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Right on Will, I agree.

Poor merchandising affects 100% of digital marketing budgets, currently at $26,000 per month, per rooftop according to NADA.

If you randomly audit online used inventory, you find opportunities for improvement. Framing, lighting, and most importantly image order.

Studies have shown that in a 24 photo carousel, the viewing curve peaks around photo #8-10. Seeing 12 exterior photos followed by 12 interior photos, is potentially a lazy photographer who doesn't want to get in and out of the car. Photographers or editors need to be very intentional with photo order.

My wife shops for cars for our kids, looking for safety options, swiping like Pinterest, never reads descriptions, but when she hits a photo of a rear camera, she digs in more.

High value, interior options need to be in the first 6 images, in order to hook the view. Rear camera, sun roof, heated seat buttons, nav, JBL sound system, etc.
 
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@George Nenni, you've defined a huge chunk of my Merchandising As A Service (MAAS)

You wrote:
  • Poor merchandising affects 100% of digital marketing budgets
  • If you randomly audit online used inventory, ..snip... and most importantly image order.
  • Studies have shown that in a 24 photo carousel, the viewing curve peaks around photo #8-10. Seeing 12 exterior photos followed by 12 interior photos.
  • My wife shops for cars for our kids, looking for safety options, swiping like Pinterest, never reads descriptions, but when she hits a photo of a rear camera, she digs in more.
  • High value, interior options need to be in the first 6 images, in order to hook the view. Rear camera, sun roof, heated seat buttons, nav, JBL sound system, etc.

I've done a study (below) that and found Safety tech (as a category) have higher demand than 'Dash Tech' (i.e. Bluetooth, CarPlay, GPS, etc)
1688209120595.png
Link to the study

FUN FACT:​

Dash tech and Safety tech are in very high demand, and, these features are mostly invisible to the camera.


link: DealerRefresh Podcast & forum thread
 
The topic of photo count, is the proverbial Ouija board. Every party has a hand in pushing and pulling the puck to a negotiated fixed number. The dealership wants as much exposure as possible. The photographer wants as a little as work to do as possible. But the job of the photography is to show the shopper the value and sell the car. 12 exterior photos and 12 interior photos might be good for a work truck but it’s certainly not enough for a loaded top-of-the-line pick up truck.

An online presentation should closely mimic an “on the lot“ presentation. A balance between wide-angle hero shots and close-up shots, drawing the shopper’s attention to value added features, in and out of the vehicle.

The more valuable the car, the more options there are. The more photos there ought to be.

Options not necessarily considered valuable or even listed in book pricing, are often the options that draw the most interest. 2 months ago I was stopped on the lot by a customer who bought a truck. She told me, when she saw the Spotify logo, she knew that was the truck for her. I take 12 pictures of each page on the radio of those trucks and the last page was that Spotify logo on its own. A $60,000 loaded used pickup truck… but she likes Spotify. Go figure. The manufacturers know what they’re doing.

Reminded by a talkative young lady, most people who come in to buy cars, are really not interested in the car per se.

Every feature has the potential of turning a shopper into a customer. If you are not showing them all you are likely missing the opportunity for a sale or a visit to the lot at least.

12 exterior photos and 12 interior photos is likely enough for Dealers to buy a car but maybe not the car buying general public.
 
The topic of photo count, is the proverbial Ouija board. Every party has a hand in pushing and pulling the puck to a negotiated fixed number. The dealership wants as much exposure as possible. The photographer wants as a little as work to do as possible. But the job of the photography is to show the shopper the value and sell the car. 12 exterior photos and 12 interior photos might be good for a work truck but it’s certainly not enough for a loaded top-of-the-line pick up truck.

An online presentation should closely mimic an “on the lot“ presentation. A balance between wide-angle hero shots and close-up shots, drawing the shopper’s attention to value added features, in and out of the vehicle.

The more valuable the car, the more options there are. The more photos there ought to be.

Options not necessarily considered valuable or even listed in book pricing, are often the options that draw the most interest. 2 months ago I was stopped on the lot by a customer who bought a truck. She told me, when she saw the Spotify logo, she knew that was the truck for her. I take 12 pictures of each page on the radio of those trucks and the last page was that Spotify logo on its own. A $60,000 loaded used pickup truck… but she likes Spotify. Go figure. The manufacturers know what they’re doing.

Reminded by a talkative young lady, most people who come in to buy cars, are really not interested in the car per se.

Every feature has the potential of turning a shopper into a customer. If you are not showing them all you are likely missing the opportunity for a sale or a visit to the lot at least.

12 exterior photos and 12 interior photos is likely enough for Dealers to buy a car but maybe not the car buying general public.
 
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An online presentation should closely mimic an “on the lot“ presentation. A balance between wide-angle hero shots and close-up shots, drawing the shopper’s attention to value added features, in and out of the vehicle.
The more valuable the car, the more options there are. The more photos there ought to be.

@carmudgeon plz show us some of your dealer work.
...She told me, when she saw the Spotify logo, she knew that was the truck for her. I take 12 pictures of each page on the radio of those trucks and the last page was that Spotify logo on its own. A $60,000 loaded used pickup truck… but she likes Spotify. Go figure.

Wow, great work, the 12 pics of the dash tech screen is SOOO smart. Our cars are truning into rolling living rooms. In car entertainment (i.e. dash tech) is HOT
 

✨ AI Highlights

George Nenni asks the DealerRefresh community to share standout dealer examples of new and used vehicle photography, both indoor and outdoor. The thread surfaces a strategic insight: since photo carousel engagement drops off after 8-10 images, dealers should front-load high-value option shots rather than grouping all exteriors first. A side exchange with Darius from dariusmotorsport.com highlighted a practical technical takeaway — vehicle photos should be at least 250KB to remain sharp when users pinch-to-zoom on mobile.

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