3 Ways to Leverage Imagery for Your Brand On Social Media
You can’t fake a photo in 2026. Everyone uses stock photos; everyone generates Cremé dé lé slop.
I don’t care if you are offering a service, selling coaching, delivering a keynote, or whatever. If you have the overhead, you need to hire a photographer to capture your business's stories.
Because you need to show who you are, what you do, and why it matters. I cannot stress this enough: building a business means nothing if you cannot effectively show and present it to the right people.
I know this is going to be a difficult article. Many of you don’t have the means to acquire these assets (I get this more than you realize). Real, authentic photos are expensive, but I might have some shots you can get without spending any more.
Stand out without spending more. This is Scrappy Brand, and it’s why I am here. Let’s get going.
Show Yourself With Selfies
In middle school, I used to cringe at the word selfie. Now, I post them on LinkedIn. Selfies are low-cost snapshots that instantly become postcards from your brand. It signals to your clients: “This person goes places” — or not, but who's really keeping score.
You need pictures of yourself. Yes! Real photos of you doing the things you normally do:
A humble brag about being the last ones up at conference
Shouldering a cat
Toasting
Impersonating a meme with a copy of the Silmarillion
Every time I am on LinkedIn, I can tell which of those in my feed are actually doing the tangible work they talk about. Why? They document themselves doing it. They show photos of themselves. And this does not mean they need to be perfect—remember, perfect is better than done—they just need to create a connection.
This looks different for everyone, so ask yourself: what does my audience need to know about me? What would I like to share?
For me, it’s the presumption of sage wisdom, and that comes with a beard and the desire to make an utter fool of myself. Oh, and showing off how much of a nerd I am.
The Junk Drawer
What’s in your pockets? After a conference in September, I took a pile of business cards, goodies, and other items and threw them onto my desk. I used the opportunity to have my followers play I Spy. Viewers were asked to point out their business card and promote their business.
The Junk Drawer is where you take crappy snapshots of stuff associated with your business and tie a story to them.
In another post, I photographed my first business card and told a brief story. I reflected on where my career started and where it is now.
The lesson here: turning junk into stories.
Framing Your Offer As A Story
Not all photos have to include people. Some of your photos can be snapshots of your journey or a story motif in your business. Sometimes that means going through old photos and repurposing them for your brand.
Making It Visual
Never cease collecting these types of photos for your business. Now, you can incorporate them into your visual identity. How? Color grading, my friend. The steps are simple:
Open your favorite editor
Go through the filters
Find one that fits your brand colors (mine are orange and blue)
Apply that filter to every photo
Collect them in a small library that you have labeled “Photo assets“
A Bonus: Turning Yourself Into Memes
Building a brand can be fun. Don’t take yourself too seriously.
That’s all I’ve got for you guys. No point in writing this all out if I don’t give you back some time to implement it.
With love,
~ Kyle
