Have you met my friend, Marie?
Can I tell you that's actually one of my favorite sentences to be able to say often... Have you met my friend, [ ]. I get really excited to introduce new folks to the people I know who are doing really great work and building businesses supporting their families. And I get even more excited to SHOW you what they do and how they do it. I've gotten to create images for Marie before... headshots, family portraits and some semi-self portraits as we create content for the Envision Retreats!
But this was our first branding session focused completely on here - and it was a blast.
After much planning and chatting through ideas and locations and some debate... Marie trusted the process (and gave in to a little encouragement) to have most of the session happen where she does her work in her renovated basement home office. If you've had a zoom/google meet meeting with her to discuss your brand visuals then some of this might look familiar. She's got an office setup for a beautiful virtual meeting! And it was that recognition and familiarity I wanted to have come through in her images because when you hire her for your brand, you get HER. I didn't want to lose that genuine familiarity for the sake of a novel location (it's an easy trap to get pulled into though - I know you may think you need a stunning rented office suite, staged home, etc for your session but you don't. I promise, it's my job to make you (and your everyday spaces) look and feel like your brand.
Marie isn't just the owner of Neat + Nimble though, she's also a distillery spouse and works hands-on in Lionheart Whiskey Co. in the heart of Hermman, MO and most recently is co-owner of Rickhouse Retreats so we also wanted to work in a bit of time at the distillery and the rentals. A branding session never has to be just one thing, because you certainly are not.
My best brand advice headed into 2027... Invest in Marketing Pieces That Continue Working for You
Good branding photos are an investment that work for you now and for potentially years to come. I'm not saying you wont need fresh content or to update if/when your look changes, but our goal is to create images you may continue to pull from for years.
They become part of your marketing in fresh new ways as the base of your designs in:
- social posts
- ads
- listing graphics
- for speaking events
- website updates
- print materials
- to highlight community involvement
- email campaigns
- business features and more
The owners who market most consistently are usually the ones who already have strong visual content ready to go. It's easier to say YES to a new ad, quick publication feature or even FREE promotional opportunities when you're confident in the images you can send over immediately.
And this consistency builds recognition - which builds trust.
