One of the best things about marketing a freight forwarding or supply chain solution is how great logistics can look. The best example might be how big, colorful ships with their containers make for amazing stock images. And they also look great on websites, sales collateral, social posts, and blogs.
But it’s about time we marketers start mixing things up more. Think about how many times you’ve seen an image similar to the one above on the left. This screenshot is from iStock.com, and this is what came up first with a search for ‘ocean container.’
This is the exact image we discussed and expected to see before the search was entered. This, and images just like it, are EVERYWHERE. Some research showed the collective portfolio of this genre (if you can call it that) of images is the work of many creators and not one artist. It’d be kind of cool if that were the case. At least we could credit one person for creating the look.
Is the reason this image is everywhere simply because marketers have gotten lazy? Did someone download it once and keep reusing it so they would not have to pay for a new image? Who knows. Generative AI (like we used to create the weak-at-best image in the header off this blog) might be a better option. Or, logistics companies may want to pony up for a stock photo subscription for a month to refresh their image catalog to get through the next year or two!
