The Mackay Business Owner's Guide
to Actually Using Your Photos

Most businesses book a photographer, get their files, say "these are great," and then put them in a Dropbox folder and never think about them again.

A month later their website still has the same stock photo of a handshake. Their LinkedIn banner is blank. Their Google Business profile hasn't been updated in two years.

This is not a dig. It happens constantly. Here's what to actually do with your content after the shoot.

But first: the shoot itself doesn't have to be hard

One of the most common reasons businesses put off booking a photographer is the assumption that it'll be a production. Time out of the business, back and forth on scheduling, waiting weeks for results.

It doesn't have to be that way. One of my clients rang on a Monday, I was out at the property the next afternoon, and they had photos back by close of business Tuesday. Their words: "best photography experience I have ever had."

That's the standard. A professional shoot should fit around your business, not the other way around.

Update your Google Business profile first

This is the highest leverage thing you can do with new photos and almost no one does it quickly enough. Google Business photos directly influence how your listing ranks and how many people click through to your website.

New photos signal an active, current business. Outdated photos signal the opposite. If you had a shoot last month and your Google Business profile still shows a photo from 2019, you're leaving real local search visibility on the table.

LinkedIn before anything else

Your banner image, your headshot, your company page header. These are the first things a potential client sees when they look you up after a meeting or a referral. A blank banner or a cropped photo from a Christmas party is telling them something about your business before you've said a word.

I shot corporate headshots for a local team recently. The feedback was simple: prompt, professional, results were great. Within days those headshots were live across their LinkedIn profiles. That's the move. Don't sit on content.

Your website hero image

The photo at the top of your homepage is doing more heavy lifting than any other piece of content on your site. It's the first impression for every person who visits.

I recently shot a commercial real estate property that required a drone image in a restricted area, which meant approvals, coordination, extra effort. That image is now the hero shot on their listings page. One photo, done properly, working every day.

Proposals and quotes

This one is underused. If you send proposals or quotes to potential clients, adding professional imagery of your work, your team, or your premises changes the document from a price list into a pitch.

I filmed a complete build video and client testimonial for a local business recently. The owner's response when he watched it back: "watching the video almost brought a tear to my eye." That video is now doing sales work for him every time he sends it to a prospect. He didn't change his price or his pitch. He just gave people something real to watch.

Your physical premises and promotions

Professional photography isn't just for large businesses or corporate teams. I shot a family day care recently. The brief was straightforward, the result exceeded expectations, and the owner now has imagery that genuinely represents their business for promotions, their website, and social media.

If your business involves a physical space that people visit or trust their loved ones to, photos that show that space at its best are doing real work.

Social media, with a system

Don't post everything at once. A good shoot gives you weeks of content if you use it properly. One image per post, spaced out over time, keeps your business looking current and active without requiring a new shoot every month.

The shoot is the start, not the finish

The businesses that get the most from professional photography treat the content as an asset to deploy, not a box to tick. The photos are only as valuable as where they end up.

If you're a Mackay business thinking about what professional photography or video could do for you, I'm happy to have a conversation about what that looks like for your industry.