Anna Bowkis | Anna Bowkis Photography

Why is Product Photography so Important

by Anna Bowkis | Aug 10, 2020 | Branding

Are you a product-based business? Do you take your photos with your mobile phone? Then this blog post is for you, grab a cuppa and read on.

Who is product photography for?

Product photography is for all businesses selling a product. From simple studio product images to lifestyle product images.

First impressions count, and even more so today, everything is online and we live in a fast-paced world. We need to grab the attention of our clients in milliseconds before they move on to the next website. So how can we do this?

Professional photography for your website and business is a must. You want to let your clients know that you are serious about your business. A professional photographer will invest time getting to know you and your brand and discuss styling options that will enhance your product.

There are two types of product photography for you to consider.

Product Photography

Usually photographed on a white background in a studio. Your product is the hero. Clean minimalist style of photography ideal for the your product page listing.

Y2 Squared

Smoke Folk

Lifestyle Product Photography

Lifestyle product photography shows your product within a curated and styled scene, sometimes featuring models, to introduce your potential customer to the idea of a specific lifestyle in keeping with your brand. Lifestyle product photography will be photographed on location or in a mock upset in a studio.

Perfect for the Etsy and Not on the Highstreet seller, and to use as a photo in addition to your product image.

Ubiety

I really enjoy shooting styled product photography, telling the story of your product, learning about your brand and ideal client are all important factors when I am shooting products for my clients.

When you book a product photography shoot with me, I will arrange for an in-person chat or skype, depending on where you live. I will send out a questionnaire for you to fill in for me to understand the requirements of your shoot. ie: where the images will be used, the orientation of images for example. I like to gather as much information about your product and brand for your product to stand out and attract your ideal client to buy from you. At the end of the day, this is what your end goal is.

If any of this has resonated with you, please reach out, send me an email, or drop a comment below and let’s have a chat about how I can help make your product stand out and sell.

How to grow your following on Instagram in 4 easy steps

by Anna Bowkis | Aug 9, 2020 | Social Media

Did you know there are over 1 billion users on Instagram? Over half of those users are on Instagram daily. That’s a lot of potential customers and also a lot of people that will not be your client, so you need to reach the right audience. Think of your Instagram feed like a magazine, you want your audience to know exactly what you do at a glance.

So how do we do this;

Banging Bio

You have 150 letters to let your audience know who you are, what you do, how you can help them, and where you are based, don’t waste it.

Your profile picture should be a photo of you facing the camera, we want to see who we are investing our time and money in.

I highly recommend changing your account from a personal to a business or creator account. This will allow you to add a contact email and link to your website, as well as access analytics.

Consistency

There is no point just uploading here and there with no plan I’m afraid. Consistency is key, whether that is 3 times a week, every day, or even once a week, just be consistent. Show up the same day, same time and your audience will too. I choose to post Monday – Friday 7.30 am. I use Planoly a free app for my phone and computer to schedule my posts daily.

Captions

You need to grab your audience before they scroll with your caption. Engage from the first line, use a call for action at the end of your caption. Engage with your audience and keep the conversation flowing.

Hashtags

You can use up to 30 hashtags, use them! Choose hashtags that are relevant to your caption and photo. Do some research on your hashtags as well. Using a hashtag like #photography has over 600million tags. It is going to be impossible to be seen with such a high number. Be more niche, ie for me, I would select #brandphotography. This hashtag has 152k tags, a much lower number and I am more likely to appear when my ideal client searches for this hashtag. Also, use location tags ie #bristolbrandphotographer would be a good one for me.

What hashtags is your ideal client searching for?

I hope this has given you a few pointers to start attracting your ideal client.

Let me know in the comments

5 Must Have Props to take to your Personal Branding Shoot

by Anna Bowkis | Aug 2, 2020 | Branding

Congratulations, you have booked a Personal Branding shoot and the big day is fast approaching. Your photographer has suggested you bring some props but you have no idea what to bring. I have you covered; here are my top 5 must-have props you should bring to your Personal Branding Shoot.

What do you sell? Do not forget to bring along the product you sell, and if you don’t sell a product then bring along some marketing pieces, ie business card, print out any digital material you send to a client.

Tools of your trade A hairdresser may bring along their scissors, a florist can bring some secateurs, a photographer would bring a camera and an artist would bring brushes, pens, or wool depending on their art.

Favorite item A personal brand shoot is about you, so don’t forget to bring along something that shows your personality, your likes. That could be flowers, a cake, a favorite bag, a magazine or even a book, the list is endless.

Stationery items Do you use a laptop for your work, are you a notebook addict! Bring along stationary in your brand colors to add some color to your shoot and they make great props for flat lays too.

What’s your go-to drink? For me that is an Americano, you won’t see me without a coffee in my hand, for you that maybe water, a pot of tea, or your favorite cocktail. Why not bring along a mug in your brand colors or a water bottle with your initials on.

Finally, your phone is a must-have these days for your shoot. Maybe add a funky case, having something in your hand really helps when having your photo taken, keeping those hands busy stops any awkward poses!

I hope this has given you some ideas for your next Personal Branding Shoot

Do you know who your Ideal Client is?

by Anna Bowkis | Jul 20, 2020 | Branding

Are you finding it hard to reach your client on social media?

If you answered yes, the simple answer is you are not reaching your ideal client with the content you are putting out. Do you know who your ideal client is? This may seem like a really simple question to ask, but a lot of small businesses are not niching down enough, which in time means not reaching your ideal client.

Rest assured I am here to help you find your niche and your ideal client.

Start with these 5 questions to ask yourself :

What are your ideal customer’s goals and values?
What are the demographics of your ideal customer?
What are his or her challenges and pain points?
What would be his or her objections to buying your product or service?
Where does your ideal customer get his or her information? (i.e. books, magazines, etc.)

Now let’s get into some more specifics :

Gender
Age
Interests and hobbies
Occupation
Location
Relevant behaviors (e.g., How and where they shop, how much they are willing to pay, etc.)
Average income
Level of education

You now have a great list of what your ideal client looks like as well as pain points. At the end of the day your business, whether a service or product-based business, needs to solve a problem for your client.

My ideal client is a female creative entrepreneur who is married with grown-up children, her name is Katie. This is not her first career, she is in her late 30’s to ’50s and is looking to uplevel her business with images that represent her brand. She is a busy woman and her time is important to her. She is a fashion-forward woman who spends money on her appearance and drives a hybrid or electric car, she cares for the environment. Katie enjoys networking with other females and is often out enjoying coffee in her favorite independent coffee shop with a girlfriend.

Anna Bowkis Photography provides Personal Branding packages that will give Katie a library of images for a couple of months. Katie can also purchase styled stock images from Anna Bowkis Photography that is on-brand, saving her time when she needs an image to add to a marketing piece at short notice.

Analytics

Now go and look at your google and social media analytics and see where your views are coming from. If I am attracting mostly young single females at university I need to change the content I am putting out to attract the Katies out there!

Hopefully, this has helped you learn more about finding your ideal client, and do give them a name, it helps when putting content out there when you can visualize your client, talk to her/him/them directly.

Do let me know how you get on, I would love to hear.

36 hours in Luxembourg

by Anna Bowkis | Jun 1, 2020 | Travel, Travel Europe

Back in 2018, a client invited me to Luxembourg to photograph a family christening and a family shoot. It really was a flying visit, 36 hours in Luxembourg but we managed to see some beautiful sites that I wanted to share with you.

To be honest I knew nothing about Luxembourg and struggled to find much online to guide me. Luxembourg is a small European country, surrounded by Belgium, France, and Germany. It’s mostly rural, with dense Ardennes forest and nature parks in the north, rocky gorges of the Mullerthal region in the east, and the Moselle river valley in the southeast. Its capital, Luxembourg City, is famed for its fortified medieval old town perched on sheer cliffs.

With such little time to explore, as I was working both days we were there, we stayed in the city for sightseeing. Getting around the city is easy using the tram service which we find reliable and cheap. In fact, at the weekend it’s free to travel to the city by tram!

Luxembourg is a UNESCO World Heritage City and I could see why it is so pretty with its pastel-colored facades and chimney rooftops. Travel to the Chemin de la Corniche, which literally translates ” the most beautiful balcony” for stunning views of the city and canal. There is a bench at the top to sit down and take in the breathtaking views of this fairytale city.

Head back down into the city and enjoy wandering around the streets and back alleys of the old city. You will be greeted by beautiful architecture and pink and lemon houses, cobbled streets and open squares where you can sit back and enjoy a drink or two people watching

Whilst in Europe never pass up a patisserie, these window displays of macarons of every color of the rainbow were calling my name!

If you have time, grab a bus up into the woods for a hike. I was up on the German border to photograph the christening and the scenery was breathtaking! I wish I could have stayed longer to explore a bit more

I would definitely recommend visiting Luxembourg for a weekend break, so quick and easy to get too from the UK. The price of food and drink is typical European city prices, the locals speak English, French, and German.

Have you visited Luxembourg, would love to hear your thoughts in the comments

I flew British Airways from LHR to Luxembourg

I stayed in the Sofitel Luxembourg City

NB: All photos and opinions are my own

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