Even though photography is a must have business ingredient, each sector is pretty unique in its needs. For example, a successful Etsy seller will have different photography marketing needs than a real estate firm – and the needs of both will differ from that of a dentist’s office or a private school.

Real Estate – Real Estate is a tricky business when it comes to images, but one that has reaped the most from the rise in image marketing. Here a picture really has to say a thousand words. It has to evoke an emotion. Yet, when it comes to real estate, you can’t just slap up any old photo of a property. To get it right, you really have to consider staging the property; you have to factor in lighting, the right angles. There’s very little room for error since this is an industry that’s driven first by appearance. Here, appearance measures value.

One Southern California real estate firm nailed it when it came to incorporating photography marketing into their business. Meet Raj Qsar, your premier Orange County Real Estate Agency. The Raj Qsar firm got it right from the start, with a professional photographer that has expertise in the industry locally. Interestingly, the firm has also seamlessly incorporated lifestyle into their branding. A quick visit to their home page doesn’t bombard you with home listings. Rather, it introduces the local area in a luxury setting. This is the photographic marketing equivalent to handing your guests a glass of champagne as they walk through your office. The effect is hypnotic, it’s seductive and it sells.

Public Relations – Your company doesn’t need to feature show stopping images to communicate a message. Use of the right stock photos can achieve the same thing, as seen with PR firm FSB Core Strategies. Since today’s connections can be hard to find and communication is often lost in a cacophony of content, it’s easy to see why values of yesteryear are pined after by so many people. FSB emphasizes past values that worked and merges that with today’s needs, and their branding reflects it. Each page shares a vintage image that somehow works in connecting site visitors with their core message. You actually feel like someone is listening and that today someone will hear you too. It’s a genius marketing strategy that works. FSB weaves their photography marketing throughout other areas of the business as well, including a more or less recent launch event that pulled from a vintage theme.

You may not be involved with the industries mentioned here but you can pull valuable lessons from each example. The trick is to remember to stick with a style and a message. Whether you’re shooting images, pulling stock photos or curating photos, all your photography should have a consistent style. If you’re not sure what your style is, there’s a good chance you haven’t honed in on your branding. This is really a very small obstacle that can be overcome with a simple list exercise.

Draw two columns, with column A representing your business currently and column B standing in for your business ideal. Take a look at your business presence and write down the first 5 words that come to mind. It might be a good idea to have a couple other people fill out list A since business owners can be biased. Under column B, write 3-5 words you wish your business reflected. Ideally, the lists should be similar, but if there’s a gap you’ll know how to fix it. Keep those keywords in column B handy and keep referring to it whenever you’re working on the photography end of your marketing needs. This will help you keep on a straight path where all your image marketing needs mirror your preferred style and branding. Don’t forget to change it up once in a while and have some fun with it, especially on social sites.