SEO Eblog by SEO Advantage, Inc.

Tips, tricks & musings from inside the SEO trenches

Categories

Home / Online Marketing / Eye-Tracking Studies Reveal Impact of Images on Web Pages

Eye-Tracking Studies Reveal Impact of Images on Web Pages

November 2, 2010 By Stone Reuning Leave a Comment

Last updated on November 30th, 2010

It’s been a long held view that images on web pages help with customer retention and conversions. But new eye-tracking studies from usability expert Jakob Nielsen shows dramatic differences in the impact different types of images have.

In short, users pay attention to photos and images containing relevant information while they tend to ignore images designed to “jazz up” a web page.

Even with high-speed Internet connections and ultra fast downloads, Nielsen’s research shows how users continue to be annoyed with flashy images containing no real information.

E-commerce sites for instance benefit tremendously from product photos as shown by the image below on the left.

Another popular photo option – enlarged product photos when requested by the user. Five years ago, Nielsen said not including a large enough photo so customers could see a product in more detail was one of the biggest mistakes webmasters made. While users dislike big photos that get in their way, they do seem to like looking at them per their requests when evaluating a product.

One more takeaway from Nielsen’s eye-tracking study regarding e-commerce sites – copying what the big guys do isn’t always the best idea as shown by the image from Amazon.com above. Since Amazon offers such a wide-range of products, they have a standardized layout for their pages. What works for some products doesn’t work so well for others for them.

On the other hand, the Pottery Barn (whose image is above), has a generally narrow range of products. They can tailor images to specific products much easier and as a result, these images get more attention.

Assuring customers they’re dealing with real people by including a head shot or portrait of important company personnel is another way images are very beneficial

In fact, it’s also been a long held view that including portraits of company employees was crucial to effectively presenting a company’s image online. This helps users put a name with a face and assures them they’re not dealing with some “faceless” corporation that’s far removed from them.

Look at the following example – according to this eye-tracking study, users spent 10% more time looking at the portraits than the rest of the site’s content, which accounted for 316% more content than the portraits themselves.

However, if it’s obvious the pictures are stock photos and don’t represent actual people at a company, users tend to ignore them.

In the end, pictures can contribute a lot of value to your website if they’re done right. Simply copying and pasting generic images to your page will largely be ignored according to these studies.

Filed Under: Online Marketing, SEO Tips, Site Architecture, Usability Tagged With: B2B marketing, B2C marketing, ecommerce, graphic design, Site Architecture, Usability

About Stone Reuning

Stone Reuning is president and founder of SEO Advantage, Inc., an online marketing firm and website optimization company that helps businesses turn their websites into powerful lead and revenue generation tools. An entrepreneur at heart, Stone founded several startup ventures including Tampa Bay Associates (TBA) and the Germ Factory online business incubation prior to SEO Advantage®. He designed and developed advanced decision support and executive information systems for some of the most prestigious medical institutions in the U.S., collaborating with organizations such as Ernst & Young. Connect with Stone on LinkedIn.

Get our blog by email

Contact us

CALL 800-366-1639

SEO Advantage, Inc.
3690 W Gandy Boulevard, Ste 444
Tampa, Florida 33611
United States
Site summary
SEO News

SEO Topics
Connect with us

About us

  • Search Engine Optimization Firm
  • About SEO Advantage®
  • Meet Your SEO Specialists
  • Company Press Releases
  • Search Engine Marketing Services
  • Guaranteed SEO Services
  • Contact SEO Advantage®
  • Internet Optimization and Marketing Company

SEO Programs

  • Basic SEO Programs
  • Monthly SEO Program
  • Total Advantage Program
  • Basic Advantage Program
  • Shopping Cart SEO
  • PPC Management Services
  • Search Engine Ranking & Reporting Service
  • SEO Trend Advantage

SEO Copywriting

  • SEO Copywriting Solutions
  • Specialized Search Engine Copywriters
  • Fresh Content Creation Service
  • e-Commerce Search Engine Copywriting
  • B2B Search Engine Copywriting

Search Friendly Web Design

  • Web Design Solutions
  • SEO Web Design & Development
  • Design Advantage Program
  • SEO Content Management System
  • Logos and Corporate Identity Solutions
  • Design Portfolio

Media Marketing

  • Buzz Marketing
  • Press Release Optimization
  • Social Media Marketing
  • Optimized Blog Copywriting
  • Directory Submission Service
  • Online Reputation Management

Resources

  • Helpful SEO Resources
  • Client Case Studies
  • SEO Knowledge Center
  • SEO Newsletter
  • SEO-E

Industry Specific Marketing

  • Cosmetic Surgery Web Site Marketing
  • Attorney Internet Marketing

Copyright © 2023 SEO Advantage® Privacy Policy