Loosen Up or it Will Cost You Premium Clients
Recently, I was hunting for an app to help with some backend organization—you know, the businessy stuff that keeps you sane.
Type that into Perplexity and you'll get slammed with options. Seems like everyone's an app developer these days.
So I started qualifying. Reviews first to weed out the junk—that cut 90% right there. Then cost versus value propositions knocked out another chunk. Dashboard presentation mattered too because, hey, I'm a visual guy.
That left me with two identical apps. Same features, same price, same stellar reviews.
What broke the tie? I checked out the developers online.
Developer A hit me with a wall of posts about metrics, optimization strategies, and productivity frameworks. All solid information, but that's ALL I saw—pure business, zero personality.
Developer B had similar content, but I also learned he has three kids, burned out as a corporate middle manager before his reinvention, loves documentaries, and takes sunset photos.
A man after my own heart.
Made my 50/50 decision a no-brainer. I went with option B.
Here's what that taught me: when everything else is equal—credentials, price, features—the deciding factor isn't more data about your product. It's glimpsing the human being behind it.
Yet most experts and founders are trapped showing only their "shop window"—displaying polished services while keeping themselves carefully hidden behind corporate facades.
Big mistake.
We live in an age desperate for human connection, yet most successful people are trapped in a curation prison of their own making. They've convinced themselves that sharing anything beyond their methodologies and case studies will somehow diminish their authority.
Long story short, while you're protecting your image, competitors who understand that people buy from people, they’re winning the business.
The conventional wisdom that once served you—"keep it professional, stick to business"—has become a growth handcuff in a world where people are drowning in faceless brands and AI-generated content.
Your value means nothing if you're invisible. So how do you become visible in the right way?
The Professional Facade That’s Suffocating Your Growth
Most experts and founders operate under a dangerous assumption: professional equals corporate stiffness.
They think showing any aspect of their humanity will undermine their credibility. So they hide behind polished posts about their methodologies, case studies and white papers, and photos that scream “let’s get this over with as soon as possible - here’s my fake smile for the camera.”
The result? They’ve turned themselves into commodities in their own markets.
Chris Do, founder of The Futur, nailed this when he said: “The more you drive interest in you the human being, the more you drive interest in your business.” But most people hear this and freeze. They think it’s a choice between credibility OR humanity.
It’s not.
The problem isn't that you need to choose between credibility and humanity. The problem is that you don't have a system for being both simultaneously.
Think about my app decision. Developer A had all the credibility markers—metrics, frameworks, proof of competence. Developer B had the same credibility markers PLUS the human details that made me care about him as a person. Same expertise, but only one felt like someone I wanted to do business with.
Here's what I've figured out after years of watching this play out: you need two distinct visual elements working together.
Visual Evidence proves you can deliver. These are photos of you actually doing the work—mid-presentation, facilitating workshops, solving problems in real-time. Not posed shots, but caught in the act of demonstrating your expertise. This covers the credibility side.
Missing Details prove you're human. These reveal what matters to you when you're not working—family moments, volunteer work, hobbies that recharge you, values in action. This covers the connection side.
Most people think showing the human side makes them look less professional. But when someone can see both your expertise AND your personality, they don't just respect you—they trust you. And trust is what turns prospects into clients who pay premium prices.
The best part? You can capture both elements through professional photography during branding sessions and key live events, then fill the gaps with smartphone photos when life happens and no photographer is around.
This isn't about becoming unprofessional. It's about moving from a faceless brand to human-led authority.
How to Be Credible AND Human Simultaneously
People buy from people they trust AND respect—not one or the other.
Here’s a systematic visual approach that solves the credibility-versus-humanity dilemma:
Build Instant Credibility Through Visual Evidence
Don’t just talk about how you solve problems, show it through visual storytelling.
If you’re an expert who speaks, coaches, trains and consults, capture yourself mid-facilitation during workshops. Document the moment when you’re explaining a breakthrough concept to a client. Show the strategy session where you’re mapping out solutions on a whiteboard covered in real client challenges.
For Founders and CEO’s, take a similar path: capture team meetings where you’re solving actual problems. Capture product development sessions. Show yourself presenting to investors, walking through prototypes, or collaborating with key team members on critical decisions.
The power of Visual Evidence lies in its specificity. Instead of saying “I help companies scale,” you show yourself working through the exact scaling challenges with real teams. Instead of claiming “I drive innovation,” you document the innovation process in action.
When a prospect sees you doing the work, engaged in solving problems like theirs, credibility becomes automatic. They’re not taking your word for it, they’re witnessing that you’ve done it before.
This helps them visualize you doing the exact same thing for them.
Reveal Genuine Uniqueness Through Missing Details
Now that you've established competence, here's where you create connection: show what matters most when you're not working.
This isn't about oversharing your personal life. It's about revealing the values, experiences, and passions that shaped the human being you've become.
Smartphone photo of my macro tracking during my recent health journey.
Share the volunteer work that matters to you. Document moments with family that remind you why you do what you do. Show the hobbies that light you up, the books that influenced your thinking, the quirky fun socks you wear, the rituals you have every morning.
Smartphone photo of a friend’s art show. I am inspired by other artists’ work, and often share these types of images on my social feeds.
A financial advisor's weekend volunteer work teaching financial literacy positions her expertise beyond portfolio management, and shows she cares. A tech founder's photos restoring classic cars become conversation starters, and also shows that he pays attention to details and craftsmanship.
If it matters to you, it matters to your ideal clients' understanding of who you are.
Create a Professional Photo and Smartphone Strategy
Professional photos serve as your foundation for both Visual Evidence and Missing Details.
During a branding session, your photographer recreates key Visual Evidence scenarios: facilitating workshops, presenting strategies, mapping out solutions. You're demonstrating your expertise, but in a controlled environment where you can get clean shots. You also document the Missing Details: your pre-meeting ritual, the books on your desk, the keepsakes that matter to you most.
At live events, you capture the real thing in action: actual client workshops, speaking engagements, strategic sessions with real stakes. Document yourself demonstrating expertise at the highest level with genuine clients and audiences. But also capture the behind-the-scenes details: preparing backstage, genuine interactions during breaks, impromptu conversations that show your personality.
Since most of us don't have personal paparazzi day and night, smartphone photos fill the gaps.
Smartphone Visual Evidence captures those spontaneous professional moments—the breakthrough during a video call with a client, the strategic planning session that ran late, behind-the-scenes conversations with conference organizers, or that moment when you're solving a complex problem in real-time. These shots prove you're always working at your highest level.
Smartphone Missing Details show your human side—the morning coffee ritual that centers you, family time working on a puzzle together, your bowling team celebrating another win, volunteer work at the local shelter. These moments reveal who you are beyond the professional facade.
Your phone becomes your visual storytelling tool when life happens and no photographer is around, capturing both your expertise in action and the personal details that make you relatable.
Let’s Make Sure These Photos Don’t Collect Dust
Now that you have this diverse collection of professional and smartphone photos, what do you do with them?
Use Visual Evidence photos across high-impact touchpoints. These photos work well for places like your website hero images, proposal headers, media kit photos, LinkedIn professional updates, and speaking bureau materials. They prove that what you say is true before you actually say it.
Use Missing Detail images as deeper connection opportunities throughout your marketing ecosystem. Social media stories/posts, newsletter personal notes, speaking introductions, "about" page narratives, conference bio additions. These create the emotional resonance that makes people want to work with you specifically.
When you integrate both elements consistently across every touchpoint, you'll notice three immediate changes:
Inquiry quality improves as prospects come pre-qualified and pre-sold on your approach.
Sales conversations become consultative rather than convincing because they're already bought into you as a person.
Premium pricing becomes easier because you're no longer competing solely on credentials.
The result isn't just better marketing. It's a complete repositioning from a mere commodity to irreplaceable human being.
The Choice Is Yours
Remember my app decision? Two identical products, but I chose the developer who showed me both expertise AND humanity.
When someone encounters your brand for the first time, do they get that same complete picture of who you are? Or are you still hiding behind your value while competitors steal your opportunities?
The experts and founders winning in today's market understand that strategic authenticity isn't unprofessional. It's the antidote to anonymity.
If you're ready to build a visual presence that commands respect while creating genuine connection, let's talk.