Social media is moving, growing and changing in ways that are more exciting than ever and the time to jump on board- is now. Facebook, at one time the social media standard, has become a bit of a pariah- at least in the eyes of most small business owners. With their ever-changing algorithms and their pay to play mentality, unless you have a large marketing budget to spend on boosting every post you’d like eyeballs on, this marketing path is becoming increasingly desolate. Do I still have and use Facebook? Yes. But not for marketing my photography business the way I used to. For now, I am still posting and sharing to Facebook, but it’s limited. I am choosing to spend my time, energy and efforts elsewhere.
With so many innovative apps and social media platforms launching on a daily basis, it’s time to think outside the box and start making noise in new ways.
PERISCOPE
I heard about Periscope a few weeks ago from Tina Jay, one of my awesome Mentoring clients. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, it’s a Twitter-based app that allows you to stream live video through your smartphone. What? Live streaming for FREE? Yes. My interest and curiosity was piqued. I was quick to jump in secure my name on this platform, as I have a feeling it is going to explode in brilliant ways! Periscope is the ultimate behind-the-scenes opportunity, because it isn’t about having a production team with a perfectly edited video to share- it’s about being real, connecting with your followers and giving them a glimpse into your world. Whether that be for five hours or five minutes.
I spent some time over the weekend checking out how people are currently using Periscope. What I saw was pretty amazing. From Jasmine Star broadcasting live from a wedding as she photographed the details of a ceremony setup to seeing an artist take requests as she sketched and painted via Photoshop on the fly- I watched with excitement. Because it was happening, right then, at that very moment. And that’s cutting edge marketing.
If you are a user of Periscope, I would LOVE to connect with you! Follow me (hollitrue) and I will follow you back! I have so many ideas and plans in mind and I can’t wait to share them with all of you!
SNAPCHAT
Obviously, Snapchat has been around for several years now, but it’s only recently become an innovative way to market and promote your photography business. I was resistant to join in on the Snapchatter, but, after a conversation with my dear friend, Latasha Haynes, of Ike & Tash, she opened my eyes and dissolved my concerns. Of course, I’ve heard the horror stories of Snapchat, which was the direct result of my hesitation. However, for a small business, Snapchat is everything.
For those of you out there who have Instagram (which should be all of you!), you know that blasting an IG feed with TONS of pictures, all at once, is a bad idea, as it tends to warrant several unfollows. But you’re excited, and you want to share your excitement with the world, as you should, but it just isn’t best suited for Instagram. With Snapchat, you can post as many pictures as you want to your Story, without bombing anyone’s feed. Your images will be posted to your Story for 24 hours and anyone who wants to see them, can. If they choose not to, they aren’t forced into seeing anything.
Snapchat Takeovers are all the rage right now. I have yet to execute a Takeover, as my shoot yesterday was rained out, but I intend to. The whole idea behind a Takeover, is to take your followers behind the scenes and show them your sessions as they are happening. Hand your phone off to your client and allow her/him to share pictures from their perspective. If you’re on Snapchat, I would love to connect with you there! Follow me (hollitrue) and I will follow back!
The whole point is to simply have fun, share and when it comes to marketing, be innovative. Want to stand out from your competition? The tools are at our fingertips. Much love!
