How to do a Content Audit for Your Personal Branding Session

You know there is so much more to a branding shoot than grabbing pretty pictures. Sure when you’re in the planning stages you’re gathering outfits and props and thinking about the stories you want to tell with your new images. But you also need to understand what type of content you generate to know what images you will need to get during your shoot. While I will discover this during our work together, it is also a good idea for you to ask yourself some of the same questions as we work together (or better yet, before!). Below I’m sharing how I perform an image opportunity analysis for my shoot plan process, and how you can do a content audit for your personal branding session!

1. I look at your website 

The first thing I do when I book a client is head over to your website and ask myself the following questions:

• Do you have updated headshots? 

• Do you have banner images? 

• Do you need branded stock images? 

• Are your images visually consistent? 

These are the same questions I asked when I helped to transform Striped Dog Creative’s website. She actually had a good idea of what she needed, but I also reviewed her current website and agreed that she needed updated headshots, which included some strong banner options and branded stock images to show her workflow or for images on her website that didn’t necessarily need an image of ‘her’. I’m pretty obsessed with how this all came together on her new website! 

So next time you’re on your website, ask yourself the same questions and it will help to inform what images you need to update your site.

Striped Dog Creative Before

Striped Dog Creative After

2. Then I check out your social feeds 

It’s so important to have a presence on social media if you’re a brand or a business. So after examining your website I check out your Instagram, Facebook, and any other social media sites and ask: 

• Do you have enough photos of yourself? (Hint: You should be showing up on your social feed every once and a while to help foster that know, like, and trust factor)

• Are you a lifestyle brand and need lifestyle images? 

• Are you a service provider and do you have shots showing how you work or your process? 

These questions will help to inform what type of images we’ll need to shoot for your social media. 

3. I’ll examine your marketing strategies and the collateral you’re using. I’ll see if you have opt-ins and newsletters (email marketing). 

If you’re not using images in your marketing materials, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to maintain brand consistency and start building brand recognition. You should be including pictures in your opt-ins, newsletters, and your blog if you have one. For each outlet these are the questions I ask:

• Opt Ins 

  • Do you have an opt-in?

  • What are you advertising with it?

My client NourishRX uses many of the photos we’ve shot together in their opt-ins. 

• Newsletters 

  • Do you already have an email list? 

  • Do you email regularly? 

  • Do you need images of your team or staff?

  • Do you need branded stock images to use in those emails? 

Sometimes I even opt-in to my client’s newsletter so I can see how they are currently using their images. 

You can check out how my client, Fashionably Kate & Co., uses her branded shots for her newsletter below.

• Pinterest 

  • Are you using Pinterest and do you need images for your pins?

  • As Pinterest continues to evolve and introduce video pins you can take those images and animate them to create video pins

For a perfect example of how to use your brand photos for your pinterest account, check out my client, Big Picture Branding’s Pinterest page.

• Blog

  • Are you using images for your blog? 

  • Are there topics you regularly blog about? 

If you want a great example about how one of my clients uses her branded images for her blog, you can check out Melissa Landry Nutrition. 

Something to note: for all of these materials, it is a good idea to get images of you and some stock images. 

4. I’ll consider material needed for any courses and other resources 

Finally, I take a look at your course materials (if you have a course) and any other resources you may offer and I ask:

• Does your course or sales page need new images? 

• Are you in the process of creating something new to offer?  

I worked with Nourish RX to create images for a sales page for their new offer with a focus on community - it came out beautifully!

While you may not have all the answers to these questions, thinking about your content needs can be HUGE in helping create your shot list as well as deciding on a location, props, and the outfits you’ll wear for your branding session. All of this is included in my shoot planning process but if you want a jump start on planning, make sure to grab my shoot planning guide!