"I DON`T HAVE THE FINANCIAL RESOURCES AVAILABLE YET"

Welcome to the newest edition of?Feel Brand You.

I`m so glad our paths crossed and you are reading these lines.

Feel Brand You?is a weekly dose of inspiration about branding and business building from my point of view, a branding photographer.?

Last week I talked about Connection Calls. I explained what Connection Calls are, what to expect, how to prepare, and what to ask.

Overall, a connection call with a branding photographer is an important step in the process of selecting the right photographer for your branding project and it ensures we are on the same page before moving forward with the actual photography session or project. But what to do if you don't feel ready for a photoshoot and why would you feel this way? I`m going to talk about this topic today.

If you've already had Connection Calls with different branding photographers, and you feel that your business visuals are not reflecting your personality, your business, or your values, that indicates that you are ready to go to the next level. However, sometimes we still postpone moving forward. Here are the three most common reasons and tips on how to get over them.

"I DON`T HAVE THE FINANCIAL RESOURCES AVAILABLE YET"

You have to consider branding photography as an investment for your business to grow. These photographs are going to help you bring money to you.?I offer many options from entry-level packages to full and luxurious branding so you can find the right one for your needs.

If you are just starting out investing in a branding mini session can help you to create a highly professional look and stand out from your competitors from the beginning and it gives you authority. Your audience will know you take yourself seriously and are not afraid to invest in your growth. When your business evolves you can move towards more extensive, strategic packages.

If your aim is expanding your business, earning more money and working less, investing in branding photographs highly increases the chance of being more visually appealing to your audience. Your renewed professional brand can elevate your chance for profitable collaborations, raising your prices, upleveling your marketing activities (with PR, guest expert talks) or you might create opportunities to earn money whilst you sleep.

How can you overcome it?

• Work on your money mindset, read books like Get Rich, Lucky Bitch or Chill and Prosper by Denise Duffield-Thomas , and practise affirmations, EFT or ask advice from a money coach like Jo Morley - JM Mindful Assistant
• Ask your branding photographer if she offers payment plans. Dividing your investment into monthly DD payments benefits both parties. You can budget your business expenses better and easier, and the photographer gets monthly payments too. If you know that you would like to have a photoshoot in 6 months' time or even next year, you can start paying in smaller monthly instalments now so even if the photographer raises her prices by the time of the photoshoot, you will get the photoshoot at the original price.

Tips on reducing the cost of your branding photoshoot:

• If your budget is extremely tight, you can consider doing a smaller-scale photoshoot focusing on a specific aspect of your brand or product. This way, you can still have professional images for a particular purpose while saving money for a full branding package.
• Make sure you are on the VIP list of your chosen branding photographer. Sometimes photographers need portfolio-building photographs if they introduce a new product or service so they organise model calls. They might offer you a special early bird discount when they launch a new service. They might organise a competition.
• Refer clients to your chosen branding photographer. I have a referral system so each time you refer clients to me and they book a session with me, I gift you with a ￡100 or ￡50 voucher according to the package they book. The more clients you send my way, the bigger your discount and you might end up having a free photoshoot.

“I WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT FIRST”

I know how intimidating it could be even thinking about your photoshoot, I struggled with the same in the past. I was full of fear about being visible, fear of judgement, lack of self-belief, and procrastinated a lot, just to name a few of "my friends".

Then I realised if I wanted to grow, I must step out of my comfort zone and do the things that scare me the most. When I had my first photoshoot, I felt awkward, so many insecurities about myself came to the surface but it helped me to overcome them and understand my clients better. Every time I have a new photoshoot now, it gets better and easier too and gives me a new level of confidence and motivation. Amanda Hutcherson has had 4 branding photoshoot with me, and the confidence she gained since the first one is incredible. Recently, she gave up her well-paid, university lecturer job to be able to focus fully on pursuing her knitting coaching passion.

Suffering from a lack of confidence almost all my life formed my desire to help others with it. When I hear excuses like "I hate to have my photos taken, I hate myself in photographs" I recognise my old self, who was full of fears. You are not alone, even the most successful ladies with established businesses suffer from the same. Some ladies wait years to build up the courage for a photoshoot and lose so many opportunities.?

How can you overcome your fear?

• Work on your mindset. What about accepting that you are good enough and your body is perfect as it is? Your audience doesn`t care about how much your weight is. They care about your personality, your unique story, and how you can make their life better. They won`t even notice your insecurities as they are so personal to you and it`s not relevant in how you solve their problems. You can practice affirmations, meditations, hypnotherapy and EFT are really useful to overcome your fears. I`m happy to give you my own tools to help you get ready too. My Visibility Mindset course on Udemy includes practical tools to help you feel more confident about being visible. Check it out here
• Hiring an Image Consultant like Jo Gaffney can help with a colour analysis to identify the colours that complement your skin tone before you go in front of the camera. She also offers style consultation to identify the clothes that will show your personality, suit your body shape the best and reflect your professionalism to your audience whilst making you feel fabulous and authentic too.
• Hire a make-up artist and hair stylist on the day. Enhancing your natural beauty significantly increases your confidence and

"I'M SO BUSY"

If you're too busy for a photoshoot but still want to make it happen, here are some tips to help you manage your time effectively:

• Plan ahead: Schedule the photoshoot well in advance and mark it on your calendar. By doing this, you can allocate time specifically for the shoot and plan your other commitments such as pre-shoot consultation and a half day off the previous day for you around it.
• Set realistic expectations: Assess your schedule realistically and determine how much time you can spare for the photoshoot. Communicate this with the photographer so they can work with you to create a suitable timeline.
• Opt for a VIP day like my LinkedIn Profile Makeover Day instead of a full session. VIP days are on a set location, with additional benefits such as make-up artist, so reduces your time and stress on finding a location. If VIP days are built around a specific topic, you can expect a guest expert too, who could help you further too. Discuss your requirements with your photographer and focus on capturing the most essential shots within the limited time frame.
• Keep open lines of communication with the photographer and explain your time constraints. They may have suggestions or be willing to accommodate your schedule by offering specific time slots or adjusting their own availability.

Who is Vanda??

Vanda Szabo?is one of Worcestershire’s leading multi-award-winning branding photographers for women in business and is passionate about seeing female leaders transform in front of the camera.?She rises up females from the shadows to be the proud face of their businesses through beautiful, storytelling visuals.?She is a natural-born confidence coach.

If you would like to be a guest writer in?Feel Brand You, please get in touch.