What is the definition of an effective website design for a photography business? Well, to be it bluntly,an effective website for a photography business is one that:
- Brings in new clients
- Helps retain current clients
- Screens out bad clients
If you already have a website and it is not doing each of those three things, then it is time for a major overhaul. But don't worry, we will show you how to accomplish all three of these objectives in order to maximize your business profitability. Additionally, there are some other critical elements of an effective website that you don't want to do without. These elements are:
- Easy to update. If it is difficult to update your website, then you will never do it. Anything that takes too much time is the first thing to go when things get busy and you can't afford to have a website that is more pain than profit.
- Inexpensive. Most small business owners don't have thousands of dollars to spend on a website. Nor do they have hundreds of dollars to spend each month on maintaining it. The good news is that I will show you how to create your website for very little money up front. And to maintain it each month will usually cost less than the price of a movie ticket.
- Professional Appearance. Putting out a bad first impression is worse than no impression at all. So your website needs to present an appearance that impresses your potential clients. After all, you're in the photography business right? How would it look if your website was ugly? Would your client's think your photography skills would reflect that same lack of quality?
- Engages the visitor. How fast is the average visit to a website? Probably under 10 seconds. So you have 10 seconds to capture their attention and want to learn more about what you offer. We will show you how to do just this.
- Tracks Results. The single most important item in successful businesses is the ability to track what works. By knowing how and why people are visiting your site, you will be able to capitalize on trends and increase visitors. All of which means more clients for you!
So what are some things to avoid when choosing your photography website design? Here are items to watch out for:
- Flashy flash effects. These may look great at first glance but they generally are slow to load and become annoying quite rapidly, leading your visitor to look elsewhere.
- Music. The benefits of music on your site are well outweighed by the likely negative reaction from the majority of your site visitors.
- Unprofessional Design. If your website looks amateurish, no matter how good your photography is the first impression by your visitor will be that you are an amateur photographer. Make sure your design matches the level of professionalism of your work. Wordpress themes are a great way to make this happen.
- All About You. Your website should answer a compelling need of your client and should not be all about you. Show them what they need in their life (your great pictures) rather than try to tell them how great of a photographer you are.