Hockley Photography» Business

Don’t Water Down Your Business with Generic Stock Photos

Aaron — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:00:16 +0000

You’re a smart businessperson. You’re updating your website, brochures, and other marketing materials with current information about your products, services, and company. Perhaps you’re launching an entirely new venture, or perhaps you’re just refreshing things a bit for a fresh look. Fresh is good.

As you make this smart business move, don’t decrease the return on your marketing and messaging investment. Below you’ll find two solid reasons to avoid a common misstep. Don’t miss out on the ability to best represent your company by using generic stock photography.

Stock Photography Isn’t You

If I sit down at a restaurant and discover that the photos on the menu aren’t images of that eatery’s food, how confident will I be in the quality? What’s your impression of a company without any sort of custom logo, type, or identifying branding?

How would your clients feel if they’re browsing your website or flipping through your brochure and there aren’t any photos of you or your employees? If you’re using generic images related to your industry instead of pictures of your products, what message are you sending?

Potential clients are going to wonder why you’re not advertising you.

Readers Filter Stock Images and Ignore Them

Putting aside the issue of your client wondering why you’re not using your own imagery, there’s another great reason not to use stock photos in your marketing: they get ignored. Photos for the sake of photos aren’t helpful; photos which provide insight into your business, products, and services will garner attention.

As a photographer, of course I’d love to sell you some photos. As a businessperson, you should only pay for photos that make sense: photos for your business representing your ideas and your people. If you’re ready to do that, contact me and let’s make it happen. But please don’t spend money on photos that aren’t really you and won’t be effective.

Elected to the PMPA Board of Directors

Aaron — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:32:08 +0000

Yesterday the membership of the Portland Metropolitan Photographer’s Association (PMPA) elected a new board of directors for the coming year; I’m pleased to announce that I’ve been elected to a position on the board. I will be serving as the Social Director.

The PMPA is the local affiliate of the Professional Photographers of America; our group provides professional development and networking opportunities that allow photographers to strengthen their photography and business skill. We have a good mix of some returning board members as well as a few new faces and I’m looking forward to working with the group’s leadership to increase the social opportunities for interaction and photography.

If you’re a photographer in the Portland area and not yet a member of PMPA, please join me for an upcoming meeting. Drop me a note and I can provide more information.

86% of Your Business’ Website Visitors Are Looking for This

Aaron — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 15:30:38 +0000

When I talk with business owners and managers about photography, a few types of images often come up in the conversation:

product images
office photos
event photography

Headshots or business portraits can also be important for one’s personal brand, but they’re just as important to a company brand. I recently conducted a poll on Twitter, asking:

Do you routinely look at “About Me” or “About our Team” pages [on websites]? Here are the results:

When nearly all of your website’s visitors are checking out the pages that describe your business and personnel, are they seeing a bland text description or are they going to see interesting photographs of your personnel or offices? Whether you’re a solopreneur or a business with a lot of employees, a well-crafted About page can help your web visitors form an impression and begin a relationship with you.

You’re interesting. Your clients (and potential clients) are going to be exploring your website to find out more about you. Show them the whole picture (pun intended).

One final thought: does your About page leave visitors with all of their questions answered, or does it leave them wanting to contact you to find out more?

How is Photography Pricing Calculated?

Aaron — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 21:29:47 +0000

Pricing seems to be one of those mysteries in the photography world that can end up confusing potential clients. I aim to make things as simple as possible with a flat-rate pricing model that ensures my clients don’t run into any surprises.

I recently updated my pricing page to offer both the quick summary of how my pricing works as well as more details and backstory for those curious to learn more.

If you’re looking for great images without pricing and billing hassle, let’s talk!

Your Personal Brand and Your Profile Photo

Aaron — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 03:07:56 +0000

As our economy is shifting, one’s personal brand becomes important. Managing one’s presence has always been important for the self-employed but in an increasingly-connected world, even employees of larger companies find it important to manage one’s identity such that they’re perceived in a favorable way. Social media options such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ heighten the importance of being able to present a consistent, professional image.

Last week I read an article called “The CEO of ME” which discussed ten tips for establishing and maintaining your personal brand. Number six on their list is “Get a headshot.”

I couldn’t agree more. Let’s work together and create some photos which show you in your element, either traditional headshots or environmental portraits. Here’s how to contact me.