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Website and Service Reviews

So just so we're clear this is clear and this is christy from june bag so most of you is willing photographers probably noujaim berg before you even knew me so it's kind of neat that I got to meet these girls so I knew jane bag because I'm connected in my industry in terms of you know who's who and two of my darling friends who you know have supported me on multiple workshops is tiffany and mark and delays from l a and then my dearest friends who I met three years ago, these girls photograph their wedding teen years ago. So we talked about that and I said, who is your waiting photography all you know, the girls that are in jane bag and I was like, well, I don't know what jean bag is because I'm not a winning photographer and so I make it my business to know the industry now I met these girls at mystic uh january walter venda sin runs this amazing little wedding photography meet and greet sort of a workshop for about three hundred photographers that mystic every january and it's really ...

quite incredible and I got to speak there this year so did the girls they got to speak up suit changin and website except tricks it so we know that flying back to seattle together because I was coming back to do a show so I flew back with the girls and I got talking to them and because my highs value is business, I started to talk to them about business. Now both of them have great, highest values around building business consulting business, but the truth is, is the strength of these two women is that and the power of these two woman and that's something that I was talking to you about to dawn? Most people do not know where their power is, they don't realize where they power is and these to build something that was incredible and it's something I've never built had never built an online presence or a blood like that my business existed and me taking photographs and me trying to get noticed for that. So when I started my new brand, I went to theme is consultants, and the more time I spent with them as consultants, the more I was blown away by the power of how well they know our industry. Now I know the glamour industry in the portrait industry and the winning industry very well, because I've bean in it for twenty three years, they know it even better. The makers, the actual wedding photographers that bill jane bag so the thing is is they can consult on the most incredible level, but the truth is when I started to read everything that they have, I'm like you could apply that to portrait because you can you can apply every part of it to being a portrait photographer a swell then when I did the survey, I noticed most of you were kind of winning photographers as well sounds like, well, I asked them to come along today s so that they could she with you the ultimate in I opening so let's talk about that? Are you all right? The one thing that struck me about these woman that really, really shocked me um wass they are so knowledgeable about what people are doing wrong in what people are doing right? They see it all the time they're doing something wrong, they're doing something right and now I need thio sit in stone what I'm doing wrong so that I can make it right so I asked them what instead of teaching you about suit changing because nobody goes and does it, I stayed asked them, would they critique? Could they tell me how they would critical website but what's wrong with this website and you need to know if you're doing this and they're going to tell you why okay, so let's go from here girls so the website review checklist your part to a powerful profitable website there works their businesses, their website your business is your website, but for some reason because they have manito ized the blogged and you know they have money from members and vendors eccentric cetera they have refined that whereas we have not we just the creepy online gallery that is doing a whole other things wrong. So this is wee at the, uh, business review wass it stats with do you want to rein it because you want to raise your review, you know? And I really want to say to that our approach to this whole concept, this website review checklist that we've put together it's not that it's a exact perfect formula it's not a you absolutely must do every single one of these list this is what we think about when we think about websites in general, our own other people's we look at hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of photographers websites every month, every week it's a huge part of our job, we analyze them and these are all the things that we think about when we look at everybody's website and we really honestly apply this to our own as well were you know yes, our website is our business but it's always evolving there's always more you can improve and do and develop so don't get too overwhelmed by this list it's really long it's a really in depth but it's not a perfect formula so just take it one piece at a time the thing is is to be honest with you there's going to be a hundred things on this listen, I probably have three of them I'm suffering in so many of these areas and I had no concept of that and there it's just a tool it's a great tool to make your own decision about what works for your business and not everything works the same for every business there is no right or wrong exact way to market yourself to you know, to have your website these are all just things to think about so you can make the choice for yourself and understand why your maids in that choice but it's all about marketing and promoting so that the whole point is these are going to get in the way off you successfully marketing and promoting through your website the first thing you're gonna do is you're going to get this critique with the course you're going to get it and you're going to tick it off that's the first thing you're going to do is you're gonna go to your website and you're going to do these things now straightaway instead of looking at something you don't do, I'd see if you do do it because I'm just like whoa! I love the first one because the first one we had a conversation with for an hour and the first one is what is the business name does the name of is it the name of your brand? Is the name put limits on the photographer's market internationally, orin, intentionally, intentionally or unintentionally? Are you limiting ourselves with your business name without even thinking about it? So really going back to, you know, to the basics you but the truth is, is I went to buy a new girl for a new business, and I'm starting the dot com was gone, so I bought the dot me thinking or how wonderful I get this beautiful name dot may it's kind of cool it's in the girl blue looked at me straight away and said, you can't trade market, you can't trade back the name somebody owns the dotcom, this sitting on it, they're not going to sell it to you, and then as soon as your sight blows up, they'll put porn on its siphon it, get traffic and get a ll that in siphoned from your website and I just looked here and I mean right, so let's start over with the name, we'll go back to aa new name s so that's the facing on there, and I kind of think now it's so involved that I I thought we should maybe read it out, but I think we should stop when there's something on there that we really need to look it because there's so much on there it's like who will go? Definitely so we start the first page is just a list of real website basics. Like sue said, what is the business name? Does it fit the brand? Does it put limits on the photographer's market intentionally or unintentionally? Does the business use a tagline? Does it explain and enhance the brand? If there is one what's the website you r l is the web site of dot com like we were talking about with your new business are their websites with similar girls on the market, and if so, could they confuse brandt are could they cause brand confusion and or siphon off some of your traffic? Ah, what search results are found with photographers name and the business name are found simple things like that googling yourself, googling your business name. What comes up? Does the website use flash or other components that are seen on every platform on your iphone on your ipad? And when was the last time the design, fonts, text or the image galleries were updated? There's paid when and there's about, like twenty more of those, but the most intriguing thing about there is think about this we found the girl that was for my business we change the name of it because we had to in order to suit the earl within purchased thirty eight you ariel's around my girl so that when my dot com blows up the people around it the spelling mistakes around it everything goes towards my traffic goes now to buy that's actually quite cheap and that a smart, amazing business and I never considered it so many people if you think of a cool name have already bought the dot coms because they're twelve dollars, ninety five on go daddy and they'll sit on them and renew that membership every year and now they can sell them it's become a business but now it's become such a big business it will actually interfere with traffic going to your website and I never knew that and it just has absolutely blown me away that in order to buy a web address I had to buy thirty eight other web addresses to protect that web address and for something we you know talked about a lot with you and is great for other people out there starting businesses. If you can think of any extensions the way that you might want to grow that business in the future if there's a related a name I mean we own you know so many different variations of june bug not just june bug weddings but june bug everything you can imagine right june bug business june but consulting things that we're passionate about and we could see early on, maybe some day we want to do that and hers down there like out of everything I've fought maybe about nine year olds and in the last ten years that relate to either photography or myself or just a ni idea I bought claimed the dress I bought, I bought fusion something fusion video are moving image or fusion image I bought there, but the truth is, is how many people have actually bought protected the earl board around the girl and board extensions of the earl and tim's of predicting where your business could grow because imagine that you build a wedding business that's really incredible and you're called romance specialist and then somebody see sure on website and they they buy romance specialist you know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, so they're siphoning your traffic and that is such an interesting thing because I didn't even know that anyway, I want to keep moving because you're going to get this critique and you're gonna work through it, but I want to start where it's like, oh my god, you need to pay attention to this right now you need to probably go and buy any extensions around you, you are all that you haven't thought off and protect your girl um, in that sense, and then if you can think of anything that you potentially want for the future, try and buy the dot com and everything around it. And when we say everything around it, the dark net in the dot info were important, but everything else was kind of the extras were not so important create it would be for everybody it's going to different for every business, but you at least want to get your dot com the dot net dot info just a couple of them in there to make sure that you're protected. So part of my job every day is toe look att websites, and I probably look at anywhere from two to a dozen every single day and that's part of our world's best wedding photographers hotlist so for what I'm looking for is I'm critiquing whether somebody fits that profile. However, I get to see all different kinds of web sites, and I just I'm interested if they're working eye really, um, passionate about helping people be successful doing what they're doing on one of the great things about the internet is that you can do most of all of your marketing off of your website, so it's, you know, there's. Suze, come, it was so many brilliant ideas of ways to market and promote yourself. You can't do them all in one day, so let's, just take everything slow. I know for a lot of people you get overwhelmed and then you think, well, I need to get all of this stuff done and there's too much to get done so I won't do anything. So go on facebook. Yeah, so I'm just gonna go I'm gonna go get distracted and everybody wanted it. So I think the best thing that you can do is just to create gentle to do list with reasonable time frames looked on that so that you can make yourself feel like you are progressing and just get started. That's the main thing is not to do every sable is such a supporter. You could do it. Be gentle with yourself to a gentle lift. I got the riding crop it you know, I've done a pencil and it and it's going to be like, take it off. Oh, so you do it. So the first thing I think of, obviously, you know, as I get the girl and I think, does this make sense? Do I know what it is? If somebody is saying that, you know I am san diego wedding photographer, is that all they are so I'm like, oh, I expected just find weddings, you know, that kind of thing's, so I'll look at the world look at the name doesn't make sense to me. I opened up the site and the first thing is it does it load quickly because I'm busy and I usually have multiple windows open at the same time, so if there is it's loading, please wait, please way you know I am not going to wait, I'll go back and review that later. Thirty seconds is your average white time for a person, a general public loading your website if you're website, takes longer than thirty seconds to load that gone with the three hundred right three for any mao, three seconds for an email. City sickens for gallery load a few gallery has unloaded in steady seconds there out of the oh gosh, I'm out of their way before way! Before then, I think something's wrong, I think honestly think the website's broken at that point, so I'm wind wait thirty seconds to someone, but really that's good three hot is there a splash page in? Is it necessary? Sometimes people have a splash page and you know they have this beautiful website hiding behind it has this little tiny photo it's like to have to because they got it from his flesh sight and then you couldn't view it on ipad or I find it would've got his flesh paid to direct their flesh site when everyone knows html has a higher searching gin up my absolutely and so a lot of people are sitting on flashlight still and they really need to be converted fearless leader now get rid of your flesh site now goto html even if it's wordpress based so that your suit change and can be around the woods and takes on your on wordpress braces great there's, they're amazing templates out there available for photographers of every kind now they're so fantastic what's a veil and internal could you clarify really quick? What a splash page is for people who may not know sometimes if you go to a site and there's a, you're not quite at the website yet there's ah screen that you're either at first you then have to click enter to get to the actually actual website where the navigation is where the galleries are and oftentimes that it was for a long time the standard with templates you could choose either html version or a flash version or it's a page that first says you wanted to my website or to my blawg and if you have that just think about do I need that dough? I like it do I think people are really interacting with it? Well, is it still necessary? And how many splash pages do you see with paragraphs of words on them which they're trying to be? Hmm html suit based, so what they're doing is trying to get all the right words on that one paragraph, and it just ends up being a dull page that opens up with one logo want in the whole of the words that don't mean anything for your business cheapens your brand when you see that when you see the search, the key words over and over and over again, it just kind of it cheapens the rand, so you want to be, you know, use your writing creatively because obviously you do want to use keywords and we'll get into that later, but you don't want to just say the same thing over and over again because you're not actually talking to your audience you're trying to talk to to a google search engine and that is not your client. Um so does the homepage make a strong first impression? So you in three seconds? As soon as you see that image you start making all kinds of assumptions about the photographer? Are they good are what they charge all how long have they been in business? It just you can't help it. You just start making those kinds of assumptions just the way that you would if you, when you meet someone in public and the way we size each other up and you know, but, you know, what's going on with them e I think they think this of me, you know, you may be wrong, but you have a strong first. Face it your home page is your face, right, it's just like in our outfit. Yeah, it's, just like they're there you are, you know? So they're they're meeting you, it's, it's that you know hello. First impression. So I'm just thinking about my home page. So I'm a bit flashy in our bed. Rest, maybe some substance in there. Okay. Okay. She's, the site. Overall design. Visually compelling. Does it look like it's? Really professionally done to the fonts? Look, when right. Agree my stove it down. They just need to pull it back. No, I see a lot of times where there's fonts use that look. Really pedestrian, like the design isn't finished off. I see websites that it did well they do one or two things sometimes they try to do way too much they're just giving you too infirm it too much information all of a sudden and you don't know where you're going your eye doesn't know where the land and sometimes they're so simple that you don't know what to do next so there's kind of a happy medium I think there's such a balance for photographers to find great design that supports your photography but the photography your work is what should shine should speak for you this is this should be the strongest parts you don't want to be too simple so it is boring and doesn't kind of work well but you don't want it to be so so much fun texting design that it totally overpowers the photography and doesn't let it speak for you because that's your voice okay I want to go to this big question here because this one entry the hell out of me um so what does it communicate about your brain skills margaret quality and the never bear navigation, navigation, navigation, navigation navigation is so important because you cannot get around a website without it but I'm just kind of like yeah that's called I could write myself on every one of those things and definitely sort out the navigation but this is the one that really got me how many portfolio galleries, how many images okay, so when I do my web states, everyone goes straight to my gallery's that's the just the way it goes, he always going to go to your gallery fierce because they want to see your work. So the first thing I did was put my gallery on my home page. I've done it in three different ways. I've had my website load with a video that plays, and if you have slow wifi, this doesn't work in your favor. I've hid it so that my gallery loads is a flesh gallery, but it's the new flesh hillary that works on ipad and iphone, and it was up until about six months ago, and now I have a grid, you know, of multiple images because I got bored and just threw this out, but it's kind of like a splash page now, really, when I think about it, when I saw that question, but the truth is, is I wanted to just put up something that was in the weird thing is, is you might be bored with your website, but the people looking in it for the first time. And but when you say the image gallery shouldn't let be the first thing on the menu first thing you wanna do is don't rick them to where they need to go and I just see so many people have gallery on about number five and six shouldn't be gallery the first button that they see it really depends on you as a photographer we actually say that in navigation you're you want to direct them where you want them to go are you selling yourself based on do you really just want the photography speak for itself? If that's the kind of photographer you are, then yes, absolutely put in that first position in your naff bar make your galleries right up front get them in there because that's your voice but if you're thinking galleries before and after so I speak to the work and then I speak to the transformation I let the images do there in in video it's a third one so it's all visual up until that moment but some photographers want teo they want to speak in words first they want their bio to come first they want their approach, their concept of photography the way they worked with you they want to talk to you about that experience and then show you the images so we really think that you just want to make that informed decision about where you want them to go next and put your knave bar in that order that really communicates your brand and your strength the strongest. Can I ask you a question? I have a pit hate about about pages. Um, I hate the whole my name's, millie and I kap cakes and like to kick water in the rain, and I love puppy dogs and fluffy bunnies and, you know, and I drink a bottle of vodka on a friday night and humiliate myself. I just I think that I'm just like, all my god, you sound like an idiot, I hate it, and I hate it when people don't put an image of themselves on the website because I've seen people have an image of the camera over the face. Well, with this one, which really gets my goat, you know? Um look at me behind my camera, I just feel if you're going to be a photographer, you should stand up in front of the camera and be prepared to be in front of that. Whatever your body issue is, whatever your ages, whenever anybody any for demographic is, you should have the beautiful portrait of yourself for a least, a nice enough portrait, but you can put it on your own website, and I just don't want to harp on about yourself that's how I feel, can you tell me because it is, I tell people that but whenever I do a workshop of somebody asked me about website there are two things I feel really strongly about don't put too much crap on it least words more images that tell stories and don't happen about yourself tell me what you gonna do for me as a client well about pages something that's really dear to my heart I write bios for people a lot because it's one of the things that's difficult for photographers a lot of times is visual artists is they're not good writers and none of us are going to set everything right time not all of them but yes I mean I would say that you know that they're not great writers and its great writing is a is a big skill and especially one like myself have every skill and then when it comes to writing about yourself or critiquing your own work it's super tough to dio I think that's the hardest thing for any photographer to do is teo be able to put into words what they do that's distinctively different than what other people dok would you write about the person or from them like I have been a photographer for twenty three years or supervised spain a photographer to twenty three years? I think there's a lot of young photographers on the market who their client or people who really want to be friends with them so there's there's a lots of different things that going on depending on who your client is. So what we find is that today, and especially with photo journalists there, the people who are hiring them are actually trying to develop a friendship, so letting them know about who you are is just great, but what does it have to do with them and that's what I see getting missed a lot. So when we've done public speaking that's, one of the things we really focus on is if I read, you know, I love my dog and I like coffee and, you know, my favorite color is purple it's got nothing to do with the client, right? But if I love my dog and I can't wait for you to bring yours, teo the session so that we can get beautiful pictures, right, then it becomes about them. So if what you love has something to do with the way that you're going to connect with them, to deliver product or customer service, that it makes a ton of sense, but it just has to be really well written so that they can connect and that everything that's in your bio is speaking to them about what they're going to get from you, why you were the one to deliver it, why you're the specific person. To deliver it no one else is going on when you're the piss and writing a bios if you're writing my bio, would you put iowa supervise? Um maybe for easter you at this level in your career, you have such a distinguished career, I would have to really, you know, obviously work with you to look at it both ways, but I could see doing it and third person most the time I see doing it, you saying third, putin would be more for somebody with a profile as opposed to being newer. You're like, my name is and I am, I have instead of surprise, has been a photographer for because I'm like it's, so funny writing about yourself in the third person, so you obviously want somebody else to write if you want someone else to write it, but, you know, those things can work when you've won a lot of really big, prestigious awards on dh it's hard to say about yourself, I mean, there becomes a point where you're we're career so prestigious that you know what you're going to say? Well, I am, you know, the most amazing photographer in the whole world, as evidenced by my okay, so the images behind you right now have all won the golden silvers at a national level in australia and w p p I so these are my awards images because we put something up on the wall these images do not make me money, okay? These images when me awards is a very different big difference between winning an award in making money my clients don't care about me winning awards, so unless the award is something that really helps my client base, I don't want to talk about it or hop on about it in the sense I will share it with the photographic community but not so much my client community because my clients don't hear I think awards a public masturbation and I don't think they in money and I think they're just a big and so she says the strain the important photographer of the year two thousand in two thousand twelve thing is is what award stood was get me noticed, but I actually it's on my web site, but I've tried to make it really low key I feel like if you put and hap on about all of your achievements, you have still neglected the simple truth, which is what you were going to give and get your clients well with awards it's interesting because we see a lot of people shoot four awards these days and we're a little concerned about and we have a huge contest called the best of the best and just fine when you're doing models but not when you do things right but it actually disturbs us if we think someone is trying to shoot for, to win that award because they're supposed to be shooting for their client, and then if they happen to get this really kick ass image and they want to send it into the best, the best that great, you know, we want to see it were we love it's one of our favorite things to go through all those gorgeous imagery because we loved gorgeous photos, mice, national competitions that were real weddings only yeah, yeah, exactly. We just did one of the engagement photos and it was great, but, you know, we we don't we see a lot of people shooting for there's a lot of words, and we feed see people shoot for that, and that will never make you a living because you have to shoot for your client. But what awards dio I think happen is if you have beautiful imagery and then the person's connecting with that and they want to hire you, it's, that little bit of extra confidence, so I don't think you should play him up big because that's, not your sale point. But if somebody is looking at you and another photographer, that scene, all those that you know australian photographer of the year two years in a row. On dh then they're looking at somebody else who you know, maybe I'm gonna have this other australian studio do this work I think they might go well, wait a minute I really want that a award winning photographer to do it I think it's that extra like terry and your sunday, but I don't think it's something that you need to stay focused on. It also comes with a bit appreciate because there's a lot of sub awards out there, which are like everybody wins it's like everybody gets a trophy and then it's like your c I really below average photographer advertising. I've won twenty eight national awards at the you know, the pretty flower awards and to their camera and you think I think everybody got a ribbon at that one on and there's a big difference between the national awards and the several woods fantastic just before we move on, we're talking about like what order things should be in? How about the actual landing page itself? Jerome leon is wondering, should we put our blogged pages landing page or put the gallery portfolio as landing page blogged same is it the same considerations you're talking about? Like what you want them to consider? I'm going to say, not the blood what do you say? I've seen some blocks that are done really beautifully, but that could be that but well, but we don't even open with our block and that's really unusual for online magazines, most of them open with a block. We open with our home page because we have so much content and we want to direct people to various kinds of content. We have two blocks actually s o I c u get down occasionally, but I would agree with you that I wanted fall in love with the imagery. I mean, if you just showed me that gorgeous photos that you've been showing today and and I just saw five of them in a row, you've already have me yet. And now if I know where to go, if I know how to navigate your sight, then I'm I'm ready. You you've, we've hooked me with those images. And now, just for those people just anticipate that the question for those people who they're blawg is not so much words but it's their images it's their last shoot what about that? So the big thing about the block and opening with the block it is so visual, but it's changing all the time and it's not designed quite like a home page where you open up where? Right above the fold, the first thing you see is one big beautiful image your bullet probably has kind of a banner at the top it's got a bit of a nap bar and then a little lower is going to be whatever your most recent post is. So the biggest thing? The biggest piece of advice simplest thing about block post is what is that first photo that is your home page on women and not everyone takes in said that the first thing that loads if you do load onto your home page is the because I put my photo at the bottom of the words and so if I write a four block post, you won't seen image into scroll down I mean, I think you just need to look at it like, okay, if someone has never, ever come to my site before, they're trying to learn about me. This is their first impression of my business. What do they see when they arrive here? Do I like it? I'm happy with it. Does this communicate my brand? Are they going to hire me? Are they going to connect to me? That's your home page and least somebody's got some pretty unique styles of work I get on blog's that have feeling images posted from one wedding and then the next bug posters another theory in the next block post I'm bored editing bing boing I'm just so bored I'm so bored right now I'm going to leave your block and I'm not gonna come back because you've got nothing interesting to say it would be like dating a really hot guy with no brains less is more right. Does the website showcase for winning gallery's? Full favorite galleries portrait fine at commercial fishing in the favorite galleries? How many times of the subject shown is all that's important? That's a really big one? We don't kill one subject. Yes, because you may be showing and we all know we've been there, we were wedding photographers, there were weddings that we just we love those people. We became friends and then we fell in love with those moments, and but we were there in those moments, the people who weren't at that wedding who don't know that couple they were in there one hundred twenty, you mean they don't know why those photos are so special if they don't totally stand alone as killer images that just speak for themselves and what happens is if you well, maybe yoast crunch a gallery that's an entire. A tire waiting so if you love a winning so much, then you've got your feature gallery, which is the best of the base and if one can take one good shot at the wedding, what you need to see is a full waiting from start to finish so you can feature maybe a secret gallagher a separate gallery that has a full waiting shoot start to finish the album design and maybe feet to that it's really important to show both, we really recommend another portrait shoot exactly the same of the port ship if you're not featuring an entire portrait shoot somewhere on your were page and I'm saying it out because I'm not doing it yet so I'm going to go and do that then you are not the danger about showing too many of the same subject in the favorites gallery is that it can communicate that you haven't shot that many weddings or you haven't had that many clients you don't have enough work to show so you show the same the same woman the same subject eight times in a in a gallery that's supposed to be showing a lot of different subjects and so it just starts to confuse the reader. Do any of you fellows look dated as the website highly the work had the gallery's being edited by friends, families, peers it's all standard to me you're gonna take it off though is the website ticks concise, well written free of typos grow medical areas here's the website takes being edited there's a photographer's bio team to connect as a bio and still confidence does does the bio and still confidence that's an interesting one does the turn of the bio match the photographer's brain and working star? Does it help potential clients understand and look forward to the experience of working with them? Is there a pricing information published on the website yes or no? Most people don't show their pricing yeah, but and the show they show a price right there, isn't it yes or no I can't you know shows like those show they'll show a price range most of the people that we promote our on the very high end and so they'll say prices starting at and that's actually a good movie. I love that when I put that on my website things changed for me, I wrote commission started twelve hundred dollars I realized I was at a level where I didn't want to get tight kick is anymore it's one of those things you've got to really put your tough pants on when you do that because you instant feeling is that business drives away from you drains away from you but at the same time it is one of those things that if you do not do that then you are not going tio create, you know that sort of drive that terrifically one I actually love commission started it's good because it does direct it does give information to your potential clients and its kind I mean, for lack of a better word to show them commission's start at three thousand dollars if that's out of their budget, then you saved that you've saved yourself time. You don't have to answer that inquiry and say, gosh sorry, you know here's here's my pricing, it sounds like it's out of your budget, they don't have to go through the time of asking you and then feeling like gosh, you know, really disappointed. So it's a it's a kindness to show them that, but you don't have to put every single detail on there. You, khun khun, work your packages so you can customize them later for each of the pricing hyeon midrange loaders, a photographer offer packages al accounts who this or both of the options easy to understand and clearly defined that's exactly what I talked about offering aleka offering packages showing the whole shoot showing we'll switch, showing the experience. Are there additional products services offered? You know, just in this alone, just the critique alone, the questions that they would take off when they're looking at your website I can already see me more marketing ideas like for starters, I just said, why don't you show how waiting on your website it's like all the same with a portrait shoot? Oh, wouldn't it be good if you showed the whole service the whole experience, which is also a show reel? But what if you showed a show reel end an issue magazine off an entire shoot from start to finish and then put a package on it instead? Commission started twelve hundred dollars, wouldn't it? Then stand alone is its own gallery page that's not just the best off, but an actual visual presentation often entire shoot our entire wedding and entire ste and a commission starting with so you're selling it. You're promoting it, you're showing it your viewing it you're getting people excited about it. Bang right there and then raves and priest does the website contain raves? Does the website contain pris? Page has a photographer one or awards is here in appealing hitch up video clip off the photographer. Does the website have submission forms together? Information about potential clients. New client forms easy to full out and submit is there. Thank you, paige, I will say once. Thing about the filling out and submitting is I get really annoyed when I just want a frickin email address or a frickin phone number, and I have to fill out this form and present our and for god sakes, just tell me you're going for a number two I can't make it because I get that really gets my guide because it's like it is a mystery, and then yesterday about a survey in order to get in contact with you and I don't actually feel like I'm getting in contact with you, I feel like the submission form can be a bouncer and you're like, I need to talk to justin bieber and it's that lady, you're gonna stay right here and I'm kind of like, well, counters that that that's, right? I mean, I feel like that about web sites that I see and I don't understand it why were you would have a submission? And you would have this break it's that they can't get to you because obviously what you want them to do is to get to you quickly don't get me wrong, I don't have my phone number on my website. More well, phone number that's one thing I understand people want to keep their phone number several, but everybody, I think there should be a your email contact for sure, because it just doesn't make any sense to me that you wouldn't want to get someone to get a hold of you going back to pricing a little bit. I also want to say, if you're running a it's, a big studio and you're competing on price, then it's okay toe put something about discounts on your site, but very few people are doing that, and so I would never put that anything is on a discount on your site. It was suicide as you consent vouchers to your clients and that's a special thing that they get because they have a loyalty relationship with you. But you don't ever want to set pricing and then say, well, I've already discounted it before we've talked there's make any sense, and it tells people that you're not confident about what you're doing. Does the website offer alternative ways to contact the business? There it is, does it? Was that communicate what people expect in terms of response? Time is here frequently asked question downloadable pdf that delivers the company policies in complete services. Offered priceless pdf behind the scenes video pdf download what's gonna happen how is that gonna happen online brochure all of that is easy for you to design the templates are on their forty of them that you can create twenty different ways of hundreds off them it also gets them excited if they you know what's coming next they're hiring you because they want to work with you they want to be seen by you as a photographer and if you could give them or information about what's coming at that shoot and get them excited they're going to be so much more present I mean that's what you want you know, for your client so help them when I have him contained in my videos and they ring me and I'll say I'm condemned that for you and when I say I can do that for you they go and that's the whole point of them ringing me is they hope that I will do that for them so I'm like I could do that for you are you excited about that? And there I am so excited by that blogging is the block hosted under the same earle is the look of the block cohesive with the photographers website that is very common that the blood would look different from the main website because often people add blog's or they have an html site and they've put in a way wordpress plug in for a block that looks different from the website. That was the one thing I did try to uniform my website is the navigation of the blood. Easy to understand mine's not so I'm gonna have to take that soon. Eyes the blogger updated regularly. Yes. Is there a blogging strategy in place regarding winnings? Portrait shoots have published and safer other publications? Yes, because we've been talking about that all morning. Does the website use girls permit links using keywords? Dynamic girls links generally containing numbers more than words, so that peace was in russian going into seo now. So okay, talk about search engine optimization and starts to get russia can search engine optimization for me is like I can't even think of a good sending them. Basically, this is weir. If you're coding your own wordpress site, you need to learn if you're not coding your own would precise you need to ask these questions to the person who is. Does the photographer have existed either websites, meta data? Does every page on the website have a unique page title that it's optimized for search engine traffic and listens? Too many characters there's every page on the website have concise, compelling meted descriptions that explaining so the content and listened a hundred sixty characters does the sights content contain the same keywords as a page title admitted description? Does the photographer here the keyword strategy, the building titles and content image files to use during using using descriptive key wisdom? Every image in the website contain effective poltics are the internal links between related pages of the website to the hyperlinks contain keyword rich and critics teo each glogg post focus on one topic. Our blood post titles written using descriptive keywords to the blow post contains a teak six I said six takes the swell as images. I try and put us much six if they can't onto my website does that? Does the site haven't xy male side? Of course not. Has it been submitted to google be a google with masters tolls with site traffic being monitored via google analytics or another trafficking program? The problem with it is this every christian that I just read, then I don't understand and it is just so much easier not to limit, because if we set here and read it out to you and explain it to, you will be bored to tears. So what we did is they made this to give you so that you can go through and take every one of those lists and when you get to the suit change in you need to either go to the person who's coding your site and if it's you you you would know what that most of that means and if you don't you need to make it your business tonight even a basic understanding of seo just the basic kind of terminal is the key words what's a page title what's the matter description like really the simplest things we'll give you a list of five of you know what the most important things are to know but it just understanding that against you can make an informed decision and know when you're making mistake or not or when you need to ask for help really difference is this your website is a thumbprint and unless you go up and thumbprint somebody they're never gonna have it right so in order to find you they actually have tio um have a reason to find you certainly has to be linked or it needs to be on the biggest search engines there on let's why youtube's not only the second biggest search engine on the planet let's face it google is the biggest search engine on the planet and this entire search engine is based around giving our higher rating on google and making that work so the question came up in the chat room, and this is one of the questions that I always have. All of this information is amazing, but how often should you change your website or change it up or change the photos or changed information once a year? It is quite so far I think once a year is as probably about is realistic as you're going to get, I think you don't you don't think that's too much that's. How about how about here adding new work to your website when you don't want a dog? Yeah, well, you don't want to change up your whole entire website, redesigned the whole entire thing every year, and I think and you know, everyone out there, all the photographers it's a it's, an industry of artists so it's, so much gonna be connected to that and if they feel like this really represents their current artistic expression, so some people are going to, you know, change it up all the time. I want to start from scratch, and I hate my website and I have to change it a cz long as your as long as the work in your galleries is really representing what you do best and what you want to do more of that's, a really big part of it, I think, yeah matches the branding matches you feel like it represents you you feel like pulling in the kinds of clients you want and the kinds of relationships you want if it's effective christensen the people you asked what they were beside us and now they're over don't look at my side yes and you go, I will look at my side and they're like, yeah, I'm changing it like win is it like when I lose thirty pounds when I lose thirty pounds I'm going to do a photo shoot with you where you could just do a finish it now. But one of the best reasons to update your website is to get is what christie said is to get more of what you want. So as you start to do more of the work he love and any is an artist, you're evolving so when you're adding mohr of the kinds of work he want let's say you want to be you want to do more destinations? Well, you don't wait if you do it a beautiful destination wedding get the destination up there because that's going to get you more of what you want if you want to do more fashion and you do this great fashion shoot, get that up there, you know because because that's what that out picturing your you're communicating visually and so you're communicating this is what I do now and the more that you can put up what you're really in love with, the more you're going to get what you really love first of all multiple genres on a single website what's your opinion how do you feel about that? How can they do it? Best separate the gallery's separate the pity it's separate the behind the scenes videos but have it all under one umbrella if I was to shoot a family and a glamour shoot, they'd still look like my work it would just be and so currently I have a gallery that his couples on it a little bit of family but mostly glamour, so I cover one specific genre, but I really I like the idea that it all looks uniform, but if it's going to be newborn and seniors separate the gallery, separate the gallery, separate the pds I think that's right, especially if they're related like that. Those are all kinds of portrait to take right if they're on the flip side of that if you are do newborn photography and you also happen to do ok landscape architectural, you know, commercial photography yet totally separate websites separate brands have entirely different clients that makes perfect sense, but if it's all you know like what she was talking about and one last one just about how important is it for websites to be mobile friendly, very we're working on ours now one of the things I want to say about the search engine optimization too if you don't do anything else, start naming your images with your name and a descriptor because I wouldn't know search engine on my website whatsoever and blessing you have a really good photo search coming up when I suit your name and she was like, how you doing that with no search engine? And I'm like I just put surprise on all of the images if you think that goes on face book is titled so when I took a photo of susan roderick, I go sue prices and roderick and then I take a picture of dawn I go supervised on like I don't care that it's dawn's name on my image I care that it's my name on my image and you'd be absolutely mace when people steal your images here they don't change the name of the image and you confined it really fast okay, they also wrote that entire survey and you getting that with the course which you took off and then they wrote the customer service survey. So listen to these quick questions oh, where your enquiries responded, teo in a timely manner do you know how many people are gonna fail on that one? Did you feel heard understood throughout the process of us working together did we fit in well at your wedding or did we make it work in your portrait shoot? You can just change that proportion wedding did we make your family and guests feel included, respected and comfortable. We thrilled with your final images in your album. Would you recommend all services to family and friends? And would you hire us again for other occasions? Okay, those really will make in break your business. So right now you need to understand that portrait where your enquiries responded to in the time you minute did we communicate clearly how to prepare for your photo shoot? Did you feel comfortable respected throughout the process of working together? We thrilled with your throat with your final images. Would you recommend our services? Would you hire us again for portrait, sir? Occasions. I think you could add a couple more things in there that are significant to you. Did you feel prepared for your photo shoot? Was your pre contact and pre consultation for the shoot enough to make you feel comfortable about position? Lid? You enjoy a position. Did you enjoy your sales, ishan? Did you feel that you will listen to did you feel that you got the product that we see with deliver? You know, overall, I'm give me any feedback that you can could you please write any feedback? These are great too because they can also bring in raves for you if you did a great job, I say graves and you can direct them these there this is just a template a place to start like you said customize it, make it your own asked the questions that are really relevant to your business and important to you and then if you've done a good job but those you're going to get the kinds of raves you want and you could put those on your website to build more confidence for your potential clients it's a great tool to learn from and hopefully to get good raves from I think you're going to get quite a good fifty fifty of both right? So you're going to get a bit of a shock in a bit of a on a go strike at the same time the public customer service the public customer service survey was the one that I really wanted to do I put on my facebook page are you willing to put your money where your mouth is? Would you put your photographs up for a public critique? I had this vision that I would get a hold of the people from the public you know, like pay a whole other street people that hanging out and see it all to come in and publicly critique all of the work so I put that on facebook and about seven hundred ninety six people emailed me and said please critic may please protect may place critic may and obviously it's not gonna work so I thought how do I get you to get a public critique? And I came up with a really cool solution so the girls have also created a questions around this, so if you had no prior knowledge of my business, what would you think about my business? The name in the girl and how do you feel about my home page in the design and what does it say to you about my overall brandon style? These are not consultation questions these air for the general public, so I'm going to show you what to do here in fact, you want to just come on this side clear so I can show because I've got it on the key night and I want to show you this before way rabbit out. Okay? All right, so is it easy for you to navigate my website and can you easily find what you're looking for in order to make a decision about hiring me? And when you look at my portfolio, you impressed with my work throughout and or do you feel I need to eat it and enhance my visual presentation after content are viewing my work and what price range would you expect to find my services budget mid range or high end is my tics informative, well written and engaging? Does my biography and still confidence and trust and does my contact page encourage you to connect with me? Are there any typos, broken links or grow medical? Here is and do you feel that my tics, image, logo and design work will work together? If you were looking for a photographer, would you inquire food that about my services? I can't now let's look at this so you could see in their email out to a whole lot of people and you would get one percent, maybe return it because they're gonna have to go out and write their information. They're going to look at the website, look at the question, but what we're going to do is get them to open your website and then take some buttons. So I've put this in the keynote so that you can make this happen. Your service critique is easy, you're public critique is easy and tombs of sitting it up privately. I want you to go to google, I want you to go to google drive and then I want you to click on create it's kind of creative form for you. This is how I created the survey. That you will filled in for the marketing survey it's completely private the data gets collected back to me it's entirely free to do this is how easy it is to go to google drive click on create once you click on create you choose a thing this never used to be there this is new yesterday they just launched it while we're taking screen shots you can actually make it look pretty and you can make it or you could just choose the standard template which is the survey form that you filled in when you did the marketing survey choose a theme select ok I've chosen default here okay here is what your form looks like you can give it a title and start to ed questions so you can add questions there are multiple choice questions you get all the options off how many multiple choices make it so easy for people just to priest a button you can say how do you rate my work? You can go team nine eight stephen sixteen being I'm the superstar next brilliant photographer the world one being oh my god I would never high you suck it photography you can make it funny you can make it rigid you could make it but what you have to do is give them options that they can just pick one okay and then you can really taylor this form you can select your type of questions okay, so you can have ticks paragraph ticks moldy choice cheap boxes truce from of the scale grid date and time multi use multichoice as an example craft the christian around the kind of information you want how would you rate my work? Don't put how would you rate my work and let them fill it out? How would you rate my work and tim's off? What you know is a professional standard team being the best one being the lowest and if you get a whole lot of fives then you're going to be really sitting mid range aren't you okay, so really, really important I'm going to do this I'm going to do this at my level of photography foot this is for the general public this is not for your client base, not for your friend's, not for your photography friends this is for people who do not know you or they know off you but do not know about your business. This is how they're going to rate your work. Okay, so you can put up an online gallery on facebook put the link to the survey so it's not even your website the critiquing and just ask for a image critique and see what you get back don't ask auntie magritte auntie margaret thinks you're the best thing since sliced bread don't you know and don't ask twenty other photographers because you're going to get a very mixed range between jealous not wanting to build you up and not wanting to be completely honest with you. How many times have you seen somebody say, oh, no it's good job you're doing well and they walked where they've gone oh, no. You need to be honest with people and that's what the general public will do for you. So from here at this stage here, using multiple choice is example, craft the question around the kind of information you want in there it is. All right. So here from here, we've got the photographer's critique. This is what it looks like to the person who's getting it. Okay, so this is what the form looks like once you get there. This is what they see. Okay, so they click. So this is what it looks like to you outstanding exceeds expectation. Acceptable poor. You've made that. And this is what they say. They just see the dot you put on the dot, and then you see in the fall the form scenes and it collects the data and you put this link and okay, so once it seems the form, it seems it to google docks, then you get a link, and now nobody gets that link, and this you seemed it to them so you copy that link and if you go and smack that on facebook and say survey my work this is the gallery that you're going to be surveying then be prepared for a survey that's going to go out but if you want to just privately email this link to people you know trust or people in your circle then that's fine you get that choice okay you can decide who to share this link with you can also make it private and only invite people that you want to fill up the survey um it's not a anonymous critique you know when you get the data back you get the name of the email from the person who's critiqued you so if somebody writes something horrible you do get the email back I mean it collects the dollar all right so there's the link you can send it at link out then you can choose the response destination okay you created and shared the form now here is how you view the responses so you choose how you're going to see it a spreadsheet is it easiest way so if you have excel spreadsheet you let the google dark give you the results on spread shit and then you can collect the data and then you have a public critique a service critique a work critique a complete anything you want to make that document is there for you now for people to fill in about you so that you can learn about yourself your business what you're doing wrong about your marketing they can how about this when you create your pity if price list send the peaty after twenty people you know make a little survey about it is that easy to read? You think it looks professional is the prices isn't too witty but let make a little private survey that quickly takes teen minutes send it out to those people with the pdf and critique it before you send it to clients. How awesome is google right there anything that you might run into a problem is when you actually get to google I believe you have to either log in or sinan so you may have to get a google email address so a gmail address in order to do that that's very smart for google. All right, a spreadsheet is the easiest way for you to see your responses. So what happened was I had eleven hundred and seventy eight people fill out my marketing survey and then it just went like there was like six hundred knows and you just highlight the excel sheet that just counts them for you and it means if multiple people filling out your form you can collect that data really easily all right, your response shows up here and that's it that's it all right, so here's my checklist let's take action this is going to be downloaded tears a pdf book. Okay, this pdf here. Everything today is like a book. And when you get to this page, you're going to mak it off. Let's, take action. Blawg, right? A recipe that suits you and stick to it. I want you to stick to it for four months. Just try it. Commit to four months of blogging twice a week. Something old, something new. Something borrowed something blue. It must be a recipient. Works for you. Mine was blogging kit. It worked. Bounce it off through your facebook twitter in all of your social media. Social media writer recipe that suits you and stick to it. Be funny, b positive be engaging, she images every week. This is your tick list. I want to see a chute on your social media archive to you blogged every single week for the next four months. Design critique your pity if your email and your priceless created survey finished, the design seemed it out for critique. Two however many people you want on a free google doc that is fast, professional and easy to set up, you've got the map on how to create it right there. Take that off design and critique a pdf gift voucher, complimentary dollar value or purchase okay said, that means you can sit up a gift voucher that sees a photo, shoot with me his twelve hundred dollars, put twelve hundred dollars on the gift voucher and then sell those gift vouchers for twelve hundred dollars. You can sit one up with a dollar value on it so you can say my packages twelve hundred dollars, and this is three hundred dollars to remove offer for your reward clients. Or you could do a complimentary gift voucher with images to be pictures afterwards ala carte or package. But either way, I want you to design critic it. Do a survey if you have to send it out to the people you want, so that you finished doing at least three styles of vultures. I have given you multiple templates to do this and words issue magazine design in a bid twenty dollars a month. Unlimited publications that exists on issue is a website going chickened out. I know that you've all jumped on because at lunchtime, when I posted dawn story, I got about eighteen thousand issue emails come through. Eso issue should call me. They really should call me issue, call me. Okay, I want you to design it and beat it and your website I want you to create issues I want you to create stories around behind the scenes videos in every other part of your advertising design are a feral voucher system create a system that suits your process entice your images on facebook used the blog's shira critique form would you recommend me create this form now seemed it out to your past clients please rape me please recommend may you know what if somebody who serviced me as a client who was mildly happy with it, I was indifferent to emailed me and said I'm really struggling to build my business and I'm trying so hard to make my business work but I would really love your help if you could help critique me, then I can be a bit of photography and business person what would you think somebody opened that up to you? Do you know how many people some will ignore you? Some will be like okay, I'll do that and some will be like I want to help this person. Do you know how many people are natural supporters and natural helpers you're asking for help? You're not standing up the going rate me what's that website with you it's like how hot a mile something and then you put it on and people like you're nine and you're three you don't want to be the way you want to be in there help me I'm building my business or help me or I loved photographing you and your family would you recommend me? Would you pull out my survey? Would you rate me please can you help write my business reward system for past clients designed those about to stake and it did fill in my service critique design critic a pdf and a voucher for each genre you shoot a k nine hundred in forty six of you and not doing this I want you've got four months printed materials I want everyone to go to move or vista and get a least a small standard business card in their wallet six hundred and seventy eight people in the cia they didn't even have that you're trying to exist is an online business and yet the biggest marketing the biggest marketing till you hear this face to face in speaking about what you do videos online behind the scene show real slide shows vigna account youtube share in a bid link and taggart drives your search engine it drives customers to you it keeps you excited it keeps you shooting it keeps you something to block about something to facebook about something to talk about something to link the youtube something too sheer and the best of all it will bring you work on the second biggest search engine on the planet including countries chia I cannot reiterate how important this one is. I'm addicted to this. My profile is building so fast, not just in the photographic community, but in the public as well. Because my workers on countries, my videos are getting watched people hearing my message. It's strong it's clear, it's concise. And I am not an expert at video. Okay, so you saw how inamoto created the same emotion for dawn in one hour that my editor created in fourteen hours. Okay, you know the price saving on that and you know the hell too. I have made it so easy for you to achieve that it's just ridic ridiculous. Seven hundred and seventy eight. If you do not exist on youtube vimeo, your your photographers acquire higher shir, refine a studio space. Mckay, I need you to work on this. The answer to this question is there is always an answer make it happen. And if you have to work from home, you get the dog out of the house. You get the baby out of the house. Whatever you have in there that would interfere with a client having the experience that they want. Get your children and pitts away from your clients because not everyone like your children or your pits, I know you love them, we don't want them crawling on us you know, think about it I love my cats more than I love most people and I've seen clients actually physically go I don't want to kick me me I was offended mention if they say that about your child I don't want their child near me for this service say not there for yours or of love your children I need you to acquire higher share or refine your studio space and if you cannot do that your blocked and you need to find an answer to that so drop and give me twenty ways that you can make that happen because I bet you there is an answer to that I bet you if you manifest it, you will come up with the base studio space you could have possibly ever imagined at the price that you dreamed off isn't that funny? You got exactly what you asked for no more and no less have you identified unblocked and remove the obstacles you've created in your business? You've done that this is not about what your no this is not about what you can do to market yourself. This is about what you're doing wrong, okay? This is about what you're doing wrong you're gonna take it off, you got to go through this list, you're going to make everyone happened and get excited about every single one of them re rate your business monthly quarterly biannually annually rewrite where you're at level up and if you do, you'll find that some areas will leg. Sam will bounce high, but the truth is, if you've been not breaking it down and looking at it simply for what it is and if your problem is in shooting by more shooting videos, go to more shooting workshops. If your problem is marketing, stop going to shooting workshops and get into marketing workshops. Watch creative life, it's free resource if you like it, you buy it that's the best part shear lune shir shir shir okay, practice or outsource practice or outsource. Get your shit together. The faster you turned this over, the faster you'll get paid, the faster you'll get referred, the quicker you will get admired I would maybe I will. I will spend an hour on skype to the person who puts out a public review toe over a hundred ex clients that sees the production and turn around was tina beteen? I'm here to see a studio that can do that or that's assuming you want to spend an hour with me on skype wait, just hang out and drink wine um, yes brand brand sh mend okay my website white I bought my logo for twenty five dollars branch man, my workers, my brand, okay these girls have refined that process years. I have a very staunch, simplistic view of that, but you know, with either the day your brain will reflect who you are, who you are, what you selling, what you do, uh bringing shooting, upbringing, sails out, bring your staff management up or don't manage any it'll I suck it, managing staff, I'm I'm absolute robot at work, I wanna work, I wanna work for twelve hours a day, I want everybody to do the same thing. I don't want you to bring your drama at work, I want to get it done, so I'm a bad boss, okay? But I'm a good business person money, money on block on block rewrite chick your biggest marketing challenge to overcome is you your biggest personal challenge to overcome is you your biggest marketing challenge to overcome is you and I read a lot eleven hundred seventy eight what is your biggest marketing challenge to overcome and it's always to you? What is your unique marketing challenge? Was a different question, so what I'm going to try and do is break down the most obvious ones or the most interesting ones both, and I'm going to try and feature as many as I can in my blogger over the next months so that you can at least get those unique questions answered if it only comes up once out of five hundred questions I may not answer it because I need to help more than one person and there's a very few there that looked that unique in fact they were all things like I don't have a studio and I live in a small town and that's not really unique there is right okay so take the problem and make it work for you you will always maintain your equilibrium any time that you rise to success you can get hit you can get success off course that just makes me all like but you will get an equal amount of pain enjoying your business and you will only measured by how much pain you're getting you have big money ways that will make you feel special and important and successful and then you have dreadful money months where you wanted how you gonna feed your children it will fight anew but nothing will motivate you more than they need to get off your ass and go and make it happen and nothing evil works when you come from a place of resentment and fear everything you do must be tuned into gratitude and everything you do must be re empowered and reinvigorated and when you feel that you cannot do that when you feel like there is nothing left reach out because there are so many people in this industry that are prepared to help you and if you look at the power of what these woman can bring to your business, your website reinvigorate you see your strengths, put you on your true path. That two hundred fifty dollars is a joke, but when you've got nothing, you feel like two hundred fifty dollars it's so far out of your reach, it's not it's one shooed away from all the answers that you need right now to get that reach out, connect and reach out that's it I want to love doing want to get paid to our love, even when I don't love it and which sometimes you won't. Because it's not always fun being the boss and you're the only employee the only thing that stands in the way between you and wealth or receiving his guilt and shame deal with it. How many times do we have to say you're with it? Just understand your children deserve to be fed. You deserve a roof over here. You deserve to not have any fear about where money comes from. You deserve at least to have a comfortable life. If you I believe that you will create that for you and with love and gratitude for listening to me again for another whole day, uh, and over time I leave you.