“I’ll Just Take the Photos with My iPhone”
– THE TRUE SHORT STORY OF HOW ONE EVENT MISSED THE BOAT ON MARKETING CONTENT AND THE VALUE OF PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEOGRAPHY
I recently attended a brunch at an animal sanctuary in Commerce City, Colo. The incredibly unique experience had me drinking horchatas and eating vegan breakfast burritos while surrounded by dozens of sheep, cows, goats, pigs, ducks, llamas, puppies and one six-week-old piglet wearing a sweater.
This fundraiser had hundreds in attendance, nearly everyone smiling brim to brim, and laughter and chatter among the guests that could probably be heard a mile away. But it was missing one key element - a photographer to capture these moments.
The mileage you get out of the professional visual content will end up paying dividends far beyond the actual cost of the professional photographer or videographer.
Sure, we all got photos of the piglet on our iPhones, but let’s just say she isn’t the easiest subject to work with. If the non-profit thought through the larger goals of their event and hiring a professional photographer to capture content that ladders up to those goals; they could get some well-composed, well-lighted images of the event that could be used for future marketing materials, social media posts and invitations to future brunches on the farm. I know I would have gladly paid a few extra dollars to have a professional photo taken with the animals, knowing the proceeds were going back to this amazing location.
Sometimes smaller organizations (and even larger brands or agencies) don’t see a need to hire a professional photographer and/or videographer. “I don’t want to spend the money. I’ll just take pictures with my iPhone.” Most do not realize that the mileage they get out of the professional visual content will end up paying dividends for them far beyond the actual cost of the professional photographer or videographer.
Sure, opinions vary, some say that with the major upgrades in technology current phone cameras rival professional cameras in terms of on the go, instant gratification content; others, that your phone will always play second fiddle to the quality and control you have with a DSLR.
The holy trinity of experiential content: branding, context, and happy engaged consumers.
In either scenario, what is usually lacking is an experienced operator behind the lens that gets it. Someone who can take good content to GREAT by utilizing their skill set as an experienced photographer or videographer. Poised to snap the perfect moment that strategically includes the holy trinity of experiential content: branding, context, and happy engaged consumers.
Live in the moment with your attendees rather than focusing on capturing the experience.
If the project manager of your event just happens to be a shutterbug who loves capturing branded content for your promotional and recapping needs, then bravo! You’ve found a unicorn, hold on to them. More than likely, however, you’re in a situation with a team that’s strapped for time handling the many logistics of a live event, with little bandwidth to focus on documenting the organic moments happening as the attendees enjoy the event you’ve so thoughtfully created. What’s more, is that time taken away to document your event is time that you and your employees could be spending capitalizing on the business opportunities that live activations create for your company while you’re face to face with your target demographic. If your company is the host, you should be working the room, not stuck behind a lens.
Bonus: Pics of piglet in a sweater – told you she wasn’t the easiest subject to work with 🐷🙃
Ready to invest in photography opportunities to showcase your brand?
At O Hello Media, we curate our global network of photographers and videographers specifically for experiential marketing activation documentation. We work with companies to ensure that you have visual content that highlights the success of your event, proves ROI, and helps you reach your larger marketing goals.