So you’ve been thinking about having professional images done for your business, but how do you know when it’s actually time to invest in a branding photographer? I don’t mean a nice headshot. We’re talking a full on branding shoot to create content to be used across all platforms.
Today, I’m going to talk about 4 Levels of Visual Elements that can be used in your business to cause your clients and customers to think higher (or lower) about the level of professionalism that will be received with the products or services you offer.
LEVEL ONE: NADA. ZERO.
You have NO visual elements at all. The truth is, if you aren’t showing anything, you aren’t going to get anything, because your customers and clients don’t even know you exist.
LEVEL TWO: DIY – Threw it together. Didn’t really care about it.
Examples of this would be low quality selfies, or photos of your products taken on your phone with poor lighting and no regard to what’s in the background. It’s not well thought through.
YES. You are there, which is better than nothing. However, someone isn’t going to look at your stuff and think, “This person (or business) really, really cares about they’re doing, and I should too.”
Think in terms of a speaker providing handwritten presentation notes. You would appreciate having the notes, but it looks more like an afterthought that took minimal effort.
LEVEL THREE: Still DIY-ish. You really do care.
Maybe you don’t have the money to hire a professional branding photographer yet, but you’re working with what you have and doing the best.
This would look like presentation notes that are typed up and printed in black ink on white paper. There was effort put into creating the document, and it has bullet points and nice formatting.
Examples include photos of yourself taken with a tripod, or photos of your products taken near a well-lit window. The overall presentation is good. Your stuff looks pretty nice. It’s just not quite the best it could be.
LEVEL FOUR: Maximum Effort.
I hired a professional, because I AM a professional.
I invest in my business and therefore, you should invest in my business too.
This time, our presentation notes are packaged into a beautifully designed trifold, and printed in color on high quality paper.
Keep in mind: Levels two, three, and four can all contain the same information.
The information is just presented in three different ways, and you have to determine which one will attract your ideal client.
Let’s face the facts: You cannot be a luxury, high end business or brand if you aren’t going to put for the money and effort into looking like one.
Don’t get me wrong… done is better than perfect. As long as you aren’t on level one (which is essentially zero), then you’re doing something, and that’s better than nothing.
However, when it comes time for you to think about whether or not you should hire a professional photographer for your business, think about these visuals, and ask yourself this question:
“Do the images that I’m putting out on my social media, website, blogs, and advertisements accurately reflect the level of professionalism that will be received with my products or services?”
And if they don’t… you know it’s time to do something different! 🙂
Ready to create better visuals for your brand or business? Contact Paige.
