Brand Awareness: Getting Your Name Out There

by Skip Cohen

Increasing brand awareness, especially in your immediate community and with your target audience, isn't rocket science. But it does take consistency, patience, and involvement.

It's Marketing Monday, and it's the perfect time for things you could be doing right now to set your business up for fall and winter seasonality;

• Community Involvement: People like buying products/services from companies they perceive as giving back. What's great about being involved in your community is it can start at any time, regardless of whether or not you're officially open for business as a photographer. And it doesn't have to include a camera in your hands. This is about giving back and can be as simple as working with the Booster Club at the high school, filling ketchup and mustard bottles at the Friday night games!
• Own Your Zip Code: Draw a circle around where you're based and start knocking on doors! Introduce yourself to the other businesses in the community...and IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOUR SPECIALTY IS! My favorite example is a wedding photographer walking into a real estate office. Once you've introduced yourself, all you need to say is, "My specialty is wedding photography, but I've got an incredible network. If you ever need any help with anything photo-related, give me a call. If I can't help you directly, I'm sure I know somebody who can."
• Use Your Blog: Your website is about what you sell, and your blog is about what's in your heart—post at least twice a week, same days, same times. Share stories/ideas relatable to your readership. Remember you're building a community.
• Social Media: And regardless of whether you have a blog or not...In the portrait/social categories of photography, that means being primarily involved on Facebook, Instagram, and even Pinterest. But remember, there are no erasers on the Internet. Stay relevant to your audience. Don't engage trolls! And stay focused on your passion for people and your art. You know how to hold focus on your subjects with your camera - so hold focus on the needs of your audience.
• Teach a Class: Just about all of you, unless you started yesterday, have enough expertise to help the community raise the bar on better photographs, even if they're only shooting with a cell phone. Share tips on composition, lighting, fill flash, posing, exposure, and storytelling. For most of you, your target audience is "Mom," so help make her a better photographer. Whether it's a program through a community center or a youth group at your church, share your knowledge.
• Partnerships: You don't have to fly solo all the time! Look for opportunities to cross-promote with other vendors. A postcard mailer, for example, with two other partners, brings your cost down to a third. Best of all, all three partners become ambassadors for each other.
• Show Your Work: Years ago, Bambi Cantrell had a display of her images in a local Starbucks. Helen Yancy, a past president of PPA, started out showing her work in a local diner. Offer to decorate your doctor's office. Think about it - almost every doctor's office is the same - BORING! Let's get some good photographs on the wall, and all you're asking is to leave a stack of your business cards on the magazine table.
• Send out Press Releases: Doing a press release is a topic all its own. Remember though, if you don't put the word out about things you're working on, nobody else will. P.T.Barnum wrote: "Without publicity, a terrible thing happens...NOTHING!" Here's an old post, and while it's a little outdated, it's still worth your time to read. You'll get the idea if you need a little more help.
• Put Together a Networking Luncheon: It's an incredibly easy concept: find a restaurant in town that has a private or semi-private room. Keep it simple and casual in a diner-style environment. Invite vendors who are targeting the same audience. For example, a wedding photographer would want to invite florists, bridal salons, band promoters, tux shops, limo companies, caterers, bakers, wedding planners, travel agents, makeup artists, etc. You're all getting together to talk about the business, trends, and anything that comes up. Imagine the power of being a photographer, and sitting in between a florist and a bridal salon owner. You're not selling anything but your personality and building relationships.
• Career Day at ANY School: If we've learned nothing else from the toy manufacturers, the way to get to Mom and Dad is through their kids. Every school needs help on special programming. Offer to do a career day presentation and talk about what it's like being a photographer, but bring samples of cool products with you. Don't be boring and just talk - show photographs, special techniques, and things they can do with their cell phones!
• Build a Community Calendar: Everyone is always looking for new blog/social media content. So, keep a calendar on your blog or Facebook page of upcoming community events, especially non-profit fundraisers. And with each event you personally attend, share the story with a paragraph or two and photographs. It's a great way to build up your reputation as a supporter of the community and be more recognized. Don't forget to let the non-profit organization know what you're sharing - they can't recognize your support if they don't know how you're supporting them.
• Join Community Groups: From PPA affiliates to photography guilds to organizations like Kiwanis, Exchange Club, Rotary, and business networking groups, be involved. You're building a network of relationships!

Too many of you think there's nothing you can do to build your brand beyond good customer service. Relationship building is your strongest marketing tool, and it's ongoing in everything you do - so, set up time every week to be building your foundation of awareness -  beyond your skill set.

Tony Corbell, one of the most recognized photographers in the industry, once told a story about when he first got started. "I might not have been the best photographer in town, but I was determined to be the nicest!" Tony's never strayed from that practice!

​Happy Marketing Monday!

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