As a real estate agent, you’ve been expected to have a headshot long before the days of LinkedIn and Facebook.  What was once an optional tool of the trade for most, the corporate headshot is now an essential requirement in today’s business world. But despite being ahead of the curve, we regularly see real estate agents boasting headshots that – to put it nicely – leave little to be desired. 

 

Below is a list of our TOP 5 mistakes we see amongst real estate agent headshots:  (Image source: FStoppers.com)

 

1)  The photo was taken over a decade ago.  Maybe more.

We ALL know this agent.  You know the one. The one who simply refuses to let go of a headshot taken 10, 15, maybe 20 years ago.  Their hair is big.  The colors are loud (or beige). The background is that blue-ish/gray-ish pattern or, god forbid, lasers. But hey – they like it!  Why fix what’s not broken?  Wrong!  When you regularly update your headshot, you tell buyers and sellers you’re willing to invest in yourself and that you’re conscious of your image and branding.  If you show a lack of aptitude in marketing yourself, how confident will sellers be in your ability to market their home?

 

 

2) The photo doesn’t look like you.

Believe it or not, even the most confident people are self-conscious about themselves in some way or another.  Everybody has that one eye that doesn’t quite close as much, that double chin, or those few extra wrinkles you’d like to pretend don’t exist – but here’s the thing:  You are you.  And you are AMAZING!!!  It’s important that your headshot encapsulate YOU as a person.  Photos that are overly edited or falsely represent your appearance are unnerving and weird.  You know what goes through someone’s head when they meet another person whose headshot doesn’t match up to reality? They think, “Wow.  This person looks nothing like they do in their profile photo. Huh.”  Having that floating around in a prospective client’s head is getting you started on the wrong foot.

 

 

3) The weird prop.

We’ve seen it all.  Phones, pagers, megaphones, sold banners – you name it, there’s probably a real estate agent somewhere that’s posing with it in their headshot.  The problem with these photos is often a case of execution.  While having a corporate editorial portrait with some sort of prop can be done, it’s important that the prop elevate your position rather than distract from you as the focal point.  In most cases we see with the weird prop, it’s just tacky – though that’s not to say it can’t be done.

 

 

4) The headshot doesn’t portray honesty, approachability, AND confidence.

As a real estate agent, you’d agree you need all 3 of these qualities to succeed in the industry.  Yet, it’s very common that we see AT LEAST one of these attributes missing from Realtor headshots.  The problem is that most headshot or business editorial photographers lack the skillset to really bring this out of their subjects.  No person is different – everyone has their own blend of those three traits that define themselves as not only real estate professionals, but as people.  To get to the point: It’s important to find someone that has a specializes in headshot and real estate agent portrait photography.  Think of it like a restaurant.  You wouldn’t go to a Sushi restaurant expecting a good burrito – so why use anything but a headshot photographer when getting your agent portraits done?

 

Which leads us to one of the most common mistakes we see real estate agents make regarding their headshot:

 

5) An unwillingness to invest in their headshot.

Whether it’s the time or money, a lot of agents simply don’t invest the resources into getting an EXCEPTIONAL headshot.  They rely on friends, family, or whoever their brokerage uses in order “snap something quick” and think the results are good enough to do the job.  But like with most things in life, you get what you pay for.  Is “good enough to do the job” the way you want to represent yourself? Agents that go above and beyond for the little things tend to find the bigger clients.  There are no shortcuts – and it starts with a GREAT headshot.  While getting the perfect headshot may not suddenly lead to millions of dollars in closings (though in the right circumstances, we do feel this could be the case!) – a bad headshot will almost certainly have cost you opportunities in today’s digital world.   Think about what your headshot portrays to the world.  Are you proud of what it’s saying?

 

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Chicago Real Estate Agent Headshots

[/vc_column_text][vc_separator type=”transparent” up=”32″ up_style=”px” down=”0″ down_style=”px”][vc_column_text]Of ALL the services we provide or recommend to real estate agents, getting the perfect headshot is at the top of that list. With over 89% of home shoppers using the internet to search for a real estate agent, you’re making digital first impressions nearly everyday whether you know it or not.  And while W&W likes to avoid grandiose claims such as “YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENT HEADSHOT CAN MAKE YOU MILLIONS OF DOLLARS!” (even though we truly believe that’s definitely possible in the right circumstances – we’re optimists! ), the reality of the situation is this:  If you do have a bad headshot, you’ve almost certainly LOST business because of it.  So suck it up and stop being cheap. No more excuses! Invest in YOURSELF –  headshots are worth it.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”grid” text_align=”left” background_color=”#f7f7f7″ padding_bottom=”73″ css_animation=”” box_shadow_on_row=”no” oblique_section=”no” triangle_shape=”no”][vc_column][no_pricing_tables columns=”three_columns”][no_pricing_table type=”title_on_top” small_title=”” title=”The Gold” title_alignment=”center” title_border_bottom=”yes” title_border_bottom_style=”pricing_title_grid” border_arround=”no” table_border_top=”no” price_border_bottom=”no” price_font_weight=”” show_button=”no” active=”no” content_style=”pricing_content_full_width” different_odd_even_sections=”yes” price=”99.99″ even_back_color=”#ffffff” odd_back_color=”#f9f9f9″ price_background=”#ffffff” price_period=”plux tax” title_background_color=”#917223″]

• LIMITED TIME OFFER! NORMAL PRICE: $175.00

• 20 – 30 minutes
• 1 look
• 1 retouched final image
• Can’t be used with any other promotion or offer. Limit 1 per person.
• [simpay id=”57323″]

[/no_pricing_table][no_pricing_table type=”title_on_top” small_title=”” title=”The Diamond” title_alignment=”center” title_border_bottom=”yes” title_border_bottom_style=”pricing_title_grid” border_arround=”no” table_border_top=”no” price_border_bottom=”no” price_font_weight=”” show_button=”no” active=”no” content_style=”pricing_content_full_width” different_odd_even_sections=”yes” price=”299″ even_back_color=”#ffffff” odd_back_color=”#f9f9f9″ price_background=”#ffffff” price_period=”plus tax” title_background_color=”#917223″]

• 90 minutes
• 3 looks
• 3 final retouched images
• ***Optional*** Real Estate Marketing Assessment
• [simpay id=”57327″]

[/no_pricing_table][no_pricing_table type=”title_on_top” small_title=”” title=”The Prestige” title_alignment=”center” title_border_bottom=”yes” title_border_bottom_style=”pricing_title_grid” border_arround=”no” table_border_top=”no” price_border_bottom=”no” price_font_weight=”” show_button=”no” active=”yes” active_style=”circle” content_style=”pricing_content_full_width” different_odd_even_sections=”yes” price=”599″ even_back_color=”#ffffff” odd_back_color=”#f9f9f9″ price_background=”#ffffff” active_text=”Make Your Mark.” active_text_background_color=”#16171d” price_period=”plus tax” title_background_color=”#917223″]

• 90-180 minutes
• 3 headshot looks + 1 editorial look
• 3 retouched headshot images
• 3 editorial photos (retouched and stylized)
• **Optional* Real Estate Marketing Assessment
• [simpay id=”57328″]

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