Ready to burn your business down and start over? Wait just a second! Today’s episode will dive into why you don’t need an entire rebrand – you just need new photos. 

On Quianna Marie Weekly, we’re chatting about business growing pains, finding genuine connections, and celebrating wins of all sizes through the lens of a photographer at heart. Sprinkled throughout stories and interviews with past clients, photographers and other business owners this podcast is designed to help you step into your purpose and to truly create a life you’re proud of, a life worth photographing and sharing.

Make sure you’ve hit that follow or subscribe button on your favorite podcast player to get notified each week as we air new episodes!

Subscribe on Your Favorite Podcast Player

Apple Podcast App | Spotify | Amazon

Connect with Quianna

Instagram | Facebook | TikTok | Pinterest

Today’s episode is brought to you by The Green House, my resource garden for photographers! Let me help you AMPLIFY your heart online and in real life to turn bridesmaids into future brides through templates, workshops, and freebies!

Review The Show Notes:

Why You Think You Need A Rebrand (1:27)

Logos Don’t Build Trust, Visual Proof Does (2:47)

What A Brand Shoot Actually Does (3:43)

Stop Burning It Down And Start Refining (5:13)

The Real Reason You Feel Misaligned (6:41)

Booking Your Brand Day (8:50)

Mentioned In This Episode:

Book Your VIP Day: quiannamarie.com/vip

Lucky 13 Quarterly Content Creation: quiannamarie.com/13

Episode 150-171 The Branding Series: quiannamarieblog.com/2024/08/05/building-authority-with-a-branding-photoshoot

Review the Transcript:

You are listening to Quianna Marie Weekly, the podcast created by a photographer for photographers, business owners, and all of the entrepreneurs that find themselves becoming content creators as their business continues to scale. I’m your host Quianna, and I love to yap about business strategies and marketing, building relationships and friendships that help you not just dream bigger, but share the tangible and actionable tips to help you grow through every season of life and business.

If you’ve ever thought about burning your entire business down and starting over, this is the episode for you today. We’re having a little heart to heart, like a warm hug from your bestie with a bit of a gut punch from your big sister. I cannot tell you how many business owners, photographers, coaches, realtors, and creatives slide into my dms saying, okay, key.

I think I need a rebrand. And then I ask them why, and they say things like, I’m just not feeling aligned anymore. My brand doesn’t feel like me. I think I’ve outgrown everything that my branding stands for. I need new colors, a new logo. I’m ready for a fresh new vibe. And I’m over here like, you don’t need a rebrand.

You need new photos. It is time for a content day. You don’t need to burn it all down. You don’t need to start over. You really just need proof that you are the expert. We need to help match the energy and messaging to who you are today and what’s ahead. Here’s what’s really happening. You’ve grown, you’ve evolved, you’ve invested a ton in your business.

You’re expanding to multiple streams of income. You are more confident, more experienced, more powerful. Your visual presence online is still showing the version of you from three years ago, dare I say, over a decade ago, your photos don’t match your growth, so your brain thinks something feels off. Must be the brand.

Nope. It’s the photos. It’s the content that feels stale and out of date because visuals and videos are what people feel first. Before they even read your website, before they hear you speak, before they know how good you really are, they look for proof in your photos and content. And if what they see doesn’t match who you are today, it creates that uncomfortable.

Okay? Something’s not aligned. I need a rebrand, ASAP, and for the record, I’m not just talking about your new haircut. I’m talking about that energy, the value and all of that feminine energy that you carry with you as you continue to grow and expand and carve your way into this next era. That is the type of energy.

That doesn’t feel aligned with your brand because your photos are old. Okay, so I’m gonna share an opinion, and yes, it’s an opinion that I feel really strongly about your logo. That’s not the problem. Your colors are not the problem. Your fonts are not the problem. Nobody is not booking you because of your hex code, which if you’re new to business or you aren’t familiar with the hex code, really it just means your specific color, right?

They’re not booking you because they can’t see how you work, what it feels like to work with you, your confidence. They can’t feel your energy. They can’t see your professionalism and your client experience. They don’t see the proof in the pudding and proof lives in photos. Proof lives in your B roll.

Proof lives in all of the little behind the scenes clips and moments of your daily life and your client experience, and all the results that you’re providing for your clients. Proof lives in updated brand images. A brand shoot doesn’t replace your brand. It refreshes your entire presence. After booking a brand session and putting your gallery to work, your website feels current.

Your Instagram feels aligned. Your emails feel professional, yet friendly and approachable. Your launches feel fricking exciting again, and your confidence rises through the roof. Nothing change except the visual. And now everything feels different because your online presence finally matches who you are online and in real life.

Now, side note, commercial break. If you’re listening to this and sort of cringing, looking at your website and thinking, no key, I get what you’re saying and sounds like I need fresh photos, but girl, I also need a rebrand overhaul. I get it. Maybe you’ve experienced a recent pivot. You are launching an entirely new business, or maybe your branding is dusty from years ago, and you really do need a refresh.

I completely understand that. I have incredible referrals for you. In fact, I have an entire series all about branding on the podcast. Make sure to check out episodes number one 50 through 171. Yes, it’s a pretty lengthy series, but this is all about branding, marketing, showing up online and becoming well known by simply sharing the work you’re already doing.

Like I said, episodes number one 50 through 1 71. Take a scroll back. You’re going to love that series. So why do so many of us feel the need to burn everything down? I know for me, after I attend conferences, retreats, or any type of business, or like girl boss event, right? I’m all fired up and I wanna burn everything to start over.

The branding, the offers, the digital products, all of it, I just wanna start over. Do you ever feel that way too? Well, it’s time to stop burning it down and time to start refining. So many business owners think, okay, so I’m gonna book a shoot after my rebrand. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. The shoot is what gives you clarity.

Planning a brand session is what helps you refine your messaging, your offers, your vibe. It’s what shows you who you are now, celebrates where you’ve been and showcases where you’re going next. You don’t need to rebuild. You need to add, you can refine, you can elevate. You can evolve. That’s the difference between amateurs and seasoned business owners.

The big business ladies that I look up to, like Amy Porterfield, Jasmine Star, Jen Gottlieb, and Jamie C, they are always in my ear each week. By the way, I love listening to their podcast. If you notice they aren’t rolling out new colors and new fonts each season watch them. They’re investing in brand shoots.

They’re hiring the videographers to follow them around for content. They’re always sharing stories with B-roll and behind the scenes of their speaking events and daily life, they’re planning elaborate launches that are fueled by brand photos and engaging content. So we can’t chat about brand photos without addressing the big buzzword these days.

Alignment. If you are feeling misaligned, it’s because you’re looking at old headshots, outdated photos, random stock images that everybody else is posting, and even the AI images that people are creating these days, like we can tell a fake out when we see it. Right. If you’re feeling misaligned, it’s because the photos don’t show how good you are, how good you’ve become, right?

You’re relying on dusty vibe to share your new energy, and that’s what’s feeling off. The disconnect is what’s bothering you, not your brand. Your brand is fine. Your visuals are old. As a teenager, I remember being really messy. I had a tiny bedroom, and remember having to have dirty clothes in the hamper in order for all of my clothes to have a place to be stored.

My dressers were overflowing with papers, photos, and art projects, and my nightstand was packed with cups and receipts, just like all the, they, like. Even back then, I had to have all of my beverages right to this day. I still get teased that I’m messy. And honestly, after so many years, I still can’t let that go.

I was gonna say I’m over it, but I’m not right now that I have my own home with Mike, our little house already feels like we’re outgrowing it, but for the most part, we stay pretty organized. There are never any dishes piled up in the sink. I love to go to bed with a clean kitchen. We keep our bed made and nice and tidy.

My family can tease me all they want, but I’ve literally grown up and take pride in keeping our home clean, clutter-free as possible. It is a tiny little two bedroom, two bath, and as presentable as possible. It’s taken my family years to see my clean car, clean room, and clean home to start to change their story about how I live my life.

I quite literally had to show them with proof that I’m not a messy person anymore. This may be a silly example, but I’m sure you can relate to parts of your life and business that you’ve outgrown to. We’ve all evolved, grown up and became experts in our fields. We absolutely need to prove how much we’ve changed and what we’ve learned and why we’re the best option for our clients.

If you’ve been sitting there thinking, I need a rebrand, what you actually need is a brand day. You need fresh photos behind the scenes. B roll, updated visuals, content that proves your value and images that match the expert you’ve become. You don’t need to start over. You need to be seen. And my love, that’s exactly what we do in a brand session together.

We don’t burn it down. We level the F up. We stack these brand sessions like Bricks building your empire. So if this episode felt like I was gently calling you out with love. You’re in the right place. Come book your brand a, let’s refresh your presence without rebranding your whole world. I always encourage personal branding to be scheduled and updated quarterly, which is why I am obsessed with hosting Lucky 13 mini content Days.

They’re perfect for mini branding sessions, headshots, content, all the fun things, and they happen quarterly. The next one is March 13th, so make sure to head over to keana marie.com/thirteen to get on the wait list. If you’re listening and that date has already passed, or it’s too late to sign up. Join us next time.

They are so fun and they happen quarterly. And if that doesn’t work for you and you’re like, no, I need to sign up now. I need my own personal brand. I wanna pick the location, I wanna have an extended time with just you and me key. This is why I love these personal brand sessions. And those can be scheduled quarterly for yourself or I would say at the very least annually.

So once a year, we are planning that refresh. I’ve mentioned it a million times on the podcast, but it’s true. You are incredible. You are doing the work. You are making an impact. We need more people, your dream clients to know about you. Let’s build brand visibility that has the audacity to be seen and to change the world.

You don’t need a rebrand. You need new photos. Can’t wait to see you in the studio. Cutie DM me the word brand on Instagram to learn more details and to schedule your hot girl walk so we can yap and plan your next brand session. Can’t wait to see you soon. Keep on dancing, baby! Love you. Bye.

That’s a wrap on another episode of Quianna Marie Weekly.

Thank you so much for your listenership and support. You can find the resources and show notes for this episode and more at QuiannaMarie.com/podcast, I’d be honored if you’d show your support by leaving a review and rating on your favorite podcast app. Until next time, keep on on dancing.

If you loved this episodes, you’re gunna LOVE these…

Branding Session with Vanessa and Benefit Bar AZ

Why I Created Lucky 13 (And Why You Should Join Us!)

Visibility All Year Long For Photographers