What if you could advertise in big magazines, like Elle? Or have your photography be sold out of big box chains like Sam’s Club? And what if you were the only one in your area that would benefit from this form of marketing. Would you be interested?

Click Connection Corporation is a new concept making its way into the U.S. after succeeding to the tune of millions throughout the U.K.

And the idea is simple. Join and become a member of one of two Click Connection formats:

Click, which targets people interested in the family, baby and pet niches.
Fresh, which targets people interested in fashion makeovers.

They both have yearly membership fees, plus a yearly marketing contribution. Then pay per lead that is delivered to you – and you have a new client coming through your doors.

In addition to the leads, you have several other benefits from joining Click Connection.

1. As a member of either Click or Fresh, you’ll receive special discounts on the things you use most – things like frames, labs, albums and retouching houses.

2. Use the Click Connection logos and branding. Being instantly recognized as a part of an exclusive network does have its benefits.

3.Your membership comes with area exclusivity. Which means you won’t be competing for leads – if they are in your area, the referral will come directly to you.

4. They also offer a unique concept with Photopods. These unique tools will be perfect for gift giving, and will be located in a variety of places your clients shop most.

The next step is contacting them to see if your location is still available.

So do you have your New Year’s resolutions list handy? Are you sticking to them – or have you broken them already?

For me 2010 is going to be all about focus. So as a way of passing my “focus” intentions along to you, here is a list of 7 New Years resolutions you should make a photographer – and keep the whole year through.

1. Become the best photographer possible.
How does your photography stand out from the competition? When people look at it, do they say “WOW”? If not, get practicing. Attend a class. Give yourself assignments. Find websites from 10 photographers online whose photography you admire. Use them as inspiration, and head out for practice sessions to see if you can shoot similarly. (Notice I’m not saying copy – use it as inspiration to develop your own style.)

2. Become better at technology.
Like it or not, technology is here to stay. And technology is going to be a strong part of what separates professionals from amateurs. Anyone can pick up a point-and-shoot and take a fairly decent image. That’s why so many photographers are struggling; if a client can’t see the difference between your work and theirs, why should they pay a high price? But if you use technology to make your photographs go from okay to WOW, they’re going to know you are a professional. And be willing to pay for it too. If you need to brush up your skills on Photoshop, I highly recommend Lynda.

3. I will get the gear I really need, and use it to its fullest potential.
What’s your favorite lens? What lens do you hate, and complain about every time you bring it out? Start by selling the lens that’s not suited to your photography, and investing in something more usable. Not sure what you need? Start by renting lenses to find the perfect one for you.

Once you have your gear, learn how to use it in every day situations. Get creative. Think outside the box. I’m always amazed at a great shot when you find it was taken with a small point-and-shoot, or now even an iPhone. It’s not always the camera – it’s the eye.

4. Always shoot RAW.
By reading the last 3 resolutions, this one should be a given without any explanation. If you’re going to photograph an image and use technology to enhance it, starting out with the RAW format will give you the biggest possibilities. Make sure you save your RAW images, and work with a copy. That way you can try many different things without risking the original file.

5. I will become a master at relationships.
Are you connected with other photographers? Do you share regularly ideas and strategies that can help all of your businesses grow? If not, get started today. One of the best ways to grow is to work together in collaboration with other photographers. There is only 24 hours in a day, and 365 days a year. Chances are you don’t want to work that entire time. Instead of turning away the business you can’t do, help out your friends, and keep all of your calendars filled. A strong recommendation will turn a client quicker than any other form of marketing.

Also work at establishing relationships online. If you’re a wedding photographer and you build a strong relationship with a coordinator in another city, you never know when she might hand you a great referral – and it will be the start of your destination business. But you have to build the relationship first. The business comes; it just takes time to nurture and grow.

6. I will share my photographs online.
If you’ve been one of those photographers afraid to put your work online because of copyright issues, change your thought pattern in 2010. Social media, blogs, and online marketing is here to stay. People find work because they are willing to share what they do, and aren’t afraid to have their work shared by others. Instead of being afraid of people “stealing” your work, how can you benefit from it and still make a nice profit? We’ll be exploring those ideas in 2010, so stay tuned.

7. I will treat my photography as a business.
Hoping and wishing will never turn your photography into a business. Planning and goal setting is the only way to see it through.

If you haven’t legally set up the business side, what’s holding you back? It’s a fairly easy process to start a photography business, and you can get help from a variety of sources, including your local Chamber or small business development center.

If business was slow in 2009, what are you going to do to change that in 2010? What new services can you offer? How can you reach out to clients in a new way? In order to get different results, you have to do things differently. So get started in a new direction, and put aside the things you found not to work last year.

image source

If you follow me on Twitter, chances are you saw this come through as a re-tweet a couple of days ago. I was so impressed with this idea, I decided to include it in my One Great Idea area to share it with everyone, whether you are on Twitter or not.

To read the whole story, you can start here by reading Clint Watson’s blog.

Let me just sum it up for you, and then give you my take.

Brian Kliewer is not a photographer. But he used a great idea that could easily be implemented by any photographer in business today.

He’s a fine art painter. He has a small website where his clients can go and view his work, and purchase his paintings. He started this campaign with a small email list of 84 people.

Nothing big. Nothing fancy.

Yet he followed in the footsteps of a mentor, and came up with a great idea called “100 paintings in 100 days for $100 each”.

Brian didn’t start out with the paintings in hand. He created the idea, then spent every day painting, photographing it, putting it up online, and hopefully selling it.

How well did he do?

At the end of 100 days, he sold 79 of them. That’s $7900 in 3 months that he wouldn’t have earned without this promotion.

And the publicity he gained through this event brought him in several other painting deals, and increased his email list by 46%.

Sounds great, doesn’t it.

Takeaway Idea:

Don’t reinvent the wheel – take an idea someone else has success with, and modify it to fit your needs.

As a photographer, why not create something similar with your photography. What could you do to create something that you can sell to your list, and have fun with the idea too?

The 100/100/100 is a great idea, but you don’t have to stick with those numbers. Maybe you’ve taken some great sunset photos over the years. Why not mount and frame them, and have a “50 sunsets in 50 days for $50 each” campaign? Send a postcard out to your clients announcing your new campaign, and let them know everything will be coming through your email list – they have to join in order to find out the new photographs.

Don’t have 50? How about 25? “25 photographs in 25 days for $25 each” would still bring in $625, help build your list, and open up your mind to new possibilities. The 25 series would help motivate you for further campaigns, and get your clients excited about your potential.

“But I’m just a portrait photographer. I don’t have sunsets or nature photos”

Even if your passion is babies, you can find a way to have fun with this. Think Anne Geddes. She started out as a baby photographer, and would ask the moms if she could take a picture or two for fun for her own use. Her collection grew, and she eventually became a fine art portrait photographer that photographed babies for her books, not as personal portraits. Run a contest. Let your moms know what you are doing, and the best become a part of your 50/50/50 deal. Yes they have to sign a model release for it. But imagine where you could be a year from now if you do this.

Good luck!

Think of how a pendulum works. It slowly swings back and forth. From one side to the next. It never stops, just swings from one point to the next, and always returns.

Business works in much the same manner. At some point you’ll have the best of times, with money flowing freely. And at some point you’ll have the worst of times, with financial crisis looming in the horizon.

Now let’s talk photography. At some point the photography industry is at the top of the heap, allowing photographers to charge whatever they want, making huge sums of money. And at some point photographers flood the marketplace, only being able to barely hang on.

I’ve seen them both. We were at the top of the heap during the 90′s, easily bringing in 5 figures per wedding client. It came easily. Friends referred friends, and every wedding we could make what some photographers are currently making in one year.

So will the pendulum ever swing back to the good times? You bet. And the clear winners will be:

1. The photographer who takes photography seriously, and becomes the best photographer she can.

2. The photographer that concerns herself with the business as well as the photography. If you can survive hard times, the good times will be easy.

3. The photographer that dotes on customer service. No matter what the economy, she gives her clients 110%.

4. The photographer that continues to mentor under the best in the business. If you’re not busy, take the time to study and become better.

5. The photographer that creates a marketing plan and sticks with it. The company that keeps marketing through thick and thin truly understands the power of marketing.

6. The photographer that comes up with something new – a new twist – and finds the clients willing to buy it.

7. The photographer that isn’t out for the quick buck, and caves into “what everyone else is doing”. The biggest statement I hear from photographers on why they charge one low fee and hand over the digital files – “everyone else is doing it”. That’s not how to get to the top. The way to the top is to give what no one else is giving.

8. The photographer that stays active in the community.

I know there are a ton more ideas – what are some of yours?

image source dougieladd