How can a photographer advertise himself in contact. Create your email signature
For 4 years, the number Instagram users exceeded 300 million people. it a large number of people with whom you can share your photo masterpieces, so here is a little guide for you on how to attract people's attention.
1. Great artists show only the best work.
The difference between a good artist and a great one is that the great one only shows his best work. You can't compete with Vogue photographers yet, but right now you need to pay attention to what you share. Perhaps even one photo can turn people away from your portfolio, so if the picture does not give you a wow effect, do not post it.
2. Find your niche
This is just as important to your growth as a photographer as it is to defining your brand: what sets you apart from everyone else? This rule works not only for Instagram, but also applies in principle to a photographer.
You can, for example, take photographs of forest nature
3. Use a real camera
Yes, your brand new smartphone can take beautifully fast shots, but we think Instagram has gone through the era of “take a photo and post it quickly” and this business is now taken much more seriously. And using a SLR (or mirrorless, but with a good sensor) camera gives you a certain advantage.
4. Post-production must be serious
Yes, Instagram has a lot of ready-made beautiful filters, and you can easily use them, but, for example, a customer came to you and says that he wants a photo with such processing, and then what will you do? Therefore, a real photographer does not take anything ready, but creates himself.
5. Share a good story with a snap
Think it's hard for you to go to work on a Monday? Chinese porters in Huangshan province each carry payloads up to 2,500 meters high for the tourism industry. While tourists climb on special suspension systems.
Instagram It's not enough to be a good photographer, you also need to be a good writer. to describe your pictures. Be sure to ask a question at the end of the story, this is what distinguishes the description of the picture from live communication with subscribers.
6. Use hashtags effectively
If you are promoting with generic hashtags such as #vsco or #instagood, then the chances of you hitting the target audience are very low, so do some hashtag analysis for the niche you have chosen first.
7. Build a community
Find photographers that inspire you and connect with them. This is a difficult and difficult process, but then you can promote each other and engage in joint projects.
8. Don't Chase Followers
Better you will have 100 subscribers, but you will definitely receive likes and feedback from them, than 2000 who will be silent. Before you catch up with a lot of people, raise the quality level of the content.
Whatever the best photographer you are, you definitely need good advertising. Of course, the ad pays attention to the portfolio, but the correct text of the advertisement of a photographer, designer or artist attracts traffic and significantly increases the conversion.
(Article updated 03/24/2019)
Clientele is best attracted through contextual advertising. Another fairly good way is through social networks (VKontakte, Instagram, Facebook) and bulletin boards. Do not discount the creation of a personal website. Even in the worst case scenario, if he does not bring clients, the very fact of his presence already speaks of the serious attitude of the specialist to the case. Word of mouth has also not been canceled, but it takes time to earn it.
The photographer knows how to sell his services dearly
The structure of the correct text for a photographer's advertisement
The selling text of an advertisement for a photographer or a photo project, it must be with a wound spring inside, radiate positive. It faces several tasks at once: to attract traffic, catch attention, offer services, show benefits, answer all the questions of the target audience and call for a specific action.
USP. But apart from the good text of the photographer it is worth highlighting (offer). It doesn’t matter if you are a beginner amateur photographer or a famous photo and video studio, you don't have to be the best. There are many peaks, and there will not be enough hours in the day and strength in the legs to resist them all. You need to stand out from the competition in a specific location and a specific area of photographic services. Promise and fulfill what they do not promise.
Before you sell your services as a photographer/videographer, decide on positioning. The most creative ideas, the largest selection of props, the most serious approach to working with light, the fastest organization of the process. Or clearly define your specialization: a stylist photographer who will make the model more beautiful or a static photographer who knows how to choose the environment and evoke the right emotions in the model. I specialize in wedding photos, anniversaries, business portraits, corporate parties, photos of pregnant women, newborns, for dating sites.
If you want to write a successful and beautiful text ads for a novice photographer and want to start in several directions at the same time - it is better to create several ads than to make yourself a steamboat person. And mention your length of service, number of shoots, education, and work style. Only not at the beginning of the photo shoot advertising text, but after the introduction and a specific offer of services.
Describe how the work will go. How can you contact and agree on what the portfolio will look like, how it will be possible to evaluate the work, when the photos will be ready, how to draw up a contract, how payment will be made, what you accept and other nuances. Answer all questions at once - it is easier for a potential client to find another specialist than to learn standard things in correspondence. For what time to book shooting, where to drive up with questions, how to accurately calculate the price.
social proof. These are, of course, reviews. For the best text advertisements of a novice wedding photographer in social networks are just worth their weight in gold. Reviews should contain not only emotions, but also important information for a potential client. In extreme cases, you can compose them yourself or order from a copywriter. But, ideally, they should be written or recorded on camera by real clients. Yes, some visitors have an innate sense of falsehood.
You need to help the person write a review. Ask him a few questions in the direction you need, so that he answers it in his own words. The result will be a detailed, informative, realistic and unique promotional text that helps the photographer sell himself dearly. Inspiring confidence.
How can a photographer market himself? A selling story in the text of a photographer's ad
It doesn’t matter if you need creative advertising for a photographer on Vkontakte, Instagram or on your website - try to colorfully tell your selling story. The photographer took pictures of the beauty, took the photo to the film studio and asked to find a flaw. Thanks to the wonderful play of light and shadow, none of the filmmakers from Mosfilm noticed the scar on his cheek. Another photographer, so that the children would not run away from the camera, attached a screen with cartoons to the lens. And the children did not turn away, but smiled, looking into the frame.
There is even an old legend:
The medieval conqueror Tamerlane was lame and one-eyed. Once he invited artists to his place and ordered to make his portrait, but in such a way that his flaws were not noticeable.
The first artist depicted Tamerlane with normal eyes and normal legs. Tamerlan said:
- It's not me! - and ordered the execution of the artist.
The second artist depicted everything as it is. Tamerlan said:
- But I ordered to make it so that it was imperceptible! - and the artist was executed.
The third artist turned out to be a professional and depicted Tamerlane standing on one knee (his lameness was so imperceptible) and shooting from a bow, squinting one eye (his disfigured eye was so imperceptible). This was the founder of socialist realism.
It is very difficult to create a selling story about yourself, but the game of storytelling is worth the candle.
Keywords for the right text for a wedding photographer ad
If you post your portfolio on the site, you must be sure to register for each beautiful photography the desired keywords. They must be in alt attribute(most importantly!), in the file name, in the caption under the photo, and even on the photo itself.
The main thing is to choose a reasonable compromise between the number of keywords and readability. In the alt attribute and the file name, you can simply list the necessary keywords from Wordstat, and in the signature you need selling and motivating elements.
It is extremely important to indicate the city at least several times in the article. After all, if a person indicates in the search for “photographer services wedding Moscow” - this is a “warm” client. You can't miss it! And it is very important that your site is shown for such a specific request. And the longer the request, the more interested the client is in the service.
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Creative text for advertising a photographer on the radio, time 30 sec
(Cheerful and cheerful voice of the announcer) Would you like to capture the brightest moments of your holiday in the Bukovel tourist center in a high-quality and original way? Your desire will be fulfilled by the photo studio "Ski-a photo". A professional photographer, riding with you, will capture the bright moments on the slopes and take a photo on the highest points of Bukovel. Book a photo shoot by calling 097-751-50-05 (repeat slower) 097-751-50-05
An example of the text of an advertisement for a wedding photographer on the radio 15 sec
What can your wedding be without? Of course, without love! Photographer Lyubov Dorogozh - wedding, family photography, love story. Each photo is taken with love. Tel. 8029-515-12-55
Sample text for a radio photographer ad, 30 seconds
The era of a new photography has begun. Wedding shooting, reportage shooting of corporate parties, graduations and birthdays. Photo sessions in the studio in nature. Affordable prices, efficiency and high quality. Transform everyday reality - order a professional photographer. Tel 8904-657-31-58.
Order text for advertising a photographer from a copywriter
Do you want to get new customers, increase their flow or raise the price tag? selling the text of the photographer's advertisement from the copywriter now. Contact us!
View pricesNo need to post photos of food and cats on Facebook,
and brag about your accomplishments.
/Randy Zuckerberg/
Over the past 5 years, the situation has changed: those who were laughed at, we are talking about Odnoklassniki, are rushing to the first positions in the country's ranking; those who once set the development vector, talking about Twitter, do not know who to sell themselves to, everything is so sad; and all this in anticipation of dark horses - "Google" (Google+ opportunities are growing) and "Apple" (working on their own social network).
In the long run, any participant can become a favorite, but for how long? And most importantly - where does the photographer?
From this article you will learn:
- Why does a photographer need to use, if he really wants to, 1 or 2 social platforms, and be present in the rest only formally.
- Why social networks this moment, not the most effective tool for promoting a photographer on the Internet.
- Why photographers are turning into marketers and when will it all end.
But first, let's talk about the reasons for writing the article.
Promotion of the photographer in social networks
My presence on Facebook and VKontakte is a mere formality, temporary. This decision was made in 2014, after 2 years of studying the possibilities and assessing the prospects:
- Social networks are closed on themselves. This is most visible on Facebook: paying publications for rated content, quick pages(Instant articles), integration of modules that replace offline solutions, etc.
- Social networks are an entertainment format. This means: it is necessary to slide into the service sector or into "clownery", and this is stagnation and extinction.
- Social networks are an inconvenient tool. I recommend reading.
- Social networks - temporarily, if we talk about the photographer. The owners of social networks are businessmen, their goal is profit. Therefore, Facebook will become a video platform, and others will follow the trend. Who will need photos in the feed?
- Social networks - platforms for testing technologies: machine learning, neural networks, personal assistants, augmented and virtual reality.
In addition to this, when communicating with a customer, I always ask two questions:
- How did you know about me?
- How do you find the products and services you need?
As it turned out, among my audience, the priority in sources looks like this:
- Recommendations. Word of mouth and partners.
- Search engines. Surprised though yes what could be easier than asking "Google" or "Yandex".
- Blog. As it turned out, they read.
- Yes, go figure out what is there in the case, and where is disposable.
Of course, marketers say otherwise: a photographer needs social networks, scheduled posts, tracking mentions, etc.
And I say differently: you need to choose 1-3 advertising tools that will work for the photographer and will not distract him from his main activity - photography.
Social networking opportunities for promotion. Is there any use for a photographer?
Marketers realized the fading of SMM and, in order not to be without work, they went into teaching. They quote books, each other and are indifferent to the fact that through their efforts, a gullible listener will end up in the dustbin of history.
Let's analyze the main problems that social networks should solve and find errors:
Recognition and appearance of an expert
Recognition - human glory, comes and goes. What's the point of her? You know about the harm.
The appearance of an expert is zilch, because in the profession of a photographer, experience is valuable, not words.
I've said it before, I won't repeat it.
Customer Reviews
It was relevant, but already in doubt: a series of high-profile revelations of copywriters and marketers, whose actions spoiled this promotion tool as well. Alas.
Fictitious tools, imaginary values and floating price tags are opportunities that will leave the photographer face to face with unresolved problems (small audience segment and lost time; marketing practice, instead of the photographer’s experience, etc.) and awareness of the morality of social networks: “Today they will notice but they won't remember tomorrow.
The future of social networks, or what a photographer should expect from social media
Of course, not all companies inform about their plans, but something is known from reliable sources and it is possible to assess the future of social networks. I am not Wang and I will not name dates, but I will only explain the difficulties that the photographer will face, wanting to interact with the audience in the open spaces of social media.
- There will be fewer potential customers. The well-being of Russian citizens is falling and the demand for photography is following. People come to social networks in order to be distracted, to show themselves and to see others. For purchases - search engines and "call a friend."
- Falling advertising effectiveness and growing advertising budgets. Obvious and annoying. Reliable alternative online - contextual advertising in search engines. Satisfies the current demand, gives sales here and now. Expensive.
- Format change. As mentioned above, and, the attention of all owners of social sites is drawn to the video. The photographer and his portfolio, as information that attracts users, does not represent the former value for social media owners: a decrease in organic issuance and depreciation of content.
- Technology and the struggle for leadership. Oculus Rift is a tool for the future of Facebook as an entertainment portal. Neural networks are the basis of intelligent assistants, the main market players are involved in the development: Google, Apple, Microsoft and, of course, Facebook. Who will become a monopolist, taking into account the "smart home" technology, is unknown. The photographer needs to prepare in advance: access to the online portfolio under a single protocol, outside the venues; adjustment business correspondence by email, etc.
- Machine learning and marketing. The visible results of machine learning are the quality of search results. SEO has changed. Following him, SMM will change, and the manipulation of an emotional post according to the schedule will become part of history. The algorithm itself will find the owner of the required artist and connect him with you, then - the experience of communication, organization and photography.
- Losses. They are inevitable. Over the years, the photographer has invested in third-party development. If they do not withstand competition in the market, they disappear, like all the photographer's achievements. Smartresponder recently closed. Imagine the feelings of users, business owners. Better yet, think about the problem that you may have if your favorite social network “loses its positions”.
- Subscription. Subscription access is gaining popularity in foreign countries. I do not rule out that after magazines and corporate blogs, social networks will think about paid access, but first - the creation of a monopoly, otherwise the one who has "free" will win.
Do not rush to delete accounts. 🙂
P.S
The basis for the existence of social networks is advertising revenue. But in order to show it, you need content created by users, including a photographer. Hence the recommendations and generous advice: stay within limits, publish more often, write about everything, etc.
Real network. 🙂
At the beginning of the creative path, the photographer is limited in finances and social networks are a logical set of tools for presenting a portfolio, conducting correspondence and advertising.
As it grows, it is necessary not only to update the equipment, but also to eliminate dependence on third-party solutions. A separate incentive is the annual reduction in the cost of maintaining personal resources (technological development, competition, etc.).
There comes a time when the leaders of the industry are those who created their resources 10 years ago, and now, if necessary, add the necessary modules: a photo school, equipment sales, a notification system, an affiliate network, a personal portfolio presentation (based on metadata), etc. .
Think. Discuss. Share with friends.
Sincerely
Andrew Bondar.
My student Karolina Cornet, photographer, wrote a good coursework in the specialty "Public Relations" (many letters !!!). It seemed to me that the work could be interesting for photographers.
We make a discount on the fact that it is - student work, and was not intended for a wide range of readers. However, with the kind permission of the author, I reproduce it.
Karolina made a flash survey of photographers in the process, there are answers in the work with an indication of the source. If something is inaccurate or wrong, I will correct it. I hope for understanding :) And one more thing - I am sincerely grateful to the photographers who answered the questions :) This is very important for the educational process :).
I have excluded the list of references and sources, the table of contents.
Introduction
Photography, having established itself as one of the art forms, has become firmly established not only in everyday life, but also in the work of artists, designers, printing, etc. It can be considered as an art form, the works of which are created with the help of special technical and visual means used by the photographer, which allows him to achieve a figurative embodiment of the theme in the finished image solution.
Now in Russia there is a boom in photography. Prices for semi-professional and professional cameras are decreasing, new photographers appear (in the future, perhaps, one of them will become a professional), people visit various exhibitions, more and more often they bring famous photographers not only from Russia, but also from abroad to master classes - this the main trends are not just a few years, but rather a year or two.
In Russia, photography seems to be developing 10 times faster than abroad. Previously, photographers were promoted by a couple of people and organizations, but now the photographer himself can do his own advertising. The process came out, what is called "to the people." Blogs appeared not only about photography, as about art and creativity, but also blogs of private photographers, advertising in in social networks, websites, etc.
Photographer Maxim Selin, in an interview for Fashionweek magazine, says this about photography in Russia now: “Many are accustomed to thinking that Russia’s path is not like anyone else’s, that Russia supposedly goes its own way, so everything is bad for her from time to time. Russia's path should be more transparent, it seems to me, and there is no need to think about it - you need to live, work on what you like, and do it well, strive to do it better than everyone else and not give up, even in difficult moments of life ...
Working in Russia is a lot of difficulties and complexities, but you have to go through them. While it is much easier to establish oneself here than abroad, competition is growing every year, but this is a good incentive.
All this determines the relevance of the chosen topic of the course work.
The work consists of two sections.
The first section deals with the theoretical aspects of the topic under study: the definition of a "professional photographer", as well as an attempt to understand what actions a photographer needs to take in order to make a name for himself.
The second section is devoted to the analysis existing methods promoting a private photographer and identifying the most effective technologies.
The object of research in this work is a private photographer.
The subject is the promotion of a private photographer by means of PR.
The main objectives of this study are:
Identification of existing technologies for promoting the photographer;
- determination of the most effective technologies for promoting a private photographer.
In fact, now the whole situation in photography comes down to a greater extent to the processing of photographs, rather than to thinking through the frame. On the one hand, it’s scary to assume what will happen next if the pictures are “pulled out” only by Photoshop, Lightroom and other processing programs. But, on the other hand, Russia has always been famous for its talents, so I believe in a brighter future for Russian photography.
How to become a photographer?
Who is a professional photographer?
For a person interested in photography, it all starts with the purchase of a camera. Naturally, everyone thinks about a good camera (especially for beginners, it seems that the more expensive the equipment will cost, the better the pictures and their quality, and even more so, how much respect will immediately be from others when they see an expensive camera).
At first, it seems that success will depend on technical equipment. But here in the hands of a beginner is an expensive automated camera. The dream came true! And what? The pictures taken in the first days are far from perfect, the shooting showed the beginner that everything is not so simple, it is even possible that during the initial experiments, photographing will turn out to be not pleasure and entertainment for him, but hard work.
Of course, at this stage a lot depends on the camera, but it seems to me that even more depends on the photographer. At the beginner stage, a professional or semi-professional camera provides ease of use (if, of course, you read the instructions for use carefully beforehand), shooting in various lighting conditions (both outdoors and indoors, both day and night), the ability to using shutter speeds to achieve pictures of various sharpness and various lighting effects, the possibility of initial processing on the camera itself. A good camera facilitates only the technical side of shooting. But technique is not always "equal" to a good shot. It all depends on the person. He is a creator. Painter. After all, you can shoot with an ordinary soap dish and you are recognized as a gifted and good photographer, or you can shoot with an expensive, technically equipped camera, but there will be no soul in the pictures - just a high-quality picture.
The main thing here is to decide: either shoot for yourself, take a hobby photo, or make money from it, but then shooting is stereotypical. In most cases, everything is as described above. But every rule has exceptions. You can combine business with pleasure - a hobby can bring money, but this is extremely rare.
But once a beginner becomes a professional. This is where people's opinions about the professionalism of a photographer diverge. So who is he - a professional photographer?
Wikipedia writes as follows: “Professionalism: according to this criterion, it is customary to divide photographers into amateur photographers (amateur photographers) and professional photographers. Amateur photographer - a person who takes pictures for his own pleasure or entertainment, taking pictures for family, friends, for his blog posted on the Internet. A professional photographer is a person who, as a rule, has the appropriate education, work experience and whose main income is earnings from photography.
Another definition: a professional photographer is an experienced photographer who knows how to organize the acquisition and work with clients in such a way as to ensure a constant flow of Money necessary for life.
A professional photographer can be both highly specialized in any one type of photography, and a wide profile, capable of performing various types of photography with the same quality. It depends on the experience and individual personal characteristics of the photographer.
Who is a professional photographer? First of all, he is a master of his craft, a creator of beautiful and high-quality images. The photographer should hone his skills every free minute.
A professional photographer is one who is fed by photography being the main source of income. When you feel the determination to leave a warm office, pick up your work book and go, like a cartoon hedgehog, into the foggy distance to live on the royalties from the publication of your pictures, you can rightfully call yourself a professional.
When I worked at the Euphoria photo agency, I ran into one of the well-known photographers in Yekaterinburg, Evgeny Prodazhny.
We also talked about the professionalism of the photographer:
E: What kind of camera do you have?
K: - Nikon d300s.
E: - Good camera. How long do you shoot?
K: - A year and a half, a little more even.
E: - And do you get money for shooting?
K: - Yes.
E: - Then you are a professional photographer. At your place good camera, you are not new to photography and it brings you money.
Thus, if photography brings a steady income, then you are a professional.
In my opinion, in order to become a professional, you need to have at least a little talent (or a huge desire) and a lot of patience, because you have to learn and learn a lot, and also have enough financial resources to buy professional equipment: cameras, lenses, and other shooting equipment.
A professional photographer must provide the highest quality of their work. The quality of work is directly proportional to the price of photo services. But if you work mediocre, then hardly anything will help you become a real professional. A professional, it seems to me, lives by photography, breathes it. It is most important.
Having attended photography courses, or having graduated from an educational institution with a degree in photography, having listened to lectures and studied the works of famous photographers, it seems that there will be long work to apply the acquired knowledge in practice. That it will take more than one month and even more than one year. Began to become a beginner to a professional.
Of course, technical skills are important, but there must also be creativity. You have to be somewhat of an artist to discover something new for people in familiar things.
In order to become a professional photographer, it is not necessary to have a diploma of higher education in the field of photography or a certificate of completed courses. An example of this is the majority of Russian photographers, for whom photography was at first just a hobby.
There is an opinion that the basic knowledge that can be obtained in photography courses is enough for a beginner. I fully agree with this opinion, because I think that it is pointless to study at professional courses, since you are simply being forced into another photographer's point of view. You need to know the basics, and then only develop: shoot more, read about new trends, attend master classes, in general, develop in every possible way.
Where to go after the course? Many photographers, having completed photography courses, do not know what to do next. It seems that you are all wonderful and smart, ready for accomplishments and shooting masterpieces, but. This is where the main stupor occurs.
Some photography courses say that after attending them you will be employed. This is not entirely true. If you really have talent and great pictures, then you may be attached, but most likely you will have to look for yourself where to work as a photographer.
No one can promise you guarantees in employment, especially if you are a beginner. It all depends on you. Not only in your ability to shoot, but also in your ability to promote yourself.
First of all, you need to decide on the style of shooting, direction, genre. From this and make a portfolio and choose a place of further work.
You need to look at various ads (often some publications require a photographer, both full-time and freelance). The payment for your work will directly depend on the newspaper / magazine, and it is possible that you will have to cooperate with more than one publication for more decent earnings.
Another option is to get a job in a studio, but without certain experience, knowledge, and, as a rule, connections, it’s hard to get a job in a photo studio. Either luck, diligence and dedication, or useful acquaintances. And the biggest disadvantage is the minimum wage.
The third option - the most difficult - is a freelance photographer. You work exclusively for yourself and in your name. Here, the main thing is to expand the circle of customers. Here, at the initial stage, it is not talent that is important, but the ability to “promote” oneself, to make a name for oneself.
As they say, the task is not for the faint of heart - at the same time you will have to shoot and advertise your services. First you need to create your website and find professionals who will promote it on the Internet. It seems like a lot of money is needed for this, but no. Everyone can agree. Checked.
The site is done, everything is fine, but you should not think that all the advertising has ended on it. It is necessary to post announcements about shooting on photo forums, create your own blog in which to communicate with people and upload your photos, and also take part in various photo contests. The main thing is to “shine”, as much as possible.
The first time, you may have to shoot for free. You should not refuse this - agree, distribute business cards to everyone, and paid shootings are just around the corner.
How to promote a photographer?
Every photographer needs promotion, PR, publicity - in short, every photographer needs to be known, to have a "name" to make money with.
The photography market is crowded right now. There are photographers who offer shooting at very low prices, make unimaginable discounts, work for free - shoot for a portfolio. On the one hand, they do not really interfere with professionals, since they are usually beginners or amateurs, on the other hand, they do not often make low-quality products. But it seems to me that this situation cannot be influenced in any way - it’s the same as spitting against the wind. The main thing is that you have a base of clients (ideally permanent ones) who will not go to another photographer.
How to promote a photographer? By what methods? Is there any limit?
The well-known Russian photographer Ilya Rashap said this in his interview for the site: “For example, a girl takes off red peppers on a plate and receives one and a half thousand dollars for a picture, what is it? This is marketing, from my point of view. There are tougher examples when they pour paint over themselves, wallow on the canvas and, again, earn money. Again, this is in many ways a tribute to a certain fashion, although I don’t want to hang a label, you can probably lie around very artistically.
Recently, this happened: a photographer bought an image for a million dollars, and in this regard, I thought that this would be a great PR move. You can even arrange to have an image bought from you for a million dollars, then give that million dollars back, just to get people talking about you.
What photographers do to get known and attract more clients. Here is an example (unfortunately, I could not find a source on the Internet where I read this article): “Photographers of the Omsk 2D photo studio used the services of the site http://www.biglion.ru, the guys decided to sell their services at a big discount. Instead of 1,500 rubles for a studio photo session, they offered photography for 300 rubles. To be honest, even I wanted to order such a photo shoot for myself, but there was no money for webmoney, payment was made only through Internet systems or multi-cassettes. The promotion was valid for 3 days and during this time 221 people purchased a photo session. Nobody expected this turn of events. Wonderful, isn't it? But…..
Roughly speaking, with a biglion percentage, the guys raised about 60,000 rubles. And now, let's think about what it means to raise. They will have to conduct 221 photo shoots and incur some time expenses, even renting their own studio, because sometimes photo shoots will overlap. Let's calculate the amount of time it will take to shoot 221 photo shoots. 1 photo session = 1 hour of photography and 2 hours of processing. We get 3 hours, multiply by 221 photo sessions = 663 hours of work = 28 days. A month of continuous work without sleep and rest. Are you ready to go for it?
I also want to add that this type of self-promotion is good because with a conscientious approach, you may get future wedding clients or something like that, but with great pressure and human fatigue, this approach is fraught with negative feedback, with a dissatisfied client. You get 300 rubles, not 1500, and then you get the amount immediately, and not after work. Your interest in an excellent result is undermined by laziness, fatigue. And a person bought not a discounted product, but a professional photo shoot and will demand the appropriate result.
As a rule, in such situations, the photographer does not think about the consequences: how he will manage to carry out such a number of shootings, what expenses he will incur, and so on.
What methods of promoting a photographer exist?
In practice, it turns out that PR is a kind of relationship between the photographer and his clients. There are two opposing opinions among photographers about self-promotion. Some people think that advertising is below their dignity and their work speaks better than advertising, while others believe that without promotion they will not find clients and will not advance in the photo market.
Based on this, a photographer's portfolio is compiled. Again, everything depends on the professionalism of the photographer, his goals (either customer focus, or to prove to the photo community his skills / a new look at photography / creativity). Sometimes photographers cannot decide and mix everything up, for example, some works are posted on the site, and completely different in the Vkontakte group, this is not correct. Portfolio, style - all the attributes of a photographer should be the same. Using only commercially directed works also does not always lead to success, everything is beautiful, photoshopped, but if there is no soul, ordinary people will not want to work with such a photographer.
Ideally, several (most the best works) from the portfolio can be printed. If the photographer works in his studio, then hang them on the wall so that people can see once again; Also, as an option, use some photo for business cards. If a photographer shoots weddings, then you can make photo books to show how he shoots to future clients so that the words are supported by printed material.
The information posted on the website, blog, Vkontakte plays a lot. In order for people to understand what you want, you just need to tell them (about what photography means to you, how you feel about models, free shooting, etc.).
So, the promotion of a photographer, in my opinion, consists of 3 main areas:
Website (or blog)
It's good if professional web designers make a website for you, but this pleasure is not cheap, especially for beginners. Due to technological progress and Internet resources, you can make a website yourself (a business card website is quite suitable, where there will be information about the photographer, prices for services provided and a portfolio). You can combine a site with a blog, but it is better not to mix. You can create a blog on Livejournal, Blogspott, Liveinternet. In a blog, you can write about various photography, reinforcing them with photographs, about yourself, a little about your personal life, so to speak, to be closer to the people.
On the site, in addition to portfolio, biography and profession, you need to place contacts with feedback and indicate all social networks where you are registered.
The placement of advertising pages on Vkontakte and Facebook is a very mass phenomenon today. Everyone who is not too lazy creates groups, official pages. In my opinion, the presence of the Vkontakte group does not give anything, since the massive boom in PR through this remedy already passed. The group constantly needs to be updated, write about all promotions, photography, any changes. A "dead" group is of no interest to anyone. But even if you do all of the above, it is not a fact that many customers will appear. Only a few people order shootings through social networks. But as an extra means of PR it won't hurt.
other methods
Word of mouth, exhibitions, visits to public places (master classes, events related to photography), where you can get to know people, unobtrusively offer them your services, give business cards.
How can a photographer stand out among a huge number of competitors? First of all - with a proposal, and then with photos, website / blog / business cards / flyers / certificates design.
Summing up, I would like to say that there are many promotion methods, the main thing is to choose the one that suits you best and follow it clearly, and not jump from one to another. It is better to focus on one thing and make a quality PR than to use the "here and there" method and end up with nothing.
Identification of the most effective technologies for promoting a photographer
In the previous section, I touched on the most basic technologies for promoting a photographer. In this chapter, these technologies will be discussed in more detail, but I want to start with the mistakes that are made when promoting a photographer.
Often arrange free photo shoots
Free photo shoots are great because they refresh your portfolio and expand your client base, but if you do them too often, people won't see you as a commercial photographer.
Often give discounts on photo shoots
You should not discount the price of a photo shoot out of the kindness of your heart for friends, then they will sit on your neck, dangle their legs and demand first big discounts, and then generally free shootings.
There are many components that bring fame to a photographer, this is not only specific advertising and PR methods:
Decide on a specialization, genre
If the photographer is highly specialized, then it is easier for him to determine the target audience and correctly build a promotion program and advertising campaigns.
The name of the photographer is usually associated with his image. Either you are a photographer who arranges a whole performance on the set, or a brawler photographer, or a club photographer. Also, from a narrow specialization of activity, you can be the best fashion photographer, portraitist or wedding photographer.
You can focus on the uniqueness of services, you can offer some kind of shooting for certain people, companies, organizations (the main thing is to choose the right time and Right place), offer shooting for certain occasions (weddings, corporate parties, holidays).
Portfolio
Participate in various exhibitions. Not the fact that they will bring you customers, but they will hear about you. Yes, and in the biography there will be one more point of professionalism. Organize themed parties and workshops.
Servicing your clients
Service plays one of the most significant roles in the work of a photographer. If the client is satisfied not only with the result of the work, but also with the shooting process, this is an additional plus in your direction. Satisfied customers apply for the second and third time, tell their friends and acquaintances about you. This is where the word-of-mouth principle comes into play.
The photographer must have a specific, well-formulated promotion strategy: what to promote, how, what result we want to achieve.
It turned out to be extremely difficult to identify the most effective technologies for promoting a photographer, since everything depends on the specifics of the photographer’s shooting, his target audience, professionalism and other components. Therefore, I decided to conduct a survey on social networks, namely Vkontakte and Facebook.
There was only one question, namely: “What do you think are the most effective technologies for promoting a private photographer?”
I didn't think I would get so many responses from photographers. Most of them are freelancers who shoot for a year or two, there are also the opinions of several professionals, such as Marat, Dan Marino, Grigory Shchekalev, Ksenia Vetrova.
I received the following responses to my question:
Marat (ZOOM ZOOM Photographers), Yekaterinburg
“Effective personal communication with the target audience and successful public projects…
Maybe awards in competitions, but less than the first two points. Exhibitions (even properly organized and promoted) work as a very additional PR. in the next place after publications in magazines.
Communication with the Central Organ is talking about their values and their interests (both within the framework of business and in broader areas - up to the health of your grandmother, if you know about her, or even better - you know her) ... I exaggerate about the grandmother ... the photographer can always guess that what he does in business and in life may be of interest to one or another person who is familiar with him. the rest is either a matter of technique or a matter of talent.”
Grigory Shchekalev, Yekaterinburg-Moscow
“I think exhibitions are the most effective.”
Evgeny Sviridov (freelance), Yekaterinburg
“I think that the most effective is word of mouth.
Den Marino (Director of the Aurora photo agency), Yekaterinburg
"Word of mouth radio".
Olga Golovizina (freelance), Yekaterinburg
“I think that social networks are the most effective method, added more friends, and go. One of my acquaintances doesn’t know how to take pictures at all, but thanks to contact and Facebook, she also sometimes gets clients. This, of course, is unlikely to help, but it seems to me that until the photographer develops his client base, does the job well for relatively little money, no advertising will help, because the result is immediately visible.
Sergey Efremov (freelance), Yekaterinburg
“Apart from advertising, nothing else can come to my mind. Perhaps some preliminary or initial shooting somewhere, to see how the photographer works, with whom he works and how well he works.
Tatyana Glazyrina (Rudaya), (freelance), Yekaterinburg
"MASS MEDIA".
Ksenia Vetrova (VS-photography), Yekaterinburg-Moscow
» -photosites
- mailings
- stock
- dating at any parties
- project sponsorship
- participation in various forums, consultations
- you can choose a more scandalous method, arranging disassemblies everywhere, but this is already for people with character + the level of work must correspond.
Vadim Konovalenko (freelance), Sumy
"Customer Recommendations (Rumour)".
Ivan Popov (freelance), Yekaterinburg
“In this regard, the Internet is the most accessible and simple, but the problem is that everyone has it now and helps everyone in equal amounts. Without talent, you won't get far. In principle, no technology will help without talent and your own style and vision. And so, I see all sorts of billboards, light panels as very interesting. I don’t even know… some installations.”
Alexey Veretennikov (owner of the ALVER photo studio), Yekaterinburg
“For starters, the Internet and acquaintances, when you just need to study and shoot for a penny, then rumors, positive reviews on the same Internet and a few publications will not hurt.
Oleg Nokhrin (freelance), Yekaterinburg
"Advertising and interesting offers."
Dasha Ripp (freelance), Yekaterinburg
“The ability to submit oneself, probably, or a photo manager who will do it, word of mouth. And the photographer himself, I think, needs a certain amount of pragmatism and a sober assessment of trends.”
Zhenya Klimov (freelance), Yekaterinburg
“Well, probably, if you do everything correctly, then through social networks and through friends, arranging free photo shoots for them in exchange for advertising and attracting customers to you.”
Yaroslav Kaydalov (Freelance), Yekaterinburg
"Word of mouth and only if the photographer is good."
Ilya Sorvin (Freelance), Yekaterinburg
“- Word of mouth - people trust the advice of those who have already used the services and can see the result for comparison.
- Internet site - you can cheaply and angrily present your work.
- Social networks are generally a bottomless platform for self-promotion and promotion. You don't have to spend a dime.
- Business cards - you can just stop the person you like on the street and hand over your business card. You need charisma.
With certain skills with a computer, all of the above will cost zero rubles and zero kopecks. I don’t consider the rest, because photography is a relatively unprofitable business and initial costs should be minimal, unless of course it is a photography genius with the patronage of the photo elite. And anyway, the speed of promotion will depend on only one thing - the quality / price of the photographer's work.
Anton Seletsky (Nightparty), Yekaterinburg
Flash mobs, image projects.
What I learned from the survey: the majority of photographers surveyed believe that word of mouth, social networks, shooting acquaintances / friends are most effective.
I am most impressed by two answers with which I completely agree (answers of Ksenia Vetrova and Ilya Sorvin) and I think that they reflect the most effective technologies for promoting a photographer.
Thus, it turns out that the most efficient technologies photographer's promotions are:
- "word of mouth" radio (because people's gullibility to their friends and comrades who have already worked with this photographer is higher than anything else);
- a website (this is a photographer's calling card, a biography and a view of the world and photography introduce you to ordinary people, on whom you focus your services);
- social networks (thanks to groups and official pages, "left accounts", mailing lists and invitations, adding everyone in a row or strictly people of a certain age / status / certain interests, social networks are generally a bottomless platform for self-realization, although not suitable for everyone);
- business cards (an essential attribute, since at any events not necessarily related to photography, you can give them to friends and strangers);
- various promotions (free, paid, creative, the main thing is to interest the consumer);
- participation in various photo projects (as a participant or as a sponsor, if funds allow);
- participation in photo forums, consultations, master classes.
Conclusion
For many people who have never held a camera in their hands, it seems that shooting is just one or two and it's done. Few people understand how difficult and time-consuming the process is. Searching for clients, preparing for shooting, actually shooting, editing photos - this is not for the faint of heart, especially considering how fierce competition is now in the photography market. But that's not the point. The main thing for a photographer (if photography is more than just a hobby for him) is his promotion, his recognition in various circles of society.
The promotion of a photographer consists of several components, which, as a rule, are formed individually for each, but still there is a slight stereotype. It consists in creating a website or blog and promoting through social networks. Naturally, not all photographers are engaged in promotion through social networks (this is the old, venerable generation of photographers who already have a name), young talents and beginners, as a rule, use social networks for self-promotion.
Photographer website promotion
Request examples
- wedding photographer
- photographers Service
- wedding photo session
SEO features of search queries
The most complex, frequent and profitable are wedding requests. But a photographer can have a lot of services, which means search queries and pages tailored for them. Correctly selected semantic core and content will help to get targeted traffic and customers even for a young site.
Average check: 20 thousand rubles
How to start promoting a photographer's website
Of course, it is impossible to promote a website without a clear portfolio. The photographer's website should have a lot of beautiful and original photos, without which customers cannot be attracted even if good traffic. Therefore, it would be better for a novice photographer to work for some time for free, in the interests of building a rich portfolio.
SEO competition
The competition is high. The average age of a photographer is 25 years old, many of them have some idea about online advertising and promote their site on their own, others resort to the help of more experienced friends. But it is worth noting that there are not so many really strong, in terms of SEO, sites in the field of professional photography. There are many good groups on social networks, many beautiful sites, but well-optimized, with large quantity there is practically no content, sites. Most of search engine optimization produced at an amateur level, and photographers do not favor their visitors with copyright content. Therefore, with due perseverance, despite the highest competition, you can count on decent (from 100+ people per day) natural traffic using search.
The Importance of Design
By appearance site, customers will largely form their opinion about the taste of the photographer, his style and sense of beauty. Therefore, what a photographer should not save on is design. A laconic design is allowed, but with attention to detail. At the design design stage, one should take into account the possible large number of pages (for various narrow-profile search terms).
Importance of reviews
Visitors themselves will be able to form an idea of the level of work of the photographer by looking at the portfolio. However, during a photo session, especially at a wedding, not only the level of photographs is important, but also the adequacy of the photographer, both as a person and as a guest, since often the entire marriage is built around photographs, and the photographer seems to direct the process and guide the bride and groom. Live reviews (for example, Vkontakte) will significantly increase the credibility of the photographer.
Site structure
When designing a site, consider low frequency requests (Additional services, low-frequency queries). Using query selection services, you can select dozens of additional service pages. home page The site should be optimized for queries related to wedding photography. All pages must be supplemented and decorated with author's photographs.
How to talk to a client
Clients are often newlyweds (average age 25) and young parents (25-30). The texts can use a free, colloquial, informal style. Through the text, visitors should "feel" the author, his speech. In the interests of creating a personal brand (photographer Ivanov, Ivanov's studio), the narration can be conducted in the first person (I photograph, not we photograph). Too formal style can be off-putting.
What to talk about with a client
About mistakes in photo shoots. Warn against boring, template wedding photo shoots, share interesting techniques and experiences (live cases). The site must convince the visitor that the photographer is sane, adequate and will not take boring, identical photos.
Photo and video content
Of course, the site will be built around photos, but the Youtube channel can significantly increase the level of trust in the photographer. The process of work, tips on photo processing, fragments of the wedding and interviews - all this will reveal the photographer as a specialist.
Black methods of website optimization
Do not use black methods to promote the photographer's site.
For photographers, bulletin boards work well, in particular Avito (paid ads in special placement) with selling text.
Photographer site promotion
Promotion of photography services on the Internet
The main trouble of photographers in Russia is their multiplicity. Many young people who have just bought a DSLR are trying to cash in on their undeveloped skills. Unfortunately, all young photographers know how to make websites, especially on free engines, in addition, they have familiar designers or programmers. Accordingly, there are thousands of sites of similar subjects. And to promote the photographer's website among such an abundance is a difficult task, but doable.
We use rare requests when promoting the services of a photographer
Having heard from the corner of their ear about the principles of site promotion, customers ask to promote the site for the most common requests, such as “photos for a wedding”. Promotion for such requests requires investments that will never justify themselves. Therefore, our company concentrates on promotion on rarer requests like “shooting children's matinees in Zelenograd”. Such queries lead to significantly more visitors.
We specify the services of a photographer
Photographers take on any shooting, because no one refuses to earn extra money, but shooting weddings brings the most revenue. Therefore, many web developers suggest focusing on wedding photography. Thus, they leave a large niche for other requests. Don't forget to optimize your site for keywords like “baby photos” or “prom photos.” With keywords, you can think of a lot of things.
Mobile view of the photographer's site
In the old days, mobile sites were not given enough attention due to the high cost of the Internet, which was provided by cellular operators. Now everything is much simpler - 3G Internet is cheap and available, so more than half of the traffic falls on mobile and tablets. In any subject, you should create mobile versions sites using Bootstrap and responsive layout. This allows site users not to suffer from scroll bars and unreadable pages.
The more pages the better
Landing pages are in fashion now, you can’t argue with that. Convenient - a person went to the site, quickly looked through brief information, filled out a simple form and received the service. However, landing pages are extremely bad for website promotion, as they do not provide a lot of textual information and contain only one page. Landing pages are suitable for contextual advertising, not SEO. For search engine optimization, our company uses multi-page sites with a branched structure. In terms of keywords and their number, they outperform landing pages.
Honesty is the best policy
Customers love vague wording. Instead of specifying the real price, they are asked to write “from 20-30 thousand for wedding photography”, without mentioning the many nuances that triple the price. The bride or groom calls the photographer and is upset when they find out that such a cost is relevant only with the condition of discounts and a busy schedule. Therefore, we recommend that you do not hide the truth about prices from site users, even if it may not be the best. The more honest you are with a potential customer, the more likely you are to receive an order.
Don't Forget Your Portfolio
No matter what the text of the site says, no matter how it is optimized for successful search queries, the main thing in the site of a photographer is his work. Nothing will come of it without a portfolio. At the same time, even a novice photographer can successfully show photos and get an order. Our company helps to find the most attractive photos for users and place them in the right places on the site.
Don't Forget Your Contacts
Photographer's contacts are the main thing on the site. Although many people forget about them or do not create a separate page for contacts. As a result, the user looks at the site, is ready to place an order, but eventually leaves for another one, because he does not see contacts. In addition, the presence of a correctly designed contact page is a signal for Yandex and Google about the quality of a commercial site.
If you are a photographer and interested in search engine optimization of your site, please fill out the form below.