What is stock footage
Stock footage is images and videos anyone can buy and use for personal or business use. Usually they sit in a big stock website that uses a fast and easy pay-and-download for a single file, bundles or subscriptions.
What is original footage
Original footage is any type of photos of videos created by you or specifically for you. The main difference is that you are the sole owner of that footage.
What most starting business owners prefer
Most starting business owners prefer stock footage or a combination of the two.
What is the price range
Stock footage usually costs 9-20 for a single photo.
Original footage can cost 50-150 for 20 photos, and 500-5,000 for an original video.
What is the difference in ownership of the footage
You can pay for the use of stock footage, but you will never be the owner of the files. The owners of the Stock footage can claim ownership and demand you’ll take them off your website.
Original footage will be yours forever. You will need to have the photographer’s signature on a release form, but this footage is yours to use, sell and get paid for monetization.
What engages people
Let’s face it, people can tell when you’re using stock images. It’s true that people buy with their eyes first, and that appearance matters, but the quality is not always in your favour if it looks too good to be true.
What looks more professional
Original videos (when made properly) generally leave a better impression on your website visitors. Stock footage sometimes seems “cheap” to some people.
What it easier to get
Stock footage is very easy to find. Some search engines will let you find stock footage based on keywords and even color palettes.
Original footage takes longer to produce. It takes planning and some crue work around the production and arrangements, and if you don’t have enough content to film, you won’t be able to use this option.
What is better in SEO term
Stock footage gets a lower SEO ranking than original photos.
What is better for your strategy
What engages more people to click/convert/buy
Our tests were conclusive – ads with original videos had x2 engagement and conversions than stock videos.
What is better for your fight against your competitors
Original photos create a good first impression and help you create a clear distinction between you and your competitors. In this case, stock footage can make an impression that there’s nothing no
Conclusion:
Pros and cons of stock
Pros and cons of original
