Are you picture perfect?

I was cleaning up my desk the other day and came across a flyer from someone I see at some of the networking events I attend. I kept it because I like this person and would really like to refer business to this individual. But I hesitate, and I’ll tell you why.

The attention to detail of this flyer made me question the quality of their professional services. For starters, the head shot bothered me. It looked like a social snapshot cropped down. In addition, the copy and layout was poor. Thinking about the picture, the choice they made not to use a professional head shot makes me question if this person is at the top of their game. Quite frankly, this does not reflect positively on their brand.

The point I’m trying to make is that everything you do sends a message. The flyer does not send the professional message that I’m sure this person intended. When it comes to marketing our business and ourselves we need to be at our best. In this case, a professionally taken head shot would have dramatically improved the marketing piece.

Having a professional take your photograph is only part of the messaging. The important part of getting a great photo is the preparation. The camera doesn’t lie, so you need to determine how you want to be perceived. For information on how to prepare for a photo shoot, read my article:

Download Picture_Perfect.pdf

Comments

[Sue Brettell]

Diana, what a great article and tip sheet. This addresses one of my great bugaboos – poor online headshots.

I have also written on the subject, but more from a designer's perspective. A link to my article appears on a London Photographer's website (under the BBC1 item): http://www.studiotimephoto.com/Headshots/headshots.html

When I was researching my article I found that there was precious little advice on the net for preparing for a photo session – your tips are an excellent resource and I hope photographers will provide a link to it for their clients.

Congratulations on an immaculately presented website and blog, which is authentic, congruent and highly distinctive. An inspiring example of great personal branding!

[Steve Kosch]

In picture perfect you didn't talk about if a man should wear a tie or not. Maybe an open collar with a sports coat. I know a lawyer needs a tie, what about an entrepreneur?

[Diana Jennings]

Hi Steve,

The issue of whether or not a man should wear a tie for his professional headshot depends on the following:

1)What is his line of work?
2)Who is his target audience?
3)What message does he want to communicate?

When we’re clear on what we want to accomplish, the easier it is to decide what to wear and how to set-up the shots. This is where Personal Branding comes in.

Thanks for the question.

Diana