Branding and Cashing Out

When to use stock photos; how to minimize taxes when selling a business.

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Branding

Q I bought a stock photo of a dog for my website and it has become our unofficial mascot. Recently, I discovered that another pet site is using the same photo. Can I stop the site from using it?

Christine Hutman
Owner
petservicesreview.com
Chicago Ridge, Illinois

If your rival bought the stock photo just as you did, there's nothing you can do to keep her from using it now. And therein lies an important lesson about using stock images. Sure, they're cheap--as little as $1 per image from companies such as iStockphoto and Fotolia. But for marketing purposes, they're really only appropriate for quick-hit campaigns, warns Tim Pedersen, CEO of Right Brain Branding Consultants in Miami. True branding, by contrast, is like dressing for the Academy Awards: Off-the-rack won't cut it. Most stock photo companies will let you pay extra--starting at several hundred to a few thousand dollars--for a licensing agreement or a copyright buyout that will give you exclusive use of a photo going forward. But anyone who has already downloaded the image, including your competitor, can continue to use it fair and square. (Many stock photography services stamp each image with the number of times it has been downloaded, which can help you decide whether the exclusivity is worth the extra expense.)

Another option is to ditch your stock image, commission an original photo, and buy the rights in full. The cost of studio time, models, and sitting (or in this case, heeling) fees varies greatly, but you can probably get out for under a couple thousand dollars. Websites for the American Society of Media Photographers and the Professional Photographers of America should list photographers in your area who specialize in animal work.

However, your best bet may be to hire a graphic designer to create a line drawing or stylized image. Trying to duplicate the stock photo is dangerous territory, but you can specify the breed of dog and facial expression you'd like. Graphic art is a sophisticated branding option, says Pedersen. It's also easier than photos to update and reproduce. (The RCA (NYSE:SNE) pooch, Nipper, is still going strong after more than a century in people years.) For small businesses, creating a logo costs between $1,500 and $5,000, according to the Graphic Artists Guild. The American Institute of Graphic Artists has a searchable database of designers.

And don't worry: Swapping mascots won't cause loyal customers to turn tail. "Your customers have a relationship with your company," says Pedersen. "If you're building a good core business, they'll love you, not the logo."

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