Copywriter for Photographers

If you’re like most photographers, your best sources of new business are friends, family and your existing clients. They’re the ones passing out your name to the people they know and praising the quality of your work.

That’s probably been an effective way to run your business. But, tell the truth, wouldn’t rather see your business growing faster? Wouldn’t you like to have more gigs and be able to attract a higher caliber client with a bigger budget?

Grow Your Photography Business

Word-of-mouth referrals are great for launching a business, but for sustaining and growing one to the level you want, they may not be enough. So how do you make that leap?

How do you get from where you are in your photography business to where you’d like to be?

The Value of Marketing

Marketing is the key to taking your business to the next level. Uh-oh, did you just wince? Does the idea of marketing your photography services make you that uncomfortable?

It shouldn’t. Marketing doesn’t have to be used-car-salesman sleazy or over-the-top-pushy. No doubt you’d rather be taking pictures. But marketing is a critical part of every successful photography business. Even the best photographers in the world wouldn’t get work if nobody knew their name.

Marketing can be informative and tactful. You provide a service people need. You do good work. You are the solution to a problem the customer has. Now you just need to get the word out.

It Starts with a Quality Website

People go to the web to get information. If they’re looking for a photographer, the first thing they’ll do is search on Google, and then, assuming your website comes up in search results, look at your website. For that reason, your website needs to be your first order of business when it comes to marketing.

Fair or not, visitors will judge the quality of your photography business by the professionalism displayed on your website. Its overall look and feel as well as the information you provide will help them decide whether you’re the solution they’re seeking.

With competition becoming more intense all the time as more photographers join the field, you need to use every possible advantage.

A quality website has more than pretty pictures. It also needs good copy.

Consider these questions:

• What story does the copy on your website tell?
• Is it attracting clients?
• Is it a good representation of who you are and what you do?

A good copywriter knows how to write copy that doesn’t only convey information; it builds your brand, engages your visitors, and gets prospects to contact you for an appointment.

If your current website isn’t attracting visitors or converting those visitors into qualified prospects, you need to make some changes.

Pictures and Words, a Dynamic Duo

A picture may be worth 1,000 words, but there’s no reason to forego the powerful benefit of combining beautiful photos with compelling copy.

Together, pictures and words are incredibly potent. Don’t sell yourself short by not using both.

A copywriter for photographers can help you

• Keep your message clear, simple and to-the-point.
• Tell your story, weaving facts and emotion into a tidy package.
• Reach out to the client and let them know you care.
• Make it personal. Hit the right buttons to help them feel a connection with you.

Whether you’re a wedding photographer, a product-advertising photographer, a fashion photographer or any other type of photographer, the information on your website must complement the images you display in your portfolio and answer the questions most visitors have.  The copy can be as important as your photo portfolio when a client is deciding which photographer to book.

Hire a Professional Copywriter to Market Your Business

Just about anyone with a Smartphone can now snap a photo, but you know the difference a professional makes. You can have the best photography equipment in the world, but it’s still no substitute for years of professional training and experience.

The same is true for copywriters. Anyone can sit down at their computer and pound out a few sentences. But a professional copywriter, someone with marketing experience and thousands of hours spent polishing their craft, can do it so much better. You’re not a copywriter, so don’t write your own copy.

Turn Your Website into a Client Magnet

Consider hiring a professional copywriter if you’re a photographer who wants to:

• Establish an online presence that’s as impressive and professional as the photos you create
• Receive more new business inquiries so you can fill all your billable hours
• Generate more business so you can be selective, choosing the clients you WANT to work with rather than clients you HAVE TO work with.
• Set yourself apart from the crowd of hungry photographers in your area, many of whom are willing to underbid you for work

A copywriter can help you create a compelling website and also assist you with other marketing materials such as an ad, brochure, press release, sales letter and more.

Start Marketing Today

If you’re thinking it’s too late for you to start promoting your photography business just because you’ve already been in existence for a while, that’s not a valid excuse.

There’s an inspiring Chinese proverb that says the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. The same is true for marketing your photography services.

Don’t make the task bigger or more intimidating than it needs to be. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed. To quote another proverb, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”

The same can be applied to promoting your photography business. You don’t have to rewrite every page of your website and invest in brochures and email marketing all at the same time.  Start small, even with one page of your website, and then build. Little accomplishments add up to become big achievements, and cumulatively, they translate into business growth. Get the picture?

So plant that tree. Take a bite out of the elephant. Contact a professional copywriter who can provide the marketing guidance and execution abilities to get you started on the marketing path.

*  *  *

Need help writing copy for your photography website? Contact Susan Greene, professional copywriter, today!