Weekly Friday Challenge for photographers is brought to you by Today is Different and Current Photographer

1. week #1 7 steps to avoiding the overwhelm of social media Friday Business Challenge (for photographers)

2. take the challenge! Your challenge this week is to follow these quick, easy and practical steps to build a social media plan for your photography business. So grab a coffee (or your beverage of choice) and off we go…

3. week #1: social media plan Like many small business owners you may be active in social media. But do you have a plan? Many businesses (and perhaps you) approach it in a fairly haphazard fashion. There is something so immediate and compelling about social media that draws you in and a plan is probably the last thing on your mind.

4. why a social media plan? You may be on Facebook (personal profile & business page), Twitter, LinkedIn, 3 or 4 forums, Flickr (etc etc etc…) all while trying to keep good, useful, valuable content coming on your blog (and of course, running a business!). If this is you, soon the overwhelm will probably set in. Or maybe it already has! Or you feel lost, dazed and confused by the whole thing! Maybe you realise you’re too busy keeping up with all of your social networking sites and other things are suffering. Or you realise a lot of precious business time has been spent (wasted???) and there is very little to show for it.

5. why a social media plan? Social Media is not FREE. The cost to you is time! As a business (particularly a smaller business) time is one of your most precious resources – use it wisely. A plan allows you to assess how your social networking activities support your business goals. And how the time spent on them supports those goals – or not! Having a strategic goal and a plan will help you to simplify your social networking life and help you to achieve what you need from it.

6. set goals decide time targets plan it do it….content, converse, connect measure it 7 steps

7. 1 goals Define your key business goals (e.g.): brand awareness sales revenue leads loyalty/engagement customer experience other…

8. decide 2 Decide which social site(s) you might use to meet your goals. Remember, sites are all different and some will meet your needs better than others. You will have to devote time to establishing and building your presence. So choose carefully. And chose a few rather than many! Need help deciding? Go to the next page…

9. … (decide)

10. time 3 Some content can be scheduled to run later using one of the many social media scheduling tools available Decide how much time you can dedicate to [quality] social media activity – per day or week

11. targets 4 Set targets for each chosen social media network e.g.: # of Likes, Follows, RTs, Comments website traffic click through rates conversion rates other…

12. 5 plan it Create a plan template (or download this one and adapt to your needs). Complete your plan making time for adding content, conversing, engaging and making connections.

13. do it 6 (content) Focus your plan for your chosen sites on providing plenty of interesting content (converse) Build into your plan time to participate in conversations, groups, ask questions and give answers

14. do it (connect) Follow your plan and remember: Be patient and develop a strong focused network by choosing who you connect with Invest time in building relationships that move you towards your goals

15. measure it 7 Measure against your plan: Is your social media activity moving you towards your business goals (step 1)? Is your plan achievable in the time you set (step 3)? Is each social media site achieving the targets you set (step 4)? Are you providing great content, having conversations and connecting with the right people (step 6)? If the answer to any of the above is NO, rethink, reconsider, redo your plan for next week!

16. what next? 3 steps each week plan it… do it… measure it…

17. Friday Business Challenge Business Challenge for photographers is brought to you by: Robyn Mayne, Sydney, Australia Today is Different Today is Different for photography courses, workshops, retreats and networking… for inspiration, strategy and practical how-to tactics… for business skills, photography skills and life skills...