Are you a stock photo junkie?

Do you spend hours on FREE stock photo sites just searching for the right image? And struggling to find exactly what you’re looking for because either the colours where wrong, or they were in a location that didn’t fit?

You choose photos that could be you (possibly) and suit the aesthetic of your insta feed but are most definitely not you?

And you have a sneaking suspicion that you’re not fooling anyone 😂.

I came across an insta feed last week that was so beautiful. It was filled with branded quotes, all the colours were perfect and it has a really cohesive feel.

But it didn’t have a single bit of personality.

All the photos were clearly stock photos. They were very obviously different people in each photo. They were pretty but you couldn’t really get any feel for the person behind the brand.

And at some point it’s likely that your customers are going to want to see who you are and what your face looks like.

Even if you’re an online business and you NEVER meet people in person, your clients will trust you more if they see your face occasionally.

So do this instead

Don’t stop using stock images

You dont have to stop using stock images, just be even more selective about the ones you do use.

Maybe have a look at premium stock sites like SOCIALFILLER or Adobe Stock and only choose images of people that could actually be you (though I appreciate thats going to be a huge job, finding them).

Only choose the best quality images too – so that it looks professional and cohesive with the rest of your images.

If you do use FREE stock sites, avoid images that come up first…everyone will use them…like this one, which I’ve seen everywhere.

Create a media library

Once you have an idea of the types of photos that you want to use, and you have a clear visual identity, then it might be worth starting your own media library…in something like Dropbox so you always have access to your images, wherever you are.

Take a look at this post I did where I talk about 9 reasons for getting a Media Library.

Have a personal branding shoot

Theres no getting around it.

If you want bespoke photos for social media and your website, it makes sense to get your own photos taken.

You can be sure that no-one else is using them and they don’t have to just be your face.

Even though the cost of an image on a site like Adobe Stock photos is only about £5 per image, over the year, thats going to add up.

A half day branding shoot will give you over 200 images, so works out at about £3 per image (or less if we get more images).

DIY your branding photos

And if a Branding shoot is completely out of question for the time being, then grab a friend and go somewhere nice (a hotel, a cafe, a park) and copy some of the photos you see online.

Create a PINTEREST board of the types of photos you’d like to get and try a recreate them. The newer mobile phones take such good photos these days, thats theres no excuse not to be showing up on your feed!

Thanks

PS—————-> Don’t forget my next BRANDING DAY is on 22nd October at a beautiful house in Leeds.