This could get awkward. But it’s entirely worth it because this is a topic that I think all small business owners and personal brands can benefit from!

A Few Good Rules of Thumb:

• sharing from an account that’s private is generally bad form. you have access to their photos while other’s don’t, so it’s usually not appropriate to pass that private content along without permission
• you must give credit to the ORIGINAL person, and it’s always a good idea to double check and find the original photo on their feed and make sure they aren’t attributing credit elsewhere
• don’t bury the credit, showcase it with respect
• your message should be appropriate to the photo, in respect for the original artist

Tips for Keeping Your Curated Feed Authentic:

• half of the photos you share should be originals (but don’t worry, I have some advice for creating content if you don’t have the tools to take beautiful photos)
• don’t use stock photography as a way to mislead followers into thinking your life is more impressive than it is
• don’t waste your followers’ time with a beautiful photo and a meaningless caption, it’s transparent

Tips for Non-Visual-Creators:

• depending on your industry, employees and/or customers can help create content for you
• it takes time and effort, but it’s incredibly authentic content
• give customers something to document and a way to access that documentation (i.e.
• highlight someone else’s work and content that complimentary to yours
• using text to share knowledge, reviews, testimonials, quotes, etc.
• seek out specific hashtags to look for awesome stock content to use with credit

Improving Your Marketing Effort

• don’t limit your content to the tiny niche of your work, branch out into other aspects of your industry
• highlight the work of others and gain their trust
• educate your followers on every
• let go of the fear of using photos improperly, work on your confidence in this area

Episode 20 – A Hustler’s Guide To Using Photos That Don’t Belong To You

When it comes to Instagram if it looks too good to be true, it might just be. The power of having a cohesive presence on social media is undeniable, which has resulted in a massive spike in the use of stock photography. That’s right, folks are actually PAYING for a collection of images to make their homes, their offices, and their lives look ready for the ‘gram.

When used properly stock photos can heighten your brand and elevate your web content, but in this episode I’m exploring the dangers of overusing stock photography and creating a false image that puts your credibility at risk.

I’m also sharing my advice for learning to share photos that don’t belong to you with confidence. There are SO many incredible resources out there just waiting to be used to help grow your brand. If fear of sharing incorrectly is holding you back, this episode is just what you need: a BS-free etiquette guide to sharing photos that you didn’t take, WITHOUT compromising your integrity.

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