I recently submitted a survey to the over 900 members of Brand-ography.com regarding their photography business website. There were some very interesting results.  Below is a sampling of the answers I received…

What type of website do you have for your business?

30% = I have a Flash Website and a separate WordPress Blog
28% = I have a fancy Flash Website
16% = My Website is made with WordPress
10% = My Website is made from HTML Website
10% = I have a Website, but I don’t know how it is made!
4% = I have a HTML Website and a separate WordPress Blog
2% = Website? I don’t have a website!

It is interesting that the majority of the photographers I polled had either a flash website or a wordpress blog in conjunction with a flash website. I understand the attraction with a flash website as they are usually quite visually beautiful, however there are sever limitations as we shall see later…

Who created your website?

72% = I did it myself
21% = I hired a professional
5% = A family member or friend made it for me

No big surprise here, the majority of photographers created their website themselves. This seems to be a growing trend as the tools are easier to use and the cost of a professional web designer increases.

Are you satisfied with your website?

41% = It is just okay
33% = Yes I am completely satisfied
25% = No it needs an overhaul

The majority of photographers felt their site was ‘just okay’ or needed an overhaul.  Only 1/3 of those polled were completely satisfied with their website.  Even more interesting are the comments received when asked what they would change about their website.  Below are the responses…

What would you like to change about your website? (expense, time, results, etc)

• My wordpress needs some help looking more professional
• Just updated it and it will be going live within 2 weeks
• My wordpess needs some help looking more professional
• Copywriting
• Results and more engaging
• Needs to be updated
• Easier to update , etc…
• I would like to move away from flash and go with a CMS site where everything is neatly in one place.
• I need to add a proofing section but they are soooooooooooooooooo expensive!
• Client viewing area and testimonial page
• Nothing, I just wish I had the time to update it as much as I’d like.
• I need a cheap, easy to manage site that looks like a million bucks!
• Look more professional.
• I would like to customize it a bit more and make it look less like a blog… but would still like to include a blog. I also would like to learn to make it more effective!
• Results
• I would like to integrate a self hosted shopping cart that I can control the product offering (prints, gift certificate redemption, promos).
• Copywriting
• More flash, easier simple navigation. One that works on all browsers.
• Able to get it pinged on search engines.
• Better SEO for the flash part
• More interaction
• More traffic
• Increase the number of visitors, increase the conversion rate
• Colours, look, content
• I am not sure! But I haven’t improved due to $.
• Just created it but will be looking for a more professional option
• I am not completely satisfied but I don’t need a complete overhaul
• I like it but want more flexibility and options for layout and content
• A comprehensive CMS so I don’t have to do everything with XML, a bit less flash so it has better SEO.
• Actually I just personalized my smugmug site a little and that is all I have.
• Results
• Mix Flash with HTML
• Need to hire to set a website up for me personally
• The client galleries, the speed at which it loads

I found it interesting that there were many repeated themes in the comments to include : Getting results, more traffic, increasing conversions, more professional appearance.

I found it interesting that there were many repeated themes in the comments to include : Getting results, more traffic, increasing conversions, more professional appearance.

Based on this survey, it is apparent that the majority of photographers want a professional appearing website that gets results!

If you are looking for help in setting up your photography website, be sure to join Photowebsitetutorials.com and get a free website building checklist.  Click here to join.

Something that almost all small business struggle with is marketing.  The photography business owner is no exception.  It can be very difficult at times to come up with fresh marketing ideas that will deliver the proper message to your customer.  Photography Marketing Templates can be a low cost alternative to hiring a graphic designer to create marketing pieces. They can also be much better than trying to create your own.

One popular method for finding marketing pieces for your photography business is to frequent the online forums for professional photographers. I have found that in certain forums photographers are much more willing to share information than others.  One forum in particular that I have quite enjoyed is the NoBSPhotoSuccess.com forum.  Here I have found many photographers willing to share their marketing tips and designs to assist their fellow photographers. Be advised that this is a paid forum however so there is some cost to joining.  I feel that it is worth it however and would recommend it to a new photography business owner.

One other solution is to purchase marketing pieces online from design stores.  A simple google search for photography marketing templates will result in many results.  There are many popular ones for wedding and senior photographers in particular.  They can be purchased individually or in sets with consistent themes and colors.

If you are looking for branding help, then I recommend you visit Brand-ography.com.  This website provides concise branding advice to help establish the personality of your business.  This is very important to building a rapport with your clientele which increases the number of repeat visitors.  Additionally, this site offers many free marketing pieces, especially for those who specialize in baby photography.

It is also important to remember that marketing your business doesn’t have to just mean flyers, posters and business cards.  It also includes items integrated into your website such as blog postings and email subscriptions.  Both of these are critical to building a large following of loyal fans.  My photography internet marketing manual goes into great detail on how to setup your own website with these marketing features built in.  I highly encourage you to sign up for my free marketing mini-course to test some of these techniques in your own business.

I have found that by allowing your clients to receive emails of your blog postings that this constant refresher of your great work helps them to think of you whenever the special events happen in their lives that they want to photograph.  Additionally, it enables you to provide them with information on when you will be holding special promotions that they may be interested in.

One last point to consider is that there are many opinions on marketing your business. But the one approach that is guaranteed to never work is to do no marketing at all.  Remember, that as a photography business owner, you are a business person first and a photographer second.  So budget time to your marketing efforts and always track your results to keep continually improving!