Identify Why You're on Social Media
Lesson 20 from: Developing a Social Media Strategy for PhotographersColby Brown
Identify Why You're on Social Media
Lesson 20 from: Developing a Social Media Strategy for PhotographersColby Brown
Lessons
Class Introduction
13:12 2Ages of the Internet
18:47 3What is Social Media?
06:36 4Social Media by the Numbers
08:19 5How Social Media Changed the Photo Industry
17:02 6Social Media Myths
19:13 7Finding Value in Social Media
38:58 8How does Noise Effect Social Media?
05:18The Rise of the Curated Feed
16:27 10The Longevity of a Social Media Post
07:13 11Tips for Creating Successful Posts
07:36 12Leveraging Facebook for Your Photography
33:40 13Importance of Instagram for Photograhers
19:12 14Why Use Snapchat?
09:07 15Using Twitter to your Advantage
08:22 16Tips for Leveraging LinkedIn
08:48 17The Benefits of Pinterest & Google+
11:17 18What is a Social Media Strategy?
32:28 19Social Media Strategy Hotseat
17:53 20Identify Why You're on Social Media
05:45 21What networks are right for you?
15:35 22Choosing your Online Personality
10:14 23The Role of the Website in Social Media
11:19 24Outdoor Photographer Case Study
22:58 25Wedding Photographer Case Study
16:01 26Fine Art Landscape Photographer Case Study
11:54 27Music & Event Photographer Case Study
16:51 28Advocacy & Viral Content Photographer Case Study
18:18 29Tips to Building Your Social Audience
19:20 30Identify Your Target Audience
24:24 31Paying to Play on Social Media
16:54 32The Anatomy of a Social Media Post
07:20 33The Value of Engagement
06:33 34The Value of Consistency
14:26 35Feeding the Social Media Monster
16:09 36Details of Posting on Social
07:17 37Tools to Manage Social Media Accounts
12:30 38Taking Advantage of Momentum
13:09 39Reflections from a Career Built Around Social Media
26:05 40Lessons Learned from Social Media
04:23 41Social Media Mistakes to Avoid
08:41 42Common Social Media Questions
25:44Lesson Info
Identify Why You're on Social Media
Asking the question of why. So, we've dived into this quite a bit, but I want to extrapolate just a little bit. So, "Why?" That question of why, that initial part of the developing a social media strategy, is essentially a core element. It is, again, the element that dictates all the other choices you make. And I like to use the idea of photography as an analogy. So, for photography, that choice of why you became a photographer dictates the choices that you've made since that point. I've talked to you, a couple of people about that before, but essentially, it's that idea that for me, like I don't have some nostalgic story where one of my parents handed me a camera when I was young and it's something I've always wanted to do. I became a photographer solely because I wanted to continue to travel around the world and have unique experiences. I was single, I was nomadic at the time, and that was my deciding point where I sat there and said, "I would like to travel. How can I make that happ...
en?" And in 2006, it was right when digital SLRs were starting to become a little bit more affordable, so it was a realistic potential opportunity for me. But it was that point of why that got me into the field and dictated the direction that I head that helped me get to where I am today. And I can't stress enough the significance of that "why" because that is how it works. You ask yourself, "Why? Why am I a photographer?" That's going to dictate the choices you want to make whether it's business or inspirational, educational. It doesn't matter. And when it comes to social media, it works the exact same way. Why do you want to be online? Really ask yourself. And as we talked about, you know, we asked that question, and it was like, "Why do I want to be on social media?" Well, I want to, you know, create more marketing projects. Well, who do you want to market with? Like, you have to dive into those details to figure out really where you want to be and why you're trying to be online in the first place. So why are you on social media? We talked a lot about this. People are looking for clients, people are looking for inspiration, I mean there's all sorts of different reasons why people are trying to get online. And trying to make sure that we have that end result, that end focus, that sense of direction, is kind of what I want to continue to talk about because, again, I think it's so important. A lot of people are probably just going to shrug this off and be like, "Why does it matter?" But it's important, because again, it's dictating all those different choices. So, for me, I'm online to connect and engage. I want to have conversations. I'm not online particularly just to sell stuff. I certainly need to make a living. But I'm online to connect and engage with individuals all across the world that have shared interests and passions that align with myself. I want to get online because I want to educate people. I love teaching. I love having those "Aha" moments where you're teaching someone about a subject, and they have that moment where they're just like, "I get it. I get what you're talking about." To me, that's...it's addictive. To me, I love that. I love teaching. So I'm online because I love to educate. I'm online to inspire. I like inspiring people, whether that's through marketing campaigns to inspire people to purchase a product or travel to a location to pick up a camera for the first time to have a creative outlet that changes their lives, whatever. The active inspiration is a big draw, it's what pulls me online. To be inspired, we've talked a lot about the idea of collaborative learning. Like education is not supposed to be this linear, "I'm talking to you and you guys have nothing to offer me." Like, it's a two-way conversation, and in some way, three and four and five, and ten-way, depending on how many people are joining in a conversation. I love sitting there... I bring up Iceland. I've been to Iceland, this summer will be my 23rd trip there. I take people there multiple times every single year to teach workshops. Every time I go, I am still amazed by people that are looking at scenes that I've seen probably hundreds of times, in some of the most beautiful and amazing light that I've ever seen, and they come away with something that truly blew me away that I've never seen before. We can learn something from everyone, and the minute that you feel that you can stop learning or that you don't need to learn anymore, is usually for me, in my opinion, a downward trajectory. We can constantly learn from everyone. And so I like to go online because I like to be inspired. I like to learn from other people. I like to find interest in your creativity and the way that you guys are going to find uses for social media. Because maybe what lessons you guys learn and apply to yourself maybe might have some correlation back to me, at some point. You never know. To grow my audience, again, we talked about the idea that growing my audience means that I have a larger brand value which I can then sell to clients. So I want to be online in order to grow my audience and have a larger footprint and a larger platform in order to publish content from. To fill photo workshops, again, photo education, it's a large part of what I do. So I want to be able to advertise my workshops out there. I want them to fill, continue making good money doing that. So that's one of the reasons that I'm online. Sell products and services, eBooks, video tutorials, all sorts of other stuff. That's the marketing side, the business side, of why I like to be online. So the foundation of every social media choice you make is going to be that question of why. And that's why I continue to talk about it. That's why we've brought it up a handful of times throughout this course, is because it's so important, and because so many people neglect to ever ask themselves that question.
Ratings and Reviews
Giles Rocholl
This course is designed to help you develop a Social Media strategy if you are Photographer. I am a professional photographer with over 37 years of experience and although I know how to use Facebook and Instagram I didn't really understand how to use them to achieve business and personal goals. I started watching this course about 2 months ago and have just finished it due to work commitments. However I have put into practice his advice as I learnt new understanding and my following has grown rapidly. Also my work load and quality of assignment has increased dramatically too. It takes some brain rewiring to understand how social media has taken the place of many traditional media streams but Colby does an excellent job of painting a picture that helps hugely. The best thing about Colby's strategy is that it is real life, honest and something I feel I can personally and ethically live with happily. I happily endorse this course and recommend it.
Beatriz Stollnitz
I was very lucky to be in the audience for this class. Colby is an incredible instructor - he has the rare combination of being successful, knowledgeable and talented, but at the same time down to earth, approachable and genuinely willing to help others succeed. The content presented is actionable - I have so many ideas of things that I can do right now that can help my online presence! I can't wait to get started!
Rob Lettieri
I learned a few things I never knew...especially the whole inside scoop on LinkedIn....who knew??? Easy to listen to....a lot of deflection to later answers to questions...which would have made a director allow for less...why ask if you cant answer just then....and he says every question is a "great question" but it clearly isn't in a few cases....so credibility goes down...I understand positive enforcement for the millennials...but every question is not great. otherwise easy to follow and straightforward....