Build Brand Personality with Professional Photography
As an entrepreneur launches a new business, bootstrapping is typically at the forefront of their agenda. When initial budgets are allocated, professional photo shoots rarely even fall for consideration, and if they do, photography is often perceived as a ‘dispensable’ or something that can be cheaply run ‘in-house’.
In reality, the quality of your brand’s imagery is a huge reflection on the quality and credibility of your brand. Professional photo shoots enable you to capture something that your customers can truly relate to (AKA your brand personality!). Here's an example of Perfocal's very own startup photo shoot; we use these images across our website, social media and sales collateral to build emotional connections and to make a great first impression with consumers, investors and competitors alike.
Professional photography is no longer a marketing or advertising add-on, it is a strategic investment and a valuable tool that bears immense responsibility for your brand’s performance.
"We only need to look at the boom in brand influencers to see that we're living in a 'visual era'. Brand imagery is just as important as the brand’s logo and colour palette these days." - Graphic Designer at multiple Top UK startups
The versatility of imagery means that professional photo shoots can enhance every consumer facing element of your business - we’re talking about your website, press releases, email campaigns, offline marketing collateral and so much more. Just think how much easier it will be to plan your next social media post or sales pitch with a selection of quality images on hand and ready to use.
What’s more, in the earliest stages of your business, photography can be leveraged to truly define what you want your brand to represent. Now’s the time to capture your founding story, to build a strong brand personality and to elevate it through incredible photography.
So… now you know that professional photo shoots are a startup essential, it’s time to identify where your company needs imagery most. Commercial photography to boost your product listings online? Lifestyle photography to replace the generic stock images currently plastered across your new website? A photo shoot to capture the special moments shared with your team? Perfocal are here to tell your startup’s story, every step of the way:
Commercial Photography (Product)
If you’re selling something tangible, product photos are arguably worth more than ‘a thousand words’. In fact, e-commerce website Etsy found that product images are the biggest point of reference for 90% of customers when purchasing online1.
With competition rife and consumers facing more choice than ever before, commercial photography is required to help your products stand out against the rest.
"As an online only brand, having good product shots is absolutely essential. It’s the only thing that consumer’s rely on when buying our products" - Art Director at a London b2c startup
Regardless of your product category, our product photographers are here to help. Learn more about Perfocal's product photography here and check out some examples of our work with other startups below:
Lifestyle Photography
Whether you’re a b2b (business to business) or b2c (business to consumer) company, offering a product or a service, one thing every startup needs is good lifestyle photography for their website. Unlike stock imagery, original images won't be ignored by your consumers boosting your conversions by up to 35%2.
"It’s incredibly difficult for me to build high quality websites for startups, without any high quality imagery" – Freelance Senior Web Developer
Featuring unique images of your team or people that represent your target audience will attract customers, express individuality and build trust. Learn more about Perfocal's lifestyle photography and see some of our previous work below:
Team and Workplace Photography
Sharing photos of your team is one of the best ways to communicate your startup’s culture and brand personality to outsiders. Authentically capturing the daily interactions and bonding moments within your team is a great way to show future employees what it’s like to be a part of your growing team.
Besides, once you’re featured in Crunchbase’s complete list of unicorn companies it’ll be nice to reflect on the ‘simpler’ times right? Learn more about Perfocal's team and workplace photography and see what other startups are photographing here:
Professional Headshots
In the corporate world, personal headshots are a real priority. It’s not uncommon for new recruitees to be gifted with a perfectly polished professional headshot just moments after stepping through the office doors... On the flip-side, for us start-uppers, throwing on a nice shirt at home and trying to prop up a self-timer on our phones is a much more familiar set-up.
However, projecting a professional and trustworthy image to professional contacts and potential b2b prospects is actually another startup essential. On LinkedIn, just having a picture makes your profile 14 times more likely to be viewed3, so think about the effects of having a stand-out headshot.
Whether it's to enhance your LinkedIn profile, to personalise your email signature or to bring your website’s ‘about us’ page to life, professional headshots are crucial for virtual networking, business development and sales. Learn more about Perfocal's professional headshot photography and gain some inspiration from our other work:
Event Photography
Launch events? Demo days? Networking sessions? Company exhibitions? Hosting any business event or gathering requires masses of planning and preparation, making it all the more important that you capture high quality images of the entire event.
Event photography shows your audience that your startup is active and engaged! Not only can you use the imagery for press release and marketing purposes, but you can use the content to promote similar scheduled events in the future too.
Learn more about Perfocal's event photography and check out some examples of our work below:
Great Photo Shoots for a Great Start
Professional photo shoots don’t need to be an expensive and unnecessary outlay… Perfocal’s photographers are affordable and will work flexibly to accommodate your startup’s timings and exact needs.
As a fellow startup, we appreciate the challenges of growing a company and it may be tempting to take ‘professional’ photos in-house, but trust us on this one! Even the latest iPhone camera doesn’t compare to all the gear our professionals have on set (we’re talking full-frame sensor DSLRs, softbox lighting kits, light reflectors etc).
Now it’s time to book your photo shoot, to elevate your brand's personality and to prove that you might be small, but you still mean business.
Footnotes:
- Etsy - Why Product Photography Is Important 29/05/17
- Marketing Experiments - This Just Tested: Stock images or real people 08/04/11
- LinkedIn - 10 Tips for Picking the Right LinkedIn Profile Picture 05/08/19
