LinkedIn is the place to be for business owners, corporate executives, and professionals that want to connect with other people in their field and with potential clients or hiring managers. It also happens to be the fastest growing social network in the world and it is getting increasingly harder for professionals to stand out from the crowd.

Advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather put together a fantastic infographic that outlines 5 Ways to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Irresistible.

The following is my summary of the key points that they outlined in the infographic:

1. Keywords in your profile

– In many ways LinkedIn is a search engine. If you don’t make use of keywords in your professional headline, summary, and experiences then your profile is not going to be easily found by the people that you need to see it.

2. Who do you want to be seen as?

– Ensure that you are very clear about who you are and what you stand for, and that your public brand matches up to the real life you so that when you meet people offline then you will match up to the impression they formed while online.

3. Tell us your story

– Make sure that your work history and connections provide some good flow about how you got to where you are now. People do business with people and they want to understand who you are and how you got there.

4. Use a Professional Profile Photo

– This is an opportunity for your prospects and clients to meet you before meeting you in real life. Your profile photo needs to be great!

5. Personalize Your Profile Link

– It shocks me how many people and businesses are still using generic email addresses provided by their internet service provider rather than using a custom email address tied to their business domain name. this just gives a bad impression and isn’t professional. Using the generic LinkedIn profile address (with a long string of numbers and letters) instead of customizing it with your name or business gives the same impression. Take advantage of the opportunity to present a cohesive and professional brand whenever you possibly can.

The photo you choose for your professional profile image on your company website, LinkedIn, and other social media marketing tools sends a strong message about who you are and what you believe. If you use a professional photo that shows that you take yourself and your business seriously then your profile will be taken equally seriously.

Many will argue that having a bad photo is better than having no photo at all, but it’s definitely a debatable point and there is no clear winner here. Having a bad photo and having no photo on LinkedIn will both leave a bad first impression for hiring managers or potential clients for your business services. The only clear answer is that you need to have a great photo on your LinkedIn profile.

5 Ways to Make Your Linkedin Profile Irresistible from Social@Ogilvy

If you are ready to take your online profile to the next level then now is the time to schedule a professional headshot session?

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I have seen so many variations of this question asked on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn that I can’t even count anymore. And I’ve seen just as many reasons from other small business people explaining why they use their logo (or a stock photo) instead of a great headshot.

Here are a few examples from a recent discussion that I had with some other small business owners:

• I use my logo because I like a bit of mystery behind my brand
• I recently started using my logo and I feel my page now has a more professional look.
• My logo speaks to my style more than any image of me would.
• I feel that if I use a photo of myself on my business page it will make it look like a personal page.
• I wasn’t sure if I should advertise myself, or my brand?
• My face really isn’t important and it doesn’t represent my business.

The short story is that none of these reasons are wrong, and it’s your business, so you can do whatever you want with your marketing materials. But I really think that you have to at least consider the fact that most people want to do business with other people, not with brands.

Tweet This: People do business with other people, not with brands!

Even if you run a business that has other employees (or that is not directly named after you), you are still the face of that business when people are learning about it online. People don’t want to do business with a brand or a logo, they want to know the names and the faces of the individuals that will be providing them the products and services that they need.

You really should allow your potential clients to “meet you” before they ever have the opportunity to meet you in person and shake your hand. You can do that by using a great picture of you (and your staff) on your website and on any social media profiles that relate to your business.

If you are ready to take your online profile to the next level then now is the time to schedule a professional headshot session?

Book a Headshot Appointment

The short answer is Yes! You will definitely have options… Read on for more details:

During the session we will create a number of different portraits using a combination of poses, lighting angles, backdrops, or outfits that best fit the intended use of the images.

The number of different variations will be directly related to the final number of images that you are hoping to get. For example if you only need 1 great headshot for use on LinkedIn, your company website, or your corporate marketing collateral then we will probably only do 1 or maybe 2 variations during the session. However if you need multiple portraits for multiple business uses then we will do additional setups in order to ensure that you have a good selection of images to choose from.

Following the session you will get a link to a gallery of images that you can review and select the headshots that you want to use. These will have only been lightly processed in order to ensure consistent color, exposure, and cropping. After you have made your choice then the final selected images will be individually retouched as required. Retouching typically includes softening the lines under the eyes and cleaning up any temporary blemishes, razor burn, etc. More or less retouching can be done as desired.

If you need an updated business headshot for LinkedIn, your company website, or your other marketing materials then please use the following link to schedule a professional headshot session?

Have you got more things to do then you can handle? Is your work list spiralling out of control? Or maybe you’re just more interested in checking in with your friends on Facebook or LinkedIn instead of doing some real work? Procrastination is far easier than getting important work done!

It’s not always about procrastination though. There have been far too many days when my worklist is longer at the end of the day than it was when I started even though I actually had a fairly productive day…

These days everyone in business is busy and we *always* have plenty of things that *need* to be done. Sometimes the trick is just to do something (anything!) rather than fretting over how long your to-do list is. If you simply get started on your work list and earn some early completion successes then the rest of the items on the list will quickly fall into place too.

Sometimes starting with the little things just doesn’t cut it and the weight of an enormous list of tasks is simply too big. This is especially true if there are some really tough or important jobs on the list that need to be done.

I was recently reminded of a great theory that can help in just that kind of situation; if you start out by tackling the hardest thing on your list every day then everything else will seem so much easier. I can’t imagine anything harder than eating a live frog!

Business coach and author Brian Tracy has taken this theory to the masses and has a very successful book available that lays out this strategy in plain English. “Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time” should be on the reading list for every business owner that struggles with procrastination paralysis.

Eat a live frog the first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.

Side note: Mark Twain is one of many other notable personalities that has been given credit for this theory in the past. Learn more…

How does this theory work for you? Do you eat the frog first? What other strategies do you have for tackling a massive to-do list?

I really can’t help you eat frogs (and I don’t want to!) but if you’re ready to update the headshot that you use on your LinkedIn profile or company website then I can definitely help with that!

If I had a quarter for every time a client asked me if they should leave their glasses on or take them off during their business portrait session I would have lots and lots of quarters. At least a jar full!

The short answer is Yes! Or No! It depends really. I actually always answer that question with another question of my own:

Here are a few guidelines for when you should and should not wear your glasses during a portrait session:

• If you normally wear your glasses when you meet your clients, prospects, leads, business associates, etc., then you should definitely wear them for your headshot.
• If you only wear them in front of the computer and never when you talk to real live people then you probably don’t want to wear them for your portrait.
• If you wear them sometimes but not other times then the reality is that it’s totally up to you whether you wear your glasses when you are being photographed. If you love your glasses, wear them. If you hate them, don’t.

Rules really are great, but sometimes you need to break them! Here are a couple of situations where you might choose to wear your glasses for portraits even though you normally wouldn’t, and some times when you should take them off even if you normally wear them all the time:

1. Ask yourself what kind of image do you want to present when people first see you on LinkedIn or on your company website? If you want to appear more professional or intellectual, then you should consider wearing glasses in your headshot even if you don’t always wear them in person. If you want to appear more friendly and approachable, then you might consider not wearing them for your portrait even if you normally wear them all the time.
2. Do your glasses have very heavy frames? If so then the studio lighting could cause some very strong shadows around your eyes. Your photographer *might* be able to fix that in the retouching process, but sometimes it’s hard to make that look realistic and natural. In those cases I often recommend taking pictures both with and without the glasses just to be safe.
3. Are your glasses very heavily curved? If so then the studio lighting could cause some very strong reflections on the glass and it may not be possible to reposition the lights to eliminate that glare. Just as in the case of shadows due to heave frames your photographer *might* be able to fix the glare in the retouching process, but sometimes it’s hard to make it look realistic and natural. In these cases I also recommend taking pictures both with and without the glasses just to be safe.

If you need an updated business headshot for LinkedIn, your company website, or your other marketing materials then please use the following link to schedule a professional headshot session?

The brand new Canadian Anti Spam Legislation (CASL) will come into force as of July 1, 2014. According to the federal government “once the law is in force, it will help to protect Canadians while ensuring that businesses can continue to compete in the global marketplace.” This is a very broad piece of legislation that has a major impact on the way that we as businesses and marketers are allowed to contact leads, clients, and other contacts via email, text message, or other electronic means in Canada.

I have looked at dozens of websites trying to find a good summary of what CASL really means to small business owners in Calgary. The federal government has a decent site with a lot of information and the actual text of the law, but there isn’t a great summary that explains in simple terms what the act really means. They do have a “Fast Facts” section that you might find somewhat useful:

Fast Facts – Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation

I also found the following presentation that was published by Canadian law firm Miller Thomson that is a very informative. There is also a PDF copy of the slides that they present and a one page “what you need to know” document that is a quick and easy read:

Getting Ready for Canada's Anti-spam Legislation (Video Presentation)
Getting Ready for Canada’s Anti-spam Legislation (Presentation Slides)
What you Need to Know about CASL Compliance (One Page Summary)

Obviously I’m not a lawyer, but here are a couple of key points that I have learned by reading many sources of information about CASL:

• We now need to have Express or Implied consent in order to add people to our mailing lists
• Express consent means that they have chosen to “Opt-In” to your list. This can be verbally or in writing.
• There are lots of ways that Implied consent applies
• you have an existing business relationship (ie they bought something from you or signed a contract with you) within the last 2 years
• they inquired about your goods or services within the last 6 months
• they have “conspicuously published” their email address AND your message is relevant to the recipient’s business role
• There are other exemptions for charities and politicians (and more) to be able to send email without other consent
• You must provide an obvious and easy way to “Opt-Out” from the list

Basically, if you were already following the US CAN-SPAM rules then you are probably in pretty good shape. The major difference seems to be the timeline within which you must remove people from your contact list if they haven’t extended their Opt-In consent beyond the statutory expiry dates.

In plain English, that means that every once in awhile you must contact the people on your list and ask if they still want to be on your list…

NOTE – I want to be totally clear that there is a lot more to this legislation than I have touched upon here. I have already said that I am not a lawyer and I have not extensively studied the bill. It’s up to you to ensure that you know what your responsibilities are and how to comply with the legislation.

Sure, this post had nothing to do with headshots, business portraits, or commercial photography, but I’m still here and ready to provide those service for you! If you are ready to take your online profile to the next level then now is the time to schedule a professional headshot session!

My name is Sean and I’m a meetup-a-holic. Those of you that know me well won’t be shocked by this at all. You already know that I have built my business by going to a wide variety of networking events and meetup groups designed for business owners to meet and get to know other business owners. At times I have been a regular at as many as 30 groups or events in a month. These have ranged from breakfast or lunch meetings, trade shows, coffee groups, and workshops with other small business owners. Lately I’ve cut this back to a much more manageable 10-12 events each month, but even that is enough meetings for me to get to know lots of new people and to reaffirm my relationship with the other networkers that I already know.

The thing is, many of my clients go to as many of these events as I do. Or more. We’ve met each other so many times over the past few years that we introduce each other as “My Electrician”, “My Bookkeeper”, or “My Insurance Guy”. This often happens even if we haven’t actually used each others services yet. We know that when the time comes we will use each others services. We do this because we already know, like, and trust them well enough that there really is no other choice as to whose services we will use.

More importantly, we also tell everyone we know that they should also use the services of the connections in our networks. And very often they do just that. People often listen to referrals from their friends because it’s easier to use a referral than it is to do the research to find our own contractors and service providers.

That’s where the real business growth comes from… It’s really not whether one other business person uses my services; no, it’s more about how many other people they refer my services to. It’s all about who you know, and who they know, and who they know. This is like getting compound interest from the bank.

The principle of networking to help each other grow their businesses can be used exactly the same way in the social media universe as it does in live face-to-face networking. Unfortunately it’s not nearly as effective. We are constantly bombarded with new people to Like, Connect with, +1, or Friend that it’s hard to keep track of whose who and what they are all about. Getting to know somebody in real life will always result in stronger relationships than any online networking ever could.

But the two go hand in hand and it’s actually worth using your social media presence to reinforce your real life connections.

I don’t know how many times I’ve met somebody at a networking event and then received a LinkedIn connection request from them before I even make it back to my office. This is actually a smart move, but there are ways to make sure that it’s worth the time to do it. Here are 3 quick tips that you can use to maximize the value that you are getting from connecting online with the people you meet offline:

1. Be sure to introduce yourself, clearly, so that your clients and prospects hear your first and last name. People associate names and faces and they are much more likely to actually remember you if they have clearly heard both of your names. If it makes sense to tell them the name of your business and a little but about what you do then do that too. But don’t force it. If you come out too strongly it will look like you only care about yourself.
2. Make sure you have a great headshot on your social media profiles. It has to look like you (now, not 10 years ago) and it should be similar in appearance to how you look when you meet your clients or prospects at a networking event.
3. Before you go to the next networking event be sure to have a quick look at the guest list to see who will be there. If you recognize some of the names or faces then check out their recent updates on LinkedIn or Facebook to see what they have been up to recently. These can be great conversation starters and it will reinforce that you care about them.

Do you want to learn more about how to make in-person networking work for you. There’s a great article in the February issue of Connected for Business magazine called Networking 101 that walks you through all the important aspects if face-to-face networking and how to make it work for you. If you look closely you might even notice a few quotes from yours truly in the article!

If you want to maximize the value of your online profile as a way to better connect with the people that you meet at networking events then you need to book a professional headshot session as soon as possible. Your connections will remember you better and form a deeper connection with you and your business if you have a great profile headshot on your social media accounts.

A good headshot photographer already knows how to get the best out of their subjects to create great photos for use on social media profiles and business websites. But sometimes it’s hard to explain exactly what it is that the client needs to do to create those images. Or what they should wear. Or how they should look.

But now there is some interesting research that has identified some of the key characteristics of great business headshots and has even gone so far as to quantify how those characteristics can influence the ratings of perceived Competence, Likability, and Influence.

You can see a complete infographic below with all of the results of the study. As a very brief summary of the results, the following factors must be considered in order to create a great business portrait:

Do’s

• Direct Eye Contact and wearing Eyeglasses increases the perception of Competence
• A slight squint improves ratings in all categories, particularly Influence
• Smiling (with teeth visible) leads to the best overall scores, especially Likeability
• Wearing a formal outfit dramatically increases Competence and Influence scores
• 
  Business Portrait for LinkedIn and Company Press Releases

  5 Key Elements of a Great Portrait

  Sometimes it’s easier to understand what it is that you don’t like about a photo than it is to identify why you love a photo. Fortunately there are a few key elements that go into almost every great portrait. Here is a list of 5 elements that Melonie Dodaro of Top Dog Social Media recently identified as being important to making a great business photo for use on LinkedIn and your other social media accounts:

  1. Ensure your photo has a clean background

  – the subject deserves to get all the attention

  2. Use a professional photographer to create a great photo for you

  – please, no selfies!

  3. Use a tight headshot

  – save the weekend party pictures for Facebook

  4. Add a splash of color to your wardrobe

  – stay professional, but ditch the drab

  5. Turn that frown upside down

  – a smile always invites action or engagement

  We try to incorporate all of these elements into every business portrait we create. If you want to learn more about why each point is important then you can see the original article “5 Elements of a Successful Social Media Profile Picture” at the Top Dog Website.

  Book a Calgary Headshot Appointment

  

  Business Headshot for LinkedIn and Social Media

  Make Your LinkedIn Profile Irresistible

  5 Ways to Make Your #LinkedIn Profile Irresistible from Social@Ogilvy

  The folks at Ogilvy & Mather put together this great infographic that spells out 5 Ways to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Irresistible. They cover the bases well, including information on using keywords, carefully portraying yourself to attract your target clients or jobs, and telling a great story about yourself. This is all very important information to have on your LinkedIn profile.

  Use a Professional Profile Photo

  Equally important is using a great professional headshot:

  “The photo you choose sends a strong message about who you are. If your professional profile photo is of you in a casual circumstance, such as a you at a sporting activity, party, wedding, or with your pet, then it doesn’t come across as “professional.” And, what’s worse than having a bad photo is having no photo at all.”

  
  

  Book a Calgary Headshot Appointment

  If you are ready to make your social media profiles to the next level then now is the time to schedule a professional headshot session. We can work with you to make sure that your portrait matches the story that you have told in the text on your LinkedIn profile and shows you off the way you want to be seen.

  Book an Appointment

  
  

  
  

  Testimonial from Executive Portrait Client Jens Rumsfeld

  "Great pictures, fast and pleasant service."

  
  
  
  
  

  Jens Rumsfeld
  

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