How to Take the Perfect Profile Picture for Torrch
Creating a profile on torrch is incredibly easy. You enter your contact information, verify your email address, and you can begin to explore all of the wonderful features torrch has to offer. But before you get too carried away, there’s one more thing we strongly recommend doing:
Add a profile picture.
It’s easy to get excited and skip this step. But having a profile picture is very important. Especially if you’re a service provider. After all, would you buy a car you’ve never seen? Would you even bother to visit a home or an apartment that has no pictures online?
No.
So why would someone hire a faceless person off the internet? One of the easiest ways to spot fake accounts on any social platform is to simply check for a profile picture.
That’s why on LinkedIn, adding a profile picture increases your chances of being viewed by 1400%. It’s no different on torrch.
Your picture affects what people think of you
Did you know that it takes 1/10th of second for a person to form an opinion based on your appearance.
It’s true what the Bible says: “man looks at the outward appearance”.
The good news is, with some minor adjustments, you can drastically change the impression you’re giving.
Here are a few simple tips to ensure you make the right impression on torrch.
Make sure it’s in focus.
Twelve years ago, you may have gotten away with a photo that was slightly blurry. Today, we have computers, tablets, and smart phones with razor-sharp resolutions. If your face is looking a little fuzzy around the edges, replace it with an in-focus photo.
Go solo.
Your torrch profile represents you. You are the one who is either being hired or doing the hiring. That means your picture should show your face, and yours alone. Having other people in the photo causes confusion as to who you actually are. Instead, be straightforward and make sure you’re the only one in the frame.
Close, but not too close.
The primary focus of your profile picture is to show your face. You want to make sure it looks viable in both full size:
As well as areas where a smaller version is used:
Just don’t zoom in too far, or things start to get a little uncomfortable…
Don’t look angry.
I know, not everyone is a big fan of having their photo taken, and smiling is less natural for some of us than others. That’s fine. You don’t need to have a big, picture-perfect smile for your profile picture.
But you don’t want to scare people with your profile picture either.
Try taking a series of pictures with different expressions, and then choose the best looking one from there.
It never hurts to ask someone for a second opinion, either.
Dress nice, but not out of character.
Don’t overthink your outfit. You don’t have to look like you’re going to a wedding, but you also don’t want to look like you’re on your way to the gym. Unless you’re a personal trainer. Then that’s fine.
In fact, for service providers, you should dress like you would for work.
Choose a neutral background.
Since this isn’t a driver’s license or a passport photo, you don’t need to stand in front of a white wall. You can if you want. But you can also choose something more colorful, scenic, or patterned.
Just make sure the background doesn’t detract from you. Once again, you should be the focus.
It doesn’t have to be difficult.
With today’s digital camera technology, there’s really no reason to have a low-quality profile picture. Ask a friend or family member to quick snap a few pictures for you. Even if you don’t have someone to do it for you, you can get a quality capture with your own smartphone these days.
Just avoid the obvious selfie angles.
Once your profile picture is in place, you are ready to experience torrch properly. If your run into any issues or have a suggestion for how photos can be handled, don’t hesitate to let us know.