January 1, 1970 (Vol. , No. )

Susan Aldridge, Ph.D.

Biotech companies – please invest in a photo library!

Thanks to GEN for inviting me to contribute a blog and I promise that I will not rant (too much). But I am going to use the first post to ask why biotech and pharma companies who want to be interviewed and written about don’t think more visually. My main area of interest is the biotechnology business but, for all I know, the same is true of other sectors.

When I’m commissioned to write an article, the editor often asks me to find pictures to accompany my words. So I ask the person I interview to provide a couple of high resolution jpegs to illustrate their facility or some aspect of their work. You’d perhaps be surprised how often I receive, instead, a copy of their Powerpoint presentation, images embedded in a Word document, pictures without captions (so we have to guess what that bit of equipment is and what is it actually doing), or nothing at all. I say you’d be surprised because it’s never been easier to take good pictures (though I still think you should use a professional). I know biotech companies are often hard pressed/stressed with clients, raising money and all those other important things. But putting together a set of images is a worthwhile investment. If you are proud of your facility and your people, then showcase them with some good images.

It’s a while ago, but we ran a picture of some plastic bags on the front cover of GEN. Thanks to HyClone for making their disposable bioprocess containers look interesting through the clever use of green light in the photos. Anyone out there got some good pictures of their company at work? Send them in – I’m ready to be impressed!

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