When it comes to marketing, business owners in every industry face a common challenge:
How can I share my products, people, and processes in ways that generate sales?
Answering this question on your own can become overwhelming and over complicated quickly for a number of reasons, like:
- It can be hard to visualize your mission and messaging.
- It can be a challenge to capture the real and relatable personalities.
- It can be a struggle to see your operation from the outside-in.
Our team at Kelly Ann Photography are experts at guiding companies and professionals in all industries through conceptualizing and communicating their brand. We enjoy the process of drawing out ideas, and drawing people into imagery that tells a story.
How do we do it? We start with what your identified needs are, and help you grow from there!
In the case of Certified Cultivators, an Ohio-based medical marijuana manufacturer, it was product photography. They needed photos of their THC gummies and cartridges for e-commerce and for their website. But we know that behind every product are the people and processes that bring it to life. Your website is the perfect place to celebrate them all in ways that generate sales.
As with any new inquiry a quick phone call was set up with Zach Weprin, a partner at Certified Cultivators, to discuss their specific photography needs. During that first meeting we quickly realized they were in need of a library of images to build their website and brand. To help brainstorm and create concepts we brought in our art director, Cindy Fair of CM Designs, and together we helped Certified Cultivators create a look and style for each area that flawlessly communicates their brand.
Read on to learn how we did it!
Product
When it came to their THC gummies and carts, the client wanted to present delicious and glamorous edibles, they are called Gems, after all! With our knowledge in both product and food photography we were able to come up with a few options for the client to choose from. We created the set in our studio and were able to send sample images of concepts as we shot to the client for feed back and approval. these products need to jump off the photo and into the hands of Certified Cultivators’s customers; people in need of relief so they can enjoy their lives. We used bright clean backgrounds to make the products pop, and misted the gummy gems to shimmer under our studio lights.
People
Right out of the gate, we knew we didn’t want Certified Cultivators’s company portraits to look too corporate. Yes, they are a major professional operation working with agricultural and industrial equipment to serve clients with medical needs. But they’re also a young and innovative crew that’s getting ahead of a budding market in Ohio (pun intended!), and we wanted to capture that.
We set up a softly-lit set with a gray background and cranked up the music! This atmosphere allowed for everyone to relax and enjoy the process of capturing their true personalities and natural poses.
Processes
It surprises some clients to learn that photos of their facility are a must for branding sessions. Why? Because people want to know your process! They want to see behind the scenes and what it takes to create your products.
Let us tell you, everything at Certified Cultivators is top notch.
We decided to shoot their warehouse in a very industrial style, to showcase the sophistication of their equipment and cleanliness of their spaces. This was no easy feat, as their facility is HUGE. From grow and control rooms to kitchens and labs, everything is located on one site. There is a lot going on, and we wanted to capture all of it. Creating a library of images for the client to be able to pull from.
There was also the challenge of their full-spectrum LED lights. If you take photos of these on with your smartphone or a point and shoot camera, everything will be covered in a weird pink cast and flickering lights. But we accounted for that with exposure adjustments, shutter speed, and expertly color correct images in post.
At the end of it all, Certified Cultivators walked away from this experience with a lot more than product photography for their website. Together we discovered their deeper needs and wants, and transformed those into imagery that will create more interest in their products, people, and processes – which in turn, will generate more sales.
We really loved helping Certified Cultivators design their branding. Does this sound like something you need help with? Give us a call today!
