Today, professional photography is very competitive—everyone has a camera at their disposal. So, I have to create images that are more than just ordinary. They have to be DYNAMIC! One of my challenges however, was letting go of the mindset that I was the “can-shoot-everything” photographer. You know, the photographer that shoots weddings, baby photos, events, senior portraits, sports photos, and . . .
Yet, I realized that all of the top professional photographers only specialize in one or two areas of photography, and I should do likewise. That’s when I took a closer look into headshot photography. When I learned just how important headshots are, I decided to educate myself as much as I could about this genre. That investigation blossomed into a passion and led me to rebrand my business, invest in a website designer and content writer, and re-launch my business.
Refocusing and re-launching was the best decision I could have made. Now, as a photographer that truly understands the nuances of a dynamic headshot, I help my clients see what I see. The results are incredibly inspiring. When people see themselves in an image like they’ve never seen themselves before, their reaction further motivates me to become better at my craft. Telling clients that their headshot should be dynamic, communicate a message, and stir an emotion when viewed is one thing, but during the session, when they see it for themselves, there’s a change in their persona, and then, eureka! It all makes sense!
Now that I have a stellar product, I find that marketing it is my biggest challenge. What good is a dynamic product when no one knows about it? As a small business on a really tight, almost non-existent, marketing budget, I’ve had to find creative ways to market my business. That’s where LinkedIn and ProFinder come in.
As it turns out, LinkedIn is an essential marketing tool for my small business. I log in to LinkedIn almost daily. When I receive notifications of people achieving career milestones, I often send them personalized congratulatory messages designed to get them to think about updating their headshots. Publishing posts and sharing updates on LinkedIn is improving my visibility and generating leads. I want to expand my LinkedIn experience to include Sales Navigator to help me be even more precise in targeting leads that become actual clients.
LinkedIn has become so important in today’s social media landscape that my sales strategy now includes offering headshots sized specifically for clients’ profiles. LinkedIn is filled with people with impressive accomplishments—just look their profiles. They just need a dynamic headshot that communicates the right message to get them noticed. My ultimate goal is to redefine what a professional headshot looks like on LinkedIn. Over the next year, I plan to increase my visibility on LinkedIn and create the right messaging on ProFinder to really capture my potential clients’ attention. LinkedIn and ProFinder are excellent marketing tools for small businesses like mine, Lamonte G Photography.