We are more than family and senior portraits here at Matt Mead Portraits. If you need traditional headshots, we’re your peeps. And we’ve already given you tips for great headshots in a previous post. We’ve got you covered, whether it’s what to wear or where to do the photoshoot. Now let’s move on because it’s really time to go beyond business headshots.
Headshots have been a corporate staple for just about as long as there’s been photography and portraits. And probably before that. Can’t you just imagine some guy in ancient Rome painting his face all over the colosseum to get business? ((ha)) It’s an easy and obvious way to put a face on your business. Great business headshots will convey a lot in a simple format, from friendliness to trustworthiness to “I’m the expert you need.”
Whether we want to admit it or not, we do judge a book by the cover, right? We make a guess about someone within micro-seconds. We decide pretty quickly if this is a person we want to work with or give our money to.
That’s a lot for a little pic that’s usually shot from the chest up — or sometimes there are folded arms involved. ((ha))
It’s a given in this day and age that you must show your face on social media. But is your face enough? Is having just headshots holding you back?
Let’s explore….
Why go beyond business headshots
Because a headshot is just the beginning.
You could see your headshot as an introduction, but after that, what? You want dynamic shots that show you in action, that more fully express your personality, and that demonstrate the vitality of your services. Furthermore, going beyond headshots will also grow with you, evolving the idea of you and your business in your client’s mind and creating a deeper relationship.
And relationship is the name of the game
Visual storytelling creates connection and engagement. As you probably know, engagement is the point. With social media, there is no other currency that matters more than how much you can engage with your clients and they with you.
Consistency is the number one way
In order to create high levels of engagement, consistency is your friend. The more you post and the more those posts tell a consistent and constant story across platforms, the more accessible you will feel and the more magnetic. People don’t just buy a product or a service anymore; they’re buying a part in the story of you and your work.
Some questions to consider
How often do you need to be posting and to how many different accounts and sources?
You can’t continually fill your feeds or grids with photos of your face or stiff portraiture. You also can’t constantly cross-post. You can sometimes. But each platform should have some content that is unique to that platform. so that each segment of your clientele feels uniquely spoken to. Or consider the clientele who follow you on multiple platforms: they should be getting something unique out of that.
Furthermore, are you writing a regular blog? You need visuals. Are you sending out newsletters? You need visuals. Are you creating ads? You need visuals. And people most certainly can tell the difference between stock photos and the real deal. (This is not to say that you can’t occasionally use stock photos to fill in some blanks, but that should be the exception.)
Is your marketing telling a story?
We can’t say this enough: marketing is storytelling so what’s your story? What better and quicker and clearer way to tell stories than through your visual branding? “A picture is worth a thousand words.” And in today’s business world, it might be worth many thousands of words, considering how little time you usually have to make an impression in that fast moving feed.
Finally, is your uniqueness showing through?
Speaking of stock images, did you know that you could have a set of specific-to-you, branded stock images made that you can use in a wide variety of ways? Yep. Think about the work you do. How can it be represented in a handful of images with things curated from your own workspaces? Instead of rushing to download a free image of a pen sitting on a planning pad, what about the tools you actually use day to day? They can be made into beautiful and/or fun art that perfectly encapsulates your personality and the way you approach your work. They are still life images projecting more story than you can even imagine.
Going beyond business headshots, as you can see, really opens up a whole world of possibility.
Some tips for moving beyond business headshots
Create a branding photo “dream board”
Just like you can create a business brand board (here for examples) that keeps your brand elements front and center in your line of sight, you can create a sort of dream board around the visual story you want to tell through brand photography.
This can be super helpful to me, your photographer. You could, for example, simply walk around your work space(s) and take little shots on your phone of things that you think tell your story. We can go over these when deciding what shots to do for you professionally.
Show different aspects of your work… differently
Going beyond business headshots, think about action shots of your day to day work. Don’t get stuck behind a desk and at a computer. What else is your day comprised of? All of it is potential material for storytelling via photography.
Don’t be afraid to show you
Meaning, don’t be afraid to show yourself beyond your work. Are there hobbies that are really important to you that might crossover with your clients? The more personal you can get, the more connection you’re bound to make.
Going beyond business headshots doesn’t mean leaving those headshots in the dust. We are merely looking to grow your visual tools and deepen your storytelling and relationships in the process.