James Gaubert | How to Become a Photographer in 6 Steps?

James Gaubert | All of us are photographers whether we use our mobile cameras, a compact digital camera or a DSLR. But many of us have toyed with the idea of taking on photography as a career. These 6 steps will show you how anyone, with dedication and work, can build a career in this lucrative area.

Step 1 – How to Become a Photographer – Focus

James Gaubert | The first step in learning How to Become a Photographer is to decide whether you are willing to do what is required. It will take dedication, a lot of work, focus, some investment and loads of practise. You will need to make sacrifices. Time and Money will be needed. You will need to properly learn the art of photography. You will be at a certain point now – to really adopt Photography as your profession, you will need to elevate your skills to a whole new level and this will take practise. You will also need to consider what type of market within photography you intend to pursue. Wedding Photography is very lucrative, Fashion Photography would take a real effort to break in to. Boudoir Photography is a growing area and even Family Photography can put bread on the table.

Step 2 – How to Become a Photographer – Training

James Gaubert | Thanks to this wonderful resource called the internet there is a load of training available for anyone wondering How to Become a Photographer, some free, some paid.

I can recommend several sites to you to follow – make sure you like them on Facebook or subscribe to their feeds so that you stay on top of all of the information they are going to provide you.

Sites right across the internet including my own will be a great resource for you.

Step 3 – How to Become a Photographer – Equipment

James Gaubert | So, if you really want to learn How to Become a Photographer you are going to need a decent camera.

Head down to your local Mega store and Bam! Every camera ever created and known to man (at just about every price level) assaults you. If you are lucky enough to have someone from the store offer to help you, they probably look like they haven’t even graduated junior high and it’s doubtful they have much photographic experience.

Take a deep breath, and let me guide you through some of the different types of cameras and the different levels of associated cost. In the end, you should be a more informed consumer and you can impress the sales clerks with your fundamental knowledge

Step 4 – How to Become a Photographer – Practice

James Gaubert | So.. we are clearly spelling out to you How to Become a Photographer.. now the work begins.

Much like my friend the drummer here.. to make a career out of anything relating to an Art takes practise! The more practise. The more practise!

Why?

Taking great photos requires a complete focus on your composition. Be it for a wedding, a fashion shoot, a glamour shot or whatever, you need to compose your shots, pose your subject and ensure a creative outcome.

Step 5 – How to Become a Photographer – Marketing & Promotion

James Gaubert | You have a clear plan about what sort of photographer you plan to become. You have just the right gear, you have invested in training to ensure you know exactly what you are doing, you have spent thousands of hours in practise and exposed yourself to professional photographers as much as possible.

What next? In order to put your shingle up and begin making a living as a photographer you need to market yourself and promote your services.

Step 6 – How to Become a Photographer – Perseverance

James Gaubert | This is a very competitive field and you will need to really stick at it if you want to succeed.

James Gaubert | When You Should Change Your Digital Marketing Strategy

James Gaubert is one of the most enthusiastic, and infectious personalities in digital marketing. James Gaubert comes at new platforms and developments with open arms and looks at ways to utilize them to best effect.

Digital Marketing

Digital Marketing is continually evolving and this may seem unsettling at times. Strategies that were working in past, might not be effective in the present. Do you know why many businesses fail to get ahead of their competitors? It’s simply because they are not willing to adapt to the ever-changing world of digital media. But, the great thing about a digital marketing strategy is that you can change them on the fly in response to real-time results and analytics data. While this may seem tricky as if you change things too quickly, you may not be able to find if your strategy worked for long-term. But if you wait for a long time, you are likely to waste your two valuable resources: time and money.

With that said, how do you know when its the right time to change your Digital Marketing strategy? To help you keep up with the fast-paced industry, I’ve created this post to help you know when to change your digital marketing strategy.

Below are the 5 signs to help you decide when to quit your existing strategy.

1. Focusing on low-value metrics

If you’re concentrating on low-value metrics like impressions and clicks, you may be missing out because impressions and clicks only let you know about your marketing visibility. And not the real accuracy of your strategies.

2. Only focusing on your brand not on audience needs

Every marketer wants to spread their brand name but you should not overdo by pasting your brand name all over everything. In fact, make your content educational that focus on your audience problems and needs. This would really help you in targeting buyers in initial stages of the buyer’s journey.

3. Over usage of keywords

Although, it’s required to place keywords in your content, Google’s priority always lies in providing reach user experience and relevancy of content. Google has nothing to do with how many times your site shows the keyword like “Digital Marketing Strategy.”

4. Don’t rely on your instinct

Your prior experience is certainly precious. But your decision-making process should not be only based on what worked in the past. It’s a really bad idea as what worked tomorrow may be completely irrelevant today. Therefore guiding your marketing strategy through objective data will only get you better results.

5. Not integrated

Whether it’s about veteran digital marketer, sitting in IT or a start-up company, it’s too common for digital marketing strategies to be finished in silos. It is an easier way but of course, it’s not effective. It’s true that digital approach works best when it’s integrated with traditional channels.

Now you know that if you need to change your digital marketing strategy or not, here is a complete guide to help you build a new, powerful marketing strategy to achieve your online goals.

What are the essential steps for creating an effective digital marketing strategy?

When creating a marketing strategy for your business, always keep your audience first. Set goals, plan your strategy, implement it, and finally measure your success.

• Research on your target market and competitors
• Know your audience because if you don’t them, how can you help them
• Integrate different marketing strategies and use only the correct tools
• If you don’t have the required skills set, don’t hesitate to purchase special services
• Identify your online value proposition and apply it across all digital marketing channels
• Last but definitely not the least, prepare yourself

But before you do something ask yourself few questions. Asking yourself right questions and having their answers in place will certainly help you make the right decisions. I’ve given some Q’s & A’s below to help you out.

Which digital channels are most effective for you and why?

With so many digital channels around, it gets difficult to choose the best one. So you can identify it with these simple basics:

• Identify the channel where most of your potential customers like to hang out
• Analyze your target audience behavior
• Build awareness with Twitter
• Attend industry events and conferences
• Social media and newsletters to reach out to your potential customers
• SEO or combination of SEO and PPC to help you attract more visitors

How to evaluate your digital marketing activities?

Unfortunately, some companies don’t know how to answer this question correctly. If you’re also one of them, don’t feel embarrassed! Just hop on and find out how can you determine the right metrics and evaluate your current digital marketing activities.

• Identify your target KPI (Key Performance Indicator) to help you understand what’s working
• Monitor your website traffic and sales to know the necessary statistics about your customers
• Track and measure your metrics through Google Analytics
• Survey your site visitors to find if they’re satisfied with your solutions
• Track ROI, conversions, market share, and sales

How to make your business stand out from the crowd?

In today’s competitive digital market it’s really difficult to make your business stand out from your competitors. But an effective strategy can help you stay ahead of them. Let’s see how.

• Effectively communicate and educate your customers
• Stay honest and transparent to build customer’s loyalty
• Talk less, listen more
• Be authoritative and helpful in what you do
• Know your competitors and learn from them
• Be creative, open-minded, and try new technologies
• Speak in your audience language
• Use proof points and testimonials to show you’re the best