Let's face it, most of us do photography on the side. Our dream or goal may be to make a living at it, at some point in time. But to do that, we have to make a lot more sales. To make the sales we need more customers. To get more customers, we need to promote ourselves.
I'm going to go out on a limb, and make some assumptions. First, I'm going to assume that money is an issue. We can't all afford to run Google AdWords or even take out an ad in the local newspaper. Second, I'm going to assume that your work is really good. I don't mean good, because your family and friends say so. I mean your work has to impress other photographers (people who know what it takes.) That being said; here are five key ways to promote yourself, (that doesn't cost a fortune.)
1. Business Cards. This is NOT an option. You have to have them. Ideally, they should have your name, your picture, the word "Photography" or "Photographer", your web address and your phone number. Notice, I did not say your street address or a list a mile long of every type of photography you have ever done. When I say: "Your Picture", I mean just that; it must be a picture of you. If you're shy sorry but you're in the wrong business. If you want people to recognize you as a photographer, they need to remember you not one of your great shots.
2. A Web Site. In today's High Tech world this is also NOT an option. In the old days, if I did "Weddings" for
example, I created a portfolio that showed my best work and would show it to potential customers one at a time. The problem was only one customer could view the work at a time and often you would have to wait to get it back, to show someone else. With a web site, you can show off your work and promote yourself 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You don't have to spend a fortune. There are still sites out there that will give you space for free (if you don't mind their advertisements.) Or . . . very cheaply, I pay $4.95 per month for 50,000 Megabytes of space!
3. Photograph Reoccurring Events. Ok, let me define a reoccurring event. Sports and Drama productions come to mind. You want to be able to shoot something that people will see you shooting again and again. If you take pictures at the Rodeo every Saturday afternoon, people will notice. If you shoot a wedding, some of the guest may see you at several weddings, but that does not make the same impact. If you shoot all 24 games of a basketball season, that will stick in peoples memories. That doesn't mean you are limited to selling basketball shots. This is only to get you in the minds of others as a photographer. Once you start handing out those business cards that will lead them to your website. Your website can show all the different types of photography that you
can do.
4. Write Photo Articles. Write about what you know best. If you love taking pictures of horses, write about that. Write about the equipment needed. Write about going to horse shows. Write about how to contact horse owners. There are literately hundreds of Article directories on line that would love to have your articles. Let's say you write 20 articles and submit them to 100 Article Directories, that's like handing out 2000 business cards! This not only gets you more traffic to your website, but it establishes you as an expert in that area of photography!
5. Enter Photo Contests. If you submit one picture to a photo contest per week for one full year, you may or may not make any money, but... you will have publicity. Even if you only win one or two out of your fifty two entries, you are now an award winning photographer! You can use that on your website, on your business card, or even just talking to potential customers. A word of caution, some contests have one purpose in mind and that is NOT to promote you. Some photo contests will try to sell you photo related items again and again. In other words, this may end up putting your name on a mailing list that you had not planned on. If it is an email list you should be able to unsubscribe from most of these.
Obviously, making a thousand business cards and setting them on a shelf is not going to help you. But on the other hand, if every sale you make you give that customer 10 business cards and tell them (don't ask) to let their friends know, you will be surprised at how fast the word can get around. If you are trying to show your work to a crowd that is not into the whole internet scene, remind them that most public libraries now have internet access. If they themselves don't have internet access, the odds are in your favor that someone they know does. One of the advantages for you having your own website is that your can update it whenever you please. One advantage for your customer is that they can view it whenever they please.
Each of these suggestions is only a tool. No one tool is going to necessarily make you rich and famous, but as you start putting some of these things together, you might be surprised at the photography business that you can build.
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