When you use free stock photos for advertising, it's easy to use too many or ones that aren't right for your product, or ones that are too busy and overpowering. You may also wonder how to place them on your materials so that they enhance the message without crowding it, and so that they simply catch the customer's eye.

One reason it's easy to use too many free stock photos is that they are free; once you start to find them and collect them, it can be difficult to know which ones to purge and which ones to keep. It's also very tempting to try to put those images on every square inch of your advertising materials, thinking that white space is a bad thing. While it's good to ensure that your free stock photos are eye-catching and enhancing your message you also don't want your materials to look busy and cluttered.

To use free stock photos effectively, it's good to think about which type of photo you use and what it conveys. Be sure you choose one that is appropriate for your message or product. For instance, if you run a pizza restaurant, of course you want pictures of pizza and Italian food. If you run a travel agency, photos of beautiful landscapes and other attractions are appropriate. You always want to choose free stock photos that convey the right message and that help your clients and customers to imagine your product or service in a good way.

The other thing to consider is how much of your materials should be covered with free stock photos once you find them. In some cases, it's good to have one photo that you stretch to cover the entire page and then you put your wording on top of this. This type of method works good if the photo itself is not too busy; a nice sunset or beach scene can work this way. However, this wouldn't typically work well if you have free stock photos of food or other items that have a lot of details.
One reason for this is that these types of free stock photos can be too busy and can detract from the information and wording you want to put over them. In those cases, it's better to have them put in one corner or to cover half the page, and your wording can go in the remaining area of your materials. Remember that just because you don't pay for those free stock photos, this doesn't mean you should overuse them. Too much information for the eyes can mean something that is too distracting.

One of the best things you can do to decide how to use free stock photos properly is to check materials from companies like yours. Which ones look professionally done and really catch your eyes? Don't copy them exactly but try to use what they show in a way that is similar for your own materials.