I want to ask everyone out there why you have a blog?
...and if you don't - why not?
There are no right or wrong answers and I think many of us have different reasons for using blogging technology so if you had to narrow it down to the main reason why you DO have a blog or the main reason you DON'T have a blog what would that be?
30 comments:
I blog to keep clients, friends and family updated with my life and the work I do. It's like a diary I can keep. I've never been able to keep a diary, but this I can do. Websites are hard to keep updates since we are always evolving and improving, but you can show what you are doing daily on a blog. A way to keep something very, very current. :D
It's how I connect and invite connection with the people I want to connect with most.
To personify my work and communicate my style. To make my clients feel special. To provide a reliable source for the latest news and information. To stay connected without filling up email boxes.
1) To share personal images I take
2) To philosophize about the things I observe in this crazy, unpredictable, temporal world
3) To link to interesting photography or geeky stuff I find online
4) Because I built a cool blog tool that lets me post pictures and links in just a few seconds (shameless plug!)
I like having a spot that I can share photos of the kids and our travels and our "goings-ons" with our friends and family. I use it like a newsletter for those we know.
Troy Battle
www.troybattle.blogspot.com
www.troybattle.com
To be like all the other cool photographers. ;)
i have a blog because in theory i would like to actually use it to keep myself connected and personable...mostly for my photography business i am starting ;) but i havent been too dedicated to actually posting yet. but that is all about to change now that ive done my first official wedding!! so stay tuned :)
I do it because I simply cannot stop. Help me. Help me please.
that was me
I dont blog, am I the only one?
Although a blog allows you to connect to clients in a different way, some of our clients choose us for our confidentiality. This year alone we have shot weddings with guests who are royalty or celebrities, and our clients priority with photography is to ensure the pictures are not exploited in the public domain.
The worst thing about blogs is when you start visiting regularly and the blog is not updated for weeks. What if you genuinely don't have anything to put on a blog for weeks, no new products, recent clients want to remain private and you want to keep your family life private so no blogging about what the dog did today.
Does having a blog in this instance cause more harm to your business than good?
I would like to have a blog but I am not sure I can dedicate the time to maintaining it properly.
I don't. I'm afraid of what I might write.
Its a great way to stay connected with family and friends in Alaska. I tend to be an introvert (not healthy for someone in this biz) and my blog is a way of opening up and sharing with my clients.
ha. that's any easy one. I don't have a blog because I just have not had the time to set one up nor the the time to write in one everyday.
Rockie
I think people underestimate the power of a blog...it allows clients to see another side of you and challenges you frequently post. I love blogging and think it's been the catalyst for my business! :)
Quite honestly, I do it because you (David Jay) told me to. Never even thought of doing it before...
I finally started a blog last July (after intending to for months) when I had several clients and friends tell me they looked at my website all the time. I felt sorry for them because the website only gets updated a few times a year, so I'm not sure what they were looking at. The blog is a way to show off what or who I just photographed to my "fans" and link to new slideshows.
[O]h [c]ome [o] [n]ow [S]hane...[y]ou're [a] [g]reat [w]riter! [Y]our [p]osts [g]et [m]ore [h]its [t]han [a]nyone [e]lse's!!!!
Blogging changed my life!!! Seriously!! It has helped my business in so many ways! I have the randomest people saying they visit my blog everyday and tell their friends about it! So awesome! And a TON of fun to do too!! :)
Wow! This is so cool to see all the reasons people blog and how many of us blog (or don't blog) for completely different reasons and it all can lead to having a better business depending on how you approach it!
We are setting up our blog as we speak just because I find it so fun to see the awesome things other people and photographers are doing. I figure the same as Jan...my website will only be updated once every month or two...the blog will give my clients the opportunity to see into who we really are on a regular basis. Thats important to us. We really want clients who like who we are...this way we are a better match for each other.
I don't. I wish I did- I think- maybe sometimes. I am a mother of 3 with my business to run and my husbands (our oldest child is 4). So I am busy and I am afraid I would get totally lost behind (or in front of my computer screen) My children would wonder if they had a mon at all. I also am not sure where to start and I feel like all my energy is already pulled so many different directions trying to learn of and keep up with all of the cool products out there! UGHH! I can feel my brain turning right now. Would blogging help or make it worse?!!!
At first I wanted to keep my family and friends updated on what's up in my life and my studies in Spain. Little by little things began to change 'cause now people want to see what I've been shooting and learning and it's cool, cause I think I've seen my photos evolve and get better. (I hope haha).
Also I like to send possitive words to anyone who needs it.
byeeee
Wow - so cool! I love hearing all the reasons people blog and it's amazing that so many of us blog for different reasons and yet ALL the reasons are good ones!
One reason that I blog, and it's actually one of the main ones, is to join in a conversation about things that are happening.
This may sound a bit weird but I actually blog so that I can listen. Of course I always join the conversation but I think the main reason I blog is to hear what all of you think and then talk about it. I guess that's how I've always learned.
I want to encourage everyone to:
1. Keep blogging (no matter the reason you're doing it)
2. Work to make your blog two directional - by that I mean don't make it just an easy form of "broadcast advertising"
3. Engage in the conversation. I see a lot of blogs where the original poster never comes back and responds to the people who commented.
4. Be Remarkable! (As Seth Godin would say) ...and Be Real. I think people want a business that's been "humanized" and blogs have the potential to do that very well.
Rock on! Blog away!
DJ
I boycotted blogging for a long time because I thought for whatever reason it was unprofressional to put personal info out there. But then the more I realized every photographer and videographer had one, I figured there must be something to them.
So I finally gave in and started one, and WOW, what a difference it has made in my business!! It starts great conversations in booking brides when they bring up the latest and greatest of news they saw on my blog. I've been amazed to see how it has been a great tool to build relationships with brides and colleagues in the industry.
Thanks too for your tips about commenting back on blogs. I need to start doing that.
Oh man, I love my blog! I feel kind of silly sometimes since I feel like it conects me with so many people--friends to clients, and sometimes there are no comments, etc, but still it fills that need. It's like an online scrapbook of what I've done, done with clients-- complete with photos and thoughts. I keep a personal journal too. I believe in writing--it first connects you to yourself, and a blog does that and connects you to others! IT'S GREAT!
i feel it gives my clients a connection with me that they want to maintain by continuing to work with me and it starts a connection with clients that have yet to hire me but it's hard for them to not follow through with. plus it's the best place in the world to showcase my Showit Web shows, OH Yah!!!!!!
because where else can i post my fishing pictures? :)
Blogging:
1) does take a lot of time.
2) brings in tons of traffic
That's been my experience :)
I blog for various business reasons that have been mentioned, but also because it's kind of like my own little 15 minutes of fame!
Thomas Sanderson Photography
Wedding Photography Blog
Use my blog as a website... its free, its clean, up load photos is easy. Hey, it's working for me! Http://reneephotos.blogspot.com/
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