What has Photography got to do with Brand?
Posted on 27th February 2024 at 14:16
Use Photography to bring cohesion and life to a Brand
As we all know, the brand of a business is not just logos and colours, but everything from the feel of the building, the tone of voice on reception, the art on the wall, to the perception of the people (both internally and within their profession's community). That is in addiyion to marketing material or any digital/physical communications. That's why putting photography at the heart of what you do can be hugely beneficial on so many levels. So much of this communication is visual.
Brands are not static
It shouldn't be a case of 'we've done photos, so don't need to think about it again'. Photography can move with the business and support many elements of it, through inevitable change and growth.
Working with a business over a period of time, effectively as their partner, I can devise projects that will enhance their overarching business brand.
When I first worked with a growing firm of accountants in Windsor, their offices had plain white walls and their website stock images. However, from the colourful, stylish office furniture and chic owner, I could see that the brand wasn't presented well to existing or potential staff and clients. They were wanting to become the 'go to' accountants in Windsor but their marketing material didn't even pin point them to that location.
Photographs with a purpose
"Working with Jo as a creative partner over the past ten years has been a game changer. Our offices now reflect our brand, Jo having created for us beautiful bespoke photography as framed pieces of art which adorn the walls.
Our marketing material has imagery that shows our team and clients, the essence of our business. Our headshots, team photos and my personal branding photos are all up to date and reflect who we all are. I use these across our website and also for PR and other marketing materials.
The great thing about Jo is that she is easy to work with. She takes time to understand us and she knows how to portray us, and our brand, through the images that we use across our marketing. Allowing me and the team to get on with running and growing the business of accounting!"
Accounting Firm, Windsor
Building a photo library
Sometimes my working relationship with a business starts with a specific need for photography for their Senior Leadership Team. As so often is the case, if they are delighted with the results we soon have an ongoing working relationship, keeping all their corporate photography on brand.
With forward thinking and dynamic businesses, they know the direction they are going and as they grow they recognise that brand and marketing are key to keeping the cohesion and trajectory. I've been asked to regularly photograph internal events, to update photography for websites and social media, capture the office at work and play for HR/recruitment outreach, and to keep founders personal branding imagery fresh for PR and peer to peer communications.
How photography fits into a marketing plan
This is a slightly different angle on it, but you'll have seen that my approach is to understand a business's brand, direction of the business and their marketing aspirations. That's the only way I believe I can create images that are fit for purpose and truly represent the business in a creative way. That's why it makes total sense that a marketing agency would work with me as a trusted partner, recommending me to their clients that have a photographic need which fits my approach.
I think it's interesting that it's not pigeonholed into a category of business like professional services, or product photography, but rather the clients that come my way are varied. The element that links them is that they need a creative approach to understanding their brand and translating that into photographs. I create images that will be on brand and speak to the target audience, whoever that may be.
One of my Marketing Agency partners said this:
"Jo is an intuitive, highly professional branding photographer. Her unique skill is to really understand the client's brand. She is a delight to work with, making the life of a marketer easier. Just sit back and let her do her job! The resultant images are all on brand, on brief and stunning."
Using AI photos within a business
There's been an interesting debate on LinkedIn recently, about AI generated photography for business people and the authenticity of that, together with how often photos should be updated.
I was heartened that a well respected personal branding agency effectively advised not to use AI for your photos, and to have real photography updated at least every two years, but preferably more frequently.
Commissioning a photographer to enhance your business brand
My key message here is that brands are not static, as businesses are not static. So having a partnership with a photographer to keep the businesses visual collateral up to date and current makes total sense.
If you would like to find out more about how I work with my commercial photography clients, look at my case studies section on the website. And please do give me a call on 07793 205155 to have a chat or contact me
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