Image Is Everything: Faces of Coal Uses iStockPhoto… Whoops!

I was watching Jon Stewart last night and he mentioned a story about the supposedly grassroots organization from the coal industry that I just had to blog about.

One of the things I have always preached to our clients, whether they are big or small, is that the “image” they portray on their website or social network is very important. And, in addition, once it’s out there in cyberspace, you can’t pull it back.

This is actually a more important theory to take to heart than ever because one wrong Tweet could land you in seriously hot water.

The new campaign for the coal industry is located at http://facesofcoal.org/.

On their homepage (which has been edited since this story came to light) there are a bunch of big images that flash across the screen to show you the FACES that coal helps. Their entire campaign is based around this idea of “FACES”. I guess this is their way of connecting coal to the people in our everyday lives.

Apparently the coal industry couldn’t find any REAL faces to support their cause because all of the images they are showing on their website are from iStockPhoto.

Now, let me be clear, I have no problem with iStockPhoto or stock photography in general. I think it’s highly practical and is a resource that should definitely be used.

But, if you’re running a campaign where the focus is on the FACES of people who are supporting your cause, then maybe… just maybe… buying photos online for a couple of dollars is NOT the right way to go.

Credit goes to the Appalachian Voices blog who, based on my research, were the first ones to break this story. You can find more of the examples here.