If you’ve been to Pinterest, you know one of the most popular, most shared items on there are infographics. They are fun to look at, filled with useful or amazing content, and therefore are also fun to share.

Infographics can range from the simple to the complex, filled with basic information or elaborate graphics. The key is getting your message across quickly and with style. Check out one of the recent infographics that went viral on Pinterest.

While you can use Photoshop to do just about anything, there are many online tools that also give you an easy way to get your ideas out there.

Have a quote you want to share? Try Pinwords. Pinwords is an easy tool that lets you choose a background, or upload your own. With that in place, open up the copy boxes and add your text. Pinwords automatically puts your copy into the background, and pins it to the Pinword account. Then you have the option of sharing it on Pinterest, tumblr, Facebook, Twitter, or email it out to your friends.

Wordle is a tool used for generating word clouds from the text you provide. Once you’ve input your words, tweak the layouts, color schemes or font styles. Then save and share them with your friends.

With Visual.ly, you can easily create infographics and data visualizations. Start by visiting their showcase to see what others have done. Then use those ideas to come up with your own.

Love statistics as much as I do? Then you’ll want to check out StatSilk. StatSilk offers a variety of tools to help you create infographics based on trends. Create maps, graphs, charts and advanced data sets all with these simple tools.

Creately lets you make creative diagrams and flow charts by using drag-and-drop technology. Choose from a number of purpose designed diagrams, then make it more complex by adding in your own data. You’ll love the end results.

Now that you have some tools in place, start focusing in on your ideas. Not every infographic will make it big and become a viral marketing tool. But if you  do it right and spend time creating something that speaks to your audience, you may end up picking up a client or two along the way.

Have you created an infographic? We would love to see them. Share the links here to your favorites.

Social media sites come and go. And if you are like most photographers, you probably have your social favorites. Do you favor YouTube or Facebook? Pinterest or Twitter?

While Twitter is now one of the “old timers”, it can still be an effective tool to get the word out about your business. Here is how you can tell.

Crowdbooster

Crowdbooster is a social media analytics tool that offers suggestions and resources to help you improve your online presence. It provides you with a plan of action to show you how you can reach out to the influencers in your sphere, create content that resonates with your audience, and when to send content to be most effective. It can help you track long term engagement and how best to interact with your audience. And if you have multiple accounts, that’s okay. Crowdbooster can bring all of your Twitter accounts together with your Facebook Pages accounts, and give you one stop views of how your marketing is working.

TweetCharts

TweetCharts allow you to generate a customized report for anything you can search for on Twitter. Use words, phrases, usernames, URLs, or hashtags to check out everything related to your niche. This is a great tool to use as you are tracking your campaigns and marketing programs. Track to see how many times your Tweet is mentioned, or how many times it was retweeted. You can also track if your followers and retweeters are more male or more female – perfect for understanding who your audience is and who you should be promoting your business too.

Tweepi

Tweepi helps you make sense out of your Twitter account and manage it in an effective way. With Twitter, the two biggest measurements of influence are whom you know and who knows you. This tool helps you gain insight from your followers and helps you track down people to follow. It can make suggestions for you to follow, and when you want to check someone out, Tweepi serves up quick insights to help you make your decision. Tweepi offers a premium service too, but you can get plenty of insight from the basic service.

Mentionmapp

Mentionmapp is a visualization tool that shows you who is talking about you. It allows you to track your biggest followers, and shows you other ways to connect up to their audiences as well. The key to Twitter is gaining insight on what people are talking about and joining in on those conversations. Use the information provided in Mentionmapp to gain insight and use that to move ahead with your own follower base. Mentionmapp is easy to use – just connect up to your Twitter account and type in any username you want to research. Yours or you competition. A great way to find out what’s being said – and how you can join in too.

TwentyFeet

TwentyFeet tracks Twitter and a whole lot more – its nice having tools that work together to provide you a snapshot of how you’re doing in the online world. TwentyFeet provides 8 key characteristics within Twitter to help you track your statistics. It provides reputation indicators to show you influential you are with your followers, how well you are doing with online conversations, how many lists you are on, your following analysis, content analysis, and more. And the best part is its easy to use. Include your email address and they will nudge you when there is anything to report.

You jump in an elevator and hit the button for your floor. Someone jumps in along side of you. As the doors close, he asks what you do.

As the elevator quickly climbs to your floor, you know you only have a few seconds to describe your business. What would you say? What is the most important thing about what you do that would make this person say “WOW”? What would make him want to get to know more about your business and invite you into his office for coffee?

Yep, that’s the premise behind an elevator speech. Its putting together words in a magical way that will allow you to quickly and effectively say what you do AND gather attention from the party you are speaking with.

Maybe you’ve heard of the concept of the 30 second elevator pitch. But have you ever truly thought about what you say in the first 30 seconds you meet with someone? Can you quickly motivate them to want more? Or are you more of a rambler?

An elevator pitch is more important today than ever. Not only is it important to make a good first impression, people have less time and more on their minds than ever. Meaning you have a small window to make a good first impression … or lose it forever.

If you have a networking function coming up, or just want to have your elevator speech in place for your next meeting, here are a few things to consider as you are creating it.

Write down what you do

As quickly as you can, write down what you do. Now write it again, only from a different perspective. Do it again. And again. Try writing it 15 to 20 different ways, all without editing. Don’t think about it, just write it from different perspectives. The goal is to get as many ideas as you can down on paper.

Write a short story

Now its time to look at what you do through the eyes of your clients. Tell a story of how you worked with a client, what you do for your clients, and how they feel about you. The key is to paint a picture with words. If you have several stories that come to mind, write all of them down. Again, no editing. Just write for the time being.

Write down goals and objectives

What are your goals and objectives when out meeting new people? Are you looking for sales? Are you trying to find prospects? Are you looking for referral sources? Or something else? Write down every reason you can think of for being out talking with people and helping them understand more about your business.

Write down action statements

What is it going to take to put your goals and objectives into action? Spend a few minutes writing 10 to 20 action statements associated with your goal.

Let it sit

Head back to work and put your notes aside for awhile. Come back to it later in the day, or give it a day or two break. Approach it next with a fresh mind and new ideas.

Pull out the good stuff

Sit down in a quiet space and read through everything you created. Highlight or circle anything that jumps out at you. Look for phrases that hook you, powerful phrases, and words that visually describe what you do.

Put together the best words and phrases

As you look at your list, certain phrases and words will automatically fit together. You’re not looking for one elevator pitch, but rather a handful of them for different situations. Start writing them out, concentrating on making them as powerful as possible.

Dress rehearsal

The only way to find out if your new pitches work is to practice them. Start by saying them out load and see if they make sense to you. Then run them by a friend, employee or family member. Then move onto networking functions. Concentrate on where the questions lie, and use feedback to help you refine.

Continue to improve

Over time, you’ll find some things work better than others. Use feedback to help you refine and make your message more clear and impactful. And never be afraid to start the whole process over, especially as you change your target market, goals, or your clients’ needs change.

It’s time for a new website. And if you’re thinking of doing some of the work yourself, you’ll have to invest in a great hosting company. Before you make your selection, remember all hosting companies ARE NOT created equally. Yes they pull you in with those low, low prices and those great sounding guarantees. But if you get with the wrong company, you may wind up paying the price down the road.

Before you make your selection, keep these things in mind.

What are the contract terms?

A hosting company may wave great prices in front of you. Yet in some cases it may come with the condition of hosting with them for a set amount of years. Do you really want to be tied in with a company for an extended period of time? Especially if you are new to this company and have no idea how reliable they are and if you will truly be getting quality hosting?

Do they provide you with backup?

Yep, stuff happens all the time. Networks can be hacked, power failures can wipe out data, a fire could start, or someone may press a wrong button. Uh oh. There goes all of your work and data. A great hosting company thinks about those things too. They make sure your data is backed up at on and offsite locations. (That doesn’t mean you still shouldn’t do your own backups on a regular basis.)

Are they a reliable company?

Before you go with a hosting company, make sure they will be there for you. Do a Google search and look at ratings. A site that is planning for the future will be out there and have reviews not just on their site, but will be on other sites as well. While you will always be able to find some type of negativity about almost all companies, it is important to find one that has a positive future.

What details do they offer?

Every hosting plan comes with a variety of details. Make sure you look at the 3 big ones – bandwidth, memory and disk space. You may also want to check on other features for future growth, such as programming language support, email accounts, server operating systems, etc. If you will be working with WordPress, we have found cPanel is one of the easiest ways to get your site online – its highly worth it as its “push a button” technology. Also consider if you will be integrating other features in the future, such as shopping carts, credit card transactions, and other secure data.

Support/customer service

While you may not plan on having a problem with your site, invariably something will happen. A hosting service that offers 24/7 support through email and phone will allow you to communicate with someone no matter when your problem occurs. If you have questions before you buy, give them a call – possibly at an off hour like 4 in the morning or late Sunday evening – and see how well they handle your questions.

Who owns your data?

Many companies pull you in with great promises – yes even the big names you hear about on a daily basis. They offer you a low price package plan where you get a “free” domain name, hosting, and access to templated systems. The problem comes in when you try and leave. In some cases, you may lose your domain name altogether – they own it as a part of the package. You may also lose all of your data; again they own the widgets and have no way of giving you access to the data. Your domain name is an important part of your business model. Never sign on the dotted line unless you retain rights, no matter what.

Server uptime and speed

What good is having a website when its not operational when your prospects and clients want to use it. A down site could cost your business hundreds or even thousands of dollars over time. Most large web hosts will provide uptime at 99 percent or better. They have many backup processes available to make sure their servers don’t go down, and your site is always up. And while its important to make sure your site is always accessible, its equally important to make sure it comes up quickly. If you’ve ever sat for 10, 20, 30 seconds or more waiting for a site to load, you understand the consequences. Most people simply move on.

After using many different companies over the years, we do have a favorite – Hostgator. We’ve used them for years, and meet all of the qualifications I’ve listed out here. They provide reliable service at an affordable price. If you need hosting, check them out.

My daughter brought home her high school year book yesterday. As a photographer, the first thing I did is pick it up and start scanning the senior portraits. I know things are different now, but I’m always amazed – and a little shocked too – at how many truly “bad” photographs are within the pages of this keepsake.

Twenty years ago, you had to use pre-established photographers that had the measurements of the specified image, and would conform to the requirements. When you looked through a yearbook, the seniors’ images were all relatively the same. Which meant you focused on looking at the kids.

Now anything goes. Around one third of the kids use the image taken for their school ID. You can tell by the “infamous” blue background and the lackluster smiles. Then you have another one third with quality high school senior portraits – you can tell they went to a professional, and in some cases I can even tell who the professional is by the props and poses. Then there is the final one third.

• I saw images with overexposed backgrounds and dark, washed out faces.

• I saw images that were out of focus.

• I saw snapshots from family vacations where the senior was so small it was hard to see.

• I saw some of the craziest poses and angles – I couldn’t believe anyone thought they were good images.

Yep, many of them were truly bad.

In today’s society, people are forgetting what real photography is all about. Real photography is now associated with “new”. The last picture you snapped goes up on Facebook, and that becomes your newest image to share. Chances are it will be “good” – you wouldn’t put up a bad one. But it isn’t great. It isn’t beautiful and it won’t stand the test of time. Look at it a year from now and it will simply be a snapshot marking a moment in time.

Dig Deeper: Filling Your Portrait Studio With High School Seniors
A real photograph is more than that. It not only marks a moment in time, it captures the essence of who the person is. And that’s where a professional comes in.

 

by Sam Attal

• They spend thousands of hours learning to pose.

• They spend thousands of hours learning to light every situation.

• They spend thousands of hours studying composition.

• They spend thousands of hours learning to operate equipment without “thinking” about it.

• They spend thousands of hours researching locations/backgrounds/sets/props.

• They understand how to slim people down with different angles, how to minimize large noses, make eyes larger and more symmetrical (90 percent of us have one eye larger than the other), and give everyone a “wow” experience, no matter what they have experienced before.

Will everyone understand that? No. Many parents today are too busy to focus in on the senior portrait experience. They leave it up to the kids, and in many cases simply don’t care about the final product.

But some do. And that’s where you need to spend your time, your energy, and your marketing dollars.

If your goal is to be a high school senior photographer, you can easily build your business by doing three things.

1. Create your target audience. Whether its one local high school, or multiple high schools within your city, focusing in on the community will help bring in clients. My daughter’s high school has around 850 juniors that will be needing high school portraits this summer. Even if you worked your way up to gaining 10 percent market share, that would be 85 seniors just from this one high school. And if you build up an even bigger reputation, it would be very easy to gain several hundred from this one school alone. The key is focusing in on what you want, and working for it year after year.

2. Focus on your target audience all year long. If you target high school seniors, the more they see you, the more they will use you. A local photographer works with many different groups within our local high school. She photographs all of the kids in the theater department, and her name and images is always front and center in the play programs. Which means she’s with the kids several times per year. The theater is just one group – there are dozens of different groups that are looking for support and willing to give you exposure along the way.

3. Tell the families. Its easy to get a mailing list of kids that attend local schools. Start up a mailing list and let the families know how you participate in school activities. A postcard every month is a definite attention getter. Then bring it online as well. You can always ask people to follow you through your blog, Facebook or even Pinterest. And some will convert along the way. The important key is to let people know who you are and what you are doing. Remember, it’s a cycle. If you start as freshman, they may use you several times over the next few years, including family portraits and multiple high school senior portraits, depending on their family size.

As photographers, we could easily photograph our daughter. Yet we’ve watched over the years, and know and are friends with some exceptional portrait photographers. She’ll be a senior next year, and we’ve decided to let her have the “senior portrait” experience by hiring what we consider to be the best in town.

Yes, we already have our portrait photographer chosen. Now we’re deciding the details. But in the end, its up to the photographer we’ve selected to do her magic. We trust her. We love her work. And we want her to capture the essence of our daughter from a professionals point of view.

Are there more out there like us? Yes, we’ve already made several recommendations to friends.

The key is knowing how many portrait sessions you need to build a healthy income, then finding the clients who are willing to pay for that experience. Don’t focus on the people that don’t “get it”. Focus on the people that do. And cater to them exclusively.

The only way to get more people to your Facebook Page is to tell more people it exists.

It may be easy to send people to it by providing a link in your email, or including a Facebook Badge on your blog, but what do you do if you are out networking face to face?

Why not try a Facebook Business Card?

I’ve always loved Moo – you can find a variety of posts on here talking about how to use Moo products in your marketing materials.

Now they are helping you market your Facebook page as well.

Earlier this year, they launched Facebook Timeline cards – which was great for getting people to your individual profile. Now they are offering the same for Facebook Pages. And the best part is you can try it out … for free.

Each business can now login to Moo and get one pack of 50 cards for free. And even when your first 50 are gone, additional packs run $15 a pack. Very reasonable for a great marketing tool.

Making your Moo Facebook Cards is easy. When you sign in, make sure you click the “yes” when they ask for your data. This allows them to connect up with your Facebook account to pull the data automatically in.

Once your card is set up with your Timeline photo, personalize it. Make sure all your data is correct and its easy for people to connect up with you. You can add a favorite quote or phrase to the back of the card as well.

Tip: I love quotes and used one on the back of my first free pack. But you don’t have to stick with quotes. Think about what you do on Facebook. Do you provide tips? Do you share photos? Are you running a contest? Use that info on the back of your cards. It’s a great way to drive traffic if you’re offering an ongoing promotion.

Then purchase your cards. They are now shipping all over the world, so know matter where you live, you will probably be able to add this to your list of marketing tools.

Once you have your cards in place, use them in addition to your business cards. Yes, its okay to hand out two cards if they are both sending you to different places. When you are talking with someone, what would you like them to see? If you really want to feed them info from your Facebook account, hand over that card. If you want them to see your site for more information, hoping to convert them to a client, hand over your business card. And if you can tell they aren’t quite ready to convert to a client, or they are a great referral source, hand over both. The key is to let them follow you in the manner most convenient to them.

I opened up my email program to find 350 new messages.

Now I’ll be the first to admit I don’t use email like most. I don’t have them downloaded into my mobile so I can keep a pulse on what is happening at all times. I usually open up email three times per day – morning, after lunch and before I turn off my computer for the day. If I’m out on appointments, that may decrease by one.

Out of the 350 email, I deleted around 340 of them just by looking at the subject line and the recipient. And I’m sure I’m not alone. I’ve read statistics that show email is now around 90 percent spam related – 10 percent true email. And I can definitely attest to that.

Which means to get an email opened, it has to have a great subject line and be from a trusted referral. Without one of those two items, it doesn’t stand a chance.

Do you use email in an attempt to gain photography business?

After reading that question, you probably went one of two ways.

Yes, and I gain new clients every time I send an email.

No, email is now a complete waste of time.

If you are in the yes crowd, congratulations. You’ve learned that email is a long way from dead, and it still offers a lot of potential in connecting up with potential business.

But if you are in the no crowd, now may be the time to rethink your approach to email.

In order for email to be successful, you have to learn one thing about this creative marketing tool:

Emails are to introduce, engage, build a relationship, give information, create an opportunity, make an appointment or confirm a meeting. Emails are NOT a sales pitch.

Does that piece of advice sound familiar? It should. You can say the same for most online marketing tools anymore, including the social media sites we’ve all come to love.

Yet most sales people get it wrong.

In fact I found 3 of the 10 emails I did open to completely break this rule. While I didn’t recognize the recipients, the subject lines were something that pertained to me, so I opened them. Yet the emails all went something like this:

Hi Lori

I would like 5 minutes of your time to introduce you to my product. It’s a great product; one I’m sure you are going to love. Email me if you’re interested and we can set up a 5 minute demo in which I give you my sales pitch.

Thanks

Would you respond to that? Nope, me neither. Delete.

This type of email breaks two very important rules.

1. Its all about them.

2. There is nothing about relationships; only sales.

What this type of email tells me is they’ve simply created a generic email message and they are searching the Internet for anyone to send it to. They probably have a quota, yet hate to network and market in new ways. So they are relying on the safety of their desks and computers to make initial contact.

It also tells me they are only interested in the final numbers – the bottom line. They are looking for the quickest way to a sale possible. It also tells me they won’t be in this position very long.

If you see yourself in any of this, here is how to change it around.

Start with them – its always about them. If you are emailing someone in today’s world for the very first time, get to know them first. By searching on Google, Facebook and LinkedIn, you should be able to find a wealth of information on just about anybody. Now you’re ready to pay attention to them.

Next, make it short and get right to the point. Why are you emailing in the first place? If your email is more than 200 words, its too long. Write it again, get more creative, and make it short.

Start with the end in mind. What do you hope to accomplish with this email? One course of action should be all you plan for. Then write one or two statements to get your point across, one or two questions to engage your recipient, and close with your name.

In ever case, you should hyperlink your name or something in your salutation that directly relates to your site or to your information. People understand “clicking” and will follow things through to find out more information when they want to. You don’t have to spell it all out for them; they will go to the information they want and need.

The same applies to regular email marketing tools such as ezines. Create a format that is recognizable, that provides solid content, and is clickable if the recipient wants more information.

If you are serious about increasing your business, maybe its time you looked to the things you use the most. If email isn’t working for you, change it. It does work IF you use it in the right way.

Do you ever find yourself procrastinating? Its human nature.

Many people would define procrastination as laziness – you simply keep putting things off because you have other things to do. But if you look at what you normally procrastinate on, it really isn’t laziness at all.

Instead, its more about fear – fear of not understanding, fear of not being able to be perfect, fear of being completely overwhelmed.

And while this fear is what drives us forward, it can also hold us back.

Here are 7 of my favorite tricks I use when I find myself procrastinating over something big.

1. Start your ideas immediately

When you get an idea, what do you do with it?

Most people get an idea, and start thinking about it.

Then they wonder if it’s a good idea.

And they wonder some more.

And eventually the idea no longer has merit.

And they move in another direction.

If you get an idea, take action. Now. Write it down. Do some research. Formulate it as complete as possible. Print it out and look at it. Take action to put even just a piece into your business.

Just by moving it from the idea mode to the action mode, the likelihood your idea will help you jumps tenfold.

2. Chunk it out

Some ideas take hours, days, even months to see through to fruition. With that much of a to-do list, its easy to put it on the back burner. But if you chunk it out – divide it into small chunks of time you can easily take action on – you’re more likely to see it through.

When I have a new project, I specifically mark off time to work on it. It may be a half hour per day, or one afternoon per week. But if I know I have time to exclusively work on that project, my excitement level increases. And so does the likelihood of getting it into place within my business.

3. Commit through words

If you hold something in, you are more likely to put it aside. But when you tell someone about it, you are held accountable.

This is why advisory teams work so well. If you get together and talk on a regular basis with other like-minded business owners, you can provide your thoughts and ask for opinions. They will also provide resources and guidance, and ask the status at your next meeting.

4. Define your goal

Have you ever made “pipe dream” goals? Those are the goals you say over and over again with little chance of seeing them through to completion. These are goals like “I’m going to clean the garage” or “I’m going to create new marketing materials”. Its easy to procrastinate when your goal is monumental and you have no true deadline in place for completion.

Instead, clearly define what you want to do. “I will have a new brochure outlined by Friday” is much more motivating than planning on updating your marketing materials.

5. Do it first

What do you do first thing in the morning? Do you check messages and email? Do you get caught up in the nothingness of social media?

Your first moments of your day are the most productive. You walk in with a clear, fresh mind, ready to jump in for a new and exciting day.

This is the time you should dedicate to your new projects. This is the time you can provide the utmost attention to detail without losing yourself in the details of your daily problems.

Change your hours. If you work 9 to 5, bump your customer hours up to 10 to 5 and use the first hour for your new projects. Just because you’re in the office doesn’t mean you have to answer the phone or clear out messages. Give your time to your most beneficial tasks first.

6. Less is more

How many things are on your plate right now? Do you have 15 projects waiting for you? Do you have more client orders than you can keep up with? Are you completely overwhelmed?

Start by clearing off your plate. If you have that much client work, hire an assistant. If you have that many projects, prioritize them and choose the most important first.

Many people procrastinate because they simply can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Bring that tunnel into view, and always be able to see what’s on the other side.

7. Commit to an activity

Never ask yourself if you feel like doing something – chances are you won’t. Do you really feel like getting up on a dark, cold winter morning to work out? I know for me the answer is a big NO.

Yet I commit to it because I know I feel better when I do it. So I no longer ask myself if I feel like it; I just do it.

With any project you have on your plate, if you commit to doing the tasks without questioning how you feel about it, you are much more likely to do it.

Calendar it. Plan it. Do it.

That’s really all there is to it.

1. You love photography.

2. You hate your job.

3. You decide to make photography your career.

4. You open a studio and bring in clients.

5. You quit your job and begin building a successful photography business.

The above may sound like your plan. But do you have the 6th step in place?

6. Sell your business for a healthy profit.

Photography is an art form. Because its so personal, so much a part of who you are, very few photographers go into business dreaming of the day they will sell their business.

Yet in many ways, every business should be started with the intent that you will one day sell it. When you approach your business through that mindset, you begin to notice things you would never notice on your own. And you make changes to improve it so its more efficient and more valuable over all.

Lets look at this from another angle. Look at your business as you would your home.

When you buy a home, you go into it with the intent of living in it for a long time. Yet everything you do along the way you probably say something like “this will add to the value of my home”. So you happily improve the landscape in the summer. And add granite counter tops to your kitchen. Why not spend the money; you can enjoy it now and benefit from it in a few years when you decide to sell.

So why is your business any different?

If you make improvements along the way, you’ll increase your odds of attracting future buyers. You won’t look at your business through the eyes of “I just want to make money”, but instead you’ll say “how will this make my business more healthy, more profitable and highly attractive to others”?

While you may love your business now, where will you be 10 years from now? How about 20? Things change. And if you consistently look at your business as an investment instead of a mere way of bringing in enough income today to survive, you’ll create a much more successful business overall.

I’m Ready, Now What

Now that you’ve decided to put a exit strategy in place, even if you never truly decide to sell, its important to look at things through a buyers eyes. Assess the qualities of your company the way it stands today. What gives it value? What gives it strength? And where are its weaknesses?

Buyers are interested in businesses that offer:

• A great business story – something that makes it stand out from its competitors

• A great list – relationship with clients and referral partners that consistently bring in money again and again

• A great niche – an industry that shows healthy levels of potential profits now and well into the future

• A system in place – technology, tools and other processes that makes it easy to step in and take over with little disruption

With this list in mind, create your own to-do list that will make your business more attractable in the coming years.

Study your market. Be specific and determine exactly how you fit into the photographic industry and into your defined niche. Buyers look for potential growth and how future clients will perceive your business. If you can’t define this now, work towards it now.

Develop your growth strategy. Buyers buy future performance, not what you’ve done in the past. Making $250,000 last year is great, but if you’re on track to make $100,000 this year, your buyers won’t buy. Your marketing, goals and projects should always reflect growth and be a benchmark for what you will be doing in the coming months and years. Your competitors won’t stand still; how are you reacting to that?

Build a strong customer list. A business is only as strong as its customer list. If they value what you do, you can sell anytime. But if you’re always chasing new business with little regard for your existing clientele, you’ll lose value rapidly. Concentrate on retention. This is key to any successful business model.

Strengthen your team. Photographers love being solo-preneurs. Yet this isn’t sustainable for the long run. No, you don’t need a full staff to do all of your work. But you do need support that gets the jobs done efficiently. A great accountant and lawyer, production assistants, and other help can all work off site, and possibly on consultant basis rather than paid employees. That’s okay. It’s the system that matters most, and how they help you achieve balance and flexibility so you can do what you do best.

Taking the approach you will sell at some point in the future gives you the upper hand. It helps you maximize value and improve every piece of your business model, whether you sell of not. The key is efficiency. And who can argue with that when it makes you better at what you do?

I know what you’re thinking. Viddy? What’s Viddy? There is something else out there I need to know about?

Yes.

Viddy is a social video editing and sharing app that just surpassed the 26 million user mark.

Where Instagram and other photo apps allow you to play with still images, Viddy gives you the tools to turn any 15 second video footage into something truly unique and shareable. You can add filters and music, and give it a true “movie trailer” look and feel.

And then you share it – that’s what today’s technology is all about.

Start by downloading Viddy to your iPhone and sign up using Facebook or Twitter – you can use an email instead if you choose.

When you’ve signed in, it will pull a list of your friends already on Viddy (providing you’ve used your Facebook/Twitter account), which will give you a few people to follow and see what they are doing. Following works in a similar manner to other social sites – just hit the follow button and they are added to your profile.

Create your profile by adding a photograph, and start videoing.

Keep in mind that Viddy works like the other social sites you are used to. You can like, favorite, tag and add comments to any video you come across. You can also flag a video if you think its inappropriate – just look for the skull and crossbones icon.

As a business owner, your goal is to get your videos in front of as many people as possible, and hope they like, favorite, tag and comment on everything you do. And because you can connect to your Facebook/Twitter accounts, its easy to share in a variety of ways.

If you choose to shoot something new, remember, you have 15 seconds of recording time. Or just pull something in you’ve already recorded.

Viddy has an array of advanced options for you to shoot and manipulate your video:

• You can change the aspect ratio from 4:3 at 480p to widescreen with a 16:9 ratio at 720p.

• You can add a grid overlay to your display to make sure it stays level during recording.

• You have a timer option to give you a 3 second lead before recording starts.

• You can add a variety of special effects, including vintage and black and white. Viddy comes with a few to start you out. You can also choose to download more – both free and pay are available.

Once you are happy with your final product, upload and share.

Yes, 15 seconds isn’t a whole lot of time. Which is why you should think about it as a “movie trailer” format. What can you say about your business in a quick way? Capture a few seconds of a fun shoot your own – whether it’s a high school senior, a trash the dress session, or even a commercial shoot on the beaches of Fiji.

The idea isn’t perfection. It isn’t an exact branding tool. Its made to be fun and add another dimension to your business.

Give it a try.