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The plastic bag will not fully inflate, although oxygen is flowing. Secure your own mask first before helping others.“

Capital

When it comes to business, there are two types of capital. There is economic capital and human capital.

Economic capital refers to stock, equipment and structures. If you’re a photographer, this includes cameras, lenses, studio, props, etc.

Human capital is less tangible. The most important type of human capital is education. And this type of capital is tied to you.

It’s also the one thing no one can take away. Thieves can steal cameras. Landlords can refuse to renew leases. But your knowledge will always remain … unless you have amnesia, then that’s no fun.

Increase Capital to Increase Value

While it is important to invest into new gear, remember to invest in yourself.

Do not limit your education to just exercising your craft (e.g., photography, cinematography, floral designs, etc.). Expand into different sectors that are parallel to your business.

For example, marketing is one aspect. The fact that you’re reading this blog helps, but there are other resources. Venture into business law. One fun and equally tedious topic I enjoy is accounting. Management of funds, profit maximization, tax deductions and long-term financial planning are some topics.

All in all, in a competitive world, there is much more than perfecting the output we create (e.g., photos, videos, designs, etc.). In the end, we’re still entrepreneurs.

Have a good weekend,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. Remember that investing in yourself involves relaxation. A cup of tea or coffee generally does it for me.

What’s one way you enjoy relaxing? Comment below!

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To me, these updates are common. To her, these updates come across completely different.

• 5:00AM “Whew. Just finished editing three weddings.”
• 4:00AM “Time for bed.”
• 1:00AM “My feet are exhausted, but what a wedding!”

I understand that we occasionally stay up late working. As a result, we sometimes say crazy things because it’s a crazy hour. Especially since Facebook is the only thing that is still awake, we like to share our thoughts on the interweb.

What we don’t realize is that there are many people reading and caring about this stuff … in a different way.

While being busy is worth adulation, when has it become a badge of honor?

In February 2013, I was invited to speak at the Dutch Wedding Congress. During that time, Mary Marantz, another speaker, raised this concern.

Busy as a Badge of Honor

I’m not trying to be the Facebook or Twitter police. However, these are some observations that I made. Always remember to put yourselves in the shoes of your followers and think about the impressions you leave, which may affect your business.

I sort of get the reasons why being busy is worth bragging. It means that you’re all booked up! In a way, it can be interpreted as a powerful social proof.

Conversely, it can show that you have poor management of time, even though you may be a time management guru. Unfortunately, that’s all that people can interpret your character on.

When has being busy until 5AM a good thing? Personally, I like to sleep at a decent time. The only reason why I would stay up late is because I wanted to watch cute cat videos on Youtube.

Related Article: 4 Steps to Make More Money and Have More Time

I have a good feeling that these types of posts are meant for industry peers. However, since most artists befriend their clients, we must be vigilant. If you keep a clear separation of personal and business updates, then none of this applies to you. I just so happen to know many who convolute the two spheres.

Imagine that I were a bride with a wedding on Sunday. How do you think I would feel if the photographer bragged about how late he / she stayed up to shoot and backup Saturday’s wedding?

7:30AM
Got four hours of sleep. Time to shoot wedding #2. Coffee is my friend!

Don’t boast about this.

In the end, it’s okay to be busy. Just do so in the proper time. Most importantly, be efficient during that work allotment.

I know that this might come across as common sense, but every now and then, something slips and it has repercussions. This is just a friendly reminder.

Sleeping at a decent hour,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. If any European wedding creatives want to attend the Dutch Wedding Congress in Amsterdam, I believe that they’re going to announce registration for 2014 soon.

P.P.S. Lee shared a delightful email about my psychology behind pricing e-book.

A fun little game my fiancée likes to play with me is testing my loyalty to brands. For example, one of her favorite questions is whether I would work for Monsanto (the evil GMO / pesticide food company) for $1M … or $1.1 M … and so forth until I break or she gives up.

Similar to Julie, competitive companies try to break your brand loyalty all of the time. A coupon from a competing business is an example. This is the same for the creative world – photographers, cinematographers, floral designers, etc.

Let me break it down using burgers since I hope everyone could relate to grilled beef or veggie patties.

The 4 Degrees of Brand Loyalty

1. Brand Recognition

Imagine pulling over at a truck stop late at night. There are only two restaurants open – McDonald’s and ABC’s Kitchen. Where will you eat?

Brand recognition is the lowest level of brand loyalty. You see it all of the time, so you recognize it.

You will use this brand under the following conditions.

1. Your preferred brand is unavailable
2. Alternatives are unfamiliar

Recognition comes from high awareness. High awareness usually requires high advertising dollars. Another method for creatives is to be everywhere on search engines and social media.

Helpful Link: 3 Ways to Remove Ulterior Motives

2. Brand Preference

You’re hungry … now. You could drive the extra 5 minutes to Five Guys, but your stomach discourages, so you take a substitute.

Brand preference is when you prefer one brand, but …

1. You will take substitute when more convenient
2. You are not willing to spend extra effort or money to get preferred brand

Have you lost clients because it was inconvenient to see you or to pay the little extra for better services?

Helpful Link: How to Handle Discounters

3. Brand Insistence

Have you or your kids ever insisted on something? “I don’t care about X. I want Y!”

This is the least common type of brand loyalty because it requires utter devotion.

1. You insist on having this brand
2. You would rather not have something than to get a substitute

This is one of the highest levels of loyalty or disloyalty. Becker exemplified love and distaste for brands all in one comment.

Helpful Link: The Secret to Selling Like Don Draper

4. Brand Evangelism

The highest level of loyalty comes when you love a brand so much that you will become their talking cheerleader.

You, as an evangelist, will do the following.

1. You will jump through hoops of fire to convince your peers that your favored brand is the best
2. You will happily do Step 1 for free

Helpful Link: Using the Power of Labels and Titles

Conclusion

Companies will always use ways to coax prospects to become clients – discounts, membership, perks, etc. In fact, you will utilize these tools as well.

1. It starts with high recognition. You could achieve this with ubiquitous presence on search engines and social media.

2. Then you build value with barriers to entry.

Luxury is about being easily accessible, but not easily attainable.

3. Next, you under promise and over deliver. Turn those existing clients into repeated customers.

4. When these repeated customers are overly happy, they will eventually become evangelists. And they will sing your praises.

Your veggie burger loving marketer,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. What is one brand that you insist on having (#3) over any substitute in the world? Comment below!

P.P.S. If you need something to read with your latte, Cory has some suggestions – FOUND (SEO) and Psychology behind Pricing.

P.P.P.S. Check out my last week’s adventure at New York’s 2013 Bridal Fashion Week!

Designers include Marchesa, Vera Wang, Reem Acra, Rivini, Ines Di Santo, Monique Lhuillier, Yumi Katsura, Kenneth Pool and more.

History Channel juxtaposed history into the present in, “Know Where You Stand.”

Normandy

Berlin Wall

Hitler at Eiffel Tower, Paris

Hindenburg

In the past, if you shared a photo on Facebook, it would receive the highest exposure rate. The reason was probably because Facebook wanted to be the preferred social media outlet for sharing pictures.

Now that we all rely on Facebook, the website changed its EdgeRank to show less of your work.

You might have noticed that since last year. This happend roughly the same time when Facebook went public and needed to make more money. Therefore, by reducing exposure of photos, you will be forced to Promote (advertise) your Posts.

Check out the stats below for my Page of 10,400 Likes – this number is important because it will be used to calculate the effectiveness of the different types of posts. The estimates are considerably accurate since I have access to a number of Facebook Pages.

Photo With Text Post –
20% Exposure Rate

As mentioned earlier, in the past, users were encouraged to upload photos. It is aesthetically stunning and takes up a lot of visual real estate in a newsfeed. Plus, you can add a link (e.g., to your website).

For example, when I wanted to remind fans of my Platform Presentation for WPPI 2013, I had three options on this social media platform – photo, link or plain text. Observe differences below.

With 45 Likes, it only reached roughly 20% of my fans. In the photo below, with twice as many Likes, it only increased its viewership by a few hundred. My point is that photos don’t have the same traction as in the past.

Despite its lower viewership, photos have one advantage. If the image is striking enough to go viral, the exposure can be indefinite. Below is an example of noticeably more viewers based on shares by readers.

Link With Text Post –
30% Exposure Rate

Depending on the value of the content, link posts receive roughly 30% exposure rate. It adds a thumbnail photo and meta information (e.g., title, first paragraph) from the post.

A common issue with link posts is that users who share the link get to pick the thumbnail. If your post contains multiple images, then there can be an inconsistency. To circumvent this dilemma, WordPress users can install this plugin, which lets you select which photo you want used.

Text Post –
45% Exposure Rate

Text posts are the least visually appealing and cannot contain a call to action hyperlink. However, I have observed that they receive the highest exposure, even if they have minimal Likes and no Shares.

So, why would you use a text post if it neither drives traffic to your site nor allows for cool photos?

If you have a message or announcement to make that could go without a photo or link, then use a text post. It will reach the most people without having to advertise. For example, to thank attendees for my WPPI class, I used plain text.

Takeaways

Whether you use a photo, link or plain text post, keep in mind that you should stay within seven lines of text. Otherwise, the post will be truncated with an elipsis.

Key Points:

• Use a photo if that is the only way to express your message, it has potential for virality and you like a pretty Facebook Page
• Use a link if it has valuable content and you want to drive to your site
• Use plain text if the message can be conveyed without visual aid or a link

All of this is subject to change, which is why it is critical that you bulletproof your social media efforts. What happens if you create a loyal following on Facebook and the platform goes down the drain?

Hope you enjoyed the insight,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. I want to share an awesome email from Gary Smith who made some simple changes on his site using SEO (search engine optimization).

P.P.S. Over the weekend, I went kayaking with some friends. It was a splash! Get it? Get it? Good.