Today, I’m (Jamie – Todd’s other half) back for a guest post. A comment on Todd’s Tuesday post has riled me up and required me to end my months-long silence. So, here’s the comment from Cate Waters:
“Todd – I am not sure you really answered his questions here honestly. What I got out of it was he wanted to know how to communicate his brand and continue that brand with the clients he HAS to take since right now he cannot pick and choose.
I second shot alot of weddings (5) and used those photos as examples of what I considered my work. When I meet with brides/grooms — I show them these photos and explain that I have a few goals in every shot I take. (I love B&W, emotion, deep colors and unique angles. I avoid traditional, low contrast, and posing unless its required.) Other than that, I don’t have a brand or speech I prepare for them. Is that technically a brand? Is that Me being choosy?
Also, do we want to take every client even if their needs mean we have to change these goals? If so, do we take the photos their way or our way? If we take them their way, do we show them on our public sites?
I hope I am helping flesh out what I think his question was… .and I think there is ALOT more information you can share. This blog post was pretty general and rah-rah in my opinion but didn’t really tell me anything other than, “don’t give up, i struggle too, i understand”. Well honestly, I don’t care if you understand, I read your blog for your HELP because you understand! 
“
And my response:
I think it’s a bit unfair to say that Todd didn’t answer this question honestly. In fact, brutal honesty has always been the policy around here.
The answer to your question can be found here in Todd’s post:
“Honestly, in order to build a brand you have to have an opinion about how things should be done and you have to stick to it and communicate that in everything you do. In reality, it doesn’t take “being established” to build a brand – you have to have a brand in order to establish yourself. What being established gives you is some experience to know that what you are doing is the right thing. Your opinion might shift and change over time (or might be reinforced) so all that your established reputation will get you is more confidence in your opinion.”
There is work and thought that has to be done on your part outside of anybody’s blog or educational anything. I know in this day and age when it seems like the answer to any question you seek can be found for free somewhere on the internet that’s a hard pill to swallow, but branding requires you to do some hard work. It’s not an easy answer. It’s unlikely you can sum up your brand in the industry trend of three words (Fun, Candid, Natural- as Michael identifies in his follow up post to yours). Nearly every photographer in the marketplace could use those three words. If your “brand” could be applied that broadly to your market, it’s not really your brand. You have to go deeper. You have to figure out what you believe- what you stand for. Why you are perfect for your perfect client and why they should hire you. Nobody can tell you that but you. Your brand probably doesn’t (at its core) have much to do with photography or even style- especially nowadays just focusing on the photography is probably nowhere near enough to differentiate you from the massive sea of competition. Sure, your look and your style are a part of your brand, but they are probably not your core. There are plenty of other folks that can take photos that look just like, or better than or pretty darn close to yours. And I can say that without looking at your work. Clients are rarely photography experts. And there is plenty of great or good or good enough out there for them to find someone they like at a price they are willing to pay. So you have to give them something more- something that goes beyond the function of the photography. A need that must be fulfilled- that makes the right clients connect with you and understand why you are the perfect choice for them. Something that communicates your value.
And- it’s really not about picking and choosing. I guess it’s become pretty en vogue to brag about having turned away a “red flag” client or somebody that doesn’t “get” you. But I think if that’s happening with any regularity, it’s probably because you’re not doing what it takes up front to communicate who you are and what you do and why you do it so that the right people can identify that they are in fact the right people and the wrong ones can be turned off before they ever get to you. It’s about communicating your value in a client focused way so that the right ones pick YOU. You have the ability to do that at any point in your career. Experience doesn’t necessarily give you a huge leg up on your branding. It just gives you more supportive portfolio. But, you can communicate a brand with one image. So, not having tons of portfolio really isn’t a good excuse for having a crap brand either.
There is no magic bullet- nobody but you can hand you your brand. It is possible for somebody to pull it out of you- but that takes some intense work on their part, and it still has to come from you, and there’s still a lot of hard work involved on your part to implement your brand once it has been discovered (just ask anybody who has been through the Sexy Business Workshop). If you don’t know what it is for you, then keep shooting, keep thinking, keep soul searching until you do. But don’t give yourself an out, either. Because so far, I’ve yet to meet a photographer that has done the work and not come up with a strong, valuable, differentiated brand. If you need some more thought provocation, there are over 200 free posts on this blog alone to help trigger your brand discovery.
Once you know, then you have to commit to that in everything you do and communicate to successfully build a brand. And the way that a brand manifests itself will vary depending on the brand. It’s really impossible to be specific to one photographer’s situation without having a deep, in-person conversation with them and examining and understand all aspects of the business we’re talking about. This isn’t fluff work.
Now, to be completely realistic, you may have to take clients that aren’t 100% ideal if you need the money (most all of us have to do that from time to time)- but there is always a compromise. You take the money because you need it, but your brand gets just a tiny bit weaker when you do. I believe once you sign a contract with a client, it is your job to do what it takes to satisfy that client, even if it means taking the photos “their way”, within reason. But, it doesn’t mean everything is ruined for you and your brand, either. You certainly don’t have to make the wedding you do just for the money your next showcase portfolio piece. It really all depends on your own personal situation, and if you do have the luxury to sit back and wait for the “perfect” or if you need to pay your bills. Then again, even if you take the work for the money, it doesn’t mean you can’t do a little bit of “perfect”, “your way”, brand specific shooting within the context of an “imperfect”, “their way” event- you’re the one with the camera in your hands. There are no rules. You can show whatever you like on your public site and hide what you don’t.
Beyond that, you have to be willing to do the work. We can ask you the right questions, but the answers are found within yourself. And, at the risk of sounding a bit snarky (though, I think in keeping with the tone of the comment) I think it’s a little presumptuous to insist that anyone needs to hand over the keys to the castle, especially on a free blog. The truth is, there aren’t any keys to be had if you don’t have an opinion of your own, if you don’t have anything that you believe in and stand for in your business. Or if you’re not willing to do the work it takes to discover it.
But since you brought it up that there is, in fact, ALOT more information to share, here’s a tidbit of some of that said information that are on-topic with this post, and please feel free to peruse the archives for more:
Thanks for reading. If you haven’t already check out yesterday’s podcast with Jamie of The Modern Tog. If you’re having trouble dealing with those red flag clients her new e-book The Go-To Guide to Client E-mails might be a big help.
