Company photographs: what to shoot and how to fill in the listing
Photographs in a listing are the first thing a person sees after the name and rating. They decide whether you get tapped or scrolled past, and they cost almost nothing: half of what you need can be shot on a phone in an hour.
The minimum for a listing is eight to twelve photographs: the entrance from outside, the interior, staff, work in progress and the result. Put the entrance first — that is how people recognise the place when they arrive. Stock images and pictures taken from the internet do more harm than having no photos at all: people spot them instantly and lose trust.
In this article7 sections
Why this affects requests
A listing with photographs gets noticeably more visits and calls than one without. The reason is simple: the person is choosing between several similar options and goes on what they can see.
The second effect is that photographs remove anxiety. Someone who has seen the entrance and the interior arrives confident they are in the right place. This matters especially for offices inside business centres and residential buildings.
The essential set
- The entrance from outsideThe most important shot. Take it in daylight so the sign and part of the street are visible as a landmark. Put this photo first.
- The route from street to doorFor offices deep inside a building: the entrance, the floor, the door. It removes half the «how do we find you» calls.
- The interiorReception, waiting area, workspace. A wide shot, not fragments.
- People at workStaff in the middle of the job, not a posed row against a wall. Always with their consent.
- The result of the workWhat people come to you for: the finished renovation, the completed item, before and after.
- Equipment or rangeIf that is an argument in your niche.
Eight to twelve good photographs work better than forty random ones. A listing stuffed with near-identical shots looks careless.
How to shoot on a phone and not ruin it
- Light. Shoot in daylight with the lights on. Dark shots are the main reason photos look cheap.
- Horizon. Hold the camera level and turn on the grid in settings. Tilted lines give away haste immediately.
- Order in frame. Remove boxes, cables and personal items. That is worth more than any editing.
- Wide shot. Shoot from a distance and show the whole space.
- No filters. Instagram-style colour grading undermines trust: people expect it to look different in person.
- Format. Horizontal shots for interiors, vertical for details and people.
What does harm
- Stock photographs. People recognise them, and trust drops below having none.
- Images taken from the internet, including other people's work. That is also a legal risk.
- Collages with text and prices: platforms downrank or hide them.
- A logo instead of real photographs — the listing looks lifeless.
- Photos from five years ago, if everything has changed since.
- Shots with customers in them without their consent.
The rest of the listing
Photographs work together with completeness. Empty fields lower a listing's position no less than missing images.
| Field | What to write | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Name | As on the sign | Adding keywords |
| Category | Your main activity | Too general a category |
| Services | As a list, with prices | Leaving it empty |
| Description | What you do and who for | Vague words about quality |
| Hours | Real ones, with breaks | Not updating for holidays |
| Entrance | Floor, entrance, landmark | Skipping this field |
Adding keywords to the name breaks platform rules. The listing can be downranked or rejected, and restoring it takes weeks.
Order and updates
Platforms show some of the photographs in the preview, so the order matters. Put the entrance first and the interior or the result of the work second.
- Refresh the set quarterly: add recent work, remove what is outdated.
- After a renovation or a move, change the photographs the same day.
- Watch photos left by visitors: they appear alongside yours.
- Seasonal shots are worth rotating — summer photos look odd in winter.
What it costs
Shooting on a phone is an hour of your time and no money, and for most niches that is enough. A photographer for half a day usually costs about as much as a few days of advertising and pays off when appearance is part of the service: a salon, a clinic, a restaurant, a studio.
The middle option is to shoot it yourself from the list above and send it for editing. That is cheaper than a shoot and noticeably better than unedited frames.
Frequent questions
How many photographs are needed?
Eight to twelve that differ in meaning. More only makes sense for different services or different jobs, not ten angles of one room.
Can we shoot on a phone?
Yes, a modern phone in daylight gives sufficient quality. What decides it is light, tidiness in frame and a level horizon, not the camera.
Do we need photos of staff?
Preferably, especially in services where personal contact matters: medicine, beauty, consulting. Always with their consent and without personal details.
What about bad photos left by visitors?
You cannot delete other people's shots, but you can add your own — they push weaker ones out of the preview. Only report clear violations.
Do photographs affect the listing's position?
Indirectly but noticeably: completeness counts, and photos increase the number of visits, which also affects ranking.
Should we add video?
Useful if there is something to show in motion: the work process, a walk through the premises. A short 15–30 second clip works better than a long film.
The materials answer general questions. We will look at your specific case — free and without obligation.