5 Things Your Photography Business Website Cannot Survive Without
When building a photography website most photographers will focus on image selection and design. While having a beautiful website to showcase your photography is fundamental there are other factors to consider – like being contacted and found on search engines. In this article we will dissect the top 5 things your photography business website cannot survive without.
1. Connect with your audience through storytelling on your about page
Besides telling your website visitors who you are, your about page helps first time visitors determine whether you or a competitor are the photographer they need. Acquire a genuine connection with your website visitors by sharing your story and experience on your about page.
What to include in your about page:
- Story Tell your visitors an inspirational story about how your business started and how it has evolved over time. What inspired you to become a photographer?
- Experience and qualifications Increase your credibility by including information about your experience, accreditations, qualifications, and any awards or photography competitions you have won.
- Location Let people know the areas you service i.e. Kelly is a Sydney based family portrait and wedding photographer…
- Photos Photos help your audience connect with you on a personal level. Establish trust with a photo of yourself smiling and looking into the camera or working with a client.
Don’t forget to be honest – include truthful information about you and your business.
2. Make it easy for people to contact you
Essential to acquiring new business is having your contact details displayed on every page of your website – having a contact page is not enough. You also do not want to risk losing another time poor customer who cannot be bothered navigating your website to find your contact details. Make it easy for visitors to contact you by including your contact details on every page of your website!
What to include on a contact page
- Your business name
- If applicable include the physical address of your studio (do not not include your home address)
- Mailing address
- Telephone
- Email address
- Contact form
- Business identification number (e.g. ABN or ACN (AUS)) if applicable – check your local legal obligations if you are selling your photography services or photos.
Include contact details in your website’s footer
Having a website footer that includes your contact details will ensure your business name, email and phone number is published on every page of your website. To increase your chances of being contacted include snippets of html so visitors can click on a link to email you and click to call you from their mobile.
3. SEO: Optimising your images and web pages
Optimising your website helps search engines index your website and images for the purpose of being organic listed in search engine results pages (SERPs) like Google, Yahoo and Bing. Website visitors will also use the meta data on your website to determine whether your business will answer the problem they are trying to resolve i.e. “Event Photography Sydney” or “Wedding Photography LA”.
When optimising your website think about what information is contained within each page and how you would describe each image using keywords. If your page is about event photography pricing make sure your Title reflects this i.e. Sydney event photography pricing or Sydney event photographer rates.
Web page meta data elements:
Meta Title
The Meta Title is what search engines typically display as the link text in search result.
Meta Description
The Meta Description is an overview of the page’s content used by search engines when displaying search results featuring this page.
Meta Keywords
Meta Keywords are used by some search engines to read and interpret whether your site is relevant to someone’s search. Only a few search engines still support this for SEO; the bad practice of keyword stuffing led to it being ignored by most search engines.
Image meta data elements:
Because search engines are not capable of reading images you need to give them meaning. To optimise your images for search engines:
- Describe your image in the file name e.g. bride-portrait.jpg,
- Give your image a Title e.g. Bride posing portrait
- Describe your image in the alt text e.g. Bride posing in window portrait
- Ensure your image has been scaled for the web. Tools like JPEG mini and Web Resizer can help you prepare your images for the web, or if your a Fotomerchant member our platform will scale your high res images automatically for the web.
4. Your site accessible anytime from any device
With over 50% of consumers using mobile and tablet devices to search the internet and make purchases online, having a mobile responsive website has has never been so crucial.
Is your photography website mobile responsive?
Ensure your visitors have an an exceptional online experience by selecting a website template or web building service that offers mobile responsive themes.
5. Share your story and knowledge on your blog
When someone visits your website for the first time they are in the research phase, looking for signals of trust. Actively contributing to your blog empowers you to create an intimate connection with your audience and lets people know your website and business is still operating. Showing people you are reputable and knowledgable here is key.
What to write about?
- Write stories about recent photo shoots – tell your audience what went well, what went wrong and how you fixed it
- Share your photography knowledge on composition and exposure
- Write about photography gear that professionals use
- Share milestones with your audience – celebrate acquiring 1,000 Facebook followers or photo competitions you win
- Run competitions on social media and share the winners on your blog
Need to create a more engaging online presence?
Whether you need a website, blog, client proofing or photo sales tool to easily create a more engaging online presence, Fotomerchant offers a simple and efficient platform built for photographers. Start a free Fotomerchant trial today!
