by Nancy E. Hassel, American Pet Professionals
What’s in a photo? I used to work at a production company when I was a TV Producer and their motto was ‘Images Everything‘ and from a marketing point of view I always thought that was genius and loved the play on ‘Image is Everything’ (Images Everything). 
And this couldn’t be more true in this day and age.  Does a photo stop you in your tracks?  The eyes of the dog who has been in a shelter for years?
From beautiful, quality photos of our shelter pets in need of homes, to professional quality product shots, before and after of a dog grooming client – image is and can be everything when it comes to our business, our rescues and anything we are trying to promote.  
So why then, when you are the face of your brand or business do you not have up-to-date quality photo’s readily available?
Whether you are in rescue, run your own business, YOU absolutely need good quality, professional looking, high resolution photos taken.  Some suggestions and tips are:

• A professional head shot (with and without pets)
• Dress nicely (think business or business casual attire – no logo’d shirts)
• Ladies, even if you don’t wear make up on a regular basis, you should for when having your pictures taken.  It will look better on camera (This goes for any TV shoots you may do too!) 
Have you heard the term, camera ready? 
• If you have a brick and motor – shots of the exterior of your store/building, signage, and you/your staff in front of it. 

• Photo’s of you – doing what you do, are you a dog walker? You walking dogs from different angles/directions.  Are you a veterinarian?  You doing an exam of a pet. Hopefully you get the point!

• Do not take pictures with random people/kids in the background that you may have to get permission to use if their faces are recognizable. (Why would you anyway?)

• Pictures should be CURRENT or within the last 2 years at MOST. (Over the years at different industry events, I have met people in this industry who are using pictures from 15 years ago and I did not recognize them at ALL!)

• Don’t have a current picture? Get them taken soon.
• You should have up to 10 good pictures to have a moments notice, in case you need for press or other promotional purposes.

• Create a dropbox account so you have those pictures readily available from anywhere. 
• If your business is pet products, I highly encourage you to hire a professional photographer to get product shots that are magazine worthy.  (Make these photos an important part of your marketing expenses.)

You can also consult with a photographer about the best lighting, time of day, what obstacles not to have in the photo, (i.e. no trees growing out of your head in the photos), take in account the scenery around you.  And unless you are well-lit by a professional – taking pictures inside may not result in the best looking photos and may be unusable. Remember your image is everything when promoting your own pet business or rescue!
If you are running a business, you should be thinking of this as an incredibly important part of your marketing plan – in this day and age there is really no excuse!
Can’t wait to see your photos! Have any other feedback or questions about photos? Shoot, in the comment section below… 🙂 ]]>