How often do you head off to business conferences to refocus your direction? That's where I'm heading off to this week. No matter how many businesses you've owned, or how profitable they've become, it's easy to overlook obvious things that can be holding you back. An occasional business retreat could be just what you need - it's a chance to look at your business through someone else's eyes, and maybe pick up a thing or two along the way. I love helping out my clients, and coaching them into building successful businesses. But that doesn't mean the coach doesn't need a coach occasionally too! That's why I'm always on the lookout for new approaches to business - and I'm excited to spend one full day with other business owners who are like-minded professionals. Stay tuned - I'll be sharing a bunch of new ideas in the coming weeks.        
 

Enjoy!

Everyone is a blogger nowadays and with good reason. Because small business owners know the importance of being online, many look for the least expensive route to get there. And that often leads them into the blogging realm. It's easy. It's affordable. Why not?

Yet just because something is easy and affordable isn't a reason to jump in headfirst and go full force unless you understand what you are doing and have a plan in place. Blogging, like any other marketing tool, has certain characteristics that make it a great tool. But if you don't use it in the proper way, it can do more harm then good.

Here are the top blogging mistakes I see photographers make, and how you can avoid them.

Bad Writing

Some of us are writers. And some aren't. While a blog needs to be personal in nature, and express your business style, you do need to be careful about what your message conveys. Are you writing complete thoughts? Do you have spelling and grammar errors? Are your posts interesting? Customers won't come back if they can't see beyond glaring errors that occur on a regular basis. Concentrate on writing great posts. And if you need help, hire a ghost blogger.

Selling Instead Of Sharing

A blog is a place to develop relationships and hold conversations with your readers. It's not a place to sell, sell, sell. If you use a blog correctly, you'll be posting on a regular basis. Which means you can share photographs of your latest engagement portrait session today, tips for what to wear for a family portrait tomorrow, and an announcement of your first place award from a local photography association the next. The key is to get people interested in what you do by sharing what you do. The more they have to choose from, the more they will see who you are, and the more they will want to come to you.

No Direction or Lack of Strategy

It's easy to start up a blog. It's much harder to keep it going. Life happens and things get in the way. And before you know it, three months have passed with no post. In the blogging world, this can be suicide. If you are using a blog to market your business, you need to use the blog effectively every day. There are many tools that can help you along the way - learn what they are and how to put them into place. Know why you are starting up a blog, and what it will be doing for your business today, six months from now, and three years from today. The more you build your strategy, the more successful you will be.

Letting Your Personality Show

Blogging like everyone else will get you nowhere. What makes a blog successful is personality, and showcasing your experience along the way. When people fall in love and want to work with someone, its because they feel they know that person - even if they are half way around the world, and would never meet face to face under normal circumstances. Some people are worried about offending people, or turning people off and forming a negative opinion. With 6 billion people in the world, there are more than enough people that feel the same way you do, and look at life through the same vision. Reach out to those people, and convert them into clients. You'll be happier, and more successful in the long run.

Take Advantage Of Technology

In today's world, things change almost on a daily basis. Don't be afraid to try new things, and incorporate them into your blog. You can start with text posts and add in your photography. Then get creative. Try adding a video, and posting it through YouTube. How about a podcast? Or an infographic? Or a slide presentation? Then use sharing tools to connect different pieces online - your RSS feed to share with other social networking sites for instance. Track things along the way with programs like Google Analytics, and you'll quickly find what works, and what doesn't.

Then keep it up. Marketing works if you do it again and again. And again. Your blog is a marketing tool. The more you use it. The better it works. And the more success you'll find.



             


Google has done it again. They've added a new "service" that looks like it might take the Internet by storm. While they tried it before with Google Buzz, Google+ has new features that bring them closer to success.

Google+ made its debut less than a month ago, and already are up to over 20 million users. And while that is the fastest on record within the social media industry, it remains to be seen if Google+ has what it takes to outdo the other social sites we're used to, like Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr.

We've been playing around with Google+ for a couple of weeks now, and like what we see. While Google+ isn't available yet to everyone, with the growth in place, I'm sure you'll have access here in a few short weeks it you don't already. Let's take a look at what makes Google+ so powerful, and can help you build your photography business.

Start At The Beginning - What Is It?

Google+ is a social networking site taken to a whole new level. Like every other product, Google+ is integrated into the Google network. If you have a Google account, and use things like Gmail or Google Reader, you login once and have access to everything through the toolbar. Once you have access to Google+, it will appear in your toolbar when you're in your Google account.

While Google+ appears overwhelming at first glance, that is also a part of its power. Instead of "lurking around" like is common in other social media sites, Google+ makes you jump headfirst into the system. Connect with a few friends, and you are instantly a part of an ever-growing network that's easy to join and connect with. And because Google+ is under the Google umbrella, you can also combine with other functions, and bring it all together.