We’ve all heard the line, “It’s business, nothing personal”, in hundreds of movies and television shows. But in most lines of work, that approach is a recipe for disaster.
Our personalities define not only us as people but the kind of service we provide our clients. Most people would not achieve any level of success without injecting at least some aspect of their personality into their roles. We have all seen how some people’s personalities are more important to their success than the bill of goods they are selling. Thankfully, that sort of cult of personality does not work for most. For most of us, there needs to be an aspect of both personality and professionalism for our customers and clients to do business with us.
This combination applies to more than just our personal interactions with coworkers and clients. It is also a key part of successfully marketing ourselves and our businesses. The best example I can remember came from the Australian camera bag and luggage company Crumpler. Their online personality is offbeat, irreverent, and sometimes suggestive. But all that personality is backed up by excellent, high-quality products, several of which I own. As they have become more successful, Crumpler has tempered their messaging a bit. But browsing their site can still be quite an entertaining experience.
The combination of personality and professionalism is a huge factor in the success of visual imaging and marketing as well. Images with too much or none of either will not connect with the people you are trying to reach. That goes for both business clients and business colleagues. Headshots and images that are sterile and all business make zero personal connection with the people you want to do business with while images that are focused on your personality or are just a “great shot” of you do very little to tell people you are a subject matter expert in your business.
This is why my headshot sessions are not over when the photography is done. All my sessions, whether a full individual session in my studio or a ten-minute session as part of an on-location team headshot event, end with guided image selection. While the decision on which images they select is ultimately theirs, I keep my subjects on track by reminding them that, first and foremost, their headshots are marketing tools. Of course, we are going to select images that look great and tell the viewer something about their personality. But those same images must, at the same time, portray them as businesspeople who are subject matter experts in their industry.
Take an honest look at not only your headshots but all the images you are using to market yourself and your business. Do they stand out as great professional images that communicate your personality and your professionalism? If not, setup a free 30-minute consultation, and we will talk about what we can do to upgrade your visual marketing.