Angela Pointon loves photographers and artists. She studied photography, but had a love affair with business and marketing. She decided to combine all three together when she started Steel Toe Images. She coaches and inspires photographers and other artists to kick major butt through her one-on-one sessions, blog, emails, workshops and her first book (coming soon), called “The Art Of A Photo Business: What Every Photographer Wished They Knew Before They Started”. Follow Angela on Twitter, Facebook or her blog.

I believe that what you do is amazing.

Every time you freeze an image, you give a gift to the world. I also believe you create a different experience, uniquely your own that no one else has the power to duplicate. Your business exudes a feeling that other businesses can try to copy, but ultimately fail at mimicking because their business is their business and yours is yours.

This is where marketing begins: at you.

The best photographers know what they're capable of bringing to the world, and they've worked hard to define that very thing in one or two succinct sentences. An amazing photographer isn't trying to copy another photographer; he or she knows that this effort is futile and, in fact, copying another photographer just robs the world of their own abilities, their talents and their uniqueness.

As photographers, we are challenged to identify what truly special difference we offer that no other photographer can. Yet, we all have this inside of us; it's just a matter of uncovering it.

The best photographers challenge themselves to constantly ensure they are articulating their amazingness using the right words that evoke mystery, intrigue, and fascination.

Know the people who will die to buy.

Have you ever been a raving fan of a brand, product or service? Have you ever talked to a friend about this brand, product or service with the same immense passion that one uses when speaking of their religious or political beliefs? Have you ever had a buying experience so amazing that it left you wanting to have it again? Have you ever bought something when competitive offerings were available solely because of the incredible buying experience?

That company knew your profile. They knew who their ideal customer was (ie people like you), and they built an experience to tantalize the very things that you would find unbelievably enjoyable. They matched the services to the person with the cash to spend.

Sometimes it's easier to start at the who. Who is the perfect buyer of your services? Who do you get along with, set off sparks with? Who do you cause the reaction of saying “that was amazing” at the end of their initial buying experience with you?

How will you attract more of them?

It's great if we've had a buyer or two who have been amazing. But how do we attract more? How do we work with fewer clients who are just okay and work with more who are unbelievable?

I've had success in my life finding people by hanging out where they're hanging. I have found that walking into a real room with a group of people can instantly feel right or wrong. The same is true of online places, too.

Plan Your 2013 Marketing To Capture More Souls

So if you want to define your brilliance, if you want to figure out who your ideal client is, and if you want to find more of those clients, then the One Page Marketing Plan is for you.

FREE Webinar: The One Page Marketing Plan

Wednesday, December 5th, 8:30pm eastern / 5:30pm pacific

There are some business owners that believe long drawn out business plans are the key to success. But if they are tirelessly drafted to only sit on a shelf, what good are they? I have put together a program to help you get your 2013 marketing mapped out on a single sheet of 8.5″ x 11″ paper. I'll walk you through how to effectively plan your marketing in order to get what you want out of business next year.

Together, we'll spend 60 minutes walking through my one page marketing plan template (a template will be emailed to you right before the webinar). I'll pose the thoughtful questions and provide the examples you'll need to get your wheels of creativity turning.

By the end of the webinar, you'll get your marketing mapped out, including:

the target market you'll go after in 2013:

– what makes your unique business different than the rest
– your financial bliss to obtain next year
– your business goals for 2013
– your essential marketing actions to get you to those goals

Register for the One Page Marketing Plan

PS – there will be an additional program starting in January for photographers who want more one-on-one, in-depth support with their marketing. By becoming a member of the Photography Marketing Academy, photographers have the opportunity to learn from me and from up to five of their peers as we work on your One Page Marketing Plan in more detail. This new program is $249 (normally valued at $1,200) and it includes 3 sessions, PLUS a free 30 minute session with only me to talk about anything. Only 5 photographers will be allowed into Photography Marketing Academy. Learn more here.

If you are a wedding photographer, you are heading into the quiet months when you will be meeting and planning your photo shoots for next Spring or Summer. Portrait photographers either have a bevy of photo shoots scheduled inside where it is warmer or are braving the cold temperatures outdoors (at least here in New England where I live) to photograph their clients. Either way, the goal is to be totally booked. Question is: are you? Can your calendar be full, to the point where you have to start a waiting list? Won't that be awesome? (I am hearing a resounding YES).

I wanted to tell you that Sarah Petty and her crew at The Joy Of Marketing are launching a new program today called “Get Totally Booked” for photographers today.

If you enjoy learning and implementing what you have learned from successful photographers like Tamara Lackey, Jerry Ghionis, Tim Walden, Josh Hudson, Lori Nordstrom, Julie Klassmeyer, Jeff & Allison Rodgers, Laura Novak, Joy Bianchi-Brown & Jules Bianchi, Rod Evans, Vicki Taufer and Jeff Richardson.

This is a FREE event over two days – November 6th (did you vote?) and November 7th. If you are not around at home and in front of your computer, you can order all of the recordings here. While that is an affiliate link to Get Totally Booked, I have to tell you that I invested in this program as well.

The cost is $59, but only until it launches at 10 am EST. Then it is expected to go up. Plus, you'll receive over $200 in bonus offers from Marathon Press, whcc, ProSelect, Jill-e Bags and PWD Labs.

For me, programs like “Get Totally Booked” where I am taught how to do something better are incredible value. Just look at the full schedule here and decide. But do so quickly

Angela Pointon loves photographers and artists. She studied photography, but had a love affair with business and marketing. She decided to combine all three together when she started Steel Toe Images. She coaches and inspires photographers and other artists to kick major butt through her one-on-one sessions, blog, emails, workshops and her first book (coming soon), called “The Art Of A Photo Business: What Every Photographer Wished They Knew Before They Started”. Follow Angela on Twitter, Facebook or her blog.

As many of you know, Seshu and I have been working on a four-part webinar series, titled Swift Kick: Four Things Every Photographer Should Know About Business.

We know that many of you are just ending your busy season, and we cannot thank you enough for registering anyway. You've demonstrated your unbelievable passion for learning, growing and becoming more successful in your business. (I'll pause here while you pat yourself on the back… you totally deserve it, you rock star you).

For those that have not yet registered, it's not too late! The entire series was recorded and includes three insightful webinars for you to watch at your leisure:

1) Gut Instinct: how to use it to make the right decision in your business (by me, Angela Pointon)

2) Discipline: how it can help you achieve your business goals faster (with Tamara Lackey)

3) Branding: how branding can accelerate growth when done right (with Rosh Sillars)

I've learned a ton through these webinars myself. Most of all, I've learned how much I love to support events that educate photographers and help them become better business people. The best part is that the funds we've raised through these events go to support this very website that we all enjoy so much, Tiffinbox.

We Hope You'll Join Us!

The last event in the series airs live on Wednesday, November 7th.

THE RIGHT TOOLS with Skip Cohen
Wednesday, November 7th, 8:30pm eastern/9:30pm pacific
Register Here. 

Learn from Skip Cohen what marketing tools are right for your business and understand how to use them to the best possible potential.

What You'll Learn:

If you think your business is awesome, but no one knows about it, that’s a problem. There are a ton of opportunities out there, so why are you struggling to get anyone to pay attention?

During this session, Angela Pointon and industry-leader Skip Cohen are going to teach you:

– How to get people to know who you are with a shoestring marketing budget
– Why your competitors should be treated more like friends
– A list of free things you can do to get your business rockin’

This can’t-miss session will guide you toward the marketing ideas that work, and will help you cross some off that don’t or aren’t worth the money.

What's The Cost To Attend?

Registration is just $25 and includes three additional previously recorded events. More information on the additional events is available via this register link.

The $25 fee is a donation to the website, Tiffinbox.org. Seshu and I have actually decided to donate ALL proceeds to a legitimate charity set to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy. So won't you please register for this webinar series now?

What Past Attendees Said:

I just finished listening and wanted to tell you how great it was! Thanks! ~ Jennifer Gilbert Photography

Your webinar came along at the right time because it's easy to get down about my work and my business. The information was clear, concise and more importantly, genuine. Thank you! ~ Lee Love Photography

Live Q&A:

We look forward to talking with you live during the event! We do open up for live questions at the end, so bring your thoughts along with you! Register Here

It's so appropriate that this blog post appears in October, the month Halloween is celebrated in the United States.

Danny Iny, is an author who quickly became known as The Freddy Krueger of blogging.

He is most recently the author of two seminal and free marketing e-books, Engagement from Scratch and Naked Marketing Manifesto.

Danny, as busy as he is on a variety of projects, agreed to audit my site, Tiffinbox based around these essential questions:

Who are you and what do you do? [01:15]

When did you start the site and how has it grown since? [02:05]

Can you give us a sense of what the numbers are like? [02:40]

Who is your target audience? What do you offer that is appealing to them? [03:20]

How are you getting the attention of your target audience? [04:55]

How does the site make money? What kind of things does the site promote? [08:15]

What is your conversion rate? [10:50]

How do you go about creating a cycle of commitment and reward, asking readers for an increasingly large commitment and in turn offering a bigger reward, and so on? [13:20]

If you could go back in time and give some advice to Seshu of 2003, what lesson would you give? [21:25]

Now, I know what you are thinking. You are saying to yourself, “Gee, this is all about Tiffinbox, what does it have to do about me and my business.”

Well, what you'll hear in the audio applies to you. Trust me. I learned a ton about how to approach my photography business from Danny, even though we were talking about this photographer's community.

[podcast]https://s3.amazonaws.com/nakedmarketing/nm_audit_seshu.mp3[/podcast]

For example, check out his advice on how to leverage Pinterest. Sure, that's something I could do for Tiffinbox, but it could very well apply to our collective marketing efforts for our own businesses.

Soon after I spoke with Danny, Angela Pointon and I collaborated on a webinar series (this is on going and you should totally sign up) with Tamara Lackey, Rosh Sillars and Skip Cohen as guests. Danny's suggestion of offering a FREE webinar was brilliant. Over 100 people registered for it.

This is a candid chat with a guy who knows his stuff. Not only does he ask some very poignant questions, but he gives me some very specific solutions too.

Give it a listen now and tell me one thing you learned from our chat that you will apply to your photography business. You can also read the transcript.

Alethea Cheng Fitzpatrick is a family photographer with nestingNYC and photography coach for parents with Photosanity. She is on a mission to help parents more fully experience the precious fleeting moments of their children's lives through photography. She teaches The Photosanity Workshop, a twelve week online photography workshop for parents, and also offers custom one-on-one coaching and NYC area family portrait sessions. Alethea is also mom to two boys, Liam, aged 3.5, and Jack, 9 months. Follow Alethea on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.

Do You Struggle To Get Your Potential Clients To Understand And Appreciate The Value Of What You Do?

If so, you are not alone.

I hear from a lot of professional family photographers who struggle with this. How can we communicate the value of beautiful portrait artwork that retains meaning over a lifetime in this age of “Groupon” shoot-and-burn photographers who are giving away their sessions complete with a disc of high resolution images for under $100?!

How My Experience As A Mom Lead Me To Figure It Out

I struggled with this same issue when I first started my family photography business.

At the same time, I was a new mom who not only fell in love with her first baby, but fell in love with photographing him.

However, as a mom, I quickly became overwhelmed by how many photos I was taking and how little time I had to do anything with them.

I also noticed, as I started to talk to and work with more and more parents, how so many of them loved photographing their kids too, but were frustrated with the results. I could see how some simple strategies and tips that even the most sleep-deprived parent could learn would make a huge difference.

So, I set out to figure out a) what parents needed to know to take better photos of their kids and b) how on earth could we as parents get control over all the thousands of photos that we were now taking so that they were organized and out in the world to be shared and enjoyed rather than gathering dust on a hard drive?!!!

I also had a hunch that, just as I myself gained an increasing appreciation for the value of professional photography the more I got into photography myself, so too would my workshop participants.

And thus The Photosanity Workshop [affiliate] was born, where I teach parents how to take better photos, and organize, edit and share too.

The Surprising Result Of The Workshop

I'll be honest – my dad thought I was crazy, teaching people how to take better photos, and I still get questions from photographers about whether I'm worried that in teaching parents my “secrets” I will lose them as potential clients.

I'm not worried at all.

In fact, the opposite has been true. Last year my photo sessions sold out to local workshop participants and referrals before I even got the chance to offer them to the rest of my e-mail list, let alone the public. Some of my workshop participant turned portrait clients have kids in elementary school and had never hired a professional photographer before. Through my workshop, they gained an increased appreciation for the value of photography and were willing to invest. And even if they were starting to take great photos of their kids, they still needed a professional photographer to take photos that included them, with their families.

After all, even professional photographers need other professional photographers to photograph them! I make sure my family is photographed at least twice a year by a professional photographer – this is something that has only become more important to me over time, not less.

My Primary Mission … And The Happy Secondary Result

Now I'm not saying that everyone who takes my workshop becomes a portrait client – far from it. Professional photography is not for everyone, especially the highly customized services that I offer, and that is totally ok.

My primary mission with Photosanity is to help parents get more enjoyment out of photographing their kids – this is completely rewarding and fulfilling to me in and of itself and I love doing it. In fact, as much as I believe in the value of professional photography, I feel like I can have an even greater impact on someone's life if they work with me through my workshop or one-on-one coaching.

I have no expectation that my workshop participants become portrait clients. However, I am always happy when they do – they are GREAT clients, and I'm actually hesitant now to take on clients who haven't taken my workshop, just because I know there will be more education involved up front.

Don't Alienate Your Clients – Make Your Passion Accessible So They Fall In Love With Photography Too

I think as professional photographers, it's very easy for us to try and set ourselves apart from the rest of the crowd who don't know what they're doing, and to try to create value around what we do by making it seem unattainable and inaccessible … but that's a really great way to further alienate your potential clients.

Instead, in my workshop, I draw very heavily from my own experiences not as a professional photographer but as a mom photographing my own kids. I talk about how much the experience of photographing my own kids means to me – how it has transformed me as both a photographer and as a mom.

I talk about how I more fully experience the precious fleeting moments of my children's lives through photography, and how photography can change the way you see and feel so that even if you don't have your camera with you, and you don't take a photo, your senses, emotions and memories are heightened.

I talk about how my photos are an expression of my love for my kids and for everything that I love about my life and that they are a love letter of sorts. I explain that when my kids look back at my photos of them, I want them to see just how much they are cherished and just how important the moments we have together are.

I believe that ANY parent can learn to take amazing photos of their kids that have incredible emotional power and that capture natural moments that would otherwise fade into a blur and be lost forever.

And I do advocate that workshop participants include regular professional family photo sessions as part of their plan for documenting their family's life, along side their own photos, but this is a really small part of the workshop, more of a postscript actually.

I teach parents to take better photos and organize, edit and share too, but what I really teach them is how the experience of photographing their kids can change their experience as a parent.

Because of this approach, my workshop participants fall in love with photography, and in doing so, gain an increased appreciation for its value.

How Can You Apply This To Your Business?

I encourage every professional photographer to share your own personal experiences with photography so your passion for what you do is infectious. Inspire and empower your clients and potential clients to fall in love with photography by taking their own photos, and they will need and want you more than ever before.

And if you don't have time to create an entire twelve week online workshop for parents (believe me, it's a lot of work!) I would love to have you tell your family portrait clients and potential clients as well as all your non-photographer parent friends about The Photosanity Workshop.

In fact, I'm giving a FREE live online workshop for parents called Quickstart your Photosanity [affiliate link] this coming Tuesday September 18th at 9pm EDT. I'll be giving participants tips and strategies they can use right away (including some of my best material yet!) as well as offering a preview to The Photosanity Workshop, and signups for the paid workshop will open right after the call.

I'm offering a generous cash commission per referred sale so if you're interested in becoming a Photosanity Affiliate, you can find out more and sign up here.