Author Archive
Open doors with your LinkedIn Key
Posted: May 21st, 2013
[by Rosh Sillars] One of the most underused tools in social media is the LinkedIn search box. If you want to know who the decision maker is at a company, type the company name in the search box. LinkedIn lists employees and titles that have a LinkedIn account. This information alone has opened many doors [...]
Pick You
Posted: May 10th, 2013
[By Rosh Sillars] Seth Godin famously advises: Don’t wait for others to pick you. This is certainly good advice when it comes to the publishing industry. As someone who has published books via traditional publishers, I’m not fearful of publishing on my own. You shouldn’t be either. Yes, there are advantages, such as distribution channels [...]
The New SEO
Posted: April 2nd, 2013
[By Rosh Sillars] Effective Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, continues to change virtually daily. As such, many formerly tried-and-true practices simply don’t work, anymore. This is especially true after the adjustments Google made last year to its algorithm. As a result, blog and website owners now find themselves scrambling to regain their rankings, many unsure [...]
What is Your Combination?
Posted: March 19th, 2013
[by Rosh Sillars] My big idea is called the Combination Code. The Internet, social media and search engines have lowered the barrier of entry to many industries, including photography. In spite of the added competition to the market, many photographers still flourish. One way photographers continue to succeed, based on my observation, is to employ [...]
How to Find Prospects Online
Posted: February 7th, 2013
[by Rosh Sillars] The Internet is full of opportunity. When looking for prospects, I recommend using multiple online tools. The first step is to set up Google alerts for activity in your town or region. What you set your alerts for depends on the type of photography you create. For example, an architecture photographer sets [...]
Put the Risk on You
Posted: November 27th, 2012
[by Rosh Sillars] The best risk you can take is for your clients. Place the risk on you. Make the decision to hire you much easier. Clients sometimes burn photographers, so photographers create new policies to prevent it from happening again. This is common in all business and industries. I was in a gift shop [...]
Is Instagram for Real Photographers?
Posted: July 25th, 2012
[by Rosh Sillars] I love Instagram. There, I said it and I’m not ashamed. Instagram is a smart phone application people use to have fun with their photographs and to see interesting images from around the world. I like Instagram not for the crazy filters, but for the pure joy of photography. Photographing the world [...]
Free Marketing Insights
Posted: May 17th, 2012
[by Rosh Sillars] Google has an excellent resource to help support your business called http://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/insights. It contains insights, trends, research and statistics from Google and recommended resources photographers can use for marketing. Rosh Sillars is the author of www.onehourphotographer.com
Biography Videos
Posted: March 29th, 2012
[by Rosh Sillars] A biography video is a great resource for prospects and to share in the social media. A biography video should be less than a minute long and should contain more than your portfolio. Make sure you create a personality clip in which you describe your work, experiences and philosophy. Behind-the-scenes footage is [...]
Opportunities Can Come From Anywhere
Posted: February 8th, 2012
[by Rosh Sillars] If you don’t track where leads are coming from, there is no way to know where to put future time, effort and money. Reviewing Google Analytics is an important part of tracking website traffic and understanding your Internet sales funnel. Tracking clicks from your latest e-mail campaign will help you become a [...]
Begin 2012 with Website Basics
Posted: January 4th, 2012
[by Rosh Sillars] 2012 will offer more choices than ever for your marketing dollar and time. Where do you want to spend it? The first place is your website, which is the core of your marketing efforts in the 21st century. Even if you use offline marketing, prospects still check you out online. What are [...]
Fifteen Blog Post Ideas
Posted: December 6th, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] As a photographer I’ve always wanted to share an insider’s view of who I am as a professional. Unfortunately, for many years there wasn’t a good way to go about it. Blogging had been around for a while before it hit me that I could use this tool to share more than [...]
Too Many Client-Directed Projects Make You Stale
Posted: November 2nd, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] Personal projects give you the freedom to think beyond the limitations of your client photography. Yes, digital has allowed us to experiment a little more while photographing on assignment. Unfortunately we can only use so much of our client’s valuable time for personal experiments and pushing the limits. Take time to pick [...]
Determination
Posted: August 30th, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] Determination is an important part of sales. You need to do what it takes to connect to and build quality relationships with decision makers. While sitting in my office, I overheard one of my sales representatives talking with a prospect. The prospect wondered how my sales rep found his number and knew [...]
Google and Your Social Media Reputation
Posted: June 22nd, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] An important part of social media is managing your brand. Your brand is your reputation. Google has a few features that will help you manage the reputation of your brand. The first thing you should do is open a Google alerts account or use the newly released Me on the Web section [...]
Photographer and ….
Posted: April 26th, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] My aha moment at SB3 hit me when I realized that industry changes have challenged photographers to use their creativity to adapt their skills and talents to other industries. Today, photographers hold their heads high and say, “I’m a photographer and a writer, a videographer, a designer, a teacher or a consultant.” [...]
What’s new in social media?
Posted: March 18th, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] What with all the noise on the Web, it can be tough to keep current with updates to social media platforms. Here are a few worthy of noting: Linkedin has updated its company search. Now you can search companies based on criteria such as location, how close companies are to your network, [...]
The Quickest Way to Find New Clients
Posted: February 8th, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] The best place to find new clients is through old clients. Pick up the phone and say hello. You have clients out there ripe with new opportunities. If you don’t know that, it’s because you haven’t followed up in a while. Never assume anything. Maybe your client was a one-time assignment, maybe [...]
Are Headlines Important?
Posted: February 2nd, 2011
[by Rosh Sillars] Great headlines draw people in to read your blog posts. Are your headlines interesting? Statement headlines such as “My new business portrait” are not attention grabbers. More enticing headlines include: “How to create great portraits”, “What do you think of this portrait?”, or “Six ways to photograph business people”. If you really [...]
Per Image Pricing for Events
Posted: November 23rd, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] I’m a big fan of per-image pricing. I use it most for events in the retail environment. This is especially true for the rare one or two corporate client weddings I photograph each year. I’ve discovered that people’s budgets are often bigger than what they reveal to me or even what they [...]
Editorial Photography is as Important as Ever
Posted: October 5th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] No matter how the future of journalism shakes out, the need to tell stories with photographs will always be a part of the picture. At some point, the traditional media we have known all our lives will cease to exist. In the future, companies will be their own media outlets, depending more [...]
Marketing on a Budget
Posted: August 30th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] If you don’t have money for marketing, the next best thing is investing your time. This is not a bad thing. Most photographers will tell you referrals are one of their best sources of business. Attend free and low-cost local events. Check the local listings for chamber of commerce, advertising club, and [...]
Social Media
Posted: July 26th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] Imagine it is 1995. You are sitting across from a prospect with your portfolio laid out. She flips through the pages of your book and stops at one of your beautiful images. “Wow!” she says. “This is an incredible photograph.” At this point, she might call a few people to her office [...]
The Best Way to Compete with Amateurs is… Don’t!
Posted: July 13th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] Trying to compete with someone whose purpose is to make a little extra money on the side without the overhead of a professional business is not realistic. It is a quick path to business failure. Technology has set the bar lower then ever for entering the field of photography as a hobby, [...]
Guide Them in for a Landing
Posted: June 10th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] Create special landing pages for your marketing activities. A landing page is designed to receive incoming advertising traffic and is generally not linked directly to the rest of your Web site. Make sure you install Google Analytics to help track landing page activity. Use these special Web pages for all your promotions. [...]
Keep Your Blog Safe
Posted: May 20th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] Someone hacked the New Media Photographer site last week. It was a high-level attack through the GoDaddy.com servers. These attacks have occurred in last six weeks to blogs and Web sites large and small. You might want to enlist a service to monitor your site such as sucuri.net . If you discover [...]
An Old Salesman’s Secret
Posted: April 6th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] Early in my career I worked at a furniture store to earn extra money. One day an older salesman came in to buy a chair. We began talking and before long I sensed that he had taken a liking to me. Naturally we talked sales. He asked me if I wanted to [...]
New Technology = New Opportunity
Posted: March 25th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] Using new technology, photographers can test drive and implement new business models. One such way is the selling stock or print images directly to buyers without meeting in person, the assistance of agents or agencies. Sites such as PhotoShelter offer great image display options and delivery systems that make it easy for [...]
Successful Marketing is Not About You, It’s About Them
Posted: March 4th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] The truth is your prospects really don’t care about your great photographs, your excellent service, or how long you have been in business. They want your photography to make them look good. They want to experience your excellent service. They want to see what exciting images you can create for them now. [...]
The Winning Path
Posted: February 23rd, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] People generally take the path of least resistance. Opportunities arise all the time, but we don’t always follow through on them. Think about the great opportunities you have missed. What were your excuses? Did you have too much on your plate already? A scheduling conflict? You simply forgot? Most likely the root [...]
Future Success
Posted: January 6th, 2010
[by Rosh Sillars] The last decade brought the standardization of digital photography, an increased interest in the craft and the commoditization of photographic images. Many of the bread-and-butter jobs that once fed our families are now gone. Let it go and don’t look back. Change is constant. Turn around and face the future. Technology, which [...]
Got Google Goggles?
Posted: December 15th, 2009
[by Rosh Sillars] For those still in doubt about the growing importance of social media, please consider the following ideas. Approximately 80 percent of people with Internet access use search engines to find or review products and services. Google, the No. 1 search engine, recently announced that social media activity would be displayed along with [...]
Good Data Supports Good Choices
Posted: November 24th, 2009
[by Rosh Sillars] Your opinion can cost you money. The colors you choose for your Web site, the words you use, and the images you select all pay a role in the success of your site. It is important to use good data to help you construct a Web site that attracts and retains your [...]
Routines Keep Me More Productive
Posted: November 18th, 2009
[by Rosh Sillars] If you are an independent photographer, routine may not be in your vocabulary. I enjoy my freedom. To me, the word routine conjures up images of restrictive cubicles, repetitive tasks and stressful commutes. But, in order to keep my life on target I employ what I call my mini-routine. It contains specific [...]
First Day at PPE
Posted: October 22nd, 2009
[by Rosh Sillars] Why am I so excited about Photo Plus Expo? While I’ve photographed many trade shows in my professional career, I have never attended a major photographic industry show. This is an opportunity to learn from some of the top people in our field and to see some of the latest equipment and [...]
Attracting Readers to Your Blog
Posted: October 8th, 2009
[By Rosh Sillars] Attracting new readers is a big part of the blogging game. Many people keep blogs for their own satisfaction. It’s a place to share their thoughts or show off their creative efforts. But deep down inside most bloggers want more readers and subscribers. They want their blogs to be successful. In order [...]
Developing a Social Media Plan
Posted: September 1st, 2009
Social media does not replace what already works in your marketing plan. It’s an addition. The key word is planning. Many people mistakenly approach social media like it’s direct marketing. They look for the ROI with every action. In the world of social media, ROI represents Return On Influence. It’s about becoming an expert and [...]
Free Isn’t New
Posted: August 25th, 2009
Does the concept of free economy mean anything to you? What if we replaced the word free with low-risk? Is the concept of low-risk economy easier to understand? One of the most powerful companies in the world, Google, offers its core services for free. There is no risk involved in Google. There is no risk [...]
I Don’t Have Time For Social Media!
Posted: June 23rd, 2009
The belief that social media is a waste of time is one of the biggest objections I hear when talking to people about the subject. Social media is a communication platform. A cell-phone is also a communication tool. I can assure you my teenager doesn’t use it very efficiently, but this doesn’t diminish the fact [...]
