Not too long ago, Cinthia set out to put together her “rebrand dream team” — a set of strategic brand entrepreneurs who’d not only help her to move in the right direction for her brand, but also make her more money in the end — by helping her audience see how she stands out from her competitors.

I was part of this amazing team of women who came together to design a full rebrand for Cinthia Onines, the owner and founder of Boda Bliss, a boutique OBM (Online Business Manager) who serves wedding professionals all over the US.

Cinthia’s photos were a small but important part of the entire process of her rebrand, so I asked her entire dream team to share a few tips with so you can pull together your own strategic brand dream team —

• Lauren Schaff is a coach for service-based businesses owners, who does an amazing job at helping women get super clear about what makes them unique.
• Emily Foster is an incredible Web designer, who worked with Cinthia to do all her visual rebranding and messaging, from her logo to her final web design (featuring the photos I created with Cinthia!).
• And of course, Cinthia of Boda Bliss herself! She talks about her own experience of putting together a dream team for her rebrand, and how having an OBM on your team can save you time and money.

Starting your rebrand: business coaching

Hey there! I’m Lauren, and if there’s one thing I know after working with incredible women service business owners, it’s the power of a strategic approach to branding—especially when it comes to photography. I’m zeroing in on how to make the most out of your brand photoshoot!

First it’s important to start with a brand photographer who understands your vision — Lisa is not just any brand photographer; she’s a storyteller who captures the essence of your brand in every shot. 

So let’s talk strategy and how to ensure your rebrand truly embodies your spirit and goals.

Start with the heart of your brand—what you stand for. Your brand is driven by a soul, a set of core values that steer everything you do. These values, whether it’s creativity, community, empowerment, or optimism, should be vividly apparent in your images, connecting to those who resonate with your vision.

What sets your brand apart is its personality. Is it bold and adventurous, or calm and reassuring? Your visuals should reflect this personality, offering a consistent and genuine experience that resonates with your audience. Understanding your target audience is key here too because these are the people who will be interacting with your images. Think about their preferences and how your brand’s personality can cater to them. This “vibe” might not resonate with everyone, and that’s okay! It’s about attracting the right clients who connect with your brand’s essence.

Maximize your investment by considering all the places your photos will make an impact. Whether it’s your website, social media platforms, or printed marketing materials, each channel may require different styles and compositions. Planning your photoshoot with these platforms in mind is essential. This not only ensures that each image is versatile and adaptable but also maximizes their effectiveness wherever they are displayed. For instance, images for social media can be more casual and engaging, encouraging shares and comments, while those for your website might need to be more polished and professional, reinforcing your brand’s credibility.

What’s the story behind your images? Brand photography is more than getting pretty pictures, it’s your chance to share your brand’s journey and ambitions. It’s about building a visual story that captures, motivates, and invites your audience to join in. Reflect on the key moments and messages of your brand and how they can unfold visually.

Choosing timeless and adaptable imagery is key to increasing the shelf-life of your brand images over time. Trends come and go quick, so aim for visuals that look more timeless. Ensure that your photos reflect who you are, not just the current trends.

A brand photoshoot isn’t just about taking pretty pictures; it’s a crucial tool for telling your brand’s unique story. When planning yours, really think about how each image can reflect your brand’s core values and narratives. These photos should do more than just fill space on your marketing materials, they should speak to your audience, resonate with their emotions, and draw them into the world you’ve crafted.

Remember, every photo is an investment in your brand’s visual identity—make it count!

Let’s make sure every aspect of your brand and marketing is working effectively for you. If you want a plan that aligns with your strengths, goals, and capacity, schedule a consultation with me to talk about how we can create a strategy tailored to you.

Find Lauren at her website and Instagram

The next step: web & brand design

Hi everyone! I’m Emily, a branding and website designer based in Portland, Oregon, working with creative businesses everywhere. One of my favorite investments to make in my own business is brand photography. It’s a great way to put a fresh face on your business, and I like to invest in new photos 1-2 times a year to have new content. 

One highly underrated aspect of pulling together a rebrand dream team is strategic brand photography. I always encourage my clients to invest in the best strategic brand photos while investing in a rebrand with me because they’ll highly influence the impact of your brand. That’s why I was SO excited when my client, Cinthia Onines, told me that she was going to work with Lisa on her brand photos. 

Cinthia and I met on Instagram a couple years ago because we both work with wedding professionals on their businesses. We instantly clicked, and a while later Cinthia reached out to me because she knew it was time to rebrand her business to: a new website, a new name! (Boda Bliss), and a new face to the world. Cinthia booked Lisa for brand photos and the three of us got to work together to ensure that Cinthia’s brand photography and brand and website design would all feel aligned.

Check out Cinthia’s photos from her brand session!

When I say I’m OBSESSED with Cinthia’s brand photos, that’s an understatement. They so succinctly express who Cinthia and Boda Bliss are. Lisa completely nailed it. While Lisa is highly talented, I think that another aspect that made Cinthia’s branding work so well was the strategy Lisa put behind the brand photography. 

If you’re looking to invest in your brand photography and rebrand, here are the factors I would consider first:

Make sure you understand the investment of rebranding and plan for it. While there are certainly ways to save some money, I don’t want to sugarcoat it: investing in a rebrand can be costly, both financially and time-wise.

You should budget anywhere from $2k to $10k for new branding and website design, and anywhere from $2k to $5k+ for strategic brand photography. There might also be other investments you want to make around a rebrand, such as coaching with a consultant like Lauren or investing in streamlining your processes with an Online Business Manager like Cinthia. You certainly don’t need to spend $15k on everything (that can be the higher end), but you should plan at least a minimum of $5k for a rebrand. You want to make sure you’re doing it well so that you don’t end up having to redo everything down the road.

Invest in your brand strategy before anything else. It’s deeply important that you understand your ideal client, market positioning, competition, and more before you spend thousands of dollars on a rebrand. Without the foundation of your brand strategy, you could be investing in design or brand photos that point you in the wrong direction — attracting the wrong clients or focusing on the wrong positioning strategies.

Define the style of your brand so that your designer can work with your brand photographer. Some brand photographers will build a mood board for their clients before a session, but some don’t. Either way, it’s important that your brand designer finalizes your brand colors before you invest in your brand photos. You can elevate your brand photos by incorporating colors from your palette, in your outfits, props, or even the backdrop of your session.

Be selective about the outfits and locations for your brand session. Cinthia and Lisa were very specific with location options for her session, and it paid off so well! Cinthia sent me a few locations that she and Lisa had discussed and, based on Cinthia’s brand strategy, I was able to look through them and give her feedback for which locations would go with the overall feel of her future website.

The outfits from Cinthia’s session were stellar and there’s no doubt that Lisa helped bring our vision together with those. Getting creative with your brand photo outfits can go so far — for example, Cinthia is a huge Taylor Swift fan, which actually matters to her brand because that interest reflects her passion for women empowerment, inclusivity, fun, and vibrancy in her work. Cinthia wore a Taylor Swift folklore cardigan in her session and it adds a nice cozy layer to the photos but also gives that Easter egg in her branding.

When you select the perfect brand photographer, it’s time for an official rebrand (the design part!). We’ll work together to ensure everything feels cohesive. 

Getting ready for a brand photo session soon? Download my free brand colors freebie here to establish your color palette and brand feel before your shoot! 

Find Emily at her website and Instagram

Getting help with your rebrand: online business management

Hey there! I’m Cinthia Onines, an Online Business Manager (OBM) and System Strategist. Yep, you heard that right—I’m a bit of a systems nerd, especially regarding wedding professionals and creatives. My mission? To help small businesses organize their operations and create better systems that slash the time spent on administrative and operations tasks. After all, who wouldn’t want to be more creative and stress-free?

My experience with brand photography is quite personal because I started as a client of Lisa Kathan Photography, which has significantly shaped my approach to helping others rebrand. Understanding her process has allowed me to better guide my clients in integrating their systems with brand imagery, ensuring consistency and cohesion across all platforms.

When I first launched my business, it wasn’t out of confidence but necessity. My initial branding was DIY—general photos with no clear plan. Luckily, I had a photographer friend who helped me out, but there was no strategy behind it, which I later realized was essential. As my business evolved, I focused on niching down my clientele and developing a brand and website that truly resonated with my ideal clients. Realizing the importance of aligning every aspect of my rebrand, I knew I needed professional images as well. That’s when Lisa came into the picture. More than just a photographer, Lisa is a brand expert who immerses herself in understanding her clients’ ideal customer profiles, missions, and goals. She perfectly translated the hard work done with my brand strategist and website developer into her photography, continuing the narrative visually.

Here are some key points that I learned from working with her on how you can leverage your own experience in creating a rebrand dream team and how an Online Business Manager can help you with the process. 

Understand the role of an OBM in brand photography. An Online Business Manager plays a crucial role during your rebranding and photography processes. By coordinating efforts between different creatives, an OBM ensures that your new branding is not only visually appealing but also strategically aligned with your business goals.

An OBM can help manage rebranding timelines, create a launch plan, and communicate, freeing you to focus on getting the perfect photographs with your brand photographer.  

Invest in a professional (and strategic!) brand photographer. Just as I did, investing in a professional brand photographer can make a significant difference. Choose someone who doesn’t just take beautiful photos but understands your business and brand strategy. This ensures that the images not only look great but also serve a purpose in conveying your brand’s message and values.

Integrate systems with branding. Align Systems with Branding: Once your rebrand and fresh photography are in place, it’s vital to synchronize your internal systems with your new brand image. This could involve updating your client management system, email templates, and marketing materials to mirror your new branding.  An OBM can assist in streamlining this integration, ensuring that every client interaction reflects your brand’s upgraded look and feel.

Leverage new images to enhance client experience. Utilize your new images across all client touchpoints. This visual consistency helps reinforce your brand identity and can make the client journey more engaging and memorable. From inquiry to offboarding, every phase of your client’s experience should feel cohesive and aligned with what they see on your website and marketing platforms.

Interested in learning how an OBM can specifically help your business during rebranding? Feel free to book a consultation with me.

Also, check out my freebie: The Client Journey Worksheet. This resource is designed to help you create a seamless client journey within your systems that supports your brand’s message and enhances overall client satisfaction.

Find Cinthia at her website and Instagram

Completing your team: strategic brand photography

Hey, it’s Lisa again! Whether you’re planning a full rebrand or launching a new service, your brand is an investment in time and money. If you pull together a rebrand dream team that understands your vision and can work together to develop a strategy, it will make your rebrand go more smoothly. And the world will be drawn to you once they discover all the unique ways you can serve them!

Have questions about the role strategic brand photography can play in your rebrand or next launch? Reach out and let’s chat!