The "Stock" Trap

Listening to the background music on a commerical for a law firm based in the Twin Cities, I paused. “That music sounds very familiar. Where have I heard it before?” I thought.

This thought nagged at me off and on until I heard the answer on an Eau Claire television station. No, I did not hear that commercial for the Twin Cities law firm; this commercial was for a funeral home. The funeral home runs a consistant schedule, which meant that I had heard the music a great deal. “Hmm,” I mused. “Mixing a funeral home with a law firm is not helpful to either business.”

Although, technically, these television stations are in separate markets, realistically, viewers in western Wisconsin can watch stations from both markets. While viewers in western Wisconsin may not do business with a Twin Cities law firm, the use of the same background music for the firm’s commercial as for the funeral home’s commercial is muddying the message for both in viewers’ minds, whether viewers realize it consciously or not.

The music helps to develop an image in viewers’ minds, and, when the music is used for another business, the image is disrupted, reducing the effectiveness of the commercial. In addition, the music may bring to mind the message from the other business which is using it. Just as with me, the viewer may not be able to place the music, but he or she may pause, focus on the music, and miss the message of the commercial. In fact, the message may not penetrate at all because of the interference of the music.

As I thought about this situation, I was reminded of an e-mail that I received recently regarding one picture that was used on ten different book covers. None of these books shared the same author. They probably didn’t share the same publishing company. None were aware that others had used the same photo for their book covers.

That’s what happens when you use stock photos. Today you may easily go online, find a photo, pay to use it, download it, and apply it to your book cover, Web site, brochure, or any materials. Those photos are called stock photos. They are quick to find and handy to access. Here’s the catch: They are available to all, not just to you. That means you don’t know if and how someone else might be using them. If someone in your market is using them, their effectiveness for you will be reduced. If, horror upon horrors, your competitor is using them, your message and that of your competitor will meld together. Just as with the stock music, you’ll never know who else has them until they show up on a book cover, Web site, brochure, or materials.

How do you avoid having this happen?

The best way is to not use stock photos or music. If you need a particular photo, have a photographer shoot it for you. I know that is not as quick and easy, but it does allow you to make the photo more your own and have it communicate specifics of your business. As to music, every area has many talented musicians, many of whom would gladly write music for your business that would be uniquely your own. These may cost slightly more and may take more effort on your part, but the end result will be better communication for you and no concern about who else is sharing your photos and/or music.

Avoid the “stock” trap. Use only music and photos uniquely your own.