What Facebook Can Do For Your Photography Business by: David Drum

Today, Facebook is being used as an effective marketing tool for a wide variety of businesses. However, it is especially effective for marketing a photography business. For most businesses, a Facebook user reads through posted product and service information, but in the final analysis must still decide whether to believe the information, testimonials, etc…as posted. However, in the case of professional photography, potential customers can literally experience your products firsthand…all by viewing sample portfolio photographs. This is a huge marketing advantage for photographers, but needs to be tapped properly for maximum impact.

Tips for Marketing a Photography Business On Facebook:

Don’t spam. It is ok to send out a message to your Facebook fans once a month, or at certain times of the year, perhaps twice a month. A lot of this will depend on your area of specialty and it inherent seasonality. If done correctly, your fans will find your messages helpful and informative. However, be careful to limit these messages since if you do it too often, some fans may “unlike” your page and there is even a chance that Facebook, in an effort to police their site, will brand your efforts as spam and actually ban your Facebook page entirely.

Add photo albums of your pictures. I know that this might seem obvious, but you are running a photography business and your page should reflect that. Add selected photographs of your work and perhaps even ask your Facebook fans to vote their favorites. Social media is about bi-directional communication and you will find a number of applications on Facebook that will allow you to do just that, such as Involver or FanAppz.

Add videos. Add selected videos of some of your photo sessions to your Facebook page. This will give your fans a taste of what goes “behind the scenes” and is invaluable as it lets potential clients see what they might expect from a photo session with you. Shoot the video so that it is informative, but don’t forget to also try to make it a little humorous and relaxing. YouTube Badge is an excellent application that will help you add video and you can find it as well as others by searching the applications section of Facebook.

 Capitalize on the Info Tab. All of the information included on your info tab is automatically picked up by search engines, so be complete and don’t skimp when completing your information tab. Make your info tab a mix of professionalism and fun and be sure to include some tidbit information about you as well! Don’t forget links to your website, blog, Twitter, and Flickr accounts if you have them…and you definitely should.

 A Good FanPage Picture. You are a photographer and this is by far the most essential part of any Facebook fanpage. Add a nice picture of yourself with camera. Embed your logo in the picture as well. You can design the image up to a size of 180x540, so don’t just settle for the default size. This will let random folks visiting your fanpage clearly identify you as a professional photographer.

Update your content…keep it fresh. After most of your photo shoots, try to add one of the best images to your Facebook album, of course after securing permission from your client. You can even send each client a personalized wall message, complimenting them on how well the shoot turned out! This is an easy way to keep your pages fresh and seasonally relevant. These simple image updates give you a continual reason to message your fans and encourage them to see the quality and variety that your photography provides.

 Facebook Ads. Facebook advertisements have proven to be effective for marketing a variety of businesses. You create a Facebook ad and let the website choose to place your ads along with profiles of people who are interested in photography. It is easy to set a daily budget limit for each campaign, where the budget limits the maximum amount that you are willing to spend for each day of advertising. Facebook’s systems will automatically stop showing your ad once your daily budget has been reached so you will never have to worry about accruing unplanned advertising charges. Some people have had a lot of success with these ads, but I would recommend that you start slowly and see how it works out for you.

Facebook is ideal for marketing your photography, but it may take some time to build a loyal following of people interested in your photographs. It is a very effective way of marketing your photography business and will reflect in a positive way on your business and your brand. Keep your Facebook presence real and you will definitely see positive results!