Marketing Your Business

First Purchase

Obviously, your first purchase was a professional camera. Perhaps, you spent a couple of months or even a year, learning to operate it properly. Now you have it all figured out and you are ready to start your own photography business. Where do you go from here? What do you buy to get started? I have found this to be the HARDEST question when starting my own photography business. Getting started with photography is expensive! You could spend $1,000 of dollars and see very little return! So, what do you purchase? What do you pass up? Well here is what I know so far...

Marketing

Find ways to market yourself! You could spend thousands of dollars on the best equipment, but if customers don't know you are there you will not have any income. You have to get out there and let people know you are hard working and want to earn their business! There are so many photographers out there. You have to find a way to stand out and be noticed. Chances are, there is already an established photographer in your area. If you are just getting started, you may think, "How can I compete with that?" Sure, this photographer is good, but he/she's prices are probably higher than what you would charge starting out. Advertise this! People are skeptical  to try a new photographer when they already have one they like, but if you can offer a better price more will be willing to give you a try!

How to save money in Marketing

Vistaprint offers 250 free business cards to help you get started! You pay shipping(about $7) and get a standard, one sided business card for free. You are limited to only a few designs and these will not help you to stand out in the market, but it's a good place to start when start-up budgets are tight! You can always order more, nicer cards down the road. Click the link below to get your free business cards:
http://www.vistaprint.com/freeprembcrs.aspx?GP=10%2f16%2f2012+12%3a58%3a36+PM&GPS=2592196704&GNF=1
Make sure to give a few extra cards to every client you photograph. Now when your clients show off their wonderful photographs, it's easy for them to send a friend or family member to you by simply giving them a card.

Word of Mouth Advertising

Word of mouth advertisement goes a long way! Do you know someone who owns a local business? Are you a frequent shopper or loyal customer at a business? Ask the store owner for help.Some will let you leave business cards for their customers to have. I actually have a local store that is displaying one of my framed photographs in their store along with my business cards so their customers can see a sample of my work! Now that is some awesome Marketing! You never know until you ask.

Social Media

I assume everyone has heard of https://www.facebook.com/. This is a very popular social media site. Set up a free business account there. This is a great way to get in some free advertisement for your business! You can show samples of your work, offer deals, etc. Also provide links to other social media sites you may maintain such as twitter, blogger, etc.

My Facebook business page can be found at https://www.facebook.com/snapshots.shannon. I try to offer a monthly free giveaway or promotion to create interest on my page and draw in new fans.

If you are not currently using any social media to market your business check out this video below to see why you should start now! You need to be seen by your customers and your customers are online.

Your Tips

If you know of any other clever, fun, or money saving ways to market your business, please let us know in the comments!
How do you let people know about your business?
What marketing challenges have you faced?
 How did you overcome them?
What worked?  What did not?
 Let us know in the comments.

Getting Your Name Out There!

Fair Time In Middle Tennessee

Well it's Fair time in Lawrenceburg! The Middle Tennessee District Fair has begun. Each year within the exhibits portion of the fair is a photography contest. I have never entered before, but decided this year would be a great time to start. I was nervous and honestly had no idea what I was doing. This was my first photography contest ever! I hope to make it a little easier and less stressful on you, if you decide to enter. Here's what I did.

Tips for Success

All photographs had to be 8"x10" in size and matted or mounted to 11"x14". I had my prints made and mounted by a professional photography lab (Miller's). However, they were still 8"x10". So I went to Hobby Lobby and bought ready made mats at $2.99 each for my entries. There is not a large selection of ready made mats. However, they are cheaper than having custom mats made. Be flexible and save money. Especially when they are not being bought by clients.

 I then purchased drafting tape(similar to masking tape in color) to secure my pictures to there mats. This tape is recommended for photos because it is acid-free. It is not a permanent bond. This is so you can easily remove the photos from the mats without leaving residue or damaging the photo or mat. I chose to use a tape that was removable so I could reuse the mats in other contests. DO NOT USE JUST ANY BRAND OF TAPE! Make sure the tape is acid-free and safe for use on pictures! You don't want the tape to ruin your pictures! Even if you don't see any damage today, you might in the future. Don't ruin your hard work and waste your money with just any tape.

Go to Hobby Lobby's website at http://hobbylobby.com/ and sign up for their Email newsletter in the top right hand corner of the site. They will send you 1 weekly newsletter(never more than that) with their weekly sales add and a coupon for one non-sale item at a discount. I use this every time I go! I've gotten as much as 40% off. That's a good deal and you can always find some wonderful props there. Think giant letters, mirrors, rugs, flowers, material, etc.

RESULTS

I was hoping for at least one of my pictures to get third place. I got pretty stressed out about it as more and more people found out I had entered.

And the results are.....

3rd Place in Child/Children Category

3rd Place in People-Black & White

1st Place in Group(2 or more)

Wow! How awesome is that!?! My first time to enter in a photography contest and I got 1st place! Awesome! My advice is just do it! Don't procrastinate or doubt yourself! If you don't know what to do, just ask. There are many people who will help you find your way and wish you the best. Good Luck in your contest!!!