Show, Don’t Tell!
3 Ways to Leverage Photography For Your Brand
I don’t care if you are offering service, selling coaching, delivering a keynote, or whatever. If you have the overhead, you need to hire a photographer or at least start gathering photo assets.
Because you need to be able to show who you are, what you do, and why it matters. I cannot stress this enough: all this strategizing means nothing if you cannot effectively show you can do what you do.
I know this is going to be a difficult article. Many of you don’t have the means to acquire these assets. Real, authentic photos are expensive after all, but that doesn’t mean they should be disregarded.
Today, I want to look at three types of images you can use to showcase your brand, along with practical steps to ensure they align with the rest of your branding.
Show Yourself: Increase Visibility and Build Trust
You need pictures of yourself. Yes! Real photo of you doing the things:
Shaking hands
Honing your craft
Signing books
Delivering a talk
Every time I am on LinkedIn, I can tell which of those in my feed are actually doing the work they talk about. Why? They document themselves doing it. They share photos of themselves working with clients and take selfies at events. And this does not mean they need to be perfect—remember, perfect is better than done—they just need to “show, not tell.”
Show Your Products: Sell More With Proof
I mainly work with authors and speakers—it’s hard for me to look past this element. My clients work in both domains: writing their next book and walking up on stage to share their story.
Start with the process: can you photograph it? Perhaps you lay out your keynote in Post-it notes before making the slides.
Delivery: What does it look like when you give your ideal audience what they need?
This is where your product becomes more than just a product; it becomes a journey with a result. And it’s better to show that story rather than explain it.
Ex: I would show post-it notes of visual concepts, followed by some logo sketches, and then a final reveal of the concept—bonus points if I can present the rejected logo designs and the previous logo.
The lesson: we can share what we deliver to people without even telling them what it is.
Show Your People: Make The Most of Your Posts On Social Media
I used to be against this last one. You know those group photos from networking events you keep seeing on LinkedIn—the ones you get tagged in. I know you have. Those are part of this third category. Those candid moments where you are interacting with other people, when you are locked deep in conversation.
Group photos help solidify memories for those who were physically there while also letting people who weren’t know you showed up.
Align It: Color
Never cease in collecting these types of photos for your business. Now, you can incorporate them into your visual identity. How? Color grading, my friend. The steps are simple:
Open your favorite photo editor
Go through the filters
Find one that fits your brand colors (mine are orange and blue)
Apply that filter to every photo
Collect them in a small library that you have labeled “Photo assets“