by Skip Cohen It's Marketing Monday, and after reading several threads with small business owners concerned about targeting their ideal audience, I realized the solution is relatively easy. Ironically, we grow up learning never to put all our eggs in one basket. Yet now, as adults running a business, the vehicles we use to promote are so limited. Many of you launch programs with singular approaches, leaving you to make comment later like: "We tried an email campaign, but it didn't work!" But did you do anything else at the same time? You need to expand your reach and use every resource you've got. There's no such thing as too much exposure, but not getting enough is very real. So I went off into cyberspace to chase down a little more information. "It's been proven over and over that the more positive contact you have with customers and prospects, the easier it is to develop and sustain relationships and, ultimately, close more sales. Unfortunately, you're one of thousands who are vying for your customers' attention." KruseControlinc.com The quote above is from an article about the "Rule of 7." It's an old rule, going back to the 30s, and states that you have to hit a consumer at least seven times for them to remember you! If that was then, what's the number today? This is a short post this morning with a long list of all the vehicles you need to keep active to maintain brand momentum:
The list goes on and on, but the more vehicles you use to reach your target audience, the greater your success rate in gaining recognition for your brand. Essentially the concept is to weave a web around your target consumer. You want your name coming up in multiple locations throughout the day. Over the last ten years, I've written about each bullet point above in more detail. But just for today - pick at least five off the list and consider how to do more within each area. The more activity you generate, the greater your brand awareness. And while not putting all your eggs in one basket is the standard expression, here's an old African proverb that's so much better: Sticks in a bundle are unbreakable!
Bondei proverb
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Be a mountain or lean on one. Somali proverb by Skip Cohen I'm sticking with this series of short posts with ideas to help you build a stronger business. They're perfect to consider as we head into the weekend. There's a great joke I heard once...Why does it take a million+ sperms to fertilize one egg?...none of them will ask for directions! Not asking for directions is a typical male stereotype, but in all honesty, it's not exclusive to men. Here's my point - Even if you've only been in business a short time, you still have a network of people you've met with expertise in areas you're lacking. But so many of you struggle and never ask for help, advice, or an opinion beyond the person you see in the mirror. One example from yours truly - years ago, I wanted to change something on my website. I figured I could cut and paste the HTML code and make the minor change within the parameters I wanted, and *poof* I'd have what I needed. I screwed it up so badly that a big part of my website crashed. I called my good buddy Scott Bourne with a cry for help - he made the change and then asked, "Why didn't you just call me in the first place?" I'm not suggesting you give up your quest to be a DIY business owner; it's an admirable goal. But if you're light on the skills needed, ask for help! As sappy as it might sound, this industry is one giant family, and we all watch each other's backs. We're here to help each other, but nobody is a mind reader if you don't ask! “Be strong enough to stand alone,
smart enough to know when you need help, and brave enough to ask for it.” Ziad K. Abdelnour Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth! Muhammad Ali by Skip Cohen It's Hump Day, the middle of the week for some of us, and just another day for event artists working the weekends. But, this is a great time for short posts planting a few idea seeds to help you grow your business and elevate your brand. Besides - the camel shot is still one of my favorites! If you're not involved in your community, you're missing one of the best ways to expand your reach. You need to give back and be perceived as more than just another retailer. And, if you do it right, it's a great way to build more relationships and get people to know you. What good is working hard to create the finest images of your career if nobody knows who you are?
And for those who like to say, "Our community doesn't have much going on," take another look. Every community has something. Sometimes your most rewarding involvement will be with the smallest nonprofits. If you're still stuck, check out senior centers, programs for veterans, high school art programs, adult education centers, pet adoption centers, and local hospitals, just to name a few. We make a living by what we get.
We make a life by what we give. Winston Churchill "We tweet, we text, we e-mail. Everybody's chatting, but is anybody listening? Why America needs to revive the vanishing art of conversation. We need to talk." David Dudley by Skip Cohen
Last Sunday, I shared a post that was thanks to something Helen Yancy had posted on Facebook. It was about people who want to change history, but there's another aspect to her post I wanted to share. It's about people who are so absorbed in social media, they've forgotten how to truly be social. They think hitting the "like" button on a Facebook post is enough. I'm a major Helen Yancy fan, and hitting the "like" button and writing a short comment about what she posted just wasn't enough. Fine-tuning how you use social media is obviously on my mind lately, since two weeks ago I shared a post about using your phone more to keep in touch with friends. Here's my point: Social media has definitely helped to make the world a smaller place. Every day we're able to keep in touch with what's going on in the lives of so many different friends and associates. We share the joys, the sadness, the accomplishments, and the changes in the lives of so many other people. But social media by itself doesn't build relationships. Thanks to regular phone calls and real conversations, Helen and I have stayed in touch and maintained a friendship I cherish. Those people you care most about need more than you hitting the like button and commenting on a post. I'm not suggesting you need to call people every day, but here and there, if you care about somebody, let them know with a phone call. Don't get me wrong - hitting the "like" button is great for feedback and showing support, but there's nothing memorable. There's nothing that holds a place in somebody's mind or for that matter heart. It's cold and emotionless. We live in an instant fulfillment world of text messages and email, but a live conversation on the phone is a building block in a relationship. Whether it's purely business or just a great friendship having a conversation always beats a one-second click of a like button. Procrastination is not a marketing strategy! by Skip Cohen I've written a lot about this over the years, but it's Marketing Monday, and it's August. We're into that business stretch between back-to-school ramping up and the fall. And while technically it's still summer - it's the perfect time to be proactive with a little business analysis and thoughts about this year's holiday seasonality. You want to be known as the photography/imaging expert in your community. What are you doing to make yourself different from your competitors? What are you doing to build relationships with your target audience to build stronger revenue this fall and then right into the holiday season?
Recently I shared a post about Christmas in July that was done by a local restaurant. Well, now's the time to demonstrate leadership in your area. Leadership opportunities abound for small-business owners these days. It's not rocket science. You need to make an effort and get yourself out there. This is about establishing a more substantial presence in your community, and the areas above are the tip of the iceberg! But you'll never have any impact with a mañana attitude - you don't have to tackle everything, just stop procrastinating and find a place to start. Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow
what should have been done the day before yesterday! Napoleon Hill by Skip Cohen It's Marketing Monday, and time for a little mid-summer madness. Think about it - nothing major is happening in the consumer world. There are no significant holidays in sight, no seasonality, and, for the most part, the consumer side of the market is quiet. Even in the world of snail mail, things are quiet - this past week, our mailbox was empty almost every day. This is an excellent time for you to get everyone's attention with a special offer via email or direct mail! At the beginning of July, one of our favorite local restaurants launched the gift card promotion to the right. "Christmas in July" was the perfect promo to get my attention. Most of us think of gift cards as gifts we will give, not necessarily for our own consumption. But Sheila and I eat at Deep Lagoon several times a year, and there's nothing to say we can't give a gift to ourselves, and pick up the discount. While my interest was only with one of their restaurants, the July offer also got them exposure to other restaurants in the brand's family. From my perspective, it was a no-brainer to participate. Now, take this model and build a promotion for August. Whether special discounts or some sort of free goods with recognized value - it's an excellent noisemaker for mid-summer. Plus, it's ideal to bring in partners. Pretend the four restaurants above were different vendors targeting the same consumer group. Even better, how about several photographers working together to target different groups like bridal, maternity, and newborns? Here's my point today - We live in a noisy world! The timing is perfect NOW to promote your business and expand your reach when there are fewer distractions in your target's world. by Skip Cohen
Your greatest marketing tool is relationship building. You can't establish relationships if you don't engage more often. And one of the best engagement tools, second only to being face-to-face, is a phone call! Yes, I'm old school, but there's a reason - email and text messages are missing something - your voice! Yesterday an old friend, who many of you might know, Barbara DeMoulin, sent me two text messages. I was busy and couldn't respond right away. A few hours later, she sent me an IM on Facebook, checking to see if she was sending messages to the correct number. I started to write back and decided just to pick up the phone and call her. The call was terrific. We hadn't caught up to each other in many years. While a text would have been shorter and faster, I would have missed a nice look in my rearview mirror with a wonderful friend with whom I'd lost touch. Here's my point - Regarding communication, we live in a cold, instant fulfillment world. Text messages and emails have their place and get the job done, but they're minimalistic. But if your communication concerns an issue involving even the smallest amount of tension, it's tough to write an email. But with a phone call, you've got so much more expression to add, and from a Customer Service perspective especially, nothing beats direct contact. Just pick up the phone! by Skip Cohen
It's Marketing Monday, and here's a concept I wish I could make mandatory, at least to read, for every photographer in business! I started this blog over ten years ago. Today there are thousands of posts, many of them guest posts or ideas I've shared, thanks to other photographers, educators, and business owners. One of them is good buddy Doug Box. Loaded with wisdom and outstanding marketing concepts over the years, he's never stopped sharing or helping artists maximize their business. Every few years, I like to pull one of my favorites from his archived past posts. While I'd like to take credit for the foundation of today's post, it's all thanks to Doug. I first heard him talk about this concept with his bakery demonstration at least twenty years ago. So while I've written about it before, most of you need the reminder! Paraphrased from Doug's presentation: Pretend you're a baker, and somebody calls and asks you, "How much are your cakes?" For most of us, we'd ask a series of qualifiers: How many people do you want it to serve? Sheet cake, layer cake, or ice cream cake? What flavors would you like? Is anything to be written on the top? Any allergies we need to know about? When do you need it? Will it need to be delivered? And the list goes on and on. Why, then, when none of us own a bakery, do we know what we'd need to ask, but as artists, most of you ask almost nothing? For example, a potential client calls and asks, "How much are your 8x10s?" and most of you would answer with a price. That's it - nothing more to clarify what the customer needed, and no effort made to upsell with ideas of other products you offer, package pricing, cross-promotions with other vendors, holiday specials, etc. While I originally shared Doug's concept as a preview idea for holiday seasonality, it's a practice you should use EVERY day. With that new focus on family coming out of the pandemic, there's an increased demand for portraiture and creating/capturing new memories. Take a minute and think about everything you have to offer a client. From holiday cards later this year to prints to capturing memory-making events. When you're contacted, don't just answer their question. Instead, take things one step further and give them something to think about that ties back to your skillset and everything you have the potential to offer. Another good buddy, Tony Corbell, has used Disney as an example over the years. If you ask a Disney staff member when is the Electric Light Parade, they'll answer you, but then include, "And you know where there's a great place to watch it?" They'll then give you a suggestion on where to be in the park to enjoy it the most. They never just answer your question. Your success with every client is based on exceeding expectations and making yourself habit-forming, even when they're contacting you for the very first time. Don't just answer their questions - give them a little more to think about and help them understand why you're the best choice for their imaging needs. The bottom line is simple - we've been experiencing it with every fast food order we've ever made... "You want fries with that?" by Skip Cohen
It's Friday, and I'm continuing this series with short ideas to help you fine-tune and build a stronger business. And I always consider them a "clean up" theme because, like weeds in a garden, many of you have ignored these areas for so long that what-not-to-do has taken over the what-you-should-be-doing. So, as you roll into the weekend, here's a simple idea to think about - let's make your website/blog a community resource. Jay Conrad Levinson, known as the "Father of Guerilla Marketing," always listed community involvement as one of the critical things great marketers should do. People like buying products/services from companies they perceive as giving back to the community. You need to be involved, and it can be anything from capturing images of an event to helping a non-profit filling ketchup and mustard bottles for the Boosters Club at Friday night games. It doesn't matter what you're doing, as long as you're giving back. Publish a Community Calendar: Here's the twist, and it's perfect for your website and blog. Start publishing events of non-profits in your community. The fun of this is obviously self-serving - by sharing information and the links to upcoming fundraising events in the community, you're showing support for each association/group. You're setting yourself up as an ambassador of goodwill for each nonprofit. In addition, many of the events will give you the opportunity to photograph the activities and the participants. And while you don't have time to attend every fundraising event, each time you can work on one, you've got new content for a blog post! Here's an easy place to start - check with the local Chamber of Commerce about events that are coming up. Next, take a few minutes and look at the non-profits in your community and their websites. Look at the Senior Center, Alzheimer's Association, Breast Cancer Awareness groups, Programs for Veterans, support for the homeless, United Way...and the list goes on and on. Make a list to start building content for your community calendar. There's one more great little benefit - the more frequently you publish community events in a calendar, the closer you get to becoming a clearing house for community activities. Your calendar has the potential to become a resource for the community, all under the umbrella of you giving back. You're looking for the community to be good to you - so you need to make sure you're being good to your community. "Beauty is in the eyes of the checkbook holder!" Dean Collins by Skip Cohen It's Marketing Monday, and as I sat down to write this morning, I was thinking about some of the questions I read in the various forums on Facebook. The ones that bother me the most are the ones where too many of you waste time worrying about what people will think. We all have our challenges with self-confidence from time to time, but when it impacts your business decisions, it's time to step back and collect your thoughts. This isn't my normal kind of post under the marketing umbrella. However, unless you can put 100% into your creativity, worrying about what other people think will slow you down. The only people that matter are you as the artist and your client. So, do the best you can and keep raising the bar on your skill set. Looking through the SCU archives, I found this guest post from my buddy, Scott Bourne. He puts the topic into perspective - stop wasting time worrying about what people think and focus on giving your clients and business your very best. Exceed expectations and make yourself habit-forming! by Scott Bourne
People ask me how/why I produce so much content. It doesn't matter whether it's photography, painting, writing, music, etc. It's always the same simple answer. I've come to realize that my own effort is the only thing I can control in this life. Period. I can't control what people think of my effort or of me for that matter. I can't control what others say about my effort or about me for that matter. So why worry about it? I spend 100% of my time on that which I CAN control. My own effort. I do everything I do with gusto. I don't ever go half way. I don't ever ask for permission. I just go for it. For me it's always pedal to the metal, from sun-up to sun-down, seven days a week. And that's the way I like it. As artists, it's none of our business what others think of our art. That's a rabbit hole and if you go down it, you'll never know how much work product you lost and time you wasted searching for empty compliments and dealing with vapid trolls. So my advice is direct and to the point. Just do the work. Throw yourself into it 100%. Express yourself. Give the world your point of view without fear. Don't look back. When others hate. We create. That simple philosophy has served me very, very well for more than six and a half decades. I hope it will serve you too. Your website is the center of your digital eco-system, like a brick and mortar location, the experience matters once a customer enters, just as much as the perception they have of you before they walk through the door. Leland Dieno by Skip Cohen The whole idea behind this Friday series of cleanup suggestions is to give you things to think about and consider working on to build a stronger business. Recently I was on a well-respected photographer's website. It was slow to load, and there was no logic in the content he was sharing. Plus, I had to mine for some of the most important information.
There are over 300 million Internet active households in the US. As of 2022, that was 92.0% of the population. And globally, Internet active households are over 5 billion! Your website is your most important piece of real estate, but you have to keep it fresh and make a visit to your site a great experience. “Great web design without functionality is like a sports car with no engine.”
Paul Cookson What fools call wasting time is most often the best investment. Nassim Taleb by Skip Cohen It's "Hump Day," and for whatever reason, I wandered into cyberspace to check out when the expression got started. Here's what Google gave me: Wednesday first came to be known as hump day since at least the 1950s. The expression figures Wednesday, the middle of the workweek, as the hump people get over to coast into the weekend. Throughout the 20th century, Wednesday was especially referred to as hump day in an effort to liven up the drudgery of the workweek. If you think about it, there's no middle of the workweek any longer. In the 50s, Saturday was a coast day, and no businesses were open on Sunday. Today most retailers run seven days a week. Plus, if you're a wedding and event photographer working Friday - Sunday, there is no "coasting" into the weekend. But here's how I use "Hump Day:" I have several ongoing projects. On Wednesdays, I like to waste time. "First and second Tuesdays" (see my previous post) are always a little insane. By Wednesday, I want to look at what I've done and what I have coming up, and I'll often take time to kick back a little to think through my game plan. I review my calendar, check out any deadlines I have coming up, and then do some of the prep work for specific things I'm working on. It's a day to reflect a little and then ramp up for things I want to complete by Friday's end. We all should have our routines, but sadly, for those of you just starting out, it's natural to be reactionary. You're trying to be all things to everybody. You'll eventually lose focus, and that's when something gets missed. It took me a lot of years to recognize my own limitations versus my available time. I had no choice but work to get a little more organized. Learn from my mistakes so that you can make new ones of your own. Establish a few standard routines you do each day that involve various aspects of your business. And while marketing is a category that needs to be ongoing all the time - remember, your greatest marketing tool is relationship building. Make sure you have time allotted for customer contacts and building a brand that demonstrates your accessibility and passion for the craft. Intro by Skip Cohen Over the last ten years, I know I've shared this guest post by my good buddy, Scott Bourne at least twice before. While it's out of the archives, it couldn't be more relevant to so many of you. I follow hundreds of photographers, and speak to dozens every week. Many of you are making these mistakes over and again. But the best thing is, they're all avoidable and can be corrected. Some immediately with your mindset, others with practice, more fine-tuning of your skillset or a better understanding of your target demographics. And when Scott wrote about having a "killer portfolio" consider your online galleries. Stop showing work that anybody's Uncle Harry could capture. Make your work standout and only show "Wow" images - photographs so strong you'd only have to show one to get hired! by Scott Bourne
(While these mistakes also encompass other areas of the professional photography business, at their core, they are marketing mistakes. See if you are making any of these mistakes and what you can do to correct them.) 1. Don't think about selling your image to the masses. Think about selling to people who live in your own zip code. Trying to start out like you're Ansel Adams with big gallery sales all across the country isn't going to happen. Just own your own zip code and don't worry about your images going viral. 2. Don't spend money on a studio, lights, camera gear, backgrounds, etc. until you actually have a customer. You can rent all the stuff you need to do a shoot. In fact, the big shots mostly rent everything when they are shooting big jobs. Why should you aim to be any different? 3. Don't focus on launching until you can sell. Focus on sales. Spend your time selling. Learn everything you can about the sales process. Read every sales book you can get your hands on. Expect to spend way, way more time selling than shooting. If you're doing it the other way around you're going to end up on the wrong side of the scoreboard. 4. Don't worry about a business plan if you don't have a superb portfolio. Develop a killer portfolio before you worry about building a business plan. Make sure you have honed your craft. Make sure you know what you are doing. Don't worry about the big plan. Worry about being a great photographer with a great portfolio where every single image rocks your world. 5. Don't think you can run a photo business just because you are a great photographer. You need to be good at all the things that go with running a business, or get help doing those things. You need to have good bookkeeping, inventory control, accounting, legal, marketing, branding and sales on board before you even think about entering photography as a business. 6. Don't run your business with a negative mind. Too many photographers spend their time and money trying to build a wall around their photo business. Don't write 100 page contracts. Don't treat your customers or prospects as if they are out to cheat you. Just have a good attitude and move ahead. 7. Don't fake it until you make it. If you can't carry your weight, you'll ruin your reputation. So if a client says "can you do aerial photography?" and you've never even been in an airplane, don't say yes. You may want to partner with someone who can do that, you may want to refer the prospect to someone else, but don't claim you can do it if you can't because you will suffer from a bad reputation with that prospect and all their friends for all time. by Skip Cohen It's Marketing Monday! - As usual this time of year, things have slowed down for some photographers, while others wish they had a thirty-hour day! For example, if you're a wedding/event shooter, you should be flat out with business. Through the ups and downs of business, there are ALWAYS ideas you should have on a back-burner ready to initiate when the timing is right. Here are just a few to think about:
Here's my point for Marketing Monday - you can never slow down on building brand awareness. There are so many different opportunities this time of year to help you expand your reach, but nothing happens if you don't make the initiative. Procrastination is not a marketing strategy. by Skip Cohen
We just got back from a change of command ceremony involving our son, who's moving on to a new assignment with the army. While I love the flexibility of being in the private sector, I realized something as I met many of his staff and associates - everybody knows what their job is and what's expected of them. There's an infrastructure of responsibility in place that's well-defined. That got me thinking about each of us as entrepreneurs and sole proprietorships. Nothing is defined, and while it's great to be flexible and be able to pivot, does everybody in your company understand their role? Many of you are like me - a one-man band or one-person band if you want me to be more PC. Even if you're the only person in your company - have you defined what needs to be done with every customer?
The list goes on and on, but I want to keep with my Friday Clean Up Series, and this is an easy one for you to work on. The bottom line is easy - take the time to think about what it would take to make your business run like a well-oiled machine. And when something does go wrong, what do you have in place to resolve issues quickly? Even flying solo as a business owner...it still takes a village! by Skip Cohen I've shared the illustration to the right several times over the years, but today it's all about your reach as a photographer and business owner. You have so many different paths to reach your target audience, and their effectiveness changes regularly. At the same time, as your ability to reach more people has grown, so has the individual consumer's. I want to talk about negative reach first... I'm defining negative reach as the impact of an angry customer on your business. I went off to Google in search of some statistics and hit the "mother lode" in an article by Abby McCain at zippia.com. Click here to read the entire article.
Those are scary numbers, but they also represent an opportunity for growing your business and staying proactive. We'll do a more in-depth post on solving customer problems on another day, but each bullet above represents another segment of your target audience who you have the potential to reach. From your blog to all the platforms in social media, direct mail, and community involvement, your reach is growing daily.
But none of the above are effective if you're not consistent! With your blog, post at least 2-3 times a week. On the other platforms like Twitter and Facebook for example, post regularly and be involved in some of the forums related to photography that are more consumer targeted. You're looking for places your target audience is visiting, not professional photographers. Most important of all, with everything you post, just be helpful! It's so easy and just being nice will help you build momentum, readership and obviously reach! by Skip Cohen It's Friday, and I'm doing my best to stay true to one new suggestion each week to help you build a stronger business. Here's one that will seem a little off the wall, but it's so on point. ALL of you have gear you don't use anymore. It could be an older camera body, a lens, a tripod, studio lights, on-camera flashes, a point-and-shoot, or even a camera bag. And look around your support equipment - many of you have printers, scanners, and even older computers you no longer use. Now think about brand awareness for your business. At the top of the list of things you should be doing is being active in your community. People like buying products from companies they perceive as giving back to the community. You're looking for the community to be good to you, so you better make sure you're good to your community. Well, there isn't a school system on the planet that isn't hurting for funding. And what are the first programs to get cut when money's in short supply? It's always the arts, and photography is right at the top of the hit list. That means all that gear you no longer use has so much value to kids interested in imaging. A few years ago, I wanted to help a teacher just south of me here in Florida. He taught photography in a school with minimal funding and just about no camera gear. I contacted a friend at one of the major camera companies and got him 20+ point-and-shoot digital cameras, memory cards, and chargers. The cameras were older models, mostly samples from trade shows, but would give his students a greater experience than using their phones. There's one more way you can help - schools are often looking for guest speakers, especially when it's part of a career day event. If you're a working professional photographer, then you're qualified to speak to a class about what a career in imaging is like. And here's the best part of all this - use your blog and social media to share what you're doing. Publish pictures of you with the kids in the school or the instructor. Help to spread the word in the community and help rally more help, and in turn, more equipment for the students. Here's my point - you're sitting on a mini-goldmine of support for your community and establishing yourself as the expert in photography! It's great branding and also cause-related marketing with minimal time but maximum relationship-building potential! by Skip Cohen It's Marketing Monday and one of my good buddy Scott Bourne's most helpful guest posts. While it was shared many years ago, EVERY point is relevant today. Marketing doesn't really change, and over the years from my own posts to guests, each of these golden rules have been shared before. And for those of you who will roll your eyes at the idea of pounding the pavement and going door-to-door...it can be so effective. What I hear most often is, "I'm a wedding photographer, it won't do me much good to go into a real estate office!" NOT - here's why. Every realtor has other needs outside their business. From a new headshot to family events and weddings of their own kids, to support for community events they're involved in, there's a never-ending demand. Walk in, introduce yourself and say, "While my specialty is wedding and event photography, I'm here in the community to help you with any of your photo needs. I have a great network, call me any time." That's it - no hard sell and nothing more you need to say. Leave your card and head to the next business. It's not rocket science - just good old relationship building, which is your very best marketing tool! by Scott Bourne
Everyone who competes with you may be a better photographer than you are, but if you know these seven golden rules of photography marketing, you'll outsell them most of the time. 1. Be true to yourself. Be you. Be authentic. Don't pretend to be passionate about something you are not. Your prospects will bust you every time. Worry about finding prospects who like YOU and what YOU do,. not trying to make everyone happy who walks through your door. If you try to please everyone, you'll please nobody. 2. Network, Network, Network. Every single time you spend money in your zip code, you should also hand your business card, or portfolio post card to the owner/manager of that business. If you are spending money with them, then you have won the right to be heard, and it's not unreasonable to expect that they may want to do business with you. 3. Go door-to-door. This old fashioned method is harder than it used to be but can still yield great results. Start with businesses (even the ones you don't frequent) in your zip code. Make it a point to visit at least 20 of these each week. Introduce yourself. Let them know that you are their "local photographer" and leave contact info with them. Follow up by phone, email or snail mail every quarter. Eventually they will need a photographer and by then you'll seem like an old trusted friend. 4. Work with your indirect and even direct competitors. I coined a phrase 20 years ago that has served me well. "Coop-etition." I cooperate with people who are in my business by referring them jobs I can't do or don't want. I share marketing materials with them by going in on direct mail campaigns with them. We buy ads together, especially if we do something similar but can articulate something different. Work with these people. They are your best allies if you approach it with an open mind. 5. Become a helpmate to a local charity. Pick ONE. Don't try to get involved in everything there is. Pick one. Be the dominate photographer who helps that one charity. You'll meet tons of like-minded people who will automatically give you first dibs when it comes to photography work because they are familiar with you and what you do. It reduces the due diligence and shopping around time that costs everyone. Be charitable. It also builds good karma. 6. Collect data on everything. Get people to give you their business cards. Then use a contact management program to collate and mine that data for outbound marketing. 7. Join your local Rotary, Chamber of Commerce, or other service organizations and volunteer to be the newsletter or event photographer - especially if you are just starting out. Then all the movers and shakers in your town will see your name associated with every photo they encounter at the organization and you'll be a natural choice when THEY need to hire a photographer. This is all common sense, but as I get older I realize there's nothing common about sense so I thought I'd share this list in case some of you needed a reminder. Go out and implement this stuff now. Don't wait. Skip and I are rooting for you. Intro by Skip Cohen I've written extensively over the years about your website's "About" section. Yet, every day I read statements by photographers written in the third person, talking about their awards and listing gear they use, classes they've taken, etc. Your target audience, for the most part, doesn't care. I've shared my buddy Scott Bourne's artist statement before. It's the perfect example of the approach so many of you need to take. For most of you in the portrait/social specialties, your target is Mom! She's not interested in anything but why you love being a photographer. She needs to know if you can be trusted to capture the kinds of images she wants most. To get her to that point, you need to share why you love being an artist. When Scott first shared his artist's statement below, he wrote: Rather than give you a checklist of what to include in your statement, I'm simply going to show you mine. I don't think there is a right or wrong way to do this. I think you just have to write from your heart or be inspired by someone or something else who shares your vision. I re-wrote my statement a few years ago when some comments I received on my images helped me to see what others were seeing in my work, but which I lacked the proper mirror to see. And there's my point - just write from your heart. Don't worry about being sappy. Share your passion for the craft and your clients. Write it all in the first person and finish with a facsimile of your signature. Make it personal because that's what your clients most often need to see the most! Scott Bourne's Artist Statement For me, wildlife art photography is about two connecting themes: extraordinary craftsmanship in terms of technical mastery of photography and a fundamental understanding of the dynamics of the nature behind the image. At a deeper level, however, I pursue this art form because of its almost religious qualities. One day, I can have a vision in my mind that represents a photograph I want to make. This vision exists only in my head and my heart – it’s a silent vision which has the power to bring me out into the field, month after month, year after year, for a chance to turn that vision into something tangible that I can share with others. The other religious aspect of my work is focus and devotion to an idea over which I have absolutely no control. I learn all that I can about the natural factors behind each photographic opportunity, but I never know how they will play out. My artistry focuses on the beauty of things which are random. Wildlife operates within its own free will. The bird flies its own path. It’s different than working in a photography studio where I have control over the set, the model and the lights. As a wildlife artist, my gift is to know how to “show up prepared” to interact with beauty that I do not control. I must learn to be at peace with my subject on their terms, not on mine. I struggle with finding the patience and the path. But when that struggle becomes the hardest, I remember my calling. I speak for the creatures which have no voice. Perhaps this is why the experience is so emotional for me. Each time I get a perfect moment and capture that with my camera, I experience joy and sadness. I am joyful because the finished work provides me with a lifelong memory of a successful vision. But I also feel sadness that the pursuit is over. After that moment, the cycle begins again, and I launch the pursuit of the next creative vision. I hope to share that vision well enough that others may someday wish to help speak for the animals too. Image copyright Scott Bourne. All rights reserved.
by Skip Cohen
Back in my WPPI/Rangefinder Magazine days, I lived in southern California, outside LA. In June, the marine layer would roll in, and while the temp was always 75 with low humidity, everybody called it "June Gloom." Having spent most of my life in Ohio and the Northeast, I laughed whenever somebody whined about the weather. It was still beautiful for me, and at 75 degrees, there was nothing to complain about. Well, June in the photography world is the gateway to possibilities for building your business. And while many of you think of it as prime wedding season - it's also a time to expand and build out your business in other directions.
Here's my point - you can make this one of your best years in business, but nothing happens if you don't use all the communication tools at your fingertips. From mailings to your blog to phone calls, texts, and posts on social media - you've got to plant the seed for new ideas. Take a look at everything you offer on your website. Many of you have been doing the same things for years, and it would put a rock to sleep. Let's spice things up and make the summer of '23 one you'll talk about for years to come! And if you're stuck - you know where to find me. |
Our Partners"Why?"Check out "Why?" one of the most popular features on the SCU Blog. It's a very simple concept - one image, one artist and one short sound bite. Each artist shares what makes the image one of their most favorite. We're over 100 artists featured since the project started. Click on the link above and you can scroll through all of the episodes to date.
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