Before you book your next brand session, WAIT! Today’s episode is all about what to do before you ever step in front of the camera. I’m sharing 5 quick, but impactful tips that will help build your brand and make your session a success. 

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.

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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:

Build Your Shoot Around One Revenue Driver (2:40)

Reverse Engineer For Your Next Launch (4:53)

Plan Your Content Buckets (Not Just Your Outfit) (7:30)

Decide Who You’re Becoming (Not Just Who You’ve Been) (9:10)

Fine Tune Your Systems And Workflows (11:18)

Mentioned In This Episode:

Book More with B-Roll Mini Course: stan.store/quiannamarie/p/bloom-with-broll

Book A Brand Session Planning Call: quiannamarie.com/book

Episode 233 Booking More with Repeat Clients with Colie James: quiannamarieblog.com/2026/03/09/233-booking-more-with-repeat-clients-with-colie-james

Connect with Quianna:

Website: quiannamarie.com

Instagram: instagram.com/quiannamarie

Review the Transcript

Hey, gorgeous! Welcome back to Quianna Marie Weekly. Today’s episode is for my girls who know it’s time for a brand shoot. You’ve been thinking about it, you’ve been saving for it. You’re creeping photographers on Instagram and pinning poses and outfit ideas on Pinterest. You’re thinking, I’m ready. I need new photos.

I’m ready to stop playing small, and it’s time to look legit. Here’s my loving Big Sister Truth. Before you book your next brand session, we need to pause for just a second because the difference between a brand shoot that just gives you pretty photos and a brand shoot that actually helps you book clients, launch offers and make money is what you do before you ever step in front of the camera.

So today I’m walking you through a few things. I want every single business owner, photographer, coach, creative. All of my people to think about before you book your next brand session, because we’re not just taking cute photos, we are building your brand. We are broadcasting your visibility, and we are scaling your income.

I know, I know. Well, at least for me, planning the outfits, selecting the locations, booking your hair appointment, picking the perfect nail color and all the details light me up. Those are fun details that fuel the shoot. But remember, we’re not just booking this brand session to look hot. We’re booking this shoot to make your legit business actually look and feel legit and hot.

Okay? So we’re gonna do both. We can’t skip these steps we’re gonna chat about today. So grab your notebook or reference the show notes for this one, my love. You’re gonna wanna take notes. I have five quick but impactful key tips to cover today. These may seem like no-brainer. And on the surface you’re probably right.

You’re thinking, okay, yeah, I, I’ll, I will be doing this before my shoot. But trust me, spending some intentional time on these will make a world of difference before your shoot. Ready? Let’s get this party started. Welcome to Keana Marie Weekly, a podcast for creatives who love to celebrate wins bigger, small by dancing in the kitchen photographers who are excited to serve their clients and friends who are ready to chase.

Really, really big dreams. You can find all of the resources mentioned in this episode at QuiannaMarie.com/podcast. Join me as I share weekly motivation, chat about growing pains, finding genuine connections, and celebrating your wins through the lens of a photographer at heart. Come join me for a dance party.

Ready? Let’s go.

All right, and number one, build your shoot around one revenue driver. All right. All right. First things first. We need to get really clear on what you’re actually selling right now. Not everything you’ve ever offered, not the 12 ideas in your notes app. Yes. I’m talking to myself too, but I wanna focus on one offer only.

What is the main offer you wanna push this season? Is it fall mini sessions? Is it a new coaching program? Is it a service you’re ready to scale? Because your brand session should support that offer. Everything we capture, your poses, your energy, your setup, client experience, everything should point back to here’s how I help you.

Here’s what I offer. Here’s why you should be working with me. If you don’t have that clarity, you’ll walk away with a gallery that looks good, but doesn’t actually convert, and we’re not doing that, and that’s not my vibe. Now, of course, the beauty of these shoots is that they can fuel months worth of content for you.

And yes, your gallery can certainly be used for multiple offers, different launches, sales pages, and sprinkled all over your socials. But please just select one offer to highlight and promote, and it will make all of the difference. This is one of my favorite things to do with my personal brands that I get to work with and businesses, because this is something not a lot of photographers offer.

You know, the photographer that takes your family photos probably isn’t asking about your funnels. Lead magnets offers and encouraging you to host your own events. That’s where I come in. I’m nosy. I wanna see these things. Chat about your pipeline, learn about your backend of your business, and how we can streamline those checkpoints with photos, short form videos and creative ways to hold your client’s hands so they’re supported and feel very taken care of.

Together we’ll dive into your business during our initial planning call to sort this all out and make a solid game plan so your visuals actually match where your business is going next. It’s so important to start here and do some of this homework to create the north star of your shoot. Number two, reverse engineer your next launch before your shoot.

I want you thinking like a marketer, not just one of my clients. So what are you promoting next? A launch, a new offer, a seasonal push, podcast refresh, black Friday deals, a big annual or a holiday sale. Ask yourself, what content will I need to promote this? Because we’re not just taking photos for fun here.

We’re creating marketing assets. I want you to walk into your shoot, knowing what you’ll be posting, what you’ll be talking about, and what you’ll be selling. This is where we actually plan the outfits, client experience, moments, locations, any props or signs or details you want included. This planning stage takes your brand session from a quick headshot update to an entire personal branding lifestyle experience.

If you’re planning to capture your client experience moments and need humans, pets, products, or any special moments of your client experience, we start planning to include them now. These logistics are so important to include, so you can get a date on the calendar, style your models, and ask them far enough in advance so they actually show up to help model for you.

Now that you have a better plan for where the shoot will take place, what you’re wearing, and who will be joining you for your photo shoot. Now let’s get clear on how you’re posing and what you’re actually portraying in these photographs and content pieces. When I’m feeling stuck here, I love to think about the whirlwind of emotions.

Are you playful, serious? What makes you laugh about your industry? What makes you smile, happy, or irritates you about what’s buzzing in your industry and how you are different? It’s easier to start scripting what you love, hate, and wanna change about your business. Then take that energy and pose with it.

Consider everything you’ll be using these photos for, not just your headshot or your profile pics and your email signature, but graphics for social media. Cover photos for reels, banner pages for online groups, sales pages, Pinterest pins, flyers, and actual printed products like thank you notes and the mailers.

Even images for the backend of your workflow that only you’re paying clients. See, don’t forget those YouTube thumbnails as well, right? Those can be really fun and silly and attention grabbers. This way when you leave your session, you are not like, okay, now what I don’t like, I have all these photos. What do I do with them?

Right now you’re thinking, oh my gosh, I have content for my entire launch. Boom, chicky, boom, boom. That’s the plan. That’s the secret. Okay, so number three, plan your content buckets, not just your outfits. Okay, so this one might ruffle some feathers here, but I actually suggest planning your content before your outfits, right?

I want you thinking in content buckets. Three simple ones that I live by, that I always go over with my clients as we’re planning our branding sessions. Confidence showing you are the expert connection. Showing your personality and conversion, inviting people to actually work with you and make that sale.

This is where we get to create those visuals to match. So instead of just a cute coffee shop pick, right, it becomes a teaching moment behind the scenes client experience, and it directs all of your, your viewers, your audience, into a call to action. Pretty photos are nice, but strategic photos, those book clients, we want your future clients to love you and wanna throw their money at you before they even meet you in real life.

At this point, we have a good game plan of what your shoot is gonna feel like and what you’re doing, but there’s an added layer of the messaging you want to share. It takes your laptop photo from being a cute image of a trendy coffee shop. Looking like you could be a realtor, a business coach, a local essential oil dealer, or a photographer, and adding the context to actually understand who you are, what you do, and why you’re the best option for your clients together.

We’ll brainstorm ideas for each of these categories and pair them with photo ideas so we have a storyboard and timeline with checkpoints to hit all of those content buckets. And number four, decide who you are becoming. Not who you’ve been. Okay, so this one gets a little woo woo, but I would argue it’s one of the most important.

Before your shoot, I want you to ask, who am I stepping into next? Not who you were last year, not the version of you who was undercharging and plain small, but who are you becoming the coach? Charging premium prices, the photographer booking Dream clients, the business owner leading with confidence. The realtor selling dream homes.

Your brand shoot should reflect your next level, not your comfort zone. And I see this all the time. Women walk into a shoot, they’re feeling a little nervous, and then they walk out like, damn. Like, oh my gosh, wait, I am her. And that shift, that’s everything. That’s literally what I live for. I’m sure this part gets skipped over.

Or maybe kind of skimmed over, but I promise, take some time to journal on these. So here’s a couple questions for you. I, I really like take out a pen and paper thinking about this on your hot girl walks, think about them in the shower, but it really does help to write them down. What does your perfect day in the office or at work feel like?

What do your clients say about you to their friends? How do you want to feel when you sell out your next retreat or your next event? What does it look like to work with you and actually get the results your clients are craving? And on a personal note, I have to include these too. So please do this for yourself as well.

What does your weekends look like with your family? Are you traveling, building your dream home and join slow Sunday mornings and farmers markets with your best friends? How do you want your life and business to feel? We have to journal on these things. We have to set time to make these intentions and you know, you can turn them into affirmations, you can turn them into whatever feels good.

But just remember how important it is to actually write these down and visualize this, right? This is going to help you walk into the studio where, walk into that next session. Feeling prepared. Alright, last one. This is what takes a brand shoot from just something trendy and cute to building a personal brand that scales.

Number five, fine tune your systems and workflows. You are not investing in a brand shoot just to get a gallery of images. You are building a content library, creating visibility and welcoming new friends, clients, and hot leads into your ecosystem. When they see all this new content, where are you directing them?

I’m not just talking about CTAs here. Your call to actions and where to send them. Before your next brand shoot, it’s so important to dust off your funnels, clean up your links, and fine tune your client journey as a business owner. I’m sure at this point in the game, you’ve been in business for a few years, if not a few decades, and we all have to remember that every day on social media and in real life at events, we’re meeting new people.

People have no idea who we are, what we’re selling, and how to work with us. We need to set up intake forms. Guide them with content like start here, content to share who you are. More about your offers, right? You need to clean up your CRM with updated sales pages, intake forms, and direct everyone new into your world.

We all want more clients, but imagine having 20 new dream clients in your dms, calling you, literally calling you on the phone, or emailing you to work with you today. Do you have the systems in place to welcome them? Do you have the capacity either by yourself or with your team to serve them well? After your next brand session, you’re gonna have more eyes on you, more hype around your business, and more buzz around your offers.

I’m confident in that. Where are you sending those leads? Or if they’re not actually contacting you, how are they Netflix and chilling your content, right? Like how are they scrolling and stalking you? Are you sharing posts, captions and content that answers their questions? This is how you turn looky-loos into paying clients.

Check out episode number 2 33. Book more repeat clients with Colley Janes to learn more about workflow systems and meeting your clients through a refined client journey. Alright, my love. Well listen up after all of that strategy, I want to remind you of something really, really important. Brand sessions.

Get to be fun. I know, I know they can feel overwhelming, but they don’t have to feel like this huge production every single time. Some of my favorite sessions, they’re simple. They’re easy, they’re aligned. Sometimes you just need fresh content, new energy, and a little confidence boost. The goal isn’t to make your shoot more complicated, it’s to make it more intentional.

With a little planning, we can go a long way. This is why I love working with clients for big, robust, full day content days to kickstart and gas up their brand. Then sprinkle in monthly or quarterly brand shoots to continue to fuel their socials, future launches and offers. I’ll be with you every step of the planning, producing, and promoting your content with endless ideas.

I’m obsessed with content days and brand sessions because they’re fun. They’re like portals that shoot us into this next era, right? Like we get to play dress up for this next era and this new version of ourselves. We get to celebrate how far we’ve come. They are so fun. Like I, I may be biased because I truly enjoy them, but just working with my clients, knowing that we get to celebrate your business, right?

Like we get to be the ones that curate who you are, who you’re becoming, and what you’re offering. Like, it just lights me up and just the passion is just, oh, it’s there. It’s so, so fun. All right, so I love a quick little recap. Let’s go over these quick key tips. So they hit home. Number one, build your shoot around one revenue driver.

Pick one. Just pick one. Number two, reverse engineer your next launch. Make a game plan so your photos actually fuel your sales pages, invitations, and all of your marketing and promo content. Number three, plan your content buckets, not just your outfits. Dive deeper into the messaging and what you’re actually gonna say instead of just slaying your outfit.

Number four, decide who you are becoming. Take some time to journal and truly visualize your life and business. And number five, fine tune your systems and workflows. I can guarantee that after your next brand session, you will have eyeballs on your business. What does your client journey look like? How are you welcoming new clients?

Does your CRM automations and email marketing workflows need some dusting? Start there. Getting all of these done before your next brand shoot will make the world of a difference. So if you’re thinking, okay, I know I need to start showing up, but I have no idea where to start, what to film, what to record, I don’t know, key, help me out.

That’s exactly why I created Bloom with B Roll. It’s going to walk you through exactly what to capture, how to film, simple behind the scenes content, and how to turn that into posts that actually attract clients, right? You’re already doing the work anyway. We just need to share it, and if you’re ready to take it to the next level, if you’re ready for a fully planned strategic confidence boosting brand session where we create an entire content library together, that’s exactly what we do inside my personal branding sessions and content days.

I would absolutely love to work with you. Both are linked in the show notes and friend. Your business deserves to be seen, ready to step into the next version of yourself and build your personal brand. I’m ready for you bestie. Let’s make it happen. DMing the word brand. To learn more about planning your next brand session, head over to @quiannamarie and DM you the word BRAND and I will shoot over all the fun facts to get, get us started.

I am always, always cheering for you, babe. Keep on dancing. Can’t wait to see you soon. Okay. 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.

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