Okay, so we hit on understanding your target readership in my last post. Let’s move on to how you’re going to get it done!
- If you’re not posting at least twice a week, same days, same time, then give it up! Your goal is to make yourself habit-forming, and nothing can do that better than good content and consistency when you’re posting.
- Keep your posts relatively short and to the point. I still believe the best posts are between 200 and 500 words. From Yoast, I found:
“A blog post should contain at least 300 words in order to rank well in the search engines. Long posts will rank more easily than short posts. However, long posts require strong writing skills. Not every writer will be able to write readable blog posts of more than 1000 words.”
- Hate to write? No problem – visit the local high school and meet with an English teacher. You’re looking for a student who loves to write. You might even find the teacher interested in doing a little ghost-writing for you. They don’t need to know anything about photography or business, that’s your job. Most often, you’re going to have short meetings with your writer or phone calls. The topic choice is yours – putting it into words is your writer’s job.
- Love to write but need help? I couldn’t live without Grammarly and Spellcheck…use them both. But, proof-read everything Grammarly suggests you change and make sure what you’re writing is making sense. Grammarly won’t always know the meaning of what you’re trying to say.
- Build a stash! Not everything you write needs to be in real-time. Use the “slow season” to build up your stash of blog posts. When you’re too busy to write or traveling, you’ll always have something in the pipeline to post.
- Stop showing images from recent client shoots! So many of you share content that’s nothing more than an extension of your galleries! If you’re going to share client images from a recent shoot, then use 1-2 images to make a point. Make your post educational and demonstrate your skill as an artist. For example, posing, dealing with back-lighting, composition, what to wear, time of day, fill flash, and the list goes on and on.
- Share content about presentation! This is one of those topics, so many photographers miss. One call to your lab and asking the question, “What’s new?” and you’ll be buried in things to share with “Mom.” Give her ideas of what to do with those stunning prints you’re going to create.
Remember, “Mom” is buried in the challenges associated with taking care of her family. She’s watching her kids grow, and every day looks back, surprised at how much they’ve changed. That’s your opportunity to step in and remind her it’s time to capture a memory and make time stand still!
