Tips for Capturing Authentic Moments in Marketing

Authenticity is everything in modern marketing. Here are our top 10 tips for capturing authentic moments in marketing. 

In today’s fast-paced digital world, authenticity in marketing has become more crucial than ever. 

Consumers crave genuine connections and real stories from the brands they trust – not just stock images and sales strategies. 

They’re looking to connect, and as a modern business owner or professional, it’s your job to give them something real and meaningful to connect with. 

That’s why we’re here to share our top 10 tips for capturing authentic moments in your marketing efforts.

How To Capture Authenticity In Your Visual Marketing Content

Share Real People & Stories

Long gone are the days of stock photos and staged models. Showcasing real people and sharing genuine stories helps you connect with your audience on a personal level. It’s authentic, relatable, and, most importantly, real. (Need ideas to help create authentic moments in marketing stories around your brand? Check out our 100 Posts Guide for inspiration.)

In fact, successful brands are really, really good at one thing: telling authentic stories. Why? Stories go beyond simple marketing gimmicks and seasonal promotions. They capture the heart of a customer to create the kind of bond that lasts – despite slow seasons or poor economies. Compelling visual storytelling demonstrates your unique values and connects you with the people who share them. In fact, people are 22 times more likely to remember details when stories communicate messages instead of just facts and numbers, according to psychologist Jerome Bruner. Why? Stories are memorable.

Curate Your Atmosphere 

It’s difficult to be authentically yourself in marketing – or in life – when you don’t feel comfortable. That’s why one of the first steps to creating authentic visual content is setting up an environment where you feel safe, supported … and maybe even a little cheered on. Of course, that can be different for everyone. Maybe you feel most comfortable in front of a camera when you have a friend or supportive co-worker smiling from behind the camera. Or maybe you prefer the privacy of a closed studio, so you can have as many takes as you like without pressure. In addition to crafting the perfect setting for your visual marketing content, make sure you’re also creating a setting that makes you feel confident, too! Whatever you need to help present the most authentic version of you, we can make it happen at SchlickArt, so you can create more authentic moments in marketing. 

Elicit Genuine Expressions 

Expression is something to be played with when it comes to visual marketing, and the best way to do that is by playing authentically. At SchlickArt, we have a system to elicit true and authentic expressions. Since we don’t use flash photography, we can shoot rapid-fire to capture many images in the span of a second or two. That way, we’re capturing the entire range of your smile – from the small smirk, all the way into a full grin, and back to neutral again. Somewhere in that range is the perfect smile, the one that’s big enough to be genuine but also relaxed enough to not look forced. Plus, we also have some fun sayings to elicit a real and genuine smile that looks fantastic in your visual content for social media. (But if you want to see what that’s all about, you’ll have to join us in the studio!)

While smiles are always great to see on social media, other expressions can be used to convey a range of messages, including listening faces, surprised faces and more. That way, you always have the most appropriate expression to pair with your messaging. Plus, in real life we’re more than just smiles. Showing the range of your feelings in your visual marketing reminds people that you’re human, relatable and real. It creates more of those valuable authentic moments in marketing. 

Focus On Progress Over Perfection  

When you care so much about what you do, it’s hard not to get stuck in perfectionist tendencies. What you put out into the world is a reflection of you, your brand, and your work. So of course you want it to be perfect. But here’s the thing: There’s no such thing as perfect. So if you keep trying to achieve perfection, then you’ll never get to done. Even more importantly, perfection isn’t authentic, and people see through it rather quickly. If you want to create connection with your visual content, then aim for progress over perfection. After all, it’s more important to simply have a digital presence than it is to have a perfect one. So press publish! 

Be Confident In Your Value 

One of the toughest lessons to learn – in life and business – is the value of your own worth. Whether you’re deciding how much to charge or getting ready to launch something new, it’s hard not to take business personally sometimes. It can feel like you’re putting yourself out there, and other people get to decide how much that’s worth. 

But the truth is, you demonstrate your value every time you help a client or solve a problem. With each act of service, you’re showing your worth, not only to your customers or your audience, but also to yourself. So don’t forget that! You have unique value to offer the world, and no one else has the right to take that away. All you have to do is keep serving your clients, friends, and community with the same commitment and dedication – and take a minute to remind yourself of all the ways you make a difference. That’s your worth, and no one else can quantify it but you. 

Ready to capture more authentic moments in marketing? Contact us to see how we can help!

Make An Emotional Connection 

Harvard Business School professor Gerald Zaltman says that 95% of purchase decision-making takes place in the subconscious mind, and that emotion is the biggest subconscious urge. Consumer behavior expert Phillip Adcock says that emotional reactions are 3,000 times faster than rational thought, and the emotional parts of the brain process sensory input five times faster. He also says that the persuasiveness ratio of emotion to reason is 24:1. No matter how you approach it, the experts agree: Consumers lead with emotion. That’s why brands should, too. 

There are many ways to form an emotional connection with your audience through visual marketing – but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily easy. There’s a certain amount of “connection” to the camera that you just can’t fake. You’ve probably experienced it before. You take a photo with a group of your best friends on a night out, and there’s just this glow about your smile. But when you’re forced to pose for a headshot at the office, there’s nothing about that smile that seems natural (no matter how much you love your job). That’s because it takes an emotionally connected photographer to elicit the kind of feelings that actually show up in the image, and to create visual storytelling with impact. At SchlickArt, we have a fun and silly process that eliminates the intimidation factor and makes the process stress-free. After a few minutes, you’ll feel comfortable enough to be the real you. That’s what we want to capture: more authentic moments in marketing. 

Use Filters & Editing Lightly 

There’s a fine line when it comes to editing photos and using filters. You want to feel good about the visual content you’re posting, but you also want to look like you. That line can be difficult for even a professional photographer to navigate, so when we start playing around with filters and editing tools on our own images, we tend to go a bit overboard. Today, people prefer to see real, authentic faces instead of extensive filters. If you aren’t sure how to strike the perfect balance, please feel free to ask us! 

Share With Consistency 

In the early years, we tried lots of different marketing strategies. We’d get started on one, and before long, we’d come up with the next big idea and “pivot.” But our pivoting was much more like “shiny object syndrome.” Over the years, by tracking data and seeing what actually brings in clients, we learned an extremely valuable lesson: The results are in the repetition. Choose a strategy that works and stick to it. Often, we’ll give a new marketing strategy half a chance to work, then cut it off right before the inflection point. Or we’ll commit to a New Year marketing plan but stop working the plan by February. But marketing is won with consistency. With so much change in the digital world, it’s easy to become reactive and get stuck there. This year, it’s important to slow down, plan ahead, and stay the course. More of our authentic selves will show up when we’re not trapped in the reactionary cycle of posting whenever we need to fill bookings or increase sales. That’s the power of authentic moments in marketing. 

Curate A Balance Of Content 

While consistency is crucial for authentically engaging an audience, there’s another piece to the puzzle that many people don’t realize. We often show only one side of ourselves on social media. Maybe you create a highly professional account that sticks to business-related topics, or you cultivate a personal account that shares stories about your family and daily life. Even more problematic, you don’t show yourself at all, leaving your face and personality out of your posts entirely. 

In order to create an authentic and engaging social media presence, however, it’s important to show all sides of yourself with a well-rounded and balanced feed. That means sharing some personal moments, such as photos of your family, as well as your professional expertise and even your community involvement – all in one place. Creating the right balance of content is critical if you want to show up authentically and actually engage real people with more authentic moments in marketing. 

Work With A Photographer Who Understands Authenticity 

Photography isn’t like looking into a mirror. It captures so much more. It captures your natural shape and the way your emotions light up your features. Even lighting and shadows play a role in how the camera picks up your angles and your movements. And if you’re doing it right – that’s the whole point. The beauty of photography and video is that it captures all the sides of you that a two-dimensional mirror simply can’t. When used properly, the camera can see what makes you uniquely you. 

So then why do some people feel photogenic, while others don’t? Not all cameras, or photographers, are created equal. You see, you have to understand how to work the camera, as well as the subject, in order to make all the elements of photography work together. That’s when the magic happens. That’s when you can capture a person’s true beauty … and make them feel truly “photogenic.” 

That’s also why, at SchlickArt, we believe there’s no such thing as being naturally “photogenic.” In fact, it’s not the subject’s responsibility to look good on camera – but the photographer’s responsibility to bring out the very best in the person they’re shooting. In our studio, being “photogenic” is about who is taking the picture, not who’s in front of the camera, because a great photographer can bring out the best in everyone.

Ready to capture more authentic moments in marketing? Contact us to see how we can help!

Visual Marketing Education 

At SchlickArt, we know your marketing visuals are only effective if you actually use them. That’s why we help you create powerful photography and video – and then we teach you how to share it. With each session, we’ll give you our best tips based on your specific marketing goals. We provide the education and resources you need to brand your content, integrate it into your marketing strategy, post it with intention, and maximize engagement along the way. We have everything you need to create authentic moments in marketing. 

If you want even more tips and resources, we have an educational blog, newsletter and video channel to help you dive deeper, as well as professional presentations, workshops, and coaching sessions if you’re ready to take action and level-up your marketing now.

About SchlickArt 

SchlickArt, a boutique photo and video studio in Santa Clarita, started in March 2012 with the simple idea that empowerment creates a kind of beauty and authenticity that shines through every camera lens. Built on a philosophy — rather than a product, service or person — SchlickArt has rapidly evolved, meeting professional portraiture, business photo and business video needs as diverse as the community we capture. It’s the desire to take care of you, the client, that drives us to create authentic moments in marketing for you and your brand. 

Kirsten Quinn

A lover of strong coffee and yellowed pages, Kirsten Quinn-Smith is a professional content writer and owner of WordSmith Content Marketing here in Santa Clarita. She believes great content can forge a loyal, authentic and beneficial relationship between you and your audience – and grow your business. With each piece of writing, Kirsten's goal is to position you in the content spotlight through audience-centered, strategy-based writing that actually sounds like you. Why? Everyone has a story, and every story deserves to be heard.

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