Guest post by Larissa Rolley
You know how when you have a few minutes to kill, you find yourself scrolling through Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat? Scroll, scroll, scroll, and then you stop. The image pulls you in, gives you pause. It evokes an emotional connection and you find yourself responding. You remember other images by the same person that created the same pause. You begin to comment. You find yourself looking for their posts. When they post about a new program, you register. They have converted you!
The photos you choose to use are telling your brand story visually. You only want to post pictures that further your brand story. Remember, you are showcasing your brand in the most beautiful way possible.
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How can you have fabulous eye-catching images?
You can hire a professional photographer, look for stock OR with a few basics you can DIY following your own inspiration to create compelling unique images that showcase your brand. It doesn’t matter if you use a DSLR or a phone.
A few simple guidelines before we get into what you are going to photograph.
Keep your workflow simple and easy:
- Lighting: Shoot with lots of outdoor light. This will give you bright photos with clean, crisp colors.
- Composition: You can research plenty on google about the law of thirds. Essentially, you want to imagine a grid over your photo that divides it vertically and horizontally in thirds. For a square image for instagram, it would be like a tic-tac-toe board. The compositional elements are at the intersection of 2 lines, or follow along one of the lines.
- Minimal filters: You want to keep your process as simple as possible, so I don’t recommend relying on a lot filters. (if it really suits your brand, OK)
Now, what are you going to photograph?
Keep in mind that your photos are the first step of the conversation with your followers and are an extension of your brand. They are the conversation starter and you want to show up through your photos authentically. You want to communicate your brand values through images.
Use these guiding questions to create campaigns that convert:
- What benefit does your customer get?
- How does your service or product make her feel?
- What does your ideal customer want to see?
- How can I help her through her day?
- What does she wants to read? (hint: you can include type or words in your photo).
- How can you represent these things in images?
As you answer these questions, they should all be in line with your brand’s values, your WHY. Create and post more photos of your WHY than your WHAT and you will be presenting real value to your followers. Now, go brainstorm visual ideas that communicate your WHY and start taking (and posting) more pictures.
Larissa is an artist and photographer helping make emotional connections visually, and connecting cultures through creativity and travel. www.LarissaRolley.com.
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