Warning: Don’t Do This In A Blog Post

Warning: Don’t Do This In A Blog Post or you just may be setting yourself up for a major lawsuit.

Humans are very visual creatures, 9 times out of 10 we will only stop and read a blog post or article in its entirety if it contains a picture, image, meme or video.  However, we are not all creative or great photographers, so what can we do?  

Only use images from free sites, because you can’t simply grab an image or picture all willy nilly from Google or another website and think it’s fine because you can be slapped with a lawsuit.  

Recently, I received an email from a company that wanted to use this picture, one that I had taken in Atlantic City at a blogging event and   had been posted on my blog many years ago.  

They asked for permission to use it in a marketing campaign and stated that they would give me credit, of course, I said, “yes”.  But had they used it without my permission I could have asked them to remove it or pay me for using it.  

Even “Giving credit” is not enough to save you from a lawsuit.   You can give all the credit you want to someone, but if you did not have their permission to use the photo, you expose yourself to liability for copyright infringement.  Which is why they had to ask permission to use it.

Using images will definitely increase traffic to your blog, they keep the attention of your readers longer and if they are pretty pictures, most likely they will be shared across other Social Media platforms especially on Pinterest boards.  These shared images can also link viewers back to your blog so they can read and see more.

If you are not a great photographer or don’t have fancy camera skills, here are a few great sites that I have personally used to get beautiful, free and legal photos to use on your blog.  

UnSplash

Pixabay – option of photo sizes

Life of Pix – download then share on Social Media

PicJumbo – sign up to get new photos emailed directly to your inbox

 

PixWizard is the new kid on the block in 2020 but they have some amazing free stock photos – check them out.

 

 

If you prefer graphics try these sites which can be customized to suit any marketing materials or images that you may need for free.

Crello

Pablo Buffer

Smartmockups

I love all of these sites because of their great pictures and ease of downloading.  I know there are many others out there, so if you know of others, please share!

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