Good photography pays in PR

/1 Comment/in , , /by

A while ago we discussed the importance of having appropriate photographs for press purposes (visit our previous blog here). Having a quality photo ready for media purposes can often make the difference between securing a full page feature or receiving a small mention in an article. Keeping journalists happy is our number one job so having the right tools to do this will enhance the results generated.

The only challenge we face in selling the idea to clients is that professional photos come at a price however, there are a myriad of ways to use the images and ensure you get the most value from a shoot.

Save on creative design

Purchasing photos for business use from sites such as iStock can be a nightmare. Royalty fees are often excessive (depending on the medium) and you can be charged per use making it an extremely expensive exercise.  The other danger is you are not guaranteed exclusive use of a photo and other brands could share your ‘unique’ identity. Hiring a photographer to take shots of events, staff, services, products or property will actually save you money in the long run and ensure any images will be better suited to bring your brand to life.

Fake paparazzi at events

Even a hint of free publicity is enough to make any CEO or businessperson smile. Though they aren’t ‘real’ paparazzi, professional photographers at your event will make guests feel special. Send the pictures onto the media later for post-publicity or use the images for future invites/ marketing materials. They can also be used to populate your social media sites.

Brilliant branding

Don’t make the mistake of cheapening your brand by using inferior product images in catalogues or other marketing materials.

A picture can tell a thousand words so make sure your product pictures don’t say ‘average’. A good branding photograph will often convey a ‘mood’ to build a strong emotional connection to your product.

Poor branding, poor positioning, boring, unprofessional

Shot 1: Does this make you want to buy this product?

 

Shot 2: Does this make you want to buy the product?

For more detailed information on photographs and a full list of official commercial photographers, visit http://www.aipp.com.au/

Creating media magic – the importance of appropriate photographs

/1 Comment/in , , /by

One area I have discovered a lot of businesses will overlook is the way their company is visually represented in the print and online media. And I’m not talking about websites, design or logos – I’m referring to photographs.

It never fails to amaze me how much money companies will spend on improving their online presence, or various other aspects of their business, yet quality photographs of staff and products won’t get a second look.

Many regional newspapers, magazines and online sites will only have one or two photographers. These photographers are often freelance photographers (contract) who will only work at the media outlet part-time.

What this means when you are pitching to media is that the chances of a regional/small media outlet setting up a fresh photograph to go with your story, or product, is pretty slim. This doesn’t mean it won’t happen. It just means you are competing with the thousand or so other stories which also need photographs. Editors need to fill space. They also need to meet a quota of stories and have appropriate photographs to go with them.

If you are on a deadline – your photographer is already booked out – and you have a choice between a story with a photo versus a story with no photo the chances are the story with the photo will win out every time.

Of course saying that, the larger media outlets will always want to own copyright and have their own pictures…

If a company does have images for media a lot of the time these images will be old or outdated. You know the ones – the fresh faced CEO who looks about forty but when you meet them in person they are really sixty and look nothing like their official media photograph?

There is nothing the media hates more than a (pr) company sending them pictures to accompany stories which represent their clients -or products – in a falsified manner. Media outlets don’t want old images or ones which look dodgy and outdated. It reflects on the quality of their publication. Media outlets want a variety of quality images which accurately portray whoever or whatever it is they are writing about.

They also don’t want to print the same thing as all of the other media outlets you’ve sent your story to.

It is crucial your brand aligns with images which accurately represent the business products and which fit the overall brand strategy. If you are going to push products, staff and employees of your business in the media its important to make sure they are presented in a way which fits in with the overall marketing strategy of your business. Social media also needs to be addressed in this regard but that is a whole other topic altogether.

Depending on the size of your business and what is being promoted in the media realistically you should be looking at indulging in professional photography shoots at least once a year. If you can’t hire someone it is still easy to update your media images. All it involves is finding an amateur photographer and allocating time and resources to make it happen.

The best part about professional media shoots is that your company will own all of the images afterwards – you can reuse these images in marketing material, or online, as you choose.

Quality photographs are an excellent business tool and will always help to enhance your media coverage.

Claire Kelly – Media Relations Manager, Ignite PR and Marketing

Ignite PR & Marketing talks PR for franchises

/in /by

Trina McColl MD of Ignite PR & Marketing was recently asked to share her experience and advice to help franchises maximise the power of PR. We work with a number of franchised brands across Australia and it provides a really rich foundation for generating awareness as franchised business are always active and growing. Check out the link below for the full article.

Brand Ignition