21 Ways to Use Your New Headshots
Most people will use their headshot in a couple of places, but professional portraits can go much further! There are many situations where an updated headshot could be useful and this article will give you a great overview and some ideas to maximize your photo session investment. Below I go over twenty one ways to use your new headshot and why it’s a good idea to do so.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Updating your LinkedIn profile photo should be the first (and most obvious) step as soon as you receive your new headshots! The best part is that you will receive a square-crop web sized image specifically for social media profiles - all you need to do it upload it to LinkedIn and it’s already formatted correctly, which makes this process a breeze.
Facebook business page
If you have your own business or are one of the professions that require a Facebook Page (like being a realtor), you’ll want to make sure you have a professional-looking profile photo on this social media account as well. It can be the same image as your LinkedIn profile, or a slightly different one that still represents your professionalism. Often my clients will use a color photo for one and a black and white version for the other (you get both!).
Cover image
And don’t forget the cover image for Facebook and LinkedIn! That’s the long-format graphic that lives on top of your Facebook and LinkedIn profile page and should definitely coordinate with your profile image. This is a great opportunity for a custom graphic that has your name and contact information next to your headshot to fill up the space. You can also use a more casual headshot for the cover image that shows off more of your personality as that would be perfectly appropriate for this space.
Personal social media accounts
Don’t forget all your other social media accounts! Even if you don’t use them for business, it’s always a good idea to have a cohesive presence online. Often my clients will use a more professional profile photo for LinkedIn, and a more casual one for Instagram and Facebook. Go through all your accounts that use a profile image and update them!
WEBSITE
“About Me” page
If you have a website, you should definitely have an “About Us” or “About Me” page on it dedicated to allowing potential clients to get to know you a bit. Having a good-quality portrait on this page can be the difference between being hired for a job, and not. If you think about it, most of the time we select our doctor, or real estate agent, our dentist, or many other professional persons we hire by what they look like online. If someone doesn’t look friendly or trustworthy on their website, you’ll definitely be less inclined to work with them.. that’s why this page is such a great use for your new headshots.
Contact page
Once you’ve updated your “About” page, you can add a different headshot image to the “Contact” page on your website. This allows visitors to see different sides of you and makes your website more engaging and interesting. This is also a great spot for a friendlier, more smiling image that radiates warmth and approachability so encourage a potential client to reach out.
Blog
Using your headshot at the bottom of every Blog post (in the “About the Author” section) is once again a great way to allow your Blog readers to get to know you. This is especially helpful for first-time visitors to your website and can facilitate more of that personal connection. This is also a great spot to include social media links and your professional qualifications as well.
Showing your process
Showing what you do behind closed doors, so to speak, to create your product or how you work with your clients can be very helpful on your website. These types of images are often part of a Personal Branding Session because they are so powerful to show online. Illustrating what the steps of creating your product or process look like is one of the best ways to communicate what makes your business different and why someone should work with you! Show your process on your website and use the images to walk the user though each step.
Header Images
Most websites these days have a top header image that spans the entire page width and usually contains the page title and sometimes a subhead. This spot is the perfect opportunity to use your new images to tie everything together and maybe even feature a bit of your personality. One thing to remember is that this image is wide and often requires a custom graphic to make sure the text stays legible on top.
E-mail newsletter
Why not share your new headshot with you email list? Celebrate your new professional photos by sending out an update to your audience. This is a great way to keep everyone up to date on what you’re up to and keep top of mind for potential customers.
E-mail signature
If you work with other people and send emails as a way to communicate, having your headshot profile image at the bottom of your email within your signature can be a great benefit. This allows new people to get to know you quicker and definitely adds a personal touch to every email. There are plenty of websites online that will create this signature for you and you can include great information like your phone number and links to your social media accounts. If you don’t use an email signature yet, I highly recommend creating one and taking advantage of this benefit.
Brochures
Having a printed brochure for your business can really set you apart from the competition! But it’s even better if the images used in your brochure are both professional and custom for your audience. One of the things most people skimp on are their headshots, so having a good one to use in your brochure will go a long way in establishing trust with any potential clients.
Seasonal ads, promotions, and advertisements
Printing your own advertisements or promotions is easier (and cheaper!) than ever with online print companies. It’s so easy to put together an ad nowadays that the biggest thing that sets you apart is the quality of your imagery. Using your headshot or personal branding photos in your own advertisements is a great way to maximize your investment.
Business card
Having your headshot on your business card is the perfect way for people to remember what you look like after they meet you at a networking meeting, corporate event, or conference. Thinking about brand colors (is you business card background a specific hue?) and how your photo will appear on the card is a great thing to keep in mind during your headshot session as we can style outfits and select backgrounds that would a seamless fit for that purpose.
Flyers
If you’re a real estate professional who sends out monthly or quarterly flyers, having a quality headshot on your printed material can definitely influence the recipient’s opinion of your capability. If you’re able to sell houses but can’t invest in a professional headshot for yourself, it will be much harder to convince someone to work with you. Sadly the reality of our world is that we definitely judge people by how they look (we can also perceive minute expressions like when someone is uncomfortable or unsure). That’s why this is one of the easiest way to upgrade your flyers and definitely one of the best way to use your new professional headshot!
MAGAZINES
Magazine features & articles
Very often a local magazine publication will feature a business along with an article and photographs. In fact, if you’re someone who already pays for advertising with the magazine, you can ask if putting together a bigger feature would be something the magazine is interested in. You can even write an article yourself about your business, or provide information regarding your area of expertise, which is also where you can use all those great personal branding or headshot photos. Providing your own photography makes saying YES to an article so much easier for the magazine editor and allows you to fully control the final look of the published piece.
Advertisements
There are so many local publications that offer printed advertisements that it’s easier than ever for a business to have a printed ad reach their desired audience. However, most of these home-brew ads feature subpar imagery (especially if that photo is of the owner). This is one of the best places to use you new headshot and will get you the best return on your investment vs using stock photography or a photo that was taken with your iPhone.
Behind the scenes
Giving your target audience a look behind the scenes of your business can go a long way in explaining why you’re different and why they should work with you or buy your product. While this is more of the type of imagery we capture during a Personal Branding Session, it can still include a lifestyle headshot that’s more candid and approachable as part of the article. The idea is to let everyone in to get to know you and provide quality imagery that shows your expertise.
Article contributor
If you’re a fan of writing, you can actually become a contributing writer for a professional publication or even a local magazine. And that means that you’ll have a little blurb about you at the beginning of the magazine or at the end of your article, accompanied by your headshot, so all the readers can get to know you a bit as they read your written articles. This is a great way to build credibility, share your knowledge, and grow your audience, too.
NEWSPAPERS
Press release
Often when someone significant gets promoted or hired within a corporation, a press release goes out to notify the world of the exciting news. And along with this press release, a photo is often included to give the visual representation of the person with the new position. This is actually one of the more frequent reasons people hire me to photograph their headshots! There is definitely a desire to look professional and modern for the new role but also show personality and look great, too.
Online ads
If you have your own business, running online ads on news and social media websites is one of the best ways to gain new clients and promote your business. And that makes having a great headshot or personal branding portrait as part of your ad really powerful. We’re all attracted to how other people look and instantly know if they’re someone we would like to do business with. That’s why it’s so important to have a headshot that truly represents you in the best light and also communicates the qualities you want to portray. Whether that’s friendliness, capability, expertise, or reliability.. a photo, as they say, is worth a thousand words!
I hope this article has given you some great ideas on how to best use your new headshots, or if you’re considering getting professional portraits taken, why that investment would be a good one. And if you’d like to learn more about headshot and personal branding photo sessions, feel free to click below.