For the past year my clients and fans have watched my logo change twice…my website change more than a handful of times. They have stood by me from the time my CDs were wrapped in jeweled cases, to CDs wrapped in paper doilies, to recycled paper and pink ribbons tied and sealed with a flower. The past 3 years have being a discovery stage for me: Who am I? What and who do I want to shoot? And most importantly…WHY?
It is the easiest thing in the world to look at someones logo, website, style of shooting and even at the style of their clothes and think….IMITATION is the ONLY way….COPYING is the answer. BUT GOODNESS ME…. if you take anything from this post on developing and defining your brand, please take this:
IMITATION AND COPYING ARE THE TWO THINGS THAT WILL RUIN YOU…NOT MAKE YOU SUCCESSFUL.
I was so busy the past 3 years trying to be and even become what I THOUGHT I needed to be to be successful. I tired to wear the black pants, black shirt, black shoes, slicked back hair look because “thats what professional photographers wore.” For anyone that knows the real me NOW…knows I shoot every session with my pink sparkly Toms…hair in a messy bun and some form of PINK/GOLD SPARKLY BOLD JEWELRY.
I tried to buy the most POPULAR blog and website templates from the TOP designers just because I saw photographers I admired doing so. I put in my pepto bismal pink textures, added some sparkle and let my “barbie/elle woods inspired style” speak for itself. I would recieve emails saying, “OMG…we have the same site…so fun.” YAY! : /
But here is the thing…its wasn’t YAY! I felt so defeated. I worked so hard to copy or imitate a fave few photographers….try to put my spin on it…then have someone tell me its just like theirs again?!?! : ( FINALLY…just this past year, a light bulb went off. I was unhappy NOT just because I was no longer the only one with what I thought was “my idea” but I was unhappy because I was focusing TOO HARD on what I thought I should be that I was denying WHO I AM and what REALLY makes me unique. SURE…I adore pink and sparkles. I DO wear only TOMS, adore my Aviators and wish I was a Disney Princess most days. BUT THAT IS ONLY PARRRRT OF ME. I do have a more sophisticated, stylish, serious and creative side that I never addressed because I thought it would cause me to lose my already established client base. I thought people would hate it. Think I was too big for my own britches if you will.
NOW LET ME SAY THIS BEFORE GOING ON ANY FURTHER….The brand I have now has served me so, so well. It has allowed me to build a client base of people who adore the same things I do, appreciate my silly obsessions and most importantly appreciate me and the work I like to create. But, as with anyone in a career….they grow. Change. Grow into their own skin. Embrace every part of themselves, and then and only then do they shine.
One of my amazing designers said this to me…and it changed me: “NEVER BE AFRAID TO BE TOO UNIQUE…No one ever remembers anyone that PLAYED IT SAFE.”
That is what this past year of rebranding has been for me. A year of self-confidence in who I am. Coming to terms with the fact that I AMMMMM A PROFESSIONAL Photographer….when truthfully, it took me so so long to fully admit that. This past year has been my time to figure out what I want to shoot and what I don’t. It has allowed me the chance to embrace, show off and OWN every part of what makes me Kaitlin…the mom, photographer, professional, business owner, wannabe fashionista, and so much more.
I want to guide and inspire everyone reading this….desperate to define and create their own brand….that it starts WITHIN YOU FIRST. Write down everything and anything that defines you and who you are…even whom you WANT to be. Write down how you want you and your brand to make others (fans and your potential clients) FEEL…react…relate. No detail is too small. If you like gummy bears for instance…sure…you may not have a gummy bear on your business cards…or on your blog /site….but YOU COULD include a little package of them when you send out client gifts. Right?
So…
#1. WRITE DOWN EVERYTHING. MAKES LISTS. NO DETAIL TOOOO SMALL. FOCUS ON THINGS THAT MAKE YOU, YOU!
If you are a tangible person like me…meaning you like things you can touch and feel…go out, grab a stack of magazines…BUNNY EAR, HIGH LIGHT, RIP OUT any image you like. Define it by categories. Do you like the lighting? Pose? Composition? Style? Props? LAYOUT? FONT? ANGLE? This all will come in handy when you go to create a site or any marketing material down the line.
OR..
If you are more of a computer tech and like to do things online….PINTEREST. Get to pinning! This will be a great resource for your designer to create a mood board one day that will be the basis upon which your entire brand is actually built! For example….this AN EXCLUSIVE SNEAK PEAK at the mood board used to create my BRAND NEW SITE launching on MAY 7TH. Pretty cool right? Just wait till you see how it translates into a website.
So…..
#2. PIN, BUNNY EAR, RIP OUT, HIGH LIGHT AND MARK ANY IMAGE, STYLE, LAYOUT OR ANYTHING THAT CATCHES YOUR EYE.
When I did this…I was interested to find that I actually like strong, fierce poses where as I once thought I ONLLLLY wanted to be a candid photographer. Turns out….I like BOTH! I was also interested to find that I don’t like HARSH lighting that makes an image look very contrasty. I like more even, soft, but COLORFUL AND SHARP IMAGERY. As for layouts, I found myself gravitating to columns….like in a magazine or newspaper. I love BOLD text, but love when its mixed with different sized and shaped typography as well. All of this and more went into the design of my new brand…so I hope its all evident when you all get to see it.
Once you figure out who you are what you want to shoot, what your style is as far as fonts, layouts, imagery, etc….SHOOT! Pick up that camera, grab some IDEAL MODEL FRIENDS (Meaning, find some people the look, resemble, act, dress, walk and talk like the clients you want to attract) and SHOOT them based on what you like. If you like purely candid…make some jokes…and shoot! : P If you like crazy lighting, moody and dramatic…shoot that. If you love soft, dreamy and romantic…SHOOT IT! As photographers, we are always RE-INSPIRED after we shoot something we TRULY love. It re-motivates us. Excites us. Why? BECAUSE OUR ART IS BUILT ON PASSION. If you aren’t passionate about what you are shooting…how can you expect clients or potential clients to be passionate about it either? Right?!!? These images will come in handy when you solidify your brand and need you own images to reinforce it.
So…
#3. SHOOT AND SHOW, ONLY WHAT YOU WANT TO SHOOT AND SHOW. If you aren’t passionate about it, maybe you shouldn’t be shooting it!
When it came time to send everything to my team of amazing designers, whom I will be bragging about more in depth at a later date, I was able to explain……in WORDS, EXAMPLES AND MY OWN ART who I am, what I wanted, who I want to be, what I want to shoot, HOW I want to shoot it, what I like and don’t like, and most importantly…what I want my future clients to take away from all of that combined. Being able to tell my designers HOW I WANTED my clients to FEEL after experiencing my brand is what actually solidified my entire brands NEW tag line and overall branding experience I want them to have. That my friends is what is going to make my brand and anyones brand that follows these steps successful. I have put 100% of myself into this brand which has allowed it to be SOOO unique, so personalized and so OFFICIALLY AND HAPPILY KNP!!!!
Dump the desire to imitate. Dump the desire to copy. EMBRACE THE DESIRE TO BE SO, SO UNIQUE YOU BELONG IN A CLASS AND LEAGUE OF YOUR OWN. Pretty pictures are a dime a dozen….but if you are you and give your clients an overall experience unlike anyone elses…you my friend with be completely and utterly SUCCESSFULLY AND hopefully HAPPY beyond words just like me! : )
So..
#4. ARTICULATE WHAT YOU WANT AND HOW YOU WANT YOUR CLIENTS TO FEEL. CREATE A 100% UNIQUE EXPERIENCE FOR YOUR CLIENTS THAT NO ONE CAN CREATE BECAUSE NOOOOO ONE IS YOU!
For example….when potential brides, fans and friends come to my website…..I want my them to feel like they just found the golden ticket and no one else could compare. 100% AMAZING, WELCOMING, PRETTY, MIND BLOWING EXPERIENCE NO ONE COULD FORGET. I want them to be able to show their hubbies to be and not have them think im a barbie or someone to be passed up. I want brides to show their moms and have their moms not think I am a pink/sparkles obsessed child…just maybe a SPRAKLY professional. : ) I want them to feel immediately like they are in capable and professional hands with a girl that IS JUST LIKE THEM.
REAL.CLASSY. FUN…AND I ACTUALLY AM OBSESSED WITH WHAT I DO.
I even want my site to have and leave an impression on photographers. “I AM NOT ANOTHER AMONG THE MASSES”…I am to be taken seriously. I am sweet…but I am sassy. I can be traditional in some areas, but edgy in others. I wear my heart on my sleeve and I NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR WHO I AM. ”
I hope these 4 tips help you on your path to creating YOUR BRAND….EXCLUSIVE TO YOU…..NOT WHAT IS WORKING FOR SOMEONE ELSE. Remember you are NOT EVERYONE ELSE….yes, what our mothers have drilled into our heads our whole lives is true….WE ARE NOT LIKE ANYONE ELSE…WE ARE WHO WE ARE FOR A REASON. Embrace that. Run with that. If not, you have NO ONE TO BLAME for your failures and missteps but YOU!
XOXO, Kaitlin Noel
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