WHY YOU NEED A PROFESSIONAL HEADSHOT
Investing in a high quality, professionally taken headshot is an investment in your career. It will show you at your best, the way you want prospective clients and employers to see you. An amateur photograph in which you do not look your best can end up hurting you. These days everyone has a camera or a friend with a “good” camera. You can simply just bypass a professional photographer and have your friend take it instead, right?
Wrong.
Taking a professional headshot involves more than just having a good camera.
It involves using proper lighting, choosing the best backgrounds and most importantly positioning and coaching so that you look confident and approachable in your image. Expression is key. You don’t want to look like a deer in headlights or like you were asked to smile.
Social media plays an important role today in promoting our professional abilities and having a professional headshot that makes an impact is more important than ever before. Image has always been important but never more than like today. Your headshots is your introduction and first impression. It is a known fact that recruiters will use social media and the internet to learn and connect with new people and will google potential prospects prior to setting up a meeting. In order to make a great first impression on social media, you need to have a great image. It can’t be taken from your last vacation or from the last wedding that you attended.
You’re a professional and you need a professional image. If you look professional, potential clients, investors, etc. that don’t know you personally are going to be more likely to agree to that first meeting. You will not be taken seriously with a cropped and blurry photo that your friend or sister took with their phone. Even if you have the best qualifications for the job, the guy or gal that I photographed last week will stop prospective employers and clients first, while they simply skip over your profile.
Remember that the very first thing that anyone sees when searching you online is your image. If they like what they see and feel like you have “dressed up” for the interview then they will proceed to click to learn more.
Don’t believe me? Try it yourself. Head over to LinkedIn and randomly scroll through some profiles. Whose profile are you going to be more likely to click on first?
In addition to your headshot making you look good for potential recruiters and employees, a professional headshot establishes trust. Trust not only in you, but in your professional skills and abilities. What does your headshot say about you? Do you think that you are representing yourself well? Take a look at the current headshot that you have posted and ask yourself this honest question.
Perhaps you are thinking that you are currently at a job and that you don't need one. But what happens when you are required to write something for the company website, newsletter or press release and submit a headshot along with it? You will want a professional headshot ready to go and not find yourself scrambling. In addition, what happens when you are asked to participate on a virtual conference meeting? These virtual meetings usually require an avatar/profile image of you and are shown when you hide your live video. What kind of message are you sending on behalf of your company/yourself to clients? In addition, you just don't know what opportunities the future may bring so you will want that professional headshot image ready to go.
Your headshot is an investment in your professional career. Are you ready for your online presence to get you noticed? I can help you with that.
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