We all need to market ourselves like experts in this over-saturated world, but it’s easy to get hung-up on what to photograph. I LOVE Personal Branding Photography. And I feel that the best way to market yourself is through photography.
I’m not biased at all. 🙂
As a professional photographer, my recommendation is to brainstorm scenarios that would help tell your story…
Today, I want to paint a picture – 6 ideas that you could stage in a photoshoot if you happen to be a Staffing Agency.
I reached out to Gary Ditto of WHO – A Staffing Company. I’ve had the great pleasure of working with and photographing Gary and his team in the past, so I thought it would be perfect to engage him for a more in-depth insight into their day-to-day. How could we turn their day-to-day, their philosophies and values, into story-telling photographs?
First, we need to get to know WHO: their brand promise is to grow our business community through strong relationships and successful connections. WHO has built strong connections both with the business community and talent (in the areas of IT, Sales and Marketing, Operations and HR), allowing them to foster positive connections that promote long-term working relationships. We’re going to apply this knowledge to 6 different stories that we can stage for future branding photoshoots:
Personal Branding Photo Ideas:
How a Staffing Agency like WHO Can Tell Their Story through Personal Branding Photos:
STORY #1: A day in the life of…
In this scenario, we stage the idea of following a member (or multiple members) of the WHO team throughout a routine day at the work. Walking into work. Do they work at a computer? Do they manage paperwork / files? Do they have meetings? Do they talk to fellow coworkers? Do they take phone calls? These are all very easy scenarios to stage. And with a charming smile and fun props, we can create a lot of engaging photographic material. We can also highlight WHO‘s space, including the facade.
STORY #2: A new or returning customer needs WHO’s services…
In this scenario, we know that WHO really gets to know their customers. Interactions with customers might include phone calls, video-calls, meetings in the WHO office or at the customer’s office, meetings over lunch, reviewing potential new hires (recruitment candidates), and the like.
*HOT TIP: Whenever you need “models”, you can always ask your real customers to lend a little time, but you can also use “fake” talent… ask a friend, family member, or even hire talent to pose for your photographs.
STORY #3: WHO begins the task of recruiting new talent…
In this scenario, the WHO team has a lot of work to do. So I imagine showcasing focused, hard-at-work team members reviewing databases, working at their computers, creating listings… sometimes these things can be difficult to illustrate given that many tools are now online. But if we get creative, we can find clear ways to make use of computer screens, projector screens, TV displays, handheld devices (phones), iPads, etc. And if we want to get some old school props, print-outs and writing / highlighting tools can be fun too! With a little photoshop magic, we could even stage something like a newspaper ad! But we also want to be careful not to portray a service or action that WHO wouldn’t typically advise.
STORY #4: WHO introduces new talent to customer…
In this scenario, I imagine that we’ve planned a sit-down with all parties. This means a conference room, multiple models, paperwork/contracts, drinks, speaking, smiling, and laughing. We’ll be shaking hands, telling stories, and taking notes.
STORY #5: WHO celebrates with new talent…
In this scenario, WHO has secured the new talent, and the customer has found their new hire! I imagine that WHO would treat their new talent model to a light lunch or dinner out. There would be laughter, glasses clinking, delicious food. In a setting like this, we could rotate out the models to achieve a look that says we work with many people and we treat them all like royalty!
*HOT TIP: I encourage regular appearing staff models to bring one or two clothing changes. That way as you market with these photographs over the course of months or longer, it looks like our single photoshoot was actually several photo dates. Need some ideas on what to wear? Read “What to Wear to Look Your Best”.
STORY #6: WHO visits their customer to check up on the new talent…
In this scenario, I would imagine that the new hire has been on with the new company for 2-4 weeks. A WHO associate can stop in to check how things are going at the new job, and make sure their customer is feeling thrilled with the perfect recruitment. We would get a tour of the new hire’s work space / responsibilities, as the WHO associate applauds their skills and shows great interest. The WHO associate would also get a private moment with their customer to review their satisfaction. This scenario is nice because it gets the WHO staff out of their own office environment into their customer’s, giving us some variety to the look and fell of their photos.
A set of photographs like this could be used for several months!
A series of photos taken in the above 6 scenarios could be used rigorously for several months throughout all of your marketing avenues. Routinely interjecting new photos into your mix would then allow you to use your photos for years and years to come.
While you’re all into the photo planning, a staffing agency would also do very well to interject team member introductions into a marketing strategy. Professional headshots and/or portraits of each of your team members can go a long way in developing trust with your audience! Check out some samples of what other business owners have done for their own corporate portraits!
