BY HEADSHOT PHOTOGRAPHER MENTOR, Vanie Poyey

I know you don’t want to hear it and I hate to say it but it’s a fact of life. Social media is a necessary part of our daily marketing.

Referrals alone are no longer enough to support a thriving business. In fact for most photographers referrals alone were never enough. If you were one of the few who got by or got big with referrals alone, consider yourself lucky.

Back in the day, I allocated a portion of my earnings towards advertising.

Advertising back then consisted of putting my most compelling image(s) and my contact info in a market-relevant magazine.

Advertising alone never got me work. Referrals alone never got me work.

Referrals along with advertising got me work.

Let me explain.

Advertising is simply branding. It’s getting your name out to consumers so that they recognize it when your name is referred to them. That recognition converts to trust when a trusted source refers you. That trust converts to a sale. See how that works?

Today, social media *is* the new advertising. So allocating a budget for a social media manager or allocating time for it is important.

Social media is a way for businesses to establish their brand and to gain credibility with social validation.

When a client already follows my work and that client is then referred by an agent or a friend, my social media page serves as the trust already established with my brand. That trust converts to a sale.

If a client that’s referred isn’t already a follower, they’ll likely take a look at my Instagram just to make sure I have social validation behind my work. That social proof, along with a referral turns to trust which then turns into a sale.

But even better, social media brings in direct business so much more than traditional advertising ever did. This allows photographers like me to bypass the middle man like agencies in my case, allowing me to sell directly to consumers.

Because a good social media presence that garners authentic engagement also brings in leads.

So whatever your woes may be about social media, and trust me, I’ve been there, it’s time for a mindset shift to embrace it and use it to your advantage.

More to come on mindset soon.❤️