First impressions matter. Your brand’s visual elements, such as its logo, color palette and imagery, are often the first points of contact for potential customers. Photography plays a vital role in shaping a brand’s visual identity, and using the right images can elevate your brand and visual marketing strategy.
Perhaps most importantly, photography can tell a story in a single image when thousands of words of copy simply cannot.
“Great photography is essential to a brand and successful marketing campaigns,” said Paul Burger, creative director at Trilix, who has over two decades of expertise in visual design. “A great photo will connect to a company’s external and internal audiences. It can also visually convey brand personality and tone and serve as an excellent building block for a graphic, social post, email or other content.”
Because of these wide-reaching benefits, any company in any industry can benefit from quality photography and should consider photography a physical asset that is integral to the overall success of its brand.
“Photography sets the vibe for your whole brand,” said Kyle Stoutenberg, lead cinematographer and colorist at Trilix, who can often be found behind the lens on a Trilix photo or video shoot. “The right shot can grab attention, tell your story and make a real connection with your audience. Whether it's for social media, ads or your website, photos help create that instant ‘this feels right’ moment that sticks with people.”
The right photography should work hand in hand with your brand’s tone, voice and vision. Ensuring the images maintain a consistent look and feel that matches your overall branding strategy and style guide enhances their impact and supports your brand goals.
“We work to strategically incorporate the images into marketing materials and campaigns, monitor their effectiveness, and make adjustments as needed,” said Chad Adams, senior video production manager at Trilix, who has a passion for photography. “We gather feedback from the client and audience to gauge the impact and make any further refinements to enhance brand alignment and effectiveness.”
In addition to furthering a brand’s visual identity, strong imagery also drives performance across different marketing channels. Printed materials, websites, digital advertising and social media posts need strong visual elements. Every effective social media post is powered by quality video or strong imagery. Social posts that feature quality imagery consistently outperform posts that do not. In fact, Wishpond finds that Facebook posts with photos generate 120% more engagement than posts that do not.
However, it’s not just the presence of imagery that matters — its relevance and freshness are key to maintaining audience interest.
Dated imagery will get noticed for the wrong reasons, whether it’s online or in a catalog or mailer. A change in business or marketing direction, an updated logo, or a brand refresh is going to be more effective with new imagery that integrates seamlessly with your overall brand image.
Considering the options
If you’re convinced your brand needs fresh photography, there are several approaches to explore, but each requires an investment. It can be handled in-house, but equipment, software and internal expertise come with costs and can be somewhat limiting. Alternatively, working with a marketing agency or a professional photographer can help achieve your desired look and aesthetic. Stock photography is another option to consider.
Stock photos from sources like Getty Images are widely available in a vast spectrum of cost and quality — from free images to premium selections and from basic quality to truly exceptional. But can stock photography effectively convey the desired message for your brand?
While stock photos can be budget-friendly and easy to access, the images are certainly not exclusive and may not always suit a brand’s unique needs without some adjustments.
“Not all photos are campaign ready. Whether it’s a stock photo or a commissioned one, we may apply a stylistic treatment to set the tone for a campaign or brand, apply a color technique, or make other design choices to work for our visual approach.”
Paul Burger, creative director at Trilix
Candid collaboration
However you decide to bring your brand’s imagery to life, it’s important to work closely with your marketing team to ensure a cohesive identity that resonates with your audience.
“Working with a client to bring their vision to life through photography is like a creative partnership,” Kyle said. “It starts with really understanding what they want to communicate and who they’re speaking to. Then it's about brainstorming ideas, scouting locations and making sure the photos match the brand’s tone. It’s all about finding that sweet spot where the client's goals meet the right visual style.”
Thinking about a new approach to your brand’s visuals? We can help.