There are challenges in every industry right now and photography is no exception.  To be successful in such a competitive industry you really need to set your business apart, not only by the quality of your work but also by the way you present your company image – both in person and as part of an online community.  Online community…hmm.  Social Media…hmm.  We’ve all heard these terms, some have embraced them and some have shied away from them.  While I would never recommend spending a large proportion of your time mastering social media strategy, it is important to be present in at least a couple of these online realms to engage customers and point them toward your website and ultimately gain their trust and their business.  Not only that, but many of the most popular social media platforms actually have an SEO (search engine optimization) bonus to their membership (ie, your profile creates an extra way to your company to come up in search results).

When you consider all the different avenues you can go down with social media, it’s important to know what your intended marketing results are and align your social media strategy with the correct platform to suit your unique business needs.  That can be a lot of research time, especially for a busy photographer who needs to be meeting clients and shooting events first and foremost.  Here’s a great chart from CMO.com that breaks down 9 popular platforms and rates them on effectiveness within the categories of customer communication, brand exposure, traffic to your site and SEO value.  We hope this helps!

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