Straight Talk on Photography from a Real Estate Marketing Expert

In her work for Kline May Realty, one of the Shenandoah Valley’s largest brokerages, Aimee Roberts helps dozens of agents market their listings and attract new clients.Aimee is Kline May's Marketing and Digital Media Specialist. So, in addition to showing off individual listings, she also grows the company's overall brand through thoughtfully designed marketing campaigns.Today, she’s sharing some of her tips and strategies with us. Read on for the Q&A!SP: Aimee, thanks for partnering with us on this Q&A. Could you tell us a little bit about how you use photographs in marketing at Kline May?Thanks for inviting me to chat. So I’ll start with this, quality photography is crucial to successful marketing. I’ve been in this industry for over five years now. No matter how convincing or clever your design concept is, bad pictures distract consumers from your message. Luckily, I have never had that problem at Kline May. I love showcasing Swartz Photography photos in our marketing pieces. We use them in so many different ways from print to social media, and even on local television.SP: Which of those uses have you found most effective? Is there anything you’ve tried to do with visual marketing that didn’t really work out?That’s a great question! I think our most effective use of our photos has to be the web. Over 90% of people are looking for their next house online, and because our photos make a great first impression, it helps our agents get homes sold!Hmm…visual marketing that didn’t really work out. Maybe this is obvious, but when it comes to print pieces, I’ve realized that it’s best to go big or go home. There is just something so impactful about a print piece—for example, an ad in a local magazine—that has minimal text and a photo that makes a statement. Too many photos in an ad makes it too busy. I love simplicity in marketing. It’s what I always strive for.SP: How do you simultaneously help market individual agents and Kline May as a whole?It’s complicated? In all seriousness, it’s an interesting challenge to help so many agents distinguish themselves, while still maintaining the overall integrity of the Kline May Realty brand. I always try to help agents figure out what makes them different. It’s hard for agents to figure that out sometimes. So one of the questions I’ll ask is, “Which celebrity or iconic cartoon or figure do you feel represents your brand?” It’s a silly question, but it forces people to think outside the box. We’ve gotten a lot of interesting responses over the years—from Robert Redford to P!nk.SP: What recent work are you most proud of?Kline May Realty is currently reworking our brand, and I’m grateful to be able to exercise my creativity and use my design eye to help develop this new look and feel. Because of my role as the Marketing Specialist, I’m also tasked with making sure we maintain our brand identity. With that being said, I’m really proud of the brand manual I created for the company. It’s like a 48-page map that helps agents stay on track when it comes to our marketing, technology, and even photography resources.SP: What advice would you give to small businesses focused on growing their brands through better visual marketing?It’s simple. Great photography is worth the investment! The overall impact on the perception of your brand will pay off for years to come!