In the competitive world of wedding photography, social media is a fast and effective solution for you to find, attract, and book clients for your business. Because there are so many platforms available to you, which platform is best for you and your photography business? To help you discover which platform is best for you, I reached out to ShootDotEdit to provide insights into each social media platform.

At ShootDotEdit, we love to help you eliminate the stress of post production from your wedding photography business. In the bigger picture, though, we are here to help you grow your business, including how to maximize your social media presence. Let’s be honest – social media can be a very effective way to grow your business, but it can take a lot of time. There are numerous social media platforms, ranging from Facebook and Twitter to Instagram and Snapchat. Below, we share tips on how to tell which social media platform is best for your business, so you can focus your efforts on which one will have the biggest impact for you!

Consider focusing on Facebook if…

You know your target audience.

Facebook is a great platform for you to use to attract ideal clients to your website and blog. Of the advanced features Facebook has for business owners, one of the top features is you can set custom audiences to place specific content in front of your target audience.

Image Compliments of Custom by Nicole Photography

In the Advertising tab, choose the objectives for your campaign, including your ideal client’s age, gender, relationships status, and connections. Set the qualifications for your target market based on what you know about them. For example, do you find a lot of your ideal clients get married at vineyards? You can target your posts toward people who are engaged and like the Facebook Page of various wineries in your area. Facebook also lets you retarget your posts toward people who have already visited your website and blog. So, when one of your couples shares their blog post images from their wedding with all of their friends and families, you can use this traffic in Facebook for a future audience.

Does using Facebook in this way involve a learning curve? Yes, no doubt. Understanding who you want to reach can help you effectively utilize Facebook, and help direct what content you share with your audience.

Consider focusing on Instagram if…

You have a unique and recognizable style.

Instagram is an entirely image-based platform, which naturally lends itself perfectly to wedding photographers. Instagram is best used to showcase your unique and recognizable style in front of specific audiences.

Image Compliments of Custom by Nicole Photography

Because Instagram is so image-focused, the unique attributes of your style are on full display. When you share images on Instagram, you show potential clients what type of work you do and who you are as a photographer. Ensure you share the best and most unique images from your engagement sessions and wedding shoots. These are photos that are consistent to your style, and showcase your skills as a photographer. Don’t forget to use relevant hashtags [http://shootdotedit.com/2016/02/19-hashtags-you-need-to-use-on-instagram/] to place your photos in front of clients who are perfect for you. Hashtags allow you to target your unique images to specific audiences.

Consider focusing on Snapchat if…

You incorporate your personal life into your brand.

Snapchat is ideal for the photographer that incorporates their lifestyle into their brand. The platform is built on ongoing video stories for high levels of engagement. For the busy wedding photographer, it is ideal. The reason for this is because it doesn’t require you to schedule anything out in advance or create a content calendar.

Unlike Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, Snapchat can be used effectively at your convenience. You can send individual messages to your followers, and also build stories with your videos and images. When you build a story, your videos and images are available for view for at least a day, meaning many of your followers can view it and get to know you more. Use Snapchat to share about the things you do outside of your wedding photography business, but relate to your target market. Going back to our winery example above, Snapchat would be a great platform to share your wine tasting adventures with your ideal clients!

Consider focusing on Twitter if…

You probably shouldn’t focus on Twitter at all. :)

Twitter’s effectiveness to market personal service business’ like photography has always been questionable. It’s not that Twitter can’t work for your photography business, but more that it provides you less return for your time.

Image Compliments of Custom by Nicole Photography

If you use Twitter, make sure you link out to your other social platforms and (of course) your website and blog. With Twitter’s specific image requirements, it can be difficult to have your images displayed exactly how you envisioned.

Rather than including an image on your Tweets, link out to your Instagram or Facebook page for your followers to see the photo there. Not only do you give followers the chance to view your unique photography style, you also encourage them to follow you on those sites. Use this opportunity to also link out to your website and blog, so followers can see other examples of your past work.

There are benefits to each of the social media platforms, so it is important to focus on one that allows you to easily attract and create connections with ideal clients. Above all, focus on the platform where your potential clients are. If you receive the most interaction and bookings from Facebook, place the majority of your energy into the strategy for your Facebook business page. Or, if you notice most people visit your website and blog from Instagram, focus on a strategy to increase the number of bookings you receive from the platform. Discover additional ways to maximize social media for your business with our Comprehensive Guide to Social Media for Wedding Photographers!

Is your photography business fully protected? No, I am not talking about buying liability insurance (which I hope you also have). I am referring to things like having rock-solid contracts with your clients, being the right business entity and copyrighting your images.

While we spend a great deal of time and money on learning creative techniques, we rarely get our legal homework done. To understand some of the quagmires photographers have found themselves in, all you have to do is to switch on the evening news. Whether it is a disgruntled client or a duplicitous photographer, the media serves up stories often enough to make me worry.

And when you are worried, you aren't really creating your best work. At least, I know if I am distracted by any loose ends, I am not focused on the work at hand. Perhaps you are the same way. So, as a working photographer, getting my legal ducks in a row is a top priority. I want to be able to arrive at my client's home and know that both of us are protected by a set of standards and an agreement that will hold up in a court of law.

But going to a lawyer and having a variety of these documents all created could cost a pretty penny. That's when I stumbled across Small Business Bodyguard, about a year or so ago. Rachel Rodgers who founded Small Business Bodyguard also happens to be an attorney.

According to the Small Business Bodyguard site, it is:

For anyone starting a business.
Selling something online.
Selling something offline.
Running a website.
Pitching services.
Writing eBooks.
Launching products.
Hiring web designers / copywriters / VAs / interns / contractors.
Collaborating with others.
And selling anything to anybody.

If you need such a comprehensive collection of templates, ones that will walk you through a variety of scenario, then Small Business Bodyguard is for you. But at $595, it is a little expensive (compared to the thousands you could spend face-to-face with a lawyer, though, it is still a bargain).

To cater to the specific needs of the photography industry, Rachel just launched Legal Nunchucks: For Photographers [aff].

At $197, it is definitely affordable. But now through Friday, you can actually buy it for $97. Here's what you get:

50+ pages of digestible, fun content so you can learn about the legal precautions you need to take to make your business thrive PLUS the action and how-to to actually do it.

Client Service Agreement for Photographers Template

Model Release Template

Legal Checklist for Photographers

To find out more about Legal Nunchucks: For Photographers, check out my conversation with Rachel Rodgers about how and why having legal contracts is actually a good thing for both you and your clients:

Like all legal documents, if you use Small Business Bodyguard, Legal Nunchucks: For Photographers or anything else you download from the Internet, I implore you to still have it all looked over by a local (in-state) attorney. The resources mentioned above are, in in my opinion, a great way to get a head start into lining up those pesky ducks!

First, Here’s The Bad News:

Professional photography is a lousy industry. According to the US Department of Labor, median photographer earnings in 2013 was $29,280.

What makes the industry so bad? Take your pick:

Zero scalability: With a photography business you are simply trading your time for dollars, and you have a finite amount of time. Compare this with a retail store that can sell more items, or open up more stores. An online business like Google has nearly limitless capacity. A manufacturing business like Apple can open up sales to more and more markets/countries around the world and build more/different products. You, on the other hand, can only shoot a limited amount before you run out of time or drop dead from exhaustion.

Zero barriers to entry: Every day you probably see a dozen new photography businesses open up in your area. Photography businesses are ridiculously easy to start. Since just about 100% of new professional photographers started out as hobbyists, they already have the gear, Photoshop and a computer. And photography web design companies make it cheap and easy to start a website. How about a beautiful website design, free domain name, blog and hosting for $8 a month?

Zero equity building: Most entrepreneurs start a business with an exit strategy in mind. How are they going to cash in on their hard work? It may be an initial public offering, it may be getting acquired, but in one way or another the entire point of the exercise is to build a valuable property that can be monetized. Now let’s look at Sally Smith Wedding Photography. On the day she decides to call it quits, what exactly is there to cash in? Nothing. Maybe she can get a few thousand dollars by selling her gear, but that’s about it. There’s no business to sell.

Now, How About Some Good News:

You can still run a great business, even in a lousy industry.

It’s hard to imagine an industry worse than professional photography, but if I had to name one, I’d pick the airline industry. The airline industry sucks for a few reasons:

Extremely high capital expenditures. A single Boeing 737 (one of the most common planes in the industry) costs anywhere between $52 million and $87 million.
Extremely high labor costs. Skilled pilots, mechanics, ground crew and air crew are expensive and labor disputes are common.
Extremely high fuel costs. Not only does fuel cost a lot, the price is always varying, making it hard to plan and/or expensive to hedge.
Extremely high vulnerability to exogenous events. Weather, air traffic control delays, terrorism, you name it. A big negative event in any of these things can cause millions of dollars in added costs and/or lost revenue.

The result? It’s hard to name an airline that hasn’t gone bankrupt. Let’s just look at a few of the big names that have gone bankrupt in the past 20 years:

Continental Airlines
Frontier Airlines
Eastern Airlines
Pan American World Airways
America West Airlines
TWA (Trans World Airlines)
US Airways
United Airlines
Air Canada
Aloha Airlines
Northwest Airlines
Delta Airlines
Frontier Airlines
American Airlines

So just about every single airline that you’ve ever heard of has gone through bankruptcy. Some reorganized and re­emerged, others simply disappeared.

The bottom line ­ the airline industry sucks rotten eggs.

And yet, there’s Southwest Airlines.

If you invested $10,000 in Southwest Airlines in 1990, your investment would now be worth $508,667.

How did they do it? Why have they thrived while almost every other competitor has gone bankrupt? There have been many, many articles written about the success of Southwest, so I’ll just give you some highlights:

They treat their customers well. How about “bags fly free?” The last time I flew Southwest, the pilot announced that our flight saved $3,300 in fees by not charging for checked bags. Flight changes are easy and relatively painless. And they move fast.

Efficiency. Southwest turns its planes around faster than any other airline, which allows them to fly nearly one extra flight per day per plane compared to their competitors. Everything is standardized ­ they use a single plane (the 737) on all their routes. This saves on maintenance time and training. Their simple point­-to-­point routes means that they have the fewest percentage of lost bags in the industry,

Happy employees. Southwest has never had a strike, despite being the most heavily unionized company in the industry (87%). The employees are on a mission to provide excellent customer service. You’ll never see an airline employee smile more than you do with Southwest. Happy employees make happy customers.

By doing simple things: running efficient operations and treating their customers and employees well ­ Southwest has managed to thrive in a lousy industry.

It sounds simple ­yet it’s easy to lose sight of. You can succeed, even in a lousy industry.

Now, getting back to your photography business. Is business not what you hoped it would be? Are you struggling competing with all the newbies in your market? Phone not ringing? Running any business is hard, but trying to succeed in a lousy industry is even harder.

If you’re doing great ­ that’s awesome, you’re probably doing the right things! If you’re not, what are you going to do about it? Complain? Spend a few hours today online reading camera reviews and lens-sharpness charts?

You’re going to have to reinvent yourself. Learn from Southwest Airlines and do what your competitors aren’t doing. Kick yourself in the butt.

Phone isn’t ringing? Then get on the phone and make some calls! When was the last time you met a wedding planner for coffee? When was the last time you got together with some other photographers to talk about cross-­referrals? When was the last time you met with a realtor who could give out some of your gift cards to families who just purchased a new home in your area? Get off the internet and get on the phone! I guarantee you your competitors aren’t doing this.

No shoots because it’s the slow season? Then start shooting! How about collaborating with a local wedding gown designer or bridal shop to set up some awesome winter bridal fashion shoots? Split the cost of hair/makeup with the designer. Make it a production that turns into an epic blog post and portfolio material.

Influential bloggers in your area? When was the last time you called them and offered a free headshot session?

Still have a 2008­era website? You know, one of those Flash­-based template sites that don’t work on an iPad or iPhone? Get going now on making a new, awesome site that’s also optimized for mobile.

Only write one blog post a month? Or less? Writing blog posts is one of the best ways for customers to find you. Get going.

Sitting alone at your desk all day without talking to anyone? Call some other vendors (florists, planners, DJs, caterers, cake bakers etc.) and put together your own Mastermind group.

Do you know most of the financial planners in your area? Why not? Have you called them to meet for coffee (yeah, I know, I’m big on coffee)? They have the same target customer base that you do ­ affluent clients. They’re always looking for gifts for their clients, but gifts are expensive (e.g. $75 for a fruit & cheese basket). Why not see if they’ll offer one of your portrait photography gift cards to any client that opens a college savings plan?

How about you try to stop asking for stuff, and instead start giving. Grow your circle and find ways to help them. Why not do a photo shoot of one of the caterers in your circle? Make it magazine­-worthy. Blog about them with links to their site. Shoot portraits of them and their food. Help them put together a blog post for their own blog linking to your site, of course). Make them look like the best caterer in town. When you help others it will all come back to you.

The new year is always a good time to kick yourself in the butt. Stop moping. Stop wishing. Stop wasting time. Be the photographer that makes a great income despite being in a lousy industry. Just get out there and start making things happen!

It's January and snowstorm #Colbie just dumped a ton of snow in the north-eastern seaboard. My first inclination is to slide back into the bedsheets and stay there till April. But I have photography businesses to run and that means the hustle is on, 24-7.

But does it need to be always on? Is it not conceivable that the photography businesses could continue to grow even without my presence. Oh, sure, I will still be the visionary behind the images, but as you all know being a photographer is different – vastly different – than being in business as a photographer.

I can feel this frustration in the industry today. How do we create a sustainable and thriving photography business and remain sane? Right? Right. We are all in this together. Thankfully, we don't have to look too far for answers.

You could sign up with a business coach. And, business books are aplenty. Yet, I only read a select few every year that are immediately helpful.

In my opinion, Mike Michalowicz' books – The Toilet-Paper Entrepreneur, The Pumpkin Plan and Profit First, are three books that are within reach of my workstation. They are full of anecdotes and analogies that drive home themes and topics that are easy to understand and better yet, easier still to put into practice.

When I found out that the Connecticut chapter of the ASMP had invited Mike Michalowicz to speak on February 5th, at Yale University, I swung into action to see if I could speak with him about the book and his upcoming presentation. Special thanks to Jane Shauck and Mike's assistant, Kristina Bolduc, for making this interview happen.

If you enjoyed that short conversation, feel free to subscribe to Mike's incredible YouTube channel, where you can experience his wit and wisdom in short bites.

If you are going to be in the New Haven, Connecticut area, make plans to register for this presentation by Mike Michalowicz who will go into much greater detail about using The Pumpkin Plan for your photography business. I expect to be there in the audience taking notes. Join me!

Lauren Rutten describes herself as the following:

Explorer. Artist. Photographer. Educator. Writer. Swashbuckling World Traveler.

Her career in photography began in 1986 and she has followed a very interesting path that includes not only the visual medium but also the written one. Lauren’s art and writing reflects her deep appreciation of everyday life and seeks to connect, empower and inspire others through her art. In 2013, Lauren took time away from her photography business and fulfilled a life-long dream of traveling solo around the world. In May of 2014, Lauren became a facilitator of the Amherst Writer's and Artists Workshops.

So, this is who is coming to speak at Inspire Photo Retreats in February, 2015, friends! I had an opportunity to chat with Lauren about her work and of course about her presentation at Inspire Photo Retreats:

There are still a few spots open for Inspire Photo Retreats. Register here today. You'll come in contact with people like Lauren who bring a gamut of skills and experiences to enrich your life.