How to Hire the Best Branding Photographer for your Business in 3 Simple Steps
Need to hire a business or personal brand photographer?
Your website looks kind of dated, you desperately need fresh social media content, you are a solopreneur starting to build your online brand – there are many reasons are looking for outstanding branding photography.
The advantages for small businesses are clear. Well executed, impactful branding images help organizations to:
STAND OUT and attract attention for their offerings
LOOK PROFESSIONAL and attract higher-paying clients
BUILD A CONNECTION with their target audience
BUILD A recognizable, trusted BRAND through consistent visual messaging
SAVE TIME +ENERGY: no more hunting for stock images or producing selfies on the fly
(Learn more about branding photography here)
You know what kind of images you need, but how do you know which branding photographer will create the best photos for your marketing?
Step 1: Look for a photographer with a marketing background
There are a lot of photographers in the Seattle area who take beautiful photos, but that is only one of several requirements you are looking for. For a visual branding strategy to work, you need to explore the vibe of your brand, translate the core values, and together with an experienced branding photographer develop a consistent visual language for your marketing efforts.
You will plan with your photographer which aspects of your brand story are most important to your clients and translate these into effective, engaging imagery. You will want to develop a shot list of images that can be used for a variety of marketing. Now you’re ready for the fun part: the photo shoot to create beautiful images that are right on target with your visual branding strategy.
Step 2: We all love weddings, BUT….
If you need a beautiful landscape photo would you turn to a pro who makes their money with gripping sports photography? Probably not. The same is true for branding photography. A lovely talented artist who mostly shoots weddings and also does some personal branding photography on the side might not be the ideal person for your job.
You need someone who knows what kind of images perform well on social media, what format and style of images your web designer will need, and, most of all, you need someone to create images that represent your brand story in an authentic way.
Step 3: Work with someone you can relate to
Maybe you have been there? A photographer who “just takes your photo” who lacks any interest in your goals and the brand you are building? A photographer who doesn’t listen to what you need but just wants to shoot the same lame set of images that he (and yes this is mostly males) always shoots.
To bring out your true, fun, and relaxed self you need to work with someone who makes you feel at ease, someone who has a genuine interest in getting to know you and your brand and can translate such into a visual language. If you can relate to your photographer the planning process and photoshoot are not only going to be more fun, but your personality will really shine through in the resulting images. (See what it is like during a branding photoshoot here)
While there are certainly a lot of very talented photographers in the Seattle area, only a few will be right for your branding photoshoot. It is worth exploring your candidate’s educational background, their focus of work and then decide to go with the one whose vibe and energy is the right fit for you.
Oriana von Specht is a business branding photographer in the Seattle area. She helps small businesses grow by creating engaging images of their people and places to grow an emotional connection with their ideal clients.