1. The AIAP Welcomes TourBuzz as Our Newest Sponsor
TourBuzz, a virtual tour hosting service, has joined AIAP as a sponsor. Their service is perfect for independent photographers because it maintains YOUR brand--there is no TourBuzz branding on your tours. TourBuzz has numerous features to save you time in delivering the highest quality tour in HD resolution. Check them out and let them know you heard about it at AIAP: www.tourbuzz.net
“We are excited to be a part of AIAP. We pride ourselves on quality and customer service, working closely with photographers to provide the best photo delivery platform available for independent photographers,” said Paul Rodman Co-Founder of TourBuzz.
Call TourBuzz to get the special AIAP member introductory offer at 877-246-9887.
2. Attrition & Recovery
Many of you may have noticed that your AIAP Directory listings have gradually moved up the page in recent months. This is due to the fact that many longtime AIAP members have simply chosen not to renew their membership and have consequently lost their page rank in the Find A Photographer directory. Good for you--bad for them.
The reason I bring this up is that the traffic on the AIAP directory has seen a steady increase since January, and many of you have reported a subsequent upswing in your own personal business. Like all economic recoveries, it's slow and steady persistence that pays off in the long run.
The marketing efforts of the AIAP are at an all-time high. In fact, we've done more marketing in the past year than in all previous years combined. Many of you have taken a similar course with your own personal marketing efforts. It's a proven fact that the success of any marketing plan is based on multiple, favorable and memorable impressions. We're confident that we're achieving success with architectural photography buyers. After all, the reason for this organization in the first place is to bring new business to the membership.
3. Brands & Promises
We've discussed branding before, but at this critical economic time I believe it warrants re-visiting. It's now become somewhat cliche, but Kristin Zhivago's statement has never been more true: "Your brand is the promise that you keep, not the one you make." Our industry has been under attack from the do-it-yourselfers ever since high-quality digital cameras became affordable. However, there's one major difference between "us and them," and that difference is talent. Paint and canvas are readily available to the general public, but we all recognize the work of an artist when we see it. The same is true of great photography.
I have a number of friends in the portrait and wedding business (poor fellows), who constantly bemoan the fact that high quality digital cameras are available to the general public and that their business is disappearing as a result. My answer? Use your marketing to point out the difference between you and the part-timers and wanna-bees. If you're a real professional, the difference should be obvious to the consumer. Our business is no different. Make sure that part of your marketing message makes the clear distinction between what you do and what non-professionals do--and then back it up with samples of your work.
Part of the attrition that I mentioned in topic #2 is due to the failure of some of our members to adequately market their own personal brand. Sadly, some have had to leave the industry and find a career outside of photography. In the final assessment, your brand is defined by the quality of your work and the level of your professionalism and personal service. The fastest way to rise above the fray is to do great work and offer unmatched service.
4. Making it Easy to Spend Money
I've had a saying for many years that, "I try to make it as easy as possible for people to spend money with me." Nowhere is that more important than at your own personal website. Photographers tend to design their websites for maximum visual appeal, but often that design is less than user-friendly. I'd like to invite you to take an objective look at your website, better yet, find someone who has never been to your website to review your site for usability. There's nothing more revealing than to look over the shoulder of someone who has never been to your website as they attempt to navigate it for the first time. I think it's wise to ask yourself these questions as you evaluate your website:
• Does my website load quickly and provide a clear point of navigation?
• Is it clear to a potential client how to view my work and how to contact me?
• Does my website answer the "who, what, when, where, why and how" of my business?
• Could someone explain exactly what it is I do after only a brief visit to my website?
If you're unable to answer each of these questions with an emphatic yes, then I'd invite you to consider changes to make your website more user-friendly--an ultimately easier for people to spend money with you.
Hang in there--things are looking up!
