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Lesson Info

Living Your Brand: Inside the Studio: On–Location

I'm so excited about today's lesson. We're gonna talk about inside the studio in real life, branding all about the brand that we've built here at the student, giving you an inside look at what happens in a true to life space. So you're going to see exactly how our brand has built over the years and we're actually in the process of rebranding. So I'm gonna talk to you a little bit about how our logos changing and what things they're gonna look like as we progress into the next five year lifespan of jewel images. This is an important lesson because it will help those beginning out. But it's also gonna help those veterans of people who have been around a while. And maybe you're thinking about rebranding, should you or should you? Not so one of the most important things about branding that I want to talk to you a little about about first before we actually get into the studio. Here is about your identity, and Sarah Petty once said, You cannot build a strong brand on a week identity, and I ...

think those words have run true to me ever since she said them so What is an identity? It's you. It's your soul. It's your life. It's everything that means something to you. As an artist, A lot of people have trouble building a brand. They don't get confused, they get lost. They want toe, pick things from different areas and try to combine them instead of being really authentic and true to themselves. And unidentified. E has to come authentically from you and what you love. So once you have that identity, then you can start building the brand from it. I want you to think of your brand as the face of your business. Basically, it's personality. You know, we've talked in previous lessons about the brand, the difference between branding and marketing. And I want to reiterate one of those phrases that we spoke about earlier in the week. Marketing is tactical. Branding is strategic. Branding is a long term process. Branding is what's left over in the room. Once the marketing efforts have swept through it, it's the impression you leave behind to your client and it should permeate every part of their soul. Ah, brand should speak to every sense smell, tough touch, taste, hearing visual. It's not just a logo and your packaging materials. It's so much more than that. So I'm gonna take you a little bit before we kind of go into the current status of my studio space. I want to take you back to where it was when we started. When I moved into the space six years ago, we had fluorescent walls, a white stealing red floors. Okay, 30 years of carpet and paint on the ground that had to come off. It was just dingy, tired and mishmash. And you can see that little red arrow down there at the bottom of your screen. Well, now look at it. I am standing in that exact same location in our studio. This has been or it was at the time, three or four months of just every night and every weekend, tearing this place apart and touching every surface. When it comes to paint carpet, anything in everything designed decor, all for the integrity of the brand. I wanted to build something here that wasn't just half effort. It had to be all or nothing. And I think that's what I want to encourage you to do. And I hear so much from photographers just starting out, or even those who have been in business a while. This cost so much money, I don't have the money for it. And trust me, I understand where you're coming from. I was in the same boat. But if I can impart into you how important it is to have a high quality brand, you will think differently. The brand elevates everything in the business. It just lifts everything up to leave such a lasting impression on the client and consumer. You can't afford not to have that impression on your clients. And yes, it will cost the money in the beginning. But the long term benefit that you gain from that is tenfold. So really focus. You set a budget, obviously don't go crazy, but set a budget and pace yourself. But build always, always do things and spend money with the overall impression of the brand in mind and don't buy things that weren't going to contribute to that brand. Kind of the biggest advice I would give to you when it comes to building a space or a brand that's effective for you. So I've been with my logo for probably 10 years, now, and it's kind of getting sale. It's not really me anymore. I feel like it just doesn't sparkle or shine or ring. True to the handmade quality of the images that we provide the fine art status of them, it doesn't really lend itself true to the feminine, the feminine contemporary look that I wanted for my business. The logo I have now is like this. It's a little traditional. The little Icahn around the outside was added as an afterthought. It wasn't I kind of did this back when I was starting out, and now I feel like it's time for a change. So we have rebranded and made the logo much more handmade, much more feminine but still contemporary and classic enough that it will last the ages. And I wanted to point out that we are rebranding because it's okay to do so. Where artists are styles change over time, we grow in different ways and you need to ring true to that in yourself. However, it's important not to change the brand too much or too often. I've seen so many photographers who change their local like every year. That is a no no, don't do that. I think of it as the face. If I went and had plastic surgery every year, you think I was nuts? You think it was a girl? I'm gonna trust her. So keep that I want to compare it to the logo is the face of your business. The brand is the style in the personality, and it should be consistent and thought through and applied every single time you make a decision in your studio. So keep in mind, the decision to rebrand is a momentous one. So don't take it lightly. I considered changing my logo for about a year and 1/2 before I actually did it. So be slow, methodical and thoughtful about rebranding and make sure it's something that's gonna last another 10 years. OK, so when I stay coping with your identity, I mean be true to it. I want you In the previous lessons. We've talked about the els of identity in the els of branding the logo, the look, that likability, the lure, the love and loyalty and the linguistics of the brand, all of things. These things factor into how your client feels about your business, and overall that's what a brand is. It's how your clients, when they leave the front door, what's the impression they have of that business? What sticks with them over the long haul? What do they say to their friends about you as your personality and your business, about the personality of your business? So every time you make a decision when it comes to your branding, ask yourself if it's contributing to those words that your clients are saying about you in the outside world. So how do you develop a brand? We've talked a little bit about this, but I want to read a reader reiterated a little bit more in the environment of my own studio. Well, first of all, it starts with you, the art artist and your artistic style. So hone in on that and it will take a long time. Guys, it took me five years to really develop a sense of photographic artistry and style that I loved and felt was true to me. You have to get down that road where you're driving, driving, driving and you're not distracted by the squirrels. Way all get distracted by the squirrels. Oh, pretty, that's so beautiful. I love what shes doing. I'm gonna try that way. Have to do that in the beginning. We gotta stop and see the sights along the way because those squirrels are just screaming at us to try something new toe, learn a technique or because we fall in love with with what other artists are doing. But once you've tried those things and you have to try it, you'll start to develop what you love as your own path in your direction. And then once you're on that road, you'll see the squirrels and go, Oh, pretty. But I don't need to stop and look OK, that's the point where once you get to that, once you get to that destination in your style, you'll know it and you will feel like, Oh, I love what this photographer is doing. This artist is so pretty, but I don't need to go there. It's not me. I can appreciate it, but I'm gonna go down my path and my road. And once you get to that, then you kind of know you've developed your own style as an artist. Once you develop that style, just know that that will help you uncover define and solidify your brand because part of us as artists, we actually have it pretty easy there than the branding department, because other companies out there have to really hone in on the personality of the business as a separate entity from them. Whereas us were artists, so our brand is us. It's who we are. Our art comes from our soul and our heads in our in our lives, and that translates beautifully into our work and into our brand. So it's easier for us to develop a brand because it's just who we are. It's also scarier. It's scarier because we're basically saying, Here's my soul on a platter Isn't it worth paying for? Isn't it worth giving me money for? And that's extremely insecure building. I mean that, like, gets at the heart of what we, as artists feel so insecure about. I mean, we just our self esteem just goes up and down based on whether or not someone's willing to pay for the heart and soul. We just put into an image. So that's why it's harder. But take heart in the fact that it's easier because it really is just about you and your love. You don't have to second guess your brand because if you're being truly authentic to who you are, that's what your brand is going to become. So look at your personal loves. What do you like in the world? Interior and exterior design. I tend to get ah, lot of inspiration from interior and exterior architecture. Home design. That kind of thing really floats my boat. I love that. So look at your personal loves movies, fine art colors that you love, anything like that movies And finally, most of all, look at your purpose. Why do you do what you do? Why didn't get out of bed in the morning? And why should any of your customers care that you dio when you can answer that question and brand yourself from that purpose? You're gonna have huge success in developing a brand that's powerful, unique and authentic to you to who you are. So now that we understand it, let's apply it. Okay, we're going to go into my studio. Look at my brand, what we've built over the course of the six years here and, you know, I want you to take note that it's one thing to learn about branding, but it's another to actually see it in reality in its entirety. So I'm hoping that by taking you inside my studio, you'll be able to see the difference and actually live it and own it a little bit. So we're I want you to take note of a few things. The logo. Obviously I've showed you that a little bit and how we're rebranding the look and the merchandising of products is critical that merchandising in real estate in my studio is some of the most coveted territory in my studio. So I want to make sure I present our best and most beautiful products in those spaces. I want you to look at the likeability of the space to my target demographic, which is women moms who are just having babies. Moms who are kind of mid career who are designing their homes. Think about it from their perspective. What lures them into the space? What makes them go? Ooh, on have that feeling of. I like it here. What will make them loyal for as far as customer service perspective and what they see here, what will make them be an evangelist for my studio and broadcast its praises toe all their friends and family, hence giving us a reputation in the community that stellar. Okay, what about language? How language is used throughout the studio and what language I want to impart on my client's again to take it out of the studio. So we're gonna go inside my space for a look at things and kind of show you what everything's about in a very detailed level. Keep in mind of how we hit all the senses visual sound, taste, touch and what you hear. All those things are critical to creating an overall impression to your consumer, to your client, because that impression is what they leave with when they go out your door. And that impression is what you want them to talk about once they get out there. Guys, first impression is everything. And I'm so excited to give you the first impression of this space that's been a labor of love for about six years. This segment, of course, it's all about branding and rebranding, and the first impression is so critical to the clients impression of you. So many people ask us, Do you live here, and that's exactly the feeling that I wanted them tohave. Why? Because when they look at the products, they see the wall pieces. They see the albums. They can envision it in their homes. It's cozy enough. It's comfortable enough. It's warm and inviting. And that's the impression that I want to give in my brand and to my clientele So they can really envision that their pieces will look the same in their own space. Every single client who walks through the door. And, of course, the Creativelive crews here today. We say, Welcome to the studio with a chalkboard sign. It's just a charming way to say hello and welcome and make them feel like we're here for them. And there are most important client and on Lee client of the day. Because it's true, we don't take more than one session a day because I wanna have that time to spend with my client, and that brand impression is really, really important to me. The other thing I want you to notice is the products on the walls. Okay, we have very high end specific products on the spaces that are the hottest real estate. Okay, This happens to be what we call our word walls, where we've combined imagery from a client session with phrases, little, little words, little. QUOTABLES here and there sometimes famous, sometimes things that we've thought of ourselves. We print them in different formats and combine framed pieces with canvases integrated to create a charming and endearing look and products that really fit into a client's home that looks designed. It's not just about imagery. It's not just about slapping a picture on the wall and calling it good. It's about taking that image and elevating it to the next level into a product that's its own unit. Okay, the other thing that you'll notice is we do have some of our top awards listed. I was hesitant about doing that, but over the years I've discovered that my clients really love looking at that kind of thing, and it definitely elevates the fine art brand in their minds. They know that we work hard to continually push ourselves in competition, that I'm really devoted to doing that. I'm passionate about it, and then I always want to improve my my craft. And when are pure groups meaning other professional photographers and judges evaluate that to be in high esteem than to the client. That seems like clearly we're doing something right and that we are artists, not just picture takers. As I like to call it. We have albums on display here. Everything is designed to look like it's in a home or space. I want you to think about those cells we talked about about the logo. Our logo is on almost every single print or album in the studio. I want to talk about the look. That's kind of what we're going through now is the look of the space, the feeling, What kind of emotion do you want to impart on your clients when they walk in your front door? That likability do they like what they see and experience and touch and smell. And here we always have music going when a client first walks in. Obviously we didn't do that this time so that you guys could hear my audio, okay, but the music I usually play is very soft. Little contemporary, some words, just mellow music that brings that energy level toe a calm state. Moms who come in here usually pretty frazzled. I mean deer in the headlights. Look, they've just had a baby. Just getting out the door was hard enough as it is to get here. All I want them to do is get here, and that's what I communicate to them. I want them to know that we've got it handled when we when they arrive. And so when that music they hear it, they just start to calm down and they realize, OK, we're OK. And when they come into the space, all of a sudden it's comfortable and they can sit here and relax and watch what happens in the camera room and know that we're gonna take care of their baby and that the baby is safe and comfortable and happy. Strategically, we have displays over this area here, including things that they might do with their own personal effects, little baby hats in the hospital, bracelets and footprints and ultrasound images. All these things layer to the products, and I hope that you can see that in a product display like this. This display would probably retail for over $3500 if a client was to purchase it, and that's exactly what I want to be the case. I want the high end products really showcased the best in the spaces that the clients are going to be in for a long period of time, and they can really look, examine and study and get and fall in love with the things they see. And, of course, that's the next L love. Are your clients in love with what? What you dio do they like who you are and what the brand is, the personality of the company in the face of the business. And, you know, have you lured them in? The whole point of doing high end branding is to lure the client into the space to make them wish it was their own. And that's what I hear. A lot of clients tell me they wish the space with theirs and that they could live here. And that, to me, is a huge compliment. And it means that the branding we're doing is correct. Other product merchandising There are album's ready, readily available on the table that clients can finger through and look at, see the quality of and get excited about the fact that their session is gonna be very similar. I do albums with single sessions. I don't mix images from different sessions because I want the client to see that their album could be the same way, with images of the same baby throughout. There's birth announcements and charming things to get the client interested in stuff that maybe extra add on sales things that maybe they haven't thought of. To begin with, that kind of thing again lures them to purchase more. So, guys, it's all about that first impression. It's all about wanting your client Teoh to number one, luring them in, making them like what you dio and fall in love with. What's the potential is for their own artwork that you're gonna be creating. For them, it means making a good first impression and merchandising your products to the maximum potential that they can. You can create for yourself in that department. You want your client to spend a lot of money. You want your client to come into your space and realize, Oh my gosh, this is awesome. It's not what I expected, and I may be spending a little bit more money than I intended. That is a successful brand, and for them toe like doing that and be okay with it and own it and walk out the door, having spent twice what they spent with a smile on their face, that is, except sex for sale session that is a successful artistic session that is a client who is in love with you and will be a loyal evangelist for everything you dio. Even in a small space like the nursery, branding is always at the top of my mind. I want to make sure the spaces cozy. I'm thinking about texture, color, just the overall vibe when I designed the space and I call it a nursery for the reason I'm a newborn photographer, so I want to translate those spaces into my client's home as well. So the merchandising of the product is all over the walls. I want the client to think of their own nursery that they can do the same things in their own space, things like just creature comforts for the client from a changing station that's fully stocked with emergency plus supplies and diapers and diaper creams and wipes and blankets, anything and everything that if Mom forgot, I've got it covered that to me is part of the customer service and the brand. But you can see the colors in here are a little darker, a little cozier. I want Mom to relax. I want her energy to go down. This is where she's gonna be feeding baby. So I want her to feel like it's the late evening in the middle of the night and she's just feeding her baby like she always would, because that really does help me in the session. It calms baby down as well. But everything in the studio I'm sure you can see has been designed in the color scheme of the of the brand and look of the brand as even down to the clothing eyewear. I mean, everything I'm so conscientious about when I see a client I wanted to coordinate. It doesn't have too matchy matchy, but it all has to have the same feeling, the same vibe, the same impression. And I think that's the key. Take home word for you guys. When it comes to branding, make sure you leave an impression and a good one at that. Branding is so many things. It's about your identity. It's about your style. It's about your creative works, and even in your camera room, your brand is about the impression that you make on your client and in our camera room. That's huge to me. I really want to make sure that not only can I see all my props and backgrounds and blankets and things like that for a newborn photography, for all of you, my creative vision, but also I kind of want my clients to see it, too. And when they see it looking really organized and beautiful and color coordinated, it gets them really excited about the session. It gets them thinking about color and creativity, and it makes them realize that we are about the creativity and that's part of our identity. So displaying your props and stuff well is critical to the impression that you leave on your client. I mean, even when it comes down to these little chalkboard signs, they're all left with some kind of phrase or cute saying on them to reinforce the concept of that brand and same with our prop storage. When clients come in the camera room and they see the props up here, they're so visible and accessible they realize how creative we are as a team and that we really want to create the most beautiful images possible for them that are reflective of their loves and their home decoration and their personality, but also infuse our creative style with those images as well. So by showcasing all this stuff in the clean, efficient and organized way and with props and stuff that truly are true to your brand, that's gonna help elevate the overall impression of you in your space. So when your clients walk in and see this, they go, Wow, these guys really are creative. They really do know what they're doing. And this is gonna be a lot of fun, which, of course, that makes the experience that much better for them in the shoot and makes them much more likely to spend once the ordering appointment comes. So I strongly encourage you to edit out and eliminate props that aren't you. They aren't your identity. They aren't what you love to shoot. Be true to your own style with everything that you do creatively. Whether you're a new born photographer or say you're a family photographer or a senior photographer, what is your style with seniors. And what does that mean when it comes to props and backgrounds and things like that? Is there a background that you kind of just keep around cause you paid a lot for it? But you don't really use it anymore because it's not. You get rid of it. There's no need to have it there. And you don't want your clients seeing it, because if they see that background that's so like random and not you, it's going to make them kind of question your artistic values in your creativity. And that's the last thing that you want. So when it comes to your camera room in your space and your storage, that leaves an impression to yes, Your interior spaces in your client's bases also provide that. But it's super important to make sure that what you bring to a shoot when it comes to props and backgrounds and things like that are truly reflective of your brand. And the same thing is true. If you're a non location photographer. When you bring props and equipment and stuff to the location, make sure it suits you and your style and even the location itself is branded. If you shoot in an urban area with a high school senior, that's away different feeling and brand than if you love to shoot seniors by a river outdoors with birds twittering by. Okay, those are two totally different identities. So no your identity. Know what you love to shoot? Exude that in everything you do not only in your space but in your marketing materials in your persona, in the way you dress. And that's bound to lift the clients impression of you and your brand moving over to the new born shooting area. This is set up all the time here in us to do because we use it every day pretty much. But it's probably the biggest focal point in the space, especially here in the camera room. And when clients first walk in and see us about to work with their baby, this is kind of the first impression they get. And it was all done very intentionally. I really wanted this area, too, just scream creativity to scream our style and to really give clients the impression that were about to create something absolutely gorgeous for them. So the ways that we did that was to organize our wraps and tiebacks and hats and everything in a beautiful way that showcases them. And you have to see here. Even the knob details the hooks that we used with that kind of filigree style was all chosen very purposefully to create a designed look, even for just our props and play kits and backgrounds. So it's all about those small details and keeping things looking like you know what you're doing and your professional, and you do this every day. Now I have a lot of rap sing. Over the years, I've collected a lot, and you, if you're a new war photographer, you may not. That's OK as long as it's presented beautifully in your space toe lift the overall impression of your brand. That's what's important. And I think that's the biggest take home message here. When it comes to your spaces and how it looks, your clients see that visually, and it leaves an impression on them, so you want that impression to be to come in with a bang right off the bat, and when they look at your space, they get excited about the experience they get excited about. what's to come, and they get a feeling a good feeling about your business, and that's what really a brand is now. The important thing to is to stay true to your style. When it comes to this stuff, you don't want to just throw whatever up there and hope it looks good or throw whatever up there even though you're never gonna use it. You want it to be stuff that really is true to your soul in your heart and the types of images that you're going to create what it comes down to, and I'll say this over and over again. It's about that first impression to your client when they come into your shooting space and they see things designed well. It looks pretty and it's true to you as an artist they're going to start to get really excited about the experience they're having with you. And again. It doesn't matter if you're a newborn photographer. If you're a senior photographer or you do family portrait, it's what matters is that the creative energy that's in the space and the way it looks leaves that good impression in the client's mind and elevates the overall impression of your studio because ultimately that's what a brand is about. It has to leave an impression, a good one. So the client has a positive feeling about what they're about to experience. But it also has to be true to your own identity, and that means about you, the artists and what's in your soul. So it's a combination of exploring that which I know can sometimes be really intimidating because, ah, lot of photographers don't know what their style is. Yet they don't know who they are yet, and you're going to experiment around with stuff. When it comes to props and backgrounds and things like that, you'll buy stuff that in illegal use once and throw out that's OK. It's all the process of editing down to what's truly you and in your heart and authentic to your art. So keep that in mind. It is kind of a process to develop that style, but once you have it and you Onley purchase props and things that are true to your identity as an artist, that's when you're going to see your style truly start to take off. And all of that integrates with the brand So when you have your props and backgrounds displayed beautifully to show off that creative side of you, you instill that sense of artistic know how in your clients and you give them the confidence that what they're about to experience is gonna be worth it, that they should pay for it and that they'll have a good time. And, of course, that, in turn makes them refer you even when it comes down to the furniture used to store your props. Fine stuff. That's you. And of course, this is going to take time, guys, because I know the six money to But shop those garage sales shop. Those antique stores get the deals as long as it's true to you and what you want to be as an artist, it'll happen, and it may not happen overnight. But if you make a goal list and really decide what you want to purchase and when and build up the budget for it, ultimately you will get to the place where your space in your studio is fully branded according to what you do as an artist. And when your clients walk through the door, they're going to get excited thrilled and want to work with you and in turn, want to spend the money giving you the income that you need. This is the entrance right here to the sales room, and marking that entrance or basically the doorway is a piece of painted art, one of our finest finishes, one of the most expensive things we produce here in the studio. And what that really does for the brand is it elevates the client as they move from the gallery space into the sales room to be prepared to purchase an art piece of some kind. That's the impression I want to make. And branding really is about that impression, the feeling of the room, and it hits every single sense as we talked about earlier. You need to be concerned with what what the client sees, what they feel, what they touch, what they hear and what they smell. All those things are incredibly important. So the sales room is designed to keep the brand flow going from the front of the space to the back of the space to a little bit more of a cozy environment, a comfortable one where there's a soft sell happening here. But overall, the look and feel is the same, and continuity is throughout both spaces. I see a lot of sales room kind of mishmash together. They're just thrown together with whatever furniture the photographer studio owner happens toe have. I know that when you're just starting out, you have to do what you have to do. And that's important. I was in the same boat, but this room here should be one of the first places that you start spending money. When you do have it to create that brand environment, it's so critical when you come back to the space, the first thing the client see granted. I have a session up here on the screen now, but they wouldn't see anything. I don't show the images until the slideshow actually starts, and that contributes to the experience of the brand to when the client comes in. They see the beauty of this space. They see the products everywhere again, the visual component of the brand. Then they start spelling things. I this was actually Belinda's idea, and it was brilliant to do popcorn. So we pop it right when they right before they arrive, so that popcorn smell just, like permeates the entire room and the client feels, Or or comitatus that smell with a sense of I'm going to be entertained. This is gonna be a joyful experience, because the smell of popcorn leads you back to childhood. It's nostalgic. It makes you think of movie theaters, and that's exactly the experience I want my clients toe have, whether it's a newborn session, a family session, a senior session or whatever. There's also candy and popcorn and usually a healthy snack of some kind. And then, of course, we asked them what they want to drink and provide that to them the minute they sit down. So they know that this is going to be a bit of an experience. The couch is really soft and cozy. They sink right into it. That's a feeling of the brand, so they've seen the products. They seen the visual stimulation of the decor. They've smell the popcorn. They're feeling the feeling, the motion of going into a nice, cozy space and getting comfortable. Porter is always here to sit right at their feet, so they have a comfy little friend next to them, which, you know, does contribute to the brand, and those are things you have to think about. Everybody wants. Asks about Porter if he's not here, All my clients, Where's Porter? What's he doing today? They love seeing him here. He's such a great companion, and he's a really sweet dog who just provides a lot of fun and kind of a relaxed personality in the studio, which does contribute to the brand. All of these factors do. The products on the wall are yet another visual stimulation. And then when the music begins in the slideshow, that's the audio component of it. The client gets sucked in emotionally to the images after being comfortable, visually stimulated, smell, taste. All these senses are bombarding them with a feeling, an impression of what we dio. Not only that, but it's also a part of our customer service. You can see these little touches that we're doing. Yeah, it may seem like over the top, but everything all those details at up and when you provide that good customer service, as we've talked about in previous segments, that also contributes to your branding. So by the time the client is done with their sale session, they really have experienced the epitome of what we're about as a studio. And when everything begins to wrap up, they leave usually not always, but usually having spent more than they wanted Teoh, simply based on the fact that the experience was so luxurious and it almost compelled them to spend more money than they wanted. Teoh. And I think that's the point I want to get across when it comes to branding. Your studio is really focusing in on those high end details because that experience, everything that they experience in your space is going to help them decide whether or not they like you, whether or not they want to invest in your product, whether or not they want to refer you and how much they're willing to invest in product. So by taking things up a notch and really being consistent with your style and your identity and your brand, that's what's going to take you to the next level in your sales and really bring in a type of clientele who wants that final quality? And yes, do we have expensive products sitting here in our studio waiting to be purchased and they don't get purchased very often. You betcha. I usually sell these paintings about once a year, but what it does do is it tells my clients that there working with and they've commissioned an artist and a team of people who really care about creating more than just photography but about taking a simple image and turning it into an art piece. And that, of course, elevates the brand as well. So I encourage you look through your own space. Think about your systems that are in place and how you can improve your brand. If you're on location photographer, you can employ these things without having a space. Yeah, I mean, there's product everywhere and things air displayed and furniture, etcetera, etcetera. But you can communicate a brand simply by what you wear, simply by how you look simply by about the marketing materials that you carry with you simply by the body language and the verbal communication used with your clients and the way you handle equipment and treat their family. It all adds up to quality identity, your style and your brand. So now that you've seen a brand in real life inside a working studio, what did it make you think about? What did it make you feel about your own brand in your own studio? Now I know a lot of you don't necessarily have dedicated spaces for your studio, or it may be in your home, and I get this kind of remark all the time from students worldwide. What if it is my home? I started in my home honestly, and it was just me at the time. Granted, I did have a family or kids running around, and I could devote my entire home space to my business. But if you can't do that completely, which I understand Oh my gosh, that is so hard, Especially now that I have a four year old running around. I know that's next to impossible. However, if you can dedicate a couple of rooms or even just your garage to your brand to your space, do what you can to make that absolutely stellar and to the level at which you know your business can achieve. I really want you to think about everything that you saw in the Space Day and how much it exudes our brand in everything that we dio visually through smell through hearing through sense through touch. Everything has been done very purposefully in order to Who's that brand? And that's the basic. Take home much message here, however you can, in whatever way possible. I want you to own your brand. Live it, breathe it, use it in every way possible. Because you were an artist and as an artist, your life. Blood, your soul goes into your work. It goes into your business. You and your identity are your business's identity as well. And so it's just important to show the world or your clients. Better yet, how much that is a creative, cohesive unit. Guys branding is about impression. It's about feeling it's about remembrance and what sticks with you. Even though you're long gone from the business, it's how you feel about a particular product, company or person. And as photographers, Ah says people, our products and our services all encompass our brand, so you need to own that as much as possible. In every decision that you make in your business, you should ask yourself, Does this suit my brand? Is this me? Is this the impression I want to leave with my clients when they go out the door. Okay. So really use your brand. And as I'm going through this process of re band branding and you guys were kind of I'm peeling back the layers to kind of show you all this. You know, I don't know if it's gonna work or not. I don't know if it's gonna make business better. I don't know if it's gonna make me more money, but I do know that it's more me. It's more true to my work, and the two are now synonymous. They're like pieces of a puzzle that are starting to fit and become one unit that glows in my heart. And that's what I want you to feel about your own brands. So remember, you have to think about what you see, hear, touch and smell what you experience as a consumer coming into your business. Step outside your business. Don't be the owner and business owner and the photographer Be a customer and ask yourself as a customer, how am I experiencing my own brand? That will answer a lot of questions for you. You have to think, how about how all the parts make up the whole So everything from the furniture and designed to the marking materials to the customer service to the style of your shooting, even to the way you dress. All these little pieces add up to the brand, so try to look at the parts as a whole. And that means taking a bird's eye 40, foot view of your business and really assessing it with a fine tooth comb and being brutal. Sometimes it means ending stuff out if you don't need it, or if it doesn't suit the brand, get rid of it, even if it costs you a lot of money. I know that's painful to do. It's like spring cleaning purge that could be very painful. But once you do it and you clean it up and you make your brand authentic to who you are, you're gonna feel a lot better. Merchandising. It's critical you've seen that in the last hour or so as we've been taking you through our space. Using that hot real estate to market and merchandise, your most valuable and profitable products is something you must do in your studio studio samples. If you don't have them now, guys and gals, I want you That's the first thing you should be doing. You gotta show off your products because that's part of your brand. And you're not gonna sell these products unless you show them in your space. And again, I hear that on location photographer going. But I don't have space to do this. How do I do this? Do you think companies like L L. Bean and Pottery Barn and all these catalog companies Do you think they have retail stores in my town, especially just a tiny little town of 88, people? Heck, no. If I want to buy Pottery Barn products, I have to open up a beautiful catalog. And let me tell you, that catalogue inspires me in so many ways. I want my home toe look like that. So I buy the products out of the catalogue. And if you're a non location photographer, then you need to spend a little time and money and effort building a beautiful merchandising catalogue that will help sell your products and elevate your brand. Just doing that alone will elevate your brand so much higher than you ever dreamed possible. And first impressions there everything you want. Your client, they make a judgment of you in the 1st to 30 seconds of meeting you and seeing your company in your brand. So that means that website of yours has got to be consistent because that's your storefront window and you want your consumers and clients. Teoh have a good impression of everything they see right from the start, and then when they come into your space or they experience you on location, that should just reinforce every feeling that have about your brand and the service that you're gonna be providing for them. And finally consider your marking materials. Ask yourself if they're consistent and if they're not, change it. So let's talk about it some more guys. What do you think? Get on the Facebook group, as always, at facebook dot com slash groups such Julia Kelleher And let's keep up the discussion. I'm in there all the time, answering questions left and right, and that's when I'm pretty much devoting the entire month of October 2 doing for you guys as well as periscope. We're gonna do daily live Q and A sessions on periscope, and I really want to get your questions so I can answer them immediately for you. There's nothing like instant gratification, right? So tune in tow at Julia Keller on periscope every afternoon, and I will do my best to answer those questions as quickly and efficiently as possible and help you get rolling on this stuff right away. And finally, you want some homework? Let's get a task and get this stuff done right. We're gonna talk about merchandising. I want you to assess your products. If you have a studio space, I want you to assess the real estate in your studio. Which walls are the most coveted? Where should you place your most beautiful products? And do you have products that are worst selling as a contained unit? If you don't, then you need to go back to some of those lessons that we did earlier this month and really assess your product line and see if you can't build a product line that's hot your clients want and that it's fully designed for their space and almost a home decorator like fashion. If you're a non location photographer, a wedding photographer, someone who's out and about a lot, then you need to think about merchandising in a different way. Let's talk about maybe doing a product catalog and make actionable steps to do that and create one that's timely, beautiful and really has that quality professional look to it. So I want you to order display samples that really exude your brand and your product line. If you don't have a studio and you're on location, you can easily order smaller sample representatives of what you're going to offer to your clients. Use your studios best real estate to display your work, and if you're on location, make a product catalog. But do it beautifully if you have to spend a little money to do so. To make that impression, you need to evaluate if that's worth it in your bottom line to actually put forth the money to do that. But I have to tell you, it's probably not a bad idea, and nothing like that is ever gonna not be good for your business. It make make. It may take some time to recoup the costs of doing that, but if you do it right and you do it well and you stay consistent to your brand and consistent to your product line, it should turn out and be successful for you.