Not so very long ago the term ‘Brand Photographer’ didn’t really exist; people were using commercial photographs to shoot the MD, the team, the products, the food, in fact everything that was needed to make the company and its products or services look great!
Look great? Well, to represent the company brand and its brand values; and that means every aspect of a company’s being. It’s what commercial photographers do – right?
Fast forward on a few years and ‘Brand Photographers’ are everywhere, all claiming to be able to help your business sell more products and services by ‘telling your brand story’.
But the truth is, this isn’t something new. And as I alluded to above, this kind of photography has been around since advertising first began, and good commercial photography has always been used to represent companies and the products and services they are trying to sell.
Whether it’s labelled ‘brand photography’, ‘business’ or ‘commercial’, the aim is the same; to make your business stand out by being able to convey to your customers who you are, what you do and why, in an instant. This imagery might end up on a website, or on M&S Slow roasted lamb shank, or indeed in the company report and accounts.
I’ve a ton of respect for good commercial photographers, yet all too often, I’m seeing an ever-growing trend towards photographic mediocrity, and that’s a shame.
Where am I going with this?
Good or even amazing commercial photography is just that, so before you employ a ‘brand photographer’ have a look at their work, online usually, and ask yourself; is this really great stuff and will it enhance the visual aspects of my marketing efforts?
A few words on ‘brand’. ‘Brand’ is not just how YOU look. Your brand permeates every part of the business you work in. And if you’ll forgive the leap, spend a moment when you’re next in M&S or Waitrose, and have a look at the massive investment they make in their food photography – it really is defining their brand and any single photograph will have taken an age to perfect. And how well does that work!
How can you get the best results for you and your business?
A little more about commercial photographers. Like any creative or artistic person, they are generally great at some stuff, and less so at other things, and you’ll see this reflected in the work they show online.
There is a bigger conversation about photography and how you use it in your business. Good photography tells a story, about you, your staff, your products and services, so you do need to think more about how your business looks to the outsider.
If on the other hand you’ll looking for better images of yourself, or perhaps your team, look for a local commercial photographer (local means less travel costs) and look at the images on their website and see if some of the images inspire you. You might like the home page image on my website, that was taken by Marcus Ahmad.
You might also like these images taken by Nick Cole – they really tell a warm, human story for me about his client, Joe’s Bakery in Bristol.
What next?
If you’d like a conversation about your brand, or how your company comes across, and how to choose a commercial photographer, please get in touch.
And finally, ask yourself, what are you setting out to achieve? And if it’s because you want more sales, well, that’s really is my bag, and I’d welcome the opportunity of a conversation with you.
