature you cannot only customise labels (as in the example), but also other products with personal designs, such as t-shirts, mugs, calendars, etc.

Let us know your most interesting product customisations in the comments below.

Do you want to put your products in the spotlight? Then avoid common mistakes. Remove The Background gives you five tips that will help you to create high quality photos. It’s worth it: Great pictures convince the customers of your online shop.

1. Shooting against a complex backdrop

Product images more often than not require a white background. This is especially true when selling on marketplaces like Amazon. It’s a lot easier to separate the background in an editing program if you shoot your product images on a plain background which contrasts with your products. Neutral grey is used by most professional product photographers.

2. Not making the most of camera’s settings

Paying attention to a few important settings on your camera will dramatically improve your images – so get your camera’s user manual out and start experimenting.

Aperture value (AV):

If you have a DSLR camera or a good compact camera, you should be able to set the aperture value. Remember that a small value gives a more shallow depth of field and a higher value gives a deeper depth of field – the higher the number, the more focus there is. Often when shooting products you want a high depth of field. You’ll need to play around with this yourself. It’s impossible to make generalizations, but I normally have my Av setting around 10 – try that to start with.

Image output

Most professional photographers save photos in their uncompressed form (RAW images). They will then import these images into special software to be tweaked and tuned at a professional level before converting them to JPG as the final step. If you’re not operating at this level, it’s best to let your camera do the processing itself. Just go for the best possible JPG output on your camera.

White balance

Setting the white balance on your camera allows you to correct the colour distortions created by the lighting type you’re using. Images with accurate and consistent colours increase customer trust and reduce returns so it’s an area worth paying attention to. You can use your camera’s WB presets (typically indoor or outdoor) or use a custom setting. With the custom setting, you typically point the camera at a piece of white card and take a reading.

Exposure Value

Sometimes cameras will darken (under-expose) the image, especially when shooting against a light background. This can be avoided by using the exposure compensation feature available on most digital cameras (labeled as ‘EV’ for Exposure Value). If you don’t have this feature, you’ll have to lighten the image in your editing.

3. Not using zoom

Another common mistake is not using the camera’s zoom. Most zoom cameras have a very good wide angle (when zoomed out), however this is designed for landscape images where you want to capture as much as possible. Using this to shoot a smaller object will result in a distorted image. To avoid this, it’s a good idea to use the zoom. If you have DSLR camera, go for 50+mm, and if you have a zoom lens, go even higher. I normally use a 70-80mm lens for product photography. Be aware that using zoom requires more space.

4. Not considering reflections

Reflections have a tendency to work against amateur photographers. When shooting objects with reflection such as jewellery, try to control what is being reflected in the objects. The easiest way is to use pieces of black and white cardboard. Position these pieces of cardboard right next to and around the object and use the viewer in your camera to see what happens. Keep moving them around until you get the effect you’re looking for. In some cases you can use a light tent, but this might result in a photo that looks less ‘alive’.

5. Not spending time on editing

The last and perhaps biggest mistake that amateurs make is not editing their images. Most professional photographers use just as much time on editing as they do on the photo shoot itself. Good image editing can elevate a product image which is merely OK, to something really fantastic. Editing can also save you a lot of time on your photo-shoot and give a more consistent result. For example, it can be easier to create pure white backgrounds and shadows in an editing program than in a studio. Likewise, for truly consistent product images, it’s best to crop, resize and straighten images in an editing program rather than spending time trying to get the perfect shot on a photo-shoot.

If you lack the skills or the time required to edit your images, it’s a great idea to outsource this step. At Remove The Background we specialize in editing product images for online retailers and can help you get a perfect result at a very low cost. Our WebSeller package for example, includes all the editing tasks you need to optimize your product images for web-use and starts at just £0.89 or 1.29 euros per image. Here’s the website of Remove The Background.

Also read Part 1 with five tips from Remove The Background.

About the author

Rune Ersgard, Managing Director Remove The Background Germany, Austria, Switzerland

Rune Ersgard was born in Denmark. He worked as a manager in different branches with main focus on sales, leadership and implementing best practices. In 2011, he married Natalia Ersgard. Together with his wife and CEO Thomas Kragelund he established Remove The Background in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in 2012. This expansion was a logical step as the company had already been present in Scandinavia and the USA and was looking for growth opportunities.

By tweaking just a few settings, you can get the best out of your ePages online shop software. For the quickest access to the back office of your online shop, we recommend reviewing whether or not  you are using the right browser, the correct operating system and the recommended screen resolution.

Recommended browsers for ePages software

If you are using a Windows PC, we recommend using Firefox or Google Chrome. If you use a Mac, the best option would be Safari.

If you use Internet Explorer you may have some difficulties, especially with older versions. If however, you still prefer to use this browser, you will need to download the Google Chrome Frame plugin, which is available for free, in order to access your online shop’s back office.

Here is a chart with the recommended browsers for using ePages software:

And the online shop?

ePages online shops can be viewed from any browser, although older versions of Internet Explorer (version 6 and below) may have some problems.

Here is a chart with the recommended browsers for viewing ePages online shops:

Operating Systems

Regarding operating systems, ePages software is optimised for Windows (XP, Vista and 7), Mac OS X (10.5 Leopard, 10.6 Snow Leopard and 10.7 Lion) and Linux (all distributions where the latest KDE or GNOME can be installed).

What screen resolution do I need?

Technically you don’t need a specific screen resolution because ePages software fits all screens. However, from our experience we recommend using these screen resolutions:

Low: 1280 x 1024

High: 1920 x 1080

* Source: Use of browsers (global data).

Only amateurs make bad pictures. You can do better – with these tips from Remove The Background. If you are doing the product photos for your online shop by yourself, you have the chance to get high-quality images. In this article, you will find the first five tips – five more will follow soon.

1. Having no end result in mind

One of the biggest mistakes made by amateurs is to start taking photos with absolutely no idea what end-result they’re going for. It always pays to spend some time on research. Chances are you’ll find some great inspiration for setup and lighting which will save you time and frustration later in the process. Find a website that has product images that you like, or use Amazon or Google Image Search to check out how others are presenting the products that you sell.

Now that you’ve found some nice looking images, try to analyse them. Think about the camera angle, the lighting and the different image types provided.

2. Mixing lighting types

Another very common mistake is the use of mixed lighting types. It’s good to have multiple lighting sources, but for accurate and consistent colours, make sure they’re all of the same type. This is important because different lighting types have different ‘colour-temperatures’ which produce different colour casts. For example, daylight on a sunny day creates a bluish cast, household lighting creates a yellowish cast. The human eye naturally corrects this so we don’t normally notice, but cameras need help. Most digital cameras correct the distortion by automatically detecting the type of light present or allowing you to manually set the white balance. However, your camera cannot do this if you mix different lighting types, so use one type of lighting only!

3. Using flash

Setting up proper lighting is difficult. The best tip is to avoid using flash. Instead we recommend using continuous lighting. Daylight is one of the best continuous lighting sources available and has the major advantage of being free. For best results, shoot your photos at noon, on a cloudy day. Relying on daylight can be very restrictive however, so buying yourself some lamps is a good solution.

4. Not using soft lighting

Product photography requires even light dispersion. Professional photographers always use soft lighting and you should do the same. If you haven’t got the cash to buy the equipment, you can put some semi-transparent fabric in front of your lighting lamps. Even better, is to use a softbox.

5. Not using a tripod

A tripod is a must-have piece of equipment for product photography. Almost all cameras have a standard mounting for tripods and you can get some really cheap ones that will serve you fine. As well as enabling you to take your photos from a consistent angle, using a tripod enables the use of a much longer exposure time. In product photography, it’s desirable to have as much of the product in focus as possible. This requires a large depth of field which if you’re not using flash, requires a longer exposure time. The problem with a long exposure time is that you can’t hold the camera still and the image will become blurry. So without getting too technical, just go and buy yourself a tripod! Now.

And if the pictures are finished: You can edit

Remove The Background specializes in editing product images for online merchants to help you achieve a perfect result for a very low price. The WebShop package includes for example all the necessary editing functions to optimize the images for online use and is available at a price of £0.89 or 1.29 euros per image. Here’s the website of Remove The Background.

About the author

Rune Ersgard, Managing Director Remove The Background Germany, Austria, Switzerland

Rune Ersgard was born in Denmark. He worked as a manager in different branches with main focus on sales, leadership and implementing best practices. In 2011, he married Natalia Ersgard. Together with his wife and CEO Thomas Kragelund he established Remove The Background in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in 2012. This expansion was a logical step as the company had already been present in Scandinavia and the USA and was looking for growth opportunities.