Today, Square announced the Square Photo Studio app, which makes it easy for sellers to take high-quality product photos from a mobile device and directly sync them to a Square item catalogue or online store to improve the customer experience. 

In recent years, product images have become increasingly important to online selling success. In fact, according to recent global Square data, retail merchants found that 94% of their first orders included product images, and only 11% were sold for the first time without an image. With the Square Photo Studio app, a seller can add stylish images to their product pages on-the-go and through their phone, without the time and cost of a professional photo studio.

“It’s no secret that products with professional-looking photos perform better than those without,” said David Rusenko, head of eCommerce at Square. “Unfortunately, the cost, skill set, and labor involved with taking those photos was often prohibitive. Now, with Square Photo Studio, sellers can give their items the look of a professional photo studio shoot from the comfort of their home, the office, or on the go.” 

The Square Photo Studio app provides easy-to-follow prompts to take the best photo, automatically isolates the product from the background, and then allows users to choose stylised scenes that include new backgrounds, shadows, and colours. From there, a seller can quickly and easily connect those images to items in their Square catalog, or create a new item entirely and immediately start selling. The app isn’t just limited to Square sellers - anyone with a product to sell can easily snap a photo, style that photo, and sell with a Square Online Checkout link.

“We’re thrilled to be launching Square Photo Studio app at a time when businesses are looking for new ways to capture the attention of consumers” said Daniel Nicolas, Head of UK Business Development. “Our recent Future of Retail report uncovered that 97% of UK consumers now make monthly purchases online with 73% having bought products directly from social media in the past few months. These insights show the demand for buying online, which in turn relies on a product being visually appealing. This new addition to Square’s ecosystem will continue to level the playing field for businesses of all sectors and sizes.”

The Square Photo Studio app is available in the Apple app store now globally, everywhere Square Online is available.