3 Things To Give Up Right Now

Have you ever done this?

You decide to do something for your business. You’re not really into it. But everyone tells you it’s the best thing to do for your business. Or maybe you’ve done it in the past with some success, so you decide to give it a try again. Yet when you follow through, you absolutely hated it. You hated doing it. You had zero results. And you ask yourself why you wasted your time?

Let me give you an example. We’re what you might call networking experts. We’ve “networked” with probably every group in Denver (at least it feels like it). We know what works and what doesn’t. We were invited to a “summer bash” networking event. I’ve been there in the past – several years ago – and know it’s a huge function. So we decided to go. Here are the results:

  • 4 hours of time
  • $25 registration fee
  • $5 parking fee
  • zero new clients

Yes, I’ve written before that networking is not about getting new clients – its about connections. And I still agree with that assessment of networking.

Dig Deeper: What Not To Do At A Networking Event

Dig Deeper: If You Are Selling A Photograph, Tell Me You Are Selling A Photograph

But this event was different this year. Here’s what happened. [Read more…]

5 Reasons Not To Quit Facebook

A few months ago, I spoke with a friend who was fed up with Facebook. She spent way too much time on it, wasn’t quite sure how to bring her business into it, was tired of the constant “noise” in her newsfeed, and decided it was time to say goodbye. So with well over 500 friends in her list, she clicked the button and shut down her Facebook account.

A few weeks ago, I noticed she’s back on. With a few weeks away, she began wondering what everyone was doing, and started reading more information on building a business using Facebook Pages. So she headed back online and opened up her account. Now she’s at 200 friends, and is looking closely for guidance on how to use Facebook the right way this time.

She’s not alone. In fact I see people all the time that have a “Facebook breakdown” and make a quick decision to call it quits.

Would you do the same with your website?

Of course not. That’s your business.

Yet shutting down your Facebook account if you run a small business is pretty much doing just that.

Yes, Facebook is free. Yes, it has its own purposes. But it’s a tool you can use to attract and gain new clientele. If something like that has purpose, the last thing you should do is shut it down. Instead, take some time away  no one will realize you’re gone – and restrategize. Discover the true reason you want to use it, and start in again. You won’t have to rebuild your profiles and pages, add friends and followers, and you’ll have a much easier time of moving forward.

Facebook is the Social Reach of the World

Facebook has only been around a few years. The world survived before Facebook, and I’m pretty sure it would survive if Facebook suddenly went away. Yet Facebook has become the window of opportunity to learn all about your friends and family. If your niece posts new pictures of her baby, where else are you going to see them? If your son shares his college experiences, don’t you want to know what he’s doing? (Okay, maybe not) And what about the bookclub, yoga class and travel meetings? How will you ever know what’s going on without Facebook? Because people are on it all the time, it’s a great place to meet new people, network with new people, and find new clients. If you are in business, can you really ignore one of the most active places on Earth? [Read more…]

Want New Business? Why Not Try LinkedIn

Facebook is in the news again with its changes and updates to the way you view your information. And while its easy to fall into the trap of assuming Facebook is the only place to find new customers, don’t forget about the other large social sites as well.

The three top social sites right now tend to be LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Each has a distinct audience; each has a distinct way of bringing in the customers. If your goal is to reach out to businesses, LinkedIn is going to be your best social media channel. And just like the other social sites, they are definite ways to reach out and communicate with your prospects.

Status Updates

Every social media site has two important ways to get started. First it’s designing a powerful profile that will lead people to you and your other online presences. Second it’s communicating with people on a regular basis through status updates.

Whenever you place a new update on your profile, this will be added to the news feed of your entire network. And most heavy users – the people you’ll most likely be communicating with – will follow their news feeds daily, or at the very least weekly.

This is how you show your expertise. For example, when you tell everyone you’ll be shooting products for a catalog on location for the day, others in your network pickup on that, and start wondering how you can help them too.

Status updates aren’t all about promoting and selling; in fact it’s just the opposite. Your news feed should be filled with conversational information; information you would share if you were face to face with someone on a regular basis. Blog posts with quality content; links to great resources; and the occasional “this is what I’m doing” mixes it all up and showcases you as a “real” person.

Setup A Company Profile

Just like Facebook has profiles and pages, Linked in offers you the same opportunities. Your LinkedIn profile is all about you; your company profile is all about your company. It looks slightly different than your user profile, but its editable and can be filled with information about your company. [Read more…]

What Great Networking Means In Today’s World

This post is Day 27 of 30 Ways In 30 Days To Redesign Your Life With Photography. This series seeks to provide you with practical steps to get you from wherever you are today, to exactly where you want to be – this year! If your goal has always been to take your photography to a whole new level, hang on and start enjoying a new lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of.

When I say the word “networking” what do you think of? Everyone has a slightly different slant to the connotation of the word.

You may have thought about a particular group you go to regularly, and how you interact with people that are more then business owners – they’ve become friends.

You may have thought of the word fear – you hate walking into a group of unknowns, and be expected to walk up and start a conversation.

You may have thought about online networking – yep, Facebook and Twitter, wondering how you can gain more leverage by using social networking sites.

Whatever your idea of networking is, it ultimately impacts how successful your business will be.

Is It Networking or Notworking?

I worked with a mentor a number of years ago who helped me grow my business. He had an interesting view of networking. He felt that most people weren’t networkers; they were notworkers.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, networking means: the cultivation of productive relationships for employment or business. The key emphasis should be placed on the word “productive”. [Read more…]

Setting Up Your Photography Business In The Right Way

This post is Day 8 of 30 Ways In 30 Days To Redesign Your Life With Photography. This series seeks to provide you with practical steps to get you from wherever you are today, to exactly where you want to be – this year! If your goal has always been to take your photography to a whole new level, hang on and start enjoying a new lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of.

It’s a big step to go from “job” to “entrepreneur”.

When you have a job, everything is built into the structure of the work environment. They pay you on a regular basis; they take out money for your taxes, insurance, retirement; and you can count on having weekends, holidays, sick time and vacation days. Not so with a photography business.

If you rely 100 percent on your photography for your income, you are in charge of everything. Creating enough sales to provide your salary. You have to take out the taxes and forward them to the appropriate agency, find the best insurance policy, workman’s comp issues if you have employees, and set up your own retirement account. Sick time? If you have a wedding scheduled, you’ll be there no matter what you feel like. Vacation time? Chances are you’ll be checking email and communicating with clients no matter where you are.

Are you reconsidering? [Read more…]