Posts Tagged ‘Michigan’

Sep
3

The best keywords for photographers

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

After looking at my website analytics, and learning that someone landed on my site in search of the best keywords for photographers, I decided it’s time to tackle this issue head on.

Where to start?

The best place to begin is not with who you are, but with what you do, the type of photographs you create or the services you provide. If your website  only states your name or the name of your company, you have a search engine optimization, or SEO, problem.

Vanity searches are not impressive. They mean very little when marketing for new clients. You want to attract the people who don’t know who you are. You need to draw the people who are looking for what you offer.

One of the first stops when researching keywords is to do what I did for this post. Look at your analytics and search for key words on which to focus. These are the low-hanging fruit. If people are finding your website with specific, valuable keywords even if you have not optimized for them — It should take little effort to improve those results.

Next use tools such as Google’s Insights for Search and Keyword Tool, which is found in AdWords. Both tools offer excellent insight into what keywords people are submitting to search engines.

Take a look at the source code and tags of  successful websites using your desired key words. Find out what  your competition is doing.

In most cases I recommend making your site location specific. As I’ve crowed about over the last few weeks, I’m ranked No. 1 on Google for keywords, people photographer. That’s great, but most of my work comes from Detroit people photographer or Michigan people photographer.   You want to rank based on where you live. Make sure those keywords are part of your SEO plan.

It is important to test. Early on I learned a valuable lesson when I focused on the keywords: Michigan photography. I was able to place well in the rankings, but people bounced off my site quickly.

Why?

Eventually, I realized that people searching Michigan photography were looking for pretty pictures of Michigan – not my people, food or interior images.

Be specific. Focus on one theme per page. Google indexes web pages, not websites. So every page is an opportunity to focus on a new desired set of keywords. Optimize every page.

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Posted in blogging, business, Seo | 21 Comments »

Jul
22

Standard summer post

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

This is the  annual summertime it-was-so-nice-not-to-be-connected blog post.

I have a busy couple of months ahead of me.  New clients, great assignments, and speaking engagements are just around the corner.  The previous weekend was our last chance to get away.

Unfortunately, the Detroit automotive industry virtually shut down for the last few months while it reorganized under bankruptcy. This, I must concede , has not been easy for a business operator in Detroit.

Under these circumstances we took a vacation on a slim budget. We counted our pennies and traveled to a family-owned property  in northern Michigan.

I was very stressed. After 24 hours away from it all I started to loosen up.  I let go of the many issues at home and the constant urge to check for social media up dates.

We all have to disconnect sometimes to help us recognize our priorities at a deeper level.  You don’t need to answer every e-mail within 10 minutes.  Twitter will go on a couple days without you and most likely you will have more followers than when you left.

Your friends on FaceBook will still be your friends when you return.  Heck, you probably haven’t talked to half the people you’ve friended on FaceBook for more than ten years before reconnecting. A few days away will not strain the relationship.

If you don’t have associates to cover for your business, I still think checking e-mail once or twice a day to head off any disasters is still important.  But, if you do have backup, leave the business at home.

There you have it. I’ve done my blogger duty.  I’ve preached to the choir about how we all have to take a step back and take a vacation. 

Back to work.

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Posted in blogging, business, podcast, social media | No Comments »

Apr
28

Has social media made us more social?

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

social-networkjpgI built my company on networking. In the early days, I went to events every week to share the good news about my great photography business. After  I established my business, hired representatives, and settled down with my family,  I scaled back my networking.

Finding a good networking event to attend is a challenge.  Local chambers of commerce, trade associations, and business groups are good starting points.   Social media has spawned an entirely new, diverse and extremely effective networking phenomenon.

Tweetups are very cool if you are a nerd like me. If you are a photographer, you need to know that Web designers, small business owners, ad people, and marketers make up a good percentage of attendees at these events.  This is the commercial photographers’ target market.

Who knows how long Tweetups will be popular. I suspect they are a short-lived fad. But, for now,  photographers and other creative people have an excellent window of opportunity to meet people who have been unavailable or out of circulation.  The great thing about Tweetups is if you travel, you can find one just about anywhere around the country.  A few weeks ago,  Chris Brogan was in metro Detroit and came to a local Tweetup.  You never know who will be at one.

Web sites like Meetup.com allow you to find groups with similar interests.  For example, this week I’m attending WordPress, SEO (search engine optimization), and business consultants events in my area. These sites offer much more than entertainment for the local geek. They offer a diverse list of options such as singles, food and fitness groups.

Local community online groups also have been effective ways to find networking events. Motor City Connect in Michigan is a popular choice.  Local photographers, influenced by Strobist (among others) meet  regularly for photo walks.  You also can find more groups through the Ning network of communities.

Camp conferences such as PodCamp, WordCamp, and Brand Camp also are effective, low-cost educational and networking opportunities.

Big events have been suffering, but the growing interest in social media has people talking and wanting to learn more.  This is a great time to test your narrative networking skills, earn new clients and make new friends.

What sites and communities would you recommend?

Rosh

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Posted in social media | 2 Comments »