Building Blocks for the New Year - Part 1

"It always seems impossible, until it's done!"
Nelson Mandela

by Skip Cohen

​While we've all shared many of the same frustrations over the last year, what things you need to do to get back on track is unique to each business owner. Too many of you are flying by the seat of your pants, being reactionary, with no planning or strategy for the new year. You wouldn't get in your car for a trip across the country without a little planning, including the route, cities you wanted to visit, accommodations, etc., Yet, you're attacking the new year without a roadmap. 

Social media has NEVER played a more significant role in our lives than right now! With physical distancing still an issue, social media and the phone are your two best sources of communication, followed by direct mail.
So, I went searching in Google to see how many people, worldwide, are anticipated to be online in 2021. It's expected there will be 2.14 billion buyers online this year. Here's the complete article from Statista.com. 

That means, your website and blog have never been more critical - or had more potential to create sales/revenue. You have the reach that just a few years ago, a small newspaper or magazine might have had. Your website is your storefront, and your blog should be the gateway via your heart to the products and services you offer.

I've shared dozens of posts in the past about your website and blog, so I'm just going to give you a limited check-off list. If you want more detail, read all the Fast Food Fridays I've shared.
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• Does your website function the way you want it to? A visit to your website by a potential client should be an experience. So, it's up to you - is it a good experience like Nordstroms, or is it Walmart the day after Christmas?
• Don't assume everything is working the way you want it. Check your website every day on different platforms as well as desktop vs. mobile.
• Can consumers find what's most important to them, or do have they have to mine for what you'd like them to see first?
• Get rid of the clutter on your website. Hook clients with extraordinary images in your galleries, which should be the first tab. Next should come your "About" page and then everything else. Don't bury them in policies and procedures that would scare an IRS agent. Save the policies for the contract discussion when they hire you.
• Stop showing average images on your galleries. If it's not a "wow" print, then take it down. A"wow" print is an image so good; it's the only one you'd have to show to get hired.
• Add a marketing video to your About page along with an artist's statement. Write in the first person. Unless you won a Pulitzer, don't bother to talk about your awards. Scoring a 95 in WPPI Print Competition or hanging an image at IUSA means nothing to most clients. For most of you, your target is "Mom" - she wants to know why you're a photographer and whether or not she can trust you to capture the kind of images she wants. Your video doesn't have to win an Oscar, but it does need to convey your enthusiasm and love for the craft. 
• Be accessible! I'm tired of artists who have contact forms but only respond when there's a full moon! There's no such thing as too quick a response or much contact information! Give them your phone number and email address.  If you work out of your home and don't want to share the address, that's fine, but be set up to give instant fulfillment when they contact you.
• Stop putting rocks to sleep! Too many of you have been offering the same products and services since you started, and they've become boring, especially since many of your competitors offer the same things. It's time for something new. Start with a call to your lab and just ask, "What's new?" There's so much that's exciting under the presentation umbrella these days - labs are offering new products every day. And don't underestimate the appeal of some old standbys, like canvas prints. There are still thousands of people who aren't aware of all the ways you can display images. 
• Are you building brand awareness in the community? You've got to be involved in your community and relevant to your visitors/readers. Plant the seeds for ideas for updated family portraits and headshots, for example. Most important of all - BE HELPFUL!​

This is just the first post in a series this week. If I wrote about everything you should be doing in one post, it would take you too long to read it!

We're in a "you snooze - you lose" scenario. Things are getting better, and while the pandemic is hardly over, people are focused on trying to get back to some level of normalcy. There's an opportunity for you to be a leader in your community.

Most important of all, imaging through the pandemic has never been more important. Families and friends have been hunkered down for months without contact, but you're the magician with the power to help them stay together with photography.

We might be in the slow season, but Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, and graduation are all around the corner. For example, there are few presents better suited for Grandma this year than a new family portrait. Now is the time to start planning!

Tomorrow we're going to zoom in on your blog and topic ideas, as well as how to get it all done if you hate to write!