Business Brief: How to post about your company’s holiday party

Good morning. It’s my favourite time of year: corporate holiday party season – specifically, the moment when those parties pop up in LinkedIn posts.

Today, we offer tips from the pros on capturing your company’s culture – even when the venue could pass for an abandoned airplane hangar, the best lighting is from the exit signs, and, quite honestly, everyone is bored.

Up first

In the news

Telecoms: Telus Corp. is pausing its dividend growth as part of an effort to reduce its leverage, marking an abrupt change from its previous payout plans.

Banks: EQB Inc. will take over PC Financial from Loblaw Companies Ltd. in a deal valued at $800-million.

Mining: The Anglo-Teck merger is facing a growing wave of protests in Anglo’s former homeland of South Africa.

In focus

How to capture culture – not just content

It’s the photos that hit you first: dozens of wilted people draped over banquet chairs, red eyes from the flash, the backs of balding heads, rogue groups huddled under TVs showing the game. A few brave smiles.

And the accompanying text: “What an amazing night! This is what #culture and #success looks like. #Networking #WorkFamily”

Not all holiday parties look this way, of course, and we don’t mean to suggest they are inherently bad. They bring people together! They let us see co-workers in three dimensions! They generate genuine joy, or at least a break from the abyss of blacked-out videoconferencing squares.

Here, Globe visual journalist Melissa Tait shares with me (a terrible camera operator) practical tips for anyone tasked with capturing the corporate merriment.

1. Before you shoot: Know the story

“News photography is a whole lot different than event photography, but some of the approaches are universal. I’d be asking myself: What’s the story I am looking to show? Who do I want to highlight to do that best? Is the space important?”

• Consider what your company wants to communicate about its culture.
• Decide whether the space adds context or just clutter.
• Identify moments that show people genuinely connecting.

It’s a lot. That’s why Tait recommends hiring a professional photographer if you can.

2. Use your phone the way the phone wants to be used

If a pro isn’t in the cards, Tait says focus on keeping it simple.

“Stick to the set focal lengths the phones offer – that’s the 1x or 2x – those are the physical size of the lenses, and the quality is the best. (Usually at 1x). That’s extra important in dark and low light – zooming in or all the way out will worsen exposure.

Generally, it’s better to move your feet first and use flash only if you need it. “Zoom in when there’s enough light, and you want to focus on one or two subjects, and it helps make the background softer and less of a distraction.”

Use your feet, hold a beat:

• Step closer to people rather than digitally zooming.
• Hold still for a beat after tapping the shutter to avoid blur.
• If you use flash, stay close enough that it works for you.

3. Focus on the interactions, not the backdrop

“Look for both candid and posed moments. People interacting and enjoying each other’s company – laughing, looking at each other, dancing.” If you’re asking for posed pics, Tait says, try to keep it to smaller groups and aim to fill the frame with them.

Keep the emphasis on:

• Small groups of 2 to 5 people
• Colleagues connecting with each other. (Try to avoid Coldplay situations.)
• People facing one another, not staring blankly at the camera.

4. How to handle bad light

“If you can avoid any harsh overhead lighting or weird colour casts from lights, do that. Sometimes you need to use flash, which can introduce other issues.”

A few adjustments can help:

• Position people where the light is more even, if possible.
• When using flash, stay close to limit harshness.
• Watch out for “colour casts” – lighting that’s tinted blue, green, or purple can make faces look unintentionally ill and/or menacing.

5. What to do if it’s boring

“Bide your time and look for either moments of levity or certain people or groups who may show some signs of life. Go ahead and engage yourself to encourage people – you may be posing folks anyway, and sometimes a bit of holiday goofiness for a photo can loosen people up. But don’t force it.”

Patience is good, Tait says. “Wait till folks are done eating.”

A few reminders:

• Early in the evening, it often looks stiff – that’s normal.
• Eventually (hopefully), people will loosen up. Offer a little direction if a group is almost there.
• Skip photos while people are eating.

6. Sharing the images

Now that you’ve captured the assets – sorry, moments – they’re only as helpful as your plan to share them. What works best on LinkedIn? Shelby Lenetsky, a social media strategist and marketing manager at The Globe, advises keeping posts as natural as the photos you’ve just taken – and to avoid falling into the same corporate language everyone else is using.

Programming notes:

• Keep it concise, and choose up to three strong images.
• Post Monday to Thursday during morning or mid-afternoon. Far fewer people are on LinkedIn over the weekend.
• Tag the people and companies who appear – sparingly and with consent. It can help spread the cheer.

Charted

Stronger than we thought

The Canadian economy has grown faster than previously realized in recent years. Revisions from Statistics Canada published yesterday reframe the narrative around weak productivity and declining living standards.

Quoted

From Portugal to Mexico, snowbirds are scouting beyond the U.S. for vacation homes.

Up next

More files we’re following

At the bell: Toronto-Dominion Bank, Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce wrap up a newsy domestic bank earnings season this morning.

By the numbers: If the U.S. government hadn’t shut down, we’d have Canada’s trade balance data today. I know: I know. We’ll get through this together. Tomorrow’s employment report from Statistics Canada will be the last major report before the Bank of Canada’s interest rate decision on Dec. 10.

Morning update

Global shares climbed on expectations of a U.S. interest-rate cut next week after economic data showed employment is slowing.

Wall Street futures were mixed after major North American markets closed up yesterday, while TSX futures pointed higher.

Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.31 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.13 per cent, Germany’s DAX rose 0.66 per cent and France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.33 per cent.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 2.33 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.68 per cent.

The Canadian dollar traded at 71.58 U.S. cents.