5 Convincing Reasons Why Every Photographer Needs a Blog
Is it crucial for a photographer to have a blog? No. But is it beneficial? Yes!
You’ve probably asked yourself this question on several occasions. There’s no definite answer to help you decide but hopefully this article will push you in the right direction.
If we look at the facts, you’re offering a service as a photographer. A blog is like a little window into your business and you as a brand. It can help answer many questions for your perspective clients such as who you are, what you specialize in and what you have to offer them that is unique.
Ultimately, you also want to get some use out of the blog. First and foremost, it is about exposure and knowledge but it is also a way to generate business leads. With these goals in mind, let’s take a look why a photographer needs a blog.
1. The right kind of exposure
A blog is a work in constant progress, documenting your growth and achievements. If you blog with a purpose (and prioritize SEO), you increase your chances of being discovered by potential clients. Also consider the fact that there is only so much information you can pack into your personal website. When clients do find you, they’re more likely to linger on your blog and end up on your website.
2. Creating shareable content
Before we talk about traffic, it’s important to note that sometimes posts spread like wildfire online. Undoubtedly, you have something interesting to share with the world and a blog allows your voice to be heard. Your readers will want to share your works, your words of wisdom and your expertise.
If you spend enough time on creating quality content that will be of some value to your readers, you can be sure that it will circulate. And just as easily, word will spread about you. This is also how you establish authority online. Don’t forget to include ‘share’ buttons on your blog and instal a plug-in to share your articles on social media as soon as they come out.
3. It will do wonders for SEO
Another interesting piece of information is that blogs are better for SEO than your portfolio website. When you’re constantly updating your content and maintain your blog, you shoot up in search rankings because Google loves fresh content.
On top of this, your readers will want to come back again and again to your publication just to keep up with your juicy articles. If your SEO is on point, you’re not only going to build a stable audience base but also rank better searches and bring more people to your website.
4. A motivation on the side
You have the liberty of choosing how often you want to blog, when you blog and how you do it. Let’s say you commit to posting twice a week. This will in turn motivate you to go out there and photograph more so you could have something new to share with your audience on a weekly basis. Blogging keeps you motivated. In a way, it’s like having a personal project on the side.
5. Share your passion and add context to your images
Your persona photography speaks volumes about you but people really do want to know the stories behind the images. You can explain your work process, your obstacles and how you overcame them. A blog is a chance to document your creative process and share this valuable knowledge with your readers. You know so much about photography so take this opportunity to also educate people.
Lastly, a blog will help you grow as a professional and you will learn more by teaching others. It’s also inevitable that in this process you will learn a great deal about online marketing. All that’s required of you is to write the blog post, add some dazzling images to it and link to Facebook. You’re still not convinced? Here are some ideas to get you started:
Blog post topic ideas for photographers
- Show your recent work and talk about your projects
- Photography tips (food, weddings, travel etc.)
- Take your readers behind the scenes
- Photo retouching tutorials
- Insights about your post-processing stage
- Share your sources of inspiration
- Make lists of top 10 rules/mistakes/tips
- Write about the lessons you’ve learnt as a photographer
- Analysis of your most successful images
- Reviews of equipment for photographers
- Talk about challenges photographers face
- Share personal lessons
You might think that this simply isn’t for you because you’re not a writer. Think again. You are passionate about what you do, there must be a way to channel this enthusiasm into words. Talk to your readers as if you’re talking to a friend about your work over a cup of coffee. Let go, and be yourself.
You don’t have to be a wordsmith to run a successful blog. Take your personal spin on things and trust that your readers will want to hear from you. You are a successful photographer after all and you have something valuable to share with the world. Blogging is just one channel that will help you aim for higher goals.
