Currently there is no across-the-board standard when it comes to naming product image files. This makes it incredibly difficult to determine at a glance what product your images relate to. Coming up with a consistent naming convention will not only save you time and frustration internally, but will make you a favorite among your resellers if they can easily identify your files and get them up on their site quickly.
The goal when coming up with a naming convention is that it should be well-defined, easily applied to all products in your line and easily understood by those not intimately familiar with your product line. Here are a few guidelines to help you get organized:
1. Be Consistent
This is THE single most important rule when it comes to naming your files. If the naming convention you use is not consistent throughout all of your files it can be confusing for your colleagues and resellers and can result in misinterpretation.
2. Avoid Special Characters
Don’t use special characters, such as, . \ / : ? * < > | “, these characters are often used for shortcuts for various operating systems and can confuse the system when being used in a file name.
3. Include a Date
If you manufacture products that change often, a date included in the naming convention will be very useful in library management. You can include the full date, such as YYYY_MM_DD or YYYYMMDD, but even just the season or year can help.
4. Use Serialization
If you have multiple images of the same product it is a very good idea to add numbers at the end to differentiate between images. Either mark the main image “main” or “01”.
5. Include Image Angle
This is very useful if you have very specific angles shots of each product. Some examples would be, front, back, right, left, side, bottom, top, etc.
6. Include The Purpose Of The File (if needed)
If the image is suppose to be used for a specific reason like the thumbnail image, make sure that is labeled correctly in the file name. If your resellers need specific information to differentiate images make sure it is easily accessible in the file name.
7. Use Underscores Instead Of Spaces Or Periods
Periods should only be used to begin the file type at the end of the file name. Spaces can translate into “%20” when transferred over the internet.
8. Try to stay under 25 characters
Twitter may allow 140 characters, but when it comes to image file names try to keep it to 25 characters or less.
9. Use Leading Zeros
Use zeros as placeholders if your collection has a high number of assets. For example, if the collection has 857 assets that need numbering, use zeros like shotfarm001.jpg or shotfarm012.jpg, not shotfarm1.jpg or shotfarm12.jpg. This will make file management much easier and will maintain correct order when viewing files inside folders.
10. Avoid Using Internal Lingo
Refrain from using internal company lingo that your resellers may not understand when going through your library.
11. Use all lowercase lettering
Some operating systems are case sensitive so by using all lower case lettering you will prevent this issues for some users.
We understand that different companies have different needs, but we’ve found that in many cases using brand_modelnumber.jpg as a naming convention works for everyone involved. And if you’re overwhelmed by the thought of going back and renaming all of your files, consider starting with your next photoshoot – and be sure you communicate your wishes to your photographer in advance!
You also don’t need to worry too much whether your naming convention works exactly for every one of your resellers. The key is that they’ll be able to identify the product; then they can always rename the images easily themselves as long as they know what they are. At shotfarm we even go one step further and offer retailers the ability to download your images with their specific internal naming convention.
By making a consistent, organized, and understandable naming convention you will be able to save a ton of time and headaches for both you and your resellers. Trust us – it’s worth it!
