A guest has just landed on your hotel’s website. Within minutes, perhaps seconds, they will either be swept away by the photographs and see themselves on that cozy bed or that pool lounger; or something in the photographs will create a mismatch between the trip they’ve been dreaming of and what they’re seeing in your photos. This will happen dozens, possibly hundreds, of times a day. So, what’s the return when you invest in the very best luxury hotel photography?
Shawn Talbot Photography has been capturing some of the world’s most iconic resorts and hotels for more than two decades. It’s easy to see how his photos of sunsets beyond the bed and night-caps in moody lounges move travelers. Designers and hotel marketing directors inherently see it too. But there are also numbers, incredibly compelling numbers, to make the case for this item in your budget.
Over the last 20 years, Eric Gooden, a Canadian hotel marketing director, has directed professional photography for a range of hotels, from luxury resorts to more affordable properties. He says exceptional imagery doesn’t just look better, it has a measurable impact on results.
“We’ve seen website and OTA conversion rates increase by 35–60%, but the influence starts even earlier,” says Gooden. “Strong photography captures attention, draws guests into the brand experience, and sets expectations before they begin comparing prices.”
Indeed, first impressions count:
“Beyond driving bookings, quality visuals support higher average daily room rates, encourage more direct reservations, strengthen competitive positioning, and generate more demand for group and negotiated business,” says Gooden. “It’s one of the few investments that touches nearly every stage of the guest journey and continues to deliver value long after the shoot is complete.”
The ROI of luxury hotel photography
How much does that investment in the highest quality photography count for? Let’s dive into the numbers.
#1 Guests are Quicker to Make a Booking
For luxury properties, the sense of aspiration and emotion have to be there and at the highest level on first glance and in every detail thereafter.
For many guests, it’s the photo that signals:
- Value
- Trust
- Emotions of the experiences that await
“It’s not just, ‘How beautiful are the rooms and the views?’” says Shawn. “A photograph that leaves nothing to chance is also a representation of how the hotel pays attention to detail overall. When you can tell they’ve invested in really great photography, that tells you something.”
Some hospitality studies indicated high quality images translate to increased booking conversions in the range of 15 to 30%.
Better photos mean more guests clicking ‘book now.’
#2 Guests are apt to join you for longer stays and more experiences
Let’s return to the potential guest who has just landed on your website. The rooms look stunning: the most luxurious beds, a shimmering pool, a lobby with unforgettable style.
Now they’ve gone beyond looking at photos, they are starting to imagine themselves in the room, and the hotel, and their mind is excited to see what else is on offer.
With great photos, comes:
- Suite upgrades
- Bookings for spa, dining and other experiences
- Extending their stay another night
The return on those gorgeous visuals? Some studies of upsells show per-guest revenue can increase by 12-18%. Let’s say you’re a luxury property with stays of $2,000 a night: That’s an extra $240-360 per guest. Multiply that by your number of rooms and few hundred nights a year.
#3 With more bookings comes higher average daily rates (ADR)
What do I get for a nightly rate like that? This is the question your photographs need to answer. Photos have some heavy-lifting to do, and if they do it well, the perceived value is strong.
Skilled luxury hotel photographers have a keen sense of exactly what guests want to see and feel in your photos, so they pay particular attention to capturing things like:
- The most white of white sand beaches and that glowing turquoise water (in the Caribbean, for example) by studying exactly what time of day these are at their most glorious
- Details in the craftsmanship of furniture, architecture and amenities
- Quietly creating a sense of exclusivity
For your property, that elevated photography can differentiate you from the competition and lead to a 5-10% increase in your average daily rate (ADR).
When it comes to luxury travel, if a guest can feel it, they’ll pay for it.
“US luxury hotel photographers are always talking about this idea of ‘aspirational imagery:’ If you can’t afford that resort today, you’re aspiring to afford it in the future,” says Shawn. “Creating imagery that sells an elevated experience is key—and it really is an investment.”
Let’s do the math:
ADR: $550/night | Rooms: 120 | Occupancy increase from new photos: 4% (conservative estimate)
Added revenue every year: $963,600
Even if your ADR only increased by 1% on 120 rooms thanks to your investment in luxury hotel photography, that’s an additional $240,900 every year.
The $25,000 you spent on a photo shoot looks pretty clever.
#4 With more direct bookings, you lose fewer dollars to OTA’s
Step into another category of additional revenue when your website sees more direct bookings and better website performance—casting out the chance of OTA sites displacing your website.
With an all-new library of images, some luxury brands see up to 20-40% increases in direct website conversions. They stay a little longer on each page and the website as a whole, giving a queue to Google that your website is a better experience than the OTA page for your hotel.
It’s been shown this is even more likely on mobile, the space where more and more travelers do their initial trip searches.
Every time you secure a direct booking, you save 15-25% in OTA commissions.
#5 Doing it the best the first time pays too
Yes, there’s a local photographer and he or she might be quite talented and a very nice person. But have they read your brand guidelines? Do they have the experience in the luxury hospitality pillar? If not, when you submit these photos to corporate and they get turned down for being outside brand standards, you’ll have to re-book the shoot, and that original spend will be for nothing.
“There aren’t a ton of us out there, who are approved photographers for brands like Marriott and Fairmont, for example, because it takes incredible attention to detail and the stakes are high—but every penny is worth it because those photos start paying for themselves on day one,” says Shawn.
Is your luxury property ready for the added revenue of more direct bookings, longer stays and more upsells?
Shawn Talbot Photography specializes in capturing powerful images of the world’s finest hotels and resorts.