articles/Business/3-mistakes-page3
Published 01/12/2016
Marketing has changed so much in recent years. Perhaps 15 years ago it was enough to take out an ad in your local yellow pages, do a flyer drop , drop in to a networking breakfast meeting and your marketing was done for the year! Nowadays marketing goes a lot deeper than that. We are lucky because much of it is now free, but it does take a lot more work. Many photographers are scared to promote themselves for fear of looking too salesy or spammy. The good news is that you don’t need to be pushy at all; modern marketing is all about being authentic and real.
Authentic branding is by far the best way to promote yourself. When people see the real you, they relate to you and it builds trust. And being yourself is the best way to attract your ideal client too. By sharing more about you and your life than just your photography work, you automatically build your brand. Share your thoughts and speak from the heart. Make your wonderfully unique personality your brand and trademark.
3: Comparing yourself to others
This is a big one for photographers, we are all guilty of comparing our work and our businesses to someone else’s.
It’s so easy to be distracted by what other photographers are doing and it takes you off track. For example, you’re happy with your visual identity but then you see another photographer launch their new logo and it makes you want to change yours. Or you see someone else using some trendy new presets and it makes you want to change your editing style completely. We’re all attracted to these shiny new things, but all they do is distract us and before you know it, you’ve wasted a whole morning playing around with new PS actions!
When you find your own style and branding, it’s so much easier for you to differentiate yourself from other photographers. So the more we focus on what we are doing and the less we compare ourselves to others, the easier that becomes.
There are 21 days to get ready for The Society of Photographers Convention and Trade Show at The Novotel London West, Hammersmith ...
which starts on Wednesday 15th January 2025