Tell us about yourself and your background. (Include living in Kuwait & The Gulf War)
Art college is where it all began. I studied Graphic Design, fell in love with an Iraqi student, got married and flew to Kuwait to start a new life. That was 1978 – and what a rollercoaster that was! Literally overnight, as I stepped off that flight at Kuwait airport and looked up, I knew my life was about to change forever. A young girl, from a small Welsh town in the UK, had arrived to this strip of desert where, quite honestly, I quickly realised this was going to be sink or swim.
I chose to swim.
I learned Arabic, didn’t quite manage to master the art of Arabic cooking – but the next 12 years taught me to listen, empathise, show compassion and embrace opportunities and challenges that presented themselves, often in buckets, along the way.
But the biggest challenge was The Gulf War in 1990.
Nine months pregnant and two young children, it wasn’t the best of timings – but after an exhausting car journey to Baghdad with a newborn, we all made it on that ‘mercy flight’ for women and children, courtesy of Richard Branson.
Fast forward to today – and a lot has changed.
I’m a personal branding photographer and storytelling trainer – a far cry from those early days in Kuwait!
What is it that you do?
I’ve always been about the storytelling when working with clients to create imagery for their website, marketing and everything in between – and I achieve that by digging deep in to my clients’ story – teasing out how they got to where they are today – their values, ideal client, branding – in fact, everything – because this is where the stories are – and without the stories, our imagery will look like everyone else’s.
But alongside the photography, I also teach other photographers and business owners how to use storytelling in their marketing using a framework I created called The Conversion Story. Clients can choose to do that either 1:1 with me, or with an online course – both with 12 months support from me afterwards.
What has been your biggest career success?
Launching The Conversion Story, for sure! I realised that I was having countless conversations with clients about how to implement storytelling in their marketing, and then I woke up one day and thought – I need to write a course on this!
So that’s what I did.
I thought long and hard about what business owners need, and the struggles they face when trying to share stories in their marketing – and the end result is The Conversion Story.
It’s a structured step-by-step framework that unpacks our ideal client, the stories, the emotions, the problems, the solutions and finally, a framework that shows you how to create your marketing posts for LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook etc that has storytelling and emotion woven in between the lines. It’s a great marketing tool that quietly does the selling for us!
How do you create authenticity in your photography? And why is it so important for personal branding?
I’m a believer in keeping it real. Our imagery isn’t a nice-to-have to fill up space on our website – it’s primary purpose is to help us to step out and show our true selves to the world – because until we do that, we’re still sitting behind a logo and brand colours – and nobody buys into that.
Before I pick up the camera, a deep dive takes place with the client to help unpack their story – sometimes the thought of doing this can seem quite daunting for some, but it really isn’t. We sit down, and with carefully crafted questions, we explore how they got to where they are today. This includes their values, their ‘why’, how they serve their clients – we even explore what’s getting in the way of them working with their dream clients – and by the end of it, I have a really good insight on to them and their business.
And this is what enables the storytelling to take place through the imagery.
The next stage is planning each and every shot to make sure we convey the right message to their audience – this is key to ensure that images do not look like every other coach, accountant, lawyer etc – this is how I make sure my clients stand out from the crowd.
You have created The Conversion Story framework, tell us more about what this is.
Storytelling is something that most business owners would love to embrace but really struggle with knowing where to start and how to do it – and I know this first hand because of the countless conversations I’ve had with clients.
So I created something that helps business owners start their storytelling journey – and it’s called The Conversion Story.
It’s a step-by-step framework that shows business owners where the stories are, how to choose the right ones for their marketing, and how to weave emotion between the lines so that at last, their social media posts resonate with the very people they want to work with.
The aim of any storytelling post is to connect on a deeper level with our audience – and stories are perfect for this. Good storytelling will take the audience on a journey of trust and emotional connection – and this is what I show my clients how to do in The Conversion Story.
Why is creating stories to attract your dream clients and increase sales the most powerful strategy?
We are all tired of being sold to – and this is where storytelling steps in and does the heavy lifting for us. Stories have been around since the beginning of time – they’re memorable, they stick in our minds and we love them!
Good storytelling does all our marketing for us – it nurtures our audience, grows trust, positions us as the expert in our field, and the go-to person to solve that problem that our ideal clients are being challenged with. All we need to know is which stories to tell and how to weave emotion in between the lines – and once we’ve mastered this, real connection happens which takes our audience on a journey of trust which leads to more sales.
What are the key topics you cover on your course?
Before any storytelling can happen effectively, we need to know who we’re talking to – so the first stop in this journey is our ideal client. We dig deep to explore the stories, the emotions and the problems – and once we’ve got a clear picture of who our dream client is and what’s going on for them right now in relation to our product, then we’re ready to explore our own story.
- Our story – these will be the key events that have made us who we are today – the ones that have shaped us, influenced us and brought us to the very place we are now
- Emotions – now that we’ve unpacked the two stories (ours and our ideal client’s) – we identify the emotions sitting behind them all. This is key to helping us see where we fit into our dream client’s story – otherwise we’re still throwing random stories out there hoping they’ll land well
- Storytelling framework – a simple framework that can be used over and over again for those LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram posts. By the time we’ve reached this point, all the work has been done and writing the actual storytelling post is so much easier now!
What makes your course unique?
Amongst all the storytelling talk online, I realised that what business owners really need is someone who can show them how to do it. My online course has been created specifically for photographers, and I’ve not found another photographer offering this to fellow photographers in the industry. For sure, if I wanted to know how to implement storytelling in my marketing, I would take great comfort if I could be shown by another photographer who’s doing it successfully.
For business owners not in the photography industry, I enjoy working 1:1 to show them the ‘how’ of using storytelling in their marketing. But whichever route business owners take to The Conversion Story, they also enjoy a full 12 months support from me for accountability, inspiration and continued learning from guest speakers invited into our community.
This component, I feel, is what a lot of online learning is missing. It’s easy to sign up to yet another course, but what we all really need is someone who’s in our corner cheering us on and keeping us accountable.
What are the key outcomes attendees will receive from completing your course?
There are many, but the 3 key outcomes are, without a doubt:
- A trusted storytelling framework that works and can be used again and again
- Sales and bookings from the very people you want to work with
- Confidence to raise your fees
What are your top strategies for continued success after the course?
After the initial 12 month support from me, there is the option to continue with a membership. The beauty of a membership is that nobody is left on their own. We know how much we thrive when we’ve got cheerleaders in our corner and personally, this is the way I learn best. I’m great on my own, but I also need support to keep the momentum going, the learning fresh and inspirational so that my business continues to thrive – and that’s where the membership steps in to fill the gap.
What does a day in your life look like?
My week has two appointments which rarely get cancelled or postponed – marketing and CrossFit. These two things happen come rain or shine. Marketing is key to help my business grow, and it’s the same for CrossFit – without my fitness, my business would suffer, as would my mind, body and soul! So these are my non-negotiables!
I’m an early bird, so it’s 6am with fresh coffee (must be fresh!) and the first thing is marketing. It’s a cold reality but marketing is a key component to all of our businesses – without it, how do people know we exist? I’ve developed a strategy that works really well for me which is to write my LinkedIn post 7 days in advance. Why? Because when I come back to it the following week, the waffle and excess detail that really doesn’t need to be there stares me right in the face! So out it comes so that I’ve got a more concise post ready to go that morning.
If I’m not at CrossFit, then mornings and afternoons are spent between editing photos, live Q&A calls with The Conversion Story clients, hosting live Masterclasses online, listening to good audio books that inspire, reaching out to people, networking and catching up on admin. It’s quite a to-do list but I keep it under control by blocking off time for tasks to avoid overwhelm!
What is next for you?
The big 2025 plan has storytelling at the heart – helping business owners feel confident using it in their marketing. My plan is to publish a book, create mini courses to complement The Conversion Story, and seeking more speaking opportunities.
Which means it’s going to be a busy year!
Where can readers find out more about you and the Conversion Story Framework?
Head over to LinkedIn – I’d love to connect https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-thomas-photography
For anyone who knows they really need to get to grips with storytelling this year, then I’d be happy to have a call – https://calendly.com/annethomasphotography/discover-call
