Additionally, many social media mediums – such as Twitter – may not have metrics installed to monitor the effectiveness of a mention. Thus, links to blog posts or websites are [...]]]> In this day and age where life flickers in 140 characters or less, chances are no one is going to read your blog posts…or mine.

Additionally, many social media mediums – such as Twitter – may not have metrics installed to monitor the effectiveness of a mention. Thus, links to blog posts or websites are helpful. The following are some tips on making effective blog post titles!

1. Content is king – make sure that your content is catered for your target audience. Sometimes I write the content first, then come up with a catchy title afterward, but that’s not always suggested.

2. Solve a problem, give advice, provide value – if the post brings relevance to an issue faced by your readers, then it will be many more times compelling. A snappy title of such would start like “How To…”

3. Lists – this blog post title is an example, “8 Ways To Write Effective Blog Post Titles”. When there is a list, such as “Top 10 Ways To…” there is structure. No one is in for a surprise.

When readers find it an achievable goal, they can see the light at the end of the tunnel before even trekking down it. My previous blog post regarding “4 Reasons Why The Wedding Industry Is Changing” is another example.

4. Keep it simple and direct – get to the point with adequate information (avoid being flowery, poetic, creative or cryptic). For good examples, visit your local mall and see how stores get your attention in short spurts – “Entire Store 40% Off”

5. Make comparisons – readers always enjoy reading different perspectives on what the writer perceives as “better” or “best.” For example, my post on “Blogging vs. Twitter vs. Facebook”.

6. Do not oversell – if the content does not reflect the title (even if compelling), then readers are very likely to defect and potentially never to return, unsubscribe from a mailing list, unfollow on Twitter and unsubscribe from Facebook.

7. Personalize it – let your personal flair shine through (i.e.: Jane and Jack are Like Rabbits – Carrot Themed Wedding) rather than using conventional titles (i.e.: Wedding: Jane and Jack).

8. Powerful words (mostly adjectives) – use words such as secrets, free, easy, sexy, handy and etc. are always catchy for readers. Watch some late night infomercials!

Case Studies

I tested a variety of ways to write titles and monitored the percentage of people who open my email blasts. Whenever I use the aforementioned, I am almost certain that my open rate is average 15% higher…that’s a lot! In retrospect, I feel bad for some of my “sacrificed” posts that did not receive its due attention.

One that I highly recommend reading is my post on indelible impressions, “Girl in the Green Scarf“. If I rewrote it, it could have been titled something like “3 Ways to Make Sure Your Clients Think of You FIRST”, right?

Learn From Others

Sometimes, I subscribe to various companies via email – Anthropologie being one of them – because I like to see how they title their email blasts. If they compel me to open it, then they did a good job! I then break it down and try to execute it in my own work.

Another good source is Guy Kawasaki on Twitter. He posts about random news and uses provoking sentences to encourage further reading. Check out some of them below.

Thoughts?

I did not give many blog post title examples for photographers. I am a firm believer of proactive thinking because if you can think of it on your own, you will own the knowledge. However, a discussion via comments below is equally affirming. How will you use this knowledge?

Flying on a jet plane,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. Activia is evil. I ate some because it was featured on “Big Bang Theory” this week and it was such a terrible idea… My stomach is still rumbling as I compose this blog post on my plane to Denver. Do you see my dedication to Tofurious readers? )

Influx of inexpensive DSLRs will create waves of new photographers entering the professional industry. That coupled [...]]]> George Varanakis (WPPI and Rangefinder Executive Vice President) emailed me (along with many others I presume) to offer a 50-word thought on the state of the industry in the next five years. The following is what I submitted.

Influx of inexpensive DSLRs will create waves of new photographers entering the professional industry. That coupled with free social media platforms, discernment through strategic marketing is dire. Ergo, individuals who rely on conventional methods and believe that pay will be commensurate with experience will slowly (or quickly) be weeded out.

However, I want to expand on that.

The introduction of inexpensive DSLRs with video capabilities allow for the expansion of different markets and lowering of barriers to enter the professional industry. If done correctly, even Uncle Bob can be a true threat to your business. These are the issues at hand:

1. lowering of barriers – inexpensive DSLRs
2. free social media marketing
3. DSLRs with video capabilities
4. lack of business strategies and marketing tactics

Lowering Of Barriers

To be completely honest, I entered the photography business under the premise of earning a few extra bucks while I was a full-time student at UCLA. Before even owning a DSLR, I never even had a point-and-shoot, but the learning curve was drastically truncated with the instant feedback of LCDs.

Therefore with the lowering of costs, abundance of resources online for learning (or trial and error), becoming a professional photographer is rather easy. This goes the same for other businesses too – get yourself a nice printer and Microsoft Publisher and you are a invitations designer, right?

Free Advertisement

With the spawn of social media marketing, individuals can create online communities painlessly and reach out to their target audience through free platforms. Twitter and Facebook have proven to be the two most effective across the board.

SEO is another form of free tactical marketing. I was able to generate a strong enough online presence to dictate any price I wanted and at the quantity of weddings per year I desired. All for free.

Video

There are things that photos can do that videos can never compare. Equally, there are things that videos can do that photos can never compare.

The capture of movement and sound can stir emotions amongst its viewers. Now that DSLRs have that capability, clients surrender to the need for whatever is new and cool. In all candidness, it is new and it is cool. It’s called fusion.

The real question is whether or not you will be left behind if you do not learn how to use it. Here are some hints:

• YouTube surpassed Yahoo as the #2 used search engine in U.S.
• Even the iPod Nano has video capabilities

Lack Of Business Strategies

I’m working with a number of clients (veteran photographers and event producers) on building business strategies. I’m not at liberty to say who they are, but they are all facing similar issues:

• newcomers are coming in and beating them up with super low prices
• newcomers are more adept with digital technologies
• newcomers understand this “twitter and facebook business”
• newcomers are forcing them to lower prices
• they dislike newcomers
• they feel threatened by newcomers

Sound familiar? It should resonate with everyone – newcomers and veterans alike. Veterans shouldn’t need to fear the aforementioned; nor should newcomers do anything differently [for now] unless they are ready to move forward with their businesses.

We always hear about “sell yourself, not your pictures.” Yes, it’s actually true. That is the “what” factor. We know the “why” factor; or at least you should. The only thing missing is the “how” factor and that is where business strategies and marketing tactics come in.

Lowering your prices to compete does not make you that much more competitive. In fact, it probably hurts you more than it helps. There are many bootstrapped businesses lacking clarity and strategies. It doesn’t mean that lacking the two will not allow you to survive.

The truth is without having business clarity and strategies, all you can do is just survive. There is no progression. There is no goal. There is no end. According to him, this is called the “hula hoop paradox”.

Conclusion

I am in no way trying to belittle part-timers because, again, I was once there. I am in no way trying to ridicule veterans because I am technically part of the group now.

Business is business. Money is money. We do what we got to do.

However, there are ways to distinguish the different levels of experience and clearly promote our worth to our brides. My goal is coexistence.

Food for thought – if veterans feel threatened and lower prices in an attempt to compete, then this inevitably leads to the lowering of all prices because they sort of set the benchmark…across the board degradation of standards. Think about it – who can really say that I’m worth $2000 or I’m worth $8000? It’s subjective and all based on business strategies.

Where are you in all of this?

Do you feel threatened? Or empowered?

What if I were to share these strategies? Would you be interested?

I could be wrong with all of these speculations but this is usually the same scenario for all businesses (even outside of our little wedding bubble).

French fries,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. After a normal presidential address of the state of the industry, the media is allowed to ask questions. Do you have any?

While you are asleep, your online store front is always open – 24/7. How sweet is that!

Your blog is an extension of you. The goal is to elicit your personality and style through words. It sounds [...]]]> Now that you have a Facebook Fan Page, blog and Twitter account, what’s next?

Blogging

While you are asleep, your online store front is always open – 24/7. How sweet is that!

Your blog is an extension of you. The goal is to elicit your personality and style through words. It sounds easier said than done. It’s like the difference between a best-selling novel versus a dusty archived book. Here are some effective blogging techniques.

A blog also allows you to expound on ideas and encourage feedback through comments. Especially if you are a wedding vendor, comments is a form of social proof that can give brides more assurance in quality.

Twitter

Twitter is a fantastic way to drive traffic to your blog. It is a form of free exposure. However, as time goes on (and you might have realized this too), Twitter will lose value because of the constant noise. Let’s be honest, who reads every tweet anyway?

Here are a few rules that I bear in mind about Twitter:

1. It’s not supposed to be a chat room for friends, so if someone doesn’t follow you it’s not because they’re not your friend – don’t take it personally
2. It’s not to promote yourself [only], so retweet others and share cool finds
3. It’s to access excerpts of information such as news – linked to elaborated versions (blog posts)
4. It’s a good way to promote transparency – I like you for you and am interested in what you’re up to

There is a lot more that goes on with Twitter – such as how to track effectiveness of tweets and etc. – but chew on the aforementioned for now. I can elaborate in other posts.

Facebook

I find Facebook one of the most powerful social networking platforms. I feel that if you’re trying to target brides, then Facebook trumps Twitter many folds.

• Facebook is a news feed that allows for pictures, videos and notifications. Twitter is just a news feed.
• Facebook allows for comments and “like” buttons that notify all users on the same stream. Twitter only allows for @replies @mentions.
• Facebook allows for long notes or ideas. Twitter allows for 140 characters (which arguably is advantageous too to keep things concise).
• Facebook allows for large photo galleries. Twitter does not.
• Facebook allows for tagging of people in images and text. Twitter does not.

There is a whole slew of other reasons, but the last one is the one I like the most. Here’s my workflow –

1. Befriend bride / groom on Facebook
2. Shoot engagement / wedding (put up same day edit)
3. Upload entire SDE gallery and tag them
4. Friends and wedding party will tag themselves
5. Add them as friends – since they’re all about the same age, they’re automatically potential clients
6. Create dialogue and become real friends; don’t stay behind an online wall
7. Shoot more weddings

Like I mentioned above, I don’t read all of the tweets in my feed. However, I never miss a notification on Facebook because it lingers there. Therefore if you tag clients [and their friends offer positive comments (social proof)], it never goes unnoticed.

Conclusion

I might have missed other valuable reasons for social media of which I encourage you to share Sharing is caring! How do you all use social media? And does everything I said make sense? Don’t be shy to say that I don’t.

Love you all xoxoxooxooxooxoooox,

Lawrence Chan

P.S. So if you liked the article and want to share it click – Twitter / Facebook.

P.P.S. I want to give a shout out to some dear friends of mine – Bob and Dawn Davis. They are hosting two workshops on May 6-7 in San Francisco AND May 13-14 in Orange County.

Bob is a master of light (Canon’s Explorer of Light) and Dawn is a phenomenal album designer and business manager. Learn from them as I have (even through casual coffee meets).

P.P.P.S. I just got the Jack LaLanne Power Juicer Deluxe and wow! Going to pee like a race horse. Sub-P.S.this is a form of transparency Now you know that I love fresh juice!

P.P.P.P.S.

As you might know, I am leaving for Europe for six weeks. If it piques your interest, read the following article for all of the countries I am visiting! I will try to tweet / post here and there, but know that I undergo great lengths to find a cyber cafe to [...]]]> Hello everyone,

As you might know, I am leaving for Europe for six weeks. If it piques your interest, read the following article for all of the countries I am visiting! I will try to tweet / post here and there, but know that I undergo great lengths to find a cyber cafe to say “hello!”

subscribe | follow @tofurious

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Did you know that Tofurious started a WordPress blog in February 2009?

I am not saying that I am an expert blogger, but I’ve learned a thing or two over the years. And most of my knowledge was acquired by observing successful bloggers (especially those within our own photography industry). So the first step toward becoming an effective blogger is to…

Observe Successful Bloggers

I use the word “successful” loosely, but what I really mean is “effective” [bloggers]. Just like photography, we study images that “work” and with time create our own styles. I will be listing a number of blogs that I have learned from, but it does not limit them to only that trait.

Interview Someone

When I think of interviews, I immediately think of Jules Bianchi’s Cafe; interviews by her lovely sister Joy – @joybianchibrown. Using the informality of coffee breaks, Jules interviews various industry leaders at Jules Cafe.

What does this establish?

• It creates a relationship between the interviewer and interviewee
• The interviewee will promote said interview, thus promoting the interviewer
• Creates community

This is a good way for both parties to promote each other. Additionally, the interview will provide good content for readers, which is sort of the point. So…try to get interviewed, or interview someone (like me)! No one has interviewed me yet and it makes me sad.

Twitter

If you do not have twitter, go to www.twitter.com and register for an account. After that, follow @tofurious (that’s me) hehe!

Zack Arias @zarias recently wrote an interesting article about Twitter and “Six Degrees” of separation.

…helped the photography industry build community. Both virtual and real. Twitter is a key to my marketing plans over the next year but beyond that, it keeps me in touch with so many people that I would normally fall out of touch with due to time or distance. Not to mention how many new friends I have thanks to social networking.

In a nutshell, Twitter allows for a number of things, but not limited to what’s listed below:

• Follow activities of people through an instant feed of 140 characters
• You can connect with others
• Others can connect with you
• Spreading of ideas through #, RT, etc.

Less Is More

Jose Villa is the epitome of “less.” I was given the great pleasure of designing his new blog (not public yet) recently and his ideas truly inspired me. As a search engine specialist, I kept pushing for certain elements for his blog, but Jose dimissed them all. And I admire him for that.

So how does this apply to us photographers? Vu Bui once told me over breakfast that he discourages people to post more than 10 images on their blogs.

Vu preached that everyone has the same images over and over again. So rather than creating the same sink hole of bandwidth-sucking blog posts, post only 10 images that would knock the socks off of viewers. After that, post your 100+ images in a slideshow or something.

Jose uses minimalism in his photography artwork. He is, after all, one of the “Top 10 Wedding Photographers” in the world, so he is doing something right.

Transparency

I once asked Aaron Dieppa about something in his personal life, which I read on his website. “It’s something private, but it’s cool that you shared it.”

“Yeah, I believe in transparency. I want my clients to know me for me,” responded Aaron.

I had this similar conversation with [B]ecker and his poker aspirations. He and Jessica Claire are the only two people I know that post publicly their love for poker on their business websites.

Does this help / harm them? It’s relative. However, I believe that it helps them more than anything. By posting about one’s personal life, viewers can get to know the blogger on a personal level.

How does this apply to photographers? Brides have booked me [and the aforementioned] to shoot various weddings without even meeting in person. Great, isn’t it? Brides do this because they already have this informal / personal relationship with us. Before they even email or call us, they already have a good feeling how we operate as professionals and as regular individuals.

Take away the occupational titles, we are just humans. And humans like
to connect with other humans. We build bridges through common grounds, so express them!

Consistency

Have you ever read a blog post by Jasmine Star? She is one of the most eloquent writers I know [of]. (I hope to change “know of” to just “know” because I hear she is a fabulous person). All of Jasmine’s articles are like tiny excerpts of her clients’s lives.

Rather than telling a story only with pictures, Jasmine precedes it with a text-based story. And she consistently delivers every time!

So how does this apply? If you are consistent with a certain style, readers will expect it over time. However, I am not saying that you should not try new things. Just imagine cooking… Always bake your delicious cookies at the same temperature, but try throwing in raisins or chocolate chips to spice things up!

Cheers,

Lawrence

P.S. Transparency: I tried getting a pedicure for the first time on Wednesday. I liked it! I even got my eyebrows waxed. I liked that too! I think I will be visiting this one salon quite often now. By chance, you might bump into me

Honey Nail Spa – they ROCK

626-844-7299

563 S. Lake Avenue
Pasadena, CA 91101

Today I want to share an article that I read on Economist published on February 12, 2009, so it is rather recent.  The article, “Politicians on Twitter – Tweeting The People” expounds on concepts that parallel my philosophy for healthy and successful communication. 

For those who are not familiar with Twitter, [...]]]> Hello,

Today I want to share an article that I read on Economist published on February 12, 2009, so it is rather recent.  The article, “Politicians on Twitter – Tweeting The People” expounds on concepts that parallel my philosophy for healthy and successful communication. 

For those who are not familiar with Twitter, it is a micro-blogging system that enables users to make small posts (or tweets). As humans, we are normally inclined to do two things – be curious about others and go commune with people. Why? We are social beings. Twitter allows individuals to make small posts about their lives – such as “I am going to have lunch with @Dfurious at Souplantation” – and followers (people who subscribe to another person’s posts) can respond to it informally – such as “Oh that’s my favorite restaurant!” or something to that effect.

Why do you think Starbucks is so successful? Before Starbucks, where would people go to commune? The grocery store? I think not. Starbucks allows for individuals to meet with friends and peers on a common ground for a common purpose – be it just to catch up. Grabbing lunch or dinner with an individual commits a lot of time whereas coffee / tea (or other beverage stations) allow for an informal meeting, which yields room for immediate departure if need be.

This informal form of communication is like a “nudge/poke” feature on Facebook. It allows the other party to know that you exist and are interested in the events in his/her life. Now for a real life example.

The aforementioned article discussed how politicians use Twitter to voice their opinions on matters in real-time. Quoting the first paragraph,

ON A recent evening John Culberson, a Republican congressman from Texas, used the micro-blogging service Twitter to field a dozen comments from around the country. He told a panicked man in Wisconsin not to be too frightened about the economic crisis: America would pull through. He told another follower that he wanted public hearings on the stimulus package, but that Nancy Pelosi was standing in the way. A man from Arizona wanted to know: PC or Mac? PC, said Mr Culberson; he missed his Mac, but the federal government plumps for Windows.

Culberson replies to his followers even on simple questions like – PC or Mac? What does this accomplish one might ask? Right off the bat, Culberson established two things – a connection with this follower and shows that Culberson is human. Strip away the titles, strip away the ranks, Culberson and myself and you and you and you and you are all regular people. We enjoy the company of others and fancy when the company replies back to our questions or concerns. It is not a one-directional conversation, or else it would not be – by definition – a conversation. Culberson changed the paradigm of political campaigning!

On the other hand, another politician by the name of “Mrs McCaskill…lags behind people like Mr Culberson, who use their Twitter accounts to talk to people.” McCaskill has over 4000 followers and she only follows herself. Considering the premise discussed earlier, I agree with Economists. I understand that there are situations where replying to everyone is impossible, but at least make an attempt to.

All in all, Twitter allows individuals to communicate with others frequently on an informal basis, which at times is more effective than a single formal one. Even more effective communication is when one responds to replies. I hope you found this article useful. Let me know via commenting or retweeting (RT)!

Lawrence Chan – follow me on twitter