9 out of 10 photographers are using their websites incorrectly.

• They create a small, brochure-like site with just a few pages, and let it sit for months (even years) without a change.
• They create Flash driven websites that make look good in action, but do zero for marketing online.
• They add a few of their best-of images to their online gallery, and expect to look different from the hundreds of other photographers online.

Are you one of them?

What should you be doing? How about blogging?

Blogging gives you the ability to create your own content whenever you like, control your content 24/7, and be able to connect with prospects and clients anywhere, anytime. Imagine being able to show 50 images from a wedding you did on Saturday on your blog on Monday afternoon.

And with the functionality of a blog, your images could be seen by people all over the world – giving you access to clients from all over the world. I loved traveling to Phoenix in February (lots of snow in Denver) and loved making connections with people outside of my normal region.

Blogs make it possible. Are you ready to blog?

Too many people today are designing websites without any good reason. Without the reason, or designing one just because everyone else is, you are subjecting yourself to failure. When you create a web site, you have to really focus on what you want that site to do for you. Do you want to sell a product? Do you want people to contact you for more information? Whatever the reason, the underlying goal should be to drive up your profits. You wouldn’t send out a postcard without trying to create a sale. Neither should you produce a web site without trying to create a sale. And because your site will reach people from all over the world, really focus on what you can do for these people, not just your current clientele within a few miles of your business.

When we began designing our website for our photography studio, we focused solely on reaching the people in the Denver area. As people came in to our studio to visit us, we would provide them with our URL, and put a few images up to build our portfolio. But as the months went on, we discovered our site was being viewed from people throughout the world. As our online portfolio grew, we began receiving calls from brides around the world. We made our portfolio available to anyone, 24/7, and they responded because we gave them what they wanted – information on wedding photography, and most importantly, the images. People were willing to fly us in from all over because they liked what they saw and we gave them ease. We changed our business to incorporate a larger target market. And it worked! We opened up our minds to new opportunities, and we succeeded by changing to follow what would bring us in the business – and the money!

You job is to discover how you can make the most out of your photography website. What can you put into it that will get the attention of people throughout the world? How can you make sales from people you don’t know, and aren’t even in a location that you could sell to? Service businesses are usually the hardest to develop, because you can’t imagine working with a client half way around the world – how do you work with them if you never see them? In this global economy, you have to move beyond the thought process of “sitting down at a desk” with your client. Phones and email are more than ample to conduct business. With FedEx, teleconferencing, videoconferencing and computers, there are so many ways to conduct business with anyone in the world. Just yesterday we were chatting online with a gentleman from India! It’s truly amazing the directions we can head in the next few years. Don’t be afraid to try new things, new ideas, and build a business that reaches beyond your hometown!