What do you do if your business needs a photography consultant to boost its image?

When your business needs a photography consultant to enhance its image, understanding your brand identity is key. Start by defining what your brand stands for, its values, and its target audience. Once you have a clear picture of your brand, seek out a consultant whose work you trust and admire. Look for someone whose style aligns with your vision and who you feel comfortable collaborating with. Knowing what you want to achieve with your photography makes the process smoother, but if you're unsure, a consultant can guide you. They'll offer expertise in areas like visual storytelling, branding consistency, and audience engagement, helping you elevate your business through compelling imagery.

Sometimes we are our own worst enemy. We can't see the forest from the trees. We look at our images or website and think everything is great or we think we don't have the money to change everything. It never hurts to take a good hard look at where you're at with your marketing and with your image. What is it saying? Things change constantly. Personally, I never thought about video marketing all of a sudden. If I don't incorporate it, I'm being left behind. Do I want to do it no. Do I need to do it yes! Find a couple of people you trust outside your business and have them scrutinize you're marketing and then decide with their suggestions what you need to update. And then start your search.

A great way to get started is to start with a Branding Needs Assessment. I offer this to my branding clients to help them to more accurately identify the needs of their business in more quantifiable terms. My template asks about current visual marketing strategy, business goals, target audience/clientele, marketing budget, overall business goals etc. This allows me to utilize their information to create a new comprehensive marketing strategy that is easy to understand & implement.

Look for consultants who have a strong portfolio that aligns with your business's style and objectives. Consider reaching out to other businesses or colleagues for recommendations. They may have worked with a photography consultant in the past and can provide valuable insights. Additionally, reading reviews and testimonials can give you an idea of the consultant's reputation and client satisfaction. When researching, pay attention to the consultant's expertise in areas such as product photography, branding, or marketing. Choose someone who not only has technical skills but also understands how to use photography strategically to enhance your brand image and achieve your business goals.

It is absolutely critical for you to do your research when it comes to your business and branding! When you promote your brand to the public, there is literally no turning back. That branding content will be out there forever, so it is imperative that you are able to look back on everything that you present online and it properly represent you. Every professional provides something different in terms of photography style, editing, composition etc. However, when it comes to branding, your images have to communicate an entire message. This means that your branding photographers skill needs to include technical proficiency, as well as, extensive knowledge of marketing and branding.

Setting a budget prior to reaching out to professional photographers is 100 percent necessary. Most of the calls that I receive on a daily basis include potential clients wanting to book a session with 1 or 2 images that are super important to them. That somehow seems like a small request to many people. However, if you need 1 image that has to represent an entire brand, then the price isn't based on a single image. Each image is priced based on usage. Images needed for branding require a more extensive usage agreement then say a headshot for Linkedin. All these things need to be understood and factored in to ensure that you aren't making a decision based on the cheapest option because in this case, you will get what you paid for

Allow the photography consultant to execute the project according to the agreed-upon plan and timeline. Provide access to necessary resources, such as products, locations, and team members, and facilitate smooth communication and collaboration throughout the process.