It takes a lot of images to keep up with all the marketing in your business right now. From daily social media posts, general business marketing, and adding images to your digital assets like your worksheets, opt-ins, welcome packs, etc. If you are not a photographer like me, where the heck do you source professional images from that you can just use for all these purposes?
Well, there are a bunch of Stock libraries out there that have a clever search engine to find the right images for your business.
Take a look at Adobe Stock, Shutter Stock, and Behance just to name a few, but let me warn you, many of the images you find will have a foreign flavour. I feel like I can tell a genuine Australian landscape v’s an American one, even the images of people, the cultural mix is different, clothing style is different! So if you are reaching an Aussie audience then you want images with the Australian flavour. The images on these stock libraries are generic in nature as well, so while they might serve the “good enough for now” purpose what I would encourage you to do instead is to create your own images that speak to your ideal audience, have the Aussie flavour, and aren’t the same as a million other people are using in their business.
I call this the custom Image Library and it can be made up of photos of you, your team, you recording your podcast, your products, your work area, and scenes from your lifestyle such as your yoga days. You get the idea.
Let me share a list of prompts to help you get started to think about what photos you’ll need for your business in the next 3-6 months:
- What events will you be marketing?
- What are your digital offerings that require a custom image?
- What stories and articles will you be sharing on LinkedIn and Substack in general?
- What gaps do you need to fill with new images on your website?
- Are there areas on your website where you can replace an icon, with a photo?
- What conversations do you have on socials? Do you have images to support this?
- Tools of the trade, show people what you use to create the magic in your business.
- Have you got engaging custom imagery for your Facebook Ads?
- Do you have enough cover images for your Pinterest downloads or Opt-In pages?
As you go through the first quarter of 2023, why not jot down ideas on the types of images that would best tell the story of your business. If you need a little help with coming up with ideas, drop me a line over at grace@gracecosta.com I’d be more than happy to brainstorm a shot list with you, but take a look at what I’ve done for my own business in the images below.
Personally, I have taken the time to create even more useful images to add to my 2023 Image Library. Thanks to my friends, Tracy Lee and Jodie DeRome, I’ve refreshed my images for the Grace Costa Photographer brand. Let me share with you the things I added to my photo library.
We took new headshots, lifestyle shots, and behind the scenes shots for my business. This means for the first 6 months of the year I won’t be stuck for images to post on social media. My website is now full of images I’m really proud of and that represent me, and my brand as a photographer and creative businesswoman.
For my business, I need storytelling images that show my audience what it looks like behind my brand. But notice there are no photos of me with a laptop?! I’m keeping it real because I love to use good old-fashioned paper planners to run my business, mine is from Kikki K! Truth be told, I don’t even use a laptop (desktop all the way!). I use images that give clues about the way my business works, (the diary planning shot). I use images that are lifestyle focussed (the journal and the vision board shot) so I can write engaging social media captions to build engagement, usually, the shots that rank the most likes are ones with my hands and my friendly face.
Let me share a list of prompts to help you get started to think about what photos you’ll need for your business in the next 6 months:
- What events will you be marketing?
- What are your offerings that require a custom image?
- What stories and articles will you be sharing on LinkedIn and social media in general?
- What gaps do you need to fill with new images on your website?
- Are there areas on your website where you can replace an icon, with a photo?
- What conversations do you have on socials? Do you have images to support this?
- Tools of the trade, show people what you use to create the magic in your business.
- Have you got engaging custom imagery for your Facebook Ads?
- Do you have enough cover images for your Pinterest downloads or Opt-In pages?
As you go through the first quarter of 2023, why not jot down ideas on the types of images that would best tell the story of your business. If you need a little help with coming up with ideas, drop me a line over at grace@gracecosta.com I’d be more than happy to brainstorm a shot list with you, but take a look at what i’ve done for my own business in the images below.
When you are ready to make your marketing and social media posting a whole lot easier using new images, take a look at my Personal Branding Packages I’m here to help your business shine with custom, storytelling images that will connect to your audience.
Portraits of me for my business are by the lovely Tracy Lee Photography and the lifestyle shots are by Jodie DeRome.
If you are in need of fresh new images for your business marketing, I’m taking bookings in Canberra for Feb – March 2023. Simply email me at grace@gracecosta.com or head to my branding packages to find out more about what’s involved in one of my sessions. If you are a corporate business please email me for a custom quote.
