Fundy Software - Award Winning Album Design Software, Online Album Proofing, Work Flow Software, Photography Pricing Software » Blog http://www.fundysos.com Design better, work faster, increase profits Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:50:09 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 Sharing & Showing Albums Means Selling Albums http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/sharing-showing-albums-means-selling-albums/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/sharing-showing-albums-means-selling-albums/#comments Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:37:30 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1054
When a client referral is generated from viewing an album, chances are the client referred will also purchase an album. Their first impression of your work, was the experience of their friend showing off that work to them. Right from the get-go, that friend who saw the work is wanting the same experience in the end, to show her wedding or her family off. In other words, since they came in the door looking at an album, they’ll go right back out again wanting one for themselves. This is why it’s such a good idea to get your clients to purchase, and share their albums.
Clients referred by clients who share albums will be far more likely to buy an album themselves.
Show and share albums. Here are some creative ways to do just that:
  • • Set them up as Facebook galleries for your clients.
  • • Use an album proofing service that makes sharing easier
  • • Put them on DVD with music for friends/family as gifts
  • • Simply encourage clients to share them
Of course, you’d be smart to put your logo and contact info somewhere in the book. The beauty is, it’s a sales cycle that supports itself. Once you get started, your albums will start to sell themselves.]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/sharing-showing-albums-means-selling-albums/feed/ 0 Choosing albums for your studio http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/choosing-albums-studio/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/choosing-albums-studio/#comments Thu, 27 Jan 2011 22:51:39 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1049
Albums are part of, what the business community calls, your product mix. A product mix, is simply the products that your business has to offer. The reason it is called the product “mix” is that these products need to fit within your business plan. This means that the products need to fit within your price range, within the look and the brand of the business and within your sales plan. My point here is simply this. Don’t flock to what everyone else is doing just because that is what everyone is doing. Choose your products based on the need of your business. I’d like to feature some press books by ProDPI here. The books featured here are from their “fusion” series. ProDPI was one of the first labs to offer fine art cloth covers for their books and they are really taking things to the next level with their fusion books. Check out the photos.
As a business, what is important here is that these books look nothing like the press books that your clients can get at Costco. If your clients can order the same photo wrapped books that Costco sells, why would they want to pay you big money for the same thing? In this modern age of photography, this is a very important business point. Only stock and sell products that hold value for your clients. The day of making a living selling 8×10″ prints is over. It’s all about selling products with added value, that the client cannot replicate themselves.
I hope this helps you make some sound business decisions that help grow your business. Of course your mileage may vary, but check out these cool books by ProDPI, right here.]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/choosing-albums-studio/feed/ 0 Facebook Advertising Explained http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/facebook-advertising-explained/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/facebook-advertising-explained/#comments Wed, 26 Jan 2011 00:05:07 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1037 1. What should I show? Do you show your studio’s logo or an image? Show a compelling image. If your hope is to drive clicks, a great photo will catch a client’s eye. Then you can reel them in with the wording. Unless your logo is FAB-U-LOUS and has bright colors, it’s probably best to let a great image draw the eye.
2. What should I say? Facebook requires that you keep it simple, since few words are allowed. How about just promising what they’ll find on your site. “Beautiful images and pricing info online.” Right there in that simple statement you’re telling them two things. First, that they’ll see some gorgeous images online. Second, that you’ll answer their main question, “How much?”
3. What should I spend? Well, truthfully in the world of Pay-Per-Click, you get what you pay for. Provided that your campaign is targeted. You should probably budget anywhere from $30 – $150 per month for your Facebook campaign depending on your local market. The great thing is, you decide your monthly budget.
4. How should I target? One of the most powerful aspects of Facebook advertising is that you can target the ads by location, age, relationship status, gender, etc. For Example, for weddings, you can target 25-35 year-old women who are engaged living in your town. Pretty powerful stuff.
5. CPM or CPC? What does it mean? CPM is Cost-Per-Thousand (where M is the roman numeral for 1,000). This is the amount you pay each time your ad is displayed one thousand times. CPC is Cost-Per-Click. This is the amount you pay every time someone clicks your ad. This may ultimately be more valuable than just having your ad displayed. This is what we prefer.
Hopefully these five quick tips will help you make some more informed decisions about your Facebook ads, and help you tweak them to deliver the most performance.]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/facebook-advertising-explained/feed/ 0 New Company Preset! Folio Albums http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/folio-albums/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/folio-albums/#comments Tue, 25 Jan 2011 21:59:13 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1036 company presets page to start using the presets. ]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/folio-albums/feed/ 0 Free WPPI Tradeshow Passes! http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/free-wppi-tradeshow-passes-3/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/free-wppi-tradeshow-passes-3/#comments Mon, 24 Jan 2011 19:48:39 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1034 WPPI 2011 Free Tradeshow Pass]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/free-wppi-tradeshow-passes-3/feed/ 0 Growing your business? See Fundy’s recommended reading. http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/growing-business-fundys-recommended-reading/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/growing-business-fundys-recommended-reading/#comments Mon, 24 Jan 2011 00:20:04 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1030 ]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/growing-business-fundys-recommended-reading/feed/ 2 Personalized Online Training Video Available http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/personalized-online-training-video/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/personalized-online-training-video/#comments Sat, 22 Jan 2011 00:41:49 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1026 click here. Fundy
media
]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/personalized-online-training-video/feed/ 0 Featured Photographer – Michael Corsentino http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/featured-photographer-michael-corsentino/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/featured-photographer-michael-corsentino/#comments Wed, 19 Jan 2011 13:26:18 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1019 Micheal Corsentino has been a great friend over the years. He’s an amazing photographer in the Napa valley, he does great work and is always open to lend a helping hand and share his knowledge of the craft and the business of photography. We’re excited to have him as a featured photographer.
 How did you get started in photography?
My father introduced to the magic and science of photography. He was a serious amateur  photographer and gave me my first camera, a polaroid, when I was 12 years old. He let me shoot with his 8×10 Deardorf view camera, taught me wet darkroom techniques and showed me the work of Ansel Adams, Minor White, and many many others.
I was hooked and fell hard for photography, soon I built a teeny tiny darkroom in my bedroom closet, followed shortly thereafter by a larger darkroom in another room my mom was nice enough to give up. During my high school years I photographed personal projects, built a home studio for fashion and portrait work, shot band photos, actor head shots, did the usual yearbook stuff and stringing for newspapers. I earned a degree in Photography from The State University at Purchase New York.
 My father passed six years ago and his greatest gift was opening my eyes to what’s become my life’s passion and work. Thank you Dad!
Who have been your influences in photography?
Richard Avedon, Annie Leibovitz, Mary Ellen Mark, Sylvia Plachy, Herb Ritz, Joey Lawrence, Mark Seliger, Daine Arbus, Edward Weston, Jan Groover, Ansel Adams, Joe McNally, Jessica Claire, Kevin Kubota, Becker, Erika Gerdemark, Sal Cincotta, Jennifer Skog, Anna Kupperburg
How would you define your style of photography?
 I would describe my style as a mixture of the following: dramatic, edgy, stylish, contemporary, editorial, fashionable & fun.
What is one thing that has helped you grow your business?
 Understanding the mechanics of seo and how structure your website, blog and blog posts so people can find you.
What is one thing that has helped you grow as an artist?
 Musicians have an expression about keeping their ears up, meaning they’re always listening and reacting to the musicians they’re playing with. I think what’s helped me most is approaching my photography in the same way. I always try to keep my eyes up (or open) and strive to see things in new and exciting ways. Viewing my visual word with childlike excitement makes me a better image maker.
What is one failure that helped you grow as a business person/artist?
 The failure to implement production outsourcing sooner definitely set limits on the growth of my business. I can’t stress enough what a positive impact outsourcing has had. It’s allowed me to really play to my strengths and spend my time both personally and professionally more productively.
What is one piece of advice that you would give to a person that is in the first few years of their photography business?
 Focus on building your business skill set as much as, if not more than, your image making skill set. Create a solid business plan or road map of where you want your business to go and how you plan to get there. Set goals and work daily toward achieving them.
 Check out more of Michael’s work here: www.michaelcorsentino.com
You can see his brand new Style Book and DVD tutorial set for Kubota Image tools here. He has some great workshops scheduled this year, however I’m particularly excited about a 4 city Australian workshop tour happening in August. Stay tuned for details ;-) ]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/featured-photographer-michael-corsentino/feed/ 1 SEO Tips for the Professional Photographer http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/seo-tips-professional-photographer/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/seo-tips-professional-photographer/#comments Sat, 15 Jan 2011 18:00:21 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1017 For Fundy Software, SEO is king. We always bounce between number one and number two on Google for Album Design Software and we are number one for Professional Album Design Software. When we do a new blog post, our key words are always number one on Google for at least a month. When we did our review of ProDPI’s Bamboo Mounts, we had the number one spot on Google for Bamboo Mounts, over Amazon.com. Needless to say, we’ve been working on our SEO for years and without it, our business would not be where it is today. Here is a fantastic blog post on SEO by the author of “Photography Web Marketing Guide,” Zach Prez.

The Ticket to Better Search Rankings, and Getting Phone Calls

 Search engine rankings change a photographer business overnight (at least it seems like overnight). One day your site’s invisible to search engines and suddenly you’re BFF with Google. This post talks about how to make your site an overnight success with some simple search engine optimization (SEO) suggestions. You can also signup for my free web marketing email class to learn easy steps to grow your online photography business.

Search Engine Success

 Let’s begin with how a page ends up in the top 10 for a specific search on Google. A user searches a broad phrase like “Portland wedding photographer” or specific one such as “Who is the best wedding photographer for the Hyatt in Portland?” Google then tries to find the best page that fits the search criteria. It matches pages to the search phrase by looking in the webpage title and URL first because those two things will best explain the topic of the page. Then it looks quickly at images and page text. A search engine will probably find hundreds or thousands of pages about a broad phrase, and perhaps only dozens of pages talking about a specific phrase. Hopefully you see that your chances of ranking improve the more pages you have, and the more specific those pages are written.
Tip #1 to ranking well – think about a specific phrase a user might type (Who is the best wedding photographer for the Hyatt in Portland?) and create/edit a page around that subject. For example you could create a blog post with the title “Best Hyatt Wedding Photos for Portland’s Prez Couple” and URL of yoursite.com/weddings/best-hyatt-photos-portland/. Do you see how we know exactly what that blog post is about from the title and URL before even looking at the post? Google knows too, and so do users who will quickly click your link if they’re looking for Hyatt photos.
 Big phrase or small, Google usually finds a lot of results for any search. How does it know which page to rank first? You may be surprised that keywords (the title, URL, page text, images, etc) only account for about 15% of the ranking process. The rest is a popularity contest and everyone wants to be Lady Gaga. Did you know Lady Gaga has the most Twitter followers with over 7 million? Anyone can instantly tell she is popular by the number of connections she has. Google can tell when a website is popular by its number of connections (links). When 100 other websites point to yours, Google knows that the “Internet” is recommending your site and therefore it is popular. Popular sites (those with a lot of inbound links) rank well because search engines understand that those are the sites people want to see.
 Tip #2 to ranking well – generate links to your website from as many quality sources as possible. Creative ways to get links include:
•Write an article for a friend’s blog (7 tips to shooting hotel weddings) and use the “About the author” biography to link to your site
•Create a signature in online forums so that every post you make in the forum carries a signature link to your website
•Offer a testimonial to another website and ask that they link it to you
• Offer professional photos to someone’s website and ask them to credit your work with a link
• Do an interview or contest for another website – these always link back Now you know how to rank a photography website so you can turn that traffic into dollars. Get More Phone Calls
Revenue is the ultimate goal of SEO and even a successfully ranked site does not always generate new business. To build revenue a website needs to impress a potential client with quality content and get them to buy something (a photo session). Your website should A) impress and B) get a user to buy by contacting you.
Most websites create many distractions to fill the space. Distractions don’t impress, and don’t lead to new business. Take a look at your website or blog and answer the following questions.
● Does your webpage impress by showcasing your talent? Quality photos, testimonials, awards and experience all help to impress.
● Does your webpage encourage users to hire you, contact you, or schedule an appointment?
● Does your webpage include things that distract? Links to other websites, lists of keyword tags, a feed of nonsense Twitter discussions, and calendars fall into this category and should be removed.
 If your homepage aligns with the above objectives – great work! Take it to the next level by optimizing subpages and blog posts to do the same. Keep in mind that a page about “Hyatt Portland weddings” is probably not your homepage. When it ranks well, that blog post or gallery page will be the starting point for a potential client and quite possibly the only page he or she looks at. Well ranked pages also need to showcase beautiful images, testimonials, contact information, and links to your best work.
 Summary to Great SEO and Getting Phone Calls
 Look at each page as a starting point for new business. The page should be written so it can be found by search starting with the title and URL. Showcase your best work and support with reasons why a potential client would want to hire you, including testimonials, awards, and text about your experience. Offer clear contact information with benefits for contacting you now. Simple offers like “Call for a stress-free consultation” or “Now booking July weddings, call now” give users a reason to act.
 About Zach Prez
 I’m a dad and social cyclist who loves to talk marketing over a cup of Lipton tea. I wrote Photography Web Marketing Guide to help photographers get more clients with photography websites.
 At only $29, you’re going to make your money back with your first booking. It’s a no brainer.]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/seo-tips-professional-photographer/feed/ 1 Two more album company presets! http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/album-company-presets-2/ http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/album-company-presets-2/#comments Sat, 15 Jan 2011 01:23:28 +0000 "Fundy" http://www.fundysos.com/?p=1013
To see all of the album companies we support directly, click here.]]> http://www.fundysos.com/2011/01/album-company-presets-2/feed/ 0